An ambitious effort by the cable industry to create unified standards for targeted and interactive television advertising has failed, the vi… Read more at paidContent »
Comcast is rolling out a new streaming on-demand offering called Xfinity Streampix, which will bring more library content to subscribers that pay for its high-end double- and triple-play packages. That could give subscribers less of a reason to also pay for Netflix or Hulu Plus. Read more »
Regressive, telco industry-influenced state legislators are at it again, trying to kill communities’ right to determine their own broadband futures. Anti-community broadband bills are rearing their ugly heads in several states. Can SOPA-style protests help? Read more »
The bleeding has finally slowed for Comcast’s cable business. Reporting its fourth-quarter and full-year earnings Wednesday, the Philadelphi… Read more at paidContent »
TV Everywhere is giving people access to content they are not actually paying for. I know, because I’m one of them. The question is whether that is stealing — and if it is, is there anything that cable companies can actually do about it? Read more »
Besides the typical $1 to $2 broker fee, one of the factors limiting the growth of the online movie-ticket selling business has been its com… Read more at paidContent »
Congress is eyeing the competitive implications of Verizon’s $4 billion deals to buy spectrum from the cable companies. Much like those of us at GigaOM, they are wondering if this is a cease-fire in terms of broadband competition in the air and on the ground. Read more »
The country’s largest mobile operator and largest cable provider bringing their “quadruple play” service to San Francisco and the Bay Area, jointly marketing Comcast residential TV and broadband and Verizon mobile service. In the process, they’re poking a needle in the eye of mutual enemy AT&T. Read more »
Could Apple spend its $100 billion in cash to create a virtual cable operator to compete with Comcast and the like? Sure. But it would have a really hard time offering a competitively priced service and building a profitable business out of it. Read more »
From 1990s through 2011, DSL, a broadband technology, had a strong run at large phone companies in America. Now it is falling behind cable broadband and fiber. The latest data from Verizon, AT&T and Time Warner Cable points to its declining fortunes. Read more »
Some numbers out today that underscore the challenge telecoms operators have had in attracting customers to their pay-TV platforms, includin… Read more at paidContent »
Comcast claims it tried but failed to build a wireless business multiple times before it sold out to Verizon. Assuming Comcast is being honest, its failure has big implications for U.S. mobile competition. If Comcast can’t make wireless work, what hope is there for a newcomer? Read more »
From SOPA to Microsoft’s expanded Xbox live platform to cloud-based content storage from Apple and Google, the fourth quarter in consumer electronics and media was all about the continued battle for digital living room dominance. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Struggling for leverage with cable distributors as the operator of an independent network, Mark Cuban may have found a way forward for one o… Read more at paidContent »
Comcast, the Philadelphia-based cable company, was the fastest broadband service provider in the U.S., according to Ookla, a broadband speed test company. In fact, Comcast and its cable industry peers trounced the phone companies when it came to download speeds. Read more »
The evolution of premium cable TV beyond the living room took another step this week, with Showtime introducing a streaming app to rival HBO… Read more at paidContent »
One DVR to rule them all? In addition to bringing Comcast’s new cloud-based user interface to subscriber homes, the Xcalibur set-top box includes DLNA Premium Video, which will allow users to access live and recorded TV from tablets, PCs, connected TVs and other devices. Read more »
Comcast (NSDQ: CMCSA) has started in-home streaming but it’s not quite live video Valhalla. Streaming access to the Xfinity TV linear lineup… Read more at paidContent »
The latest evidence that the set-top box will soon be dead comes from Samsung and DirecTV, which have partnered. Set-top boxless viewing will enable operators to provide the same user interface on the TV without the need for another piece of hardware. Read more »
Comcast is finally making live TV available on the iPad. But unlike other operators, it’s not just making those streams available directly through an app: Customers who wish to take advantage of the live offering will need an extra set of equipment to make it work. Read more »
The 2012 CES show hasn’t even officially kicked off and already the smart energy home has emerged as a key target for a variety of sectors, including telcos, big box retailers, startups, chip companies and now cable operators like Time Warner Cable. Read more »
Yesterday’s press release from Disney (NYSE: DIS) and Comcast (NSDQ: CMCSA), announcing a comprehensive new ten-year distribution agreement… Read more at paidContent »
Comcast (NSDQ: CMCSA) Xfinity TV subscribers stymied by the lack of access to iPad app WatchESPN have relief in sight: a new multi-year, cro… Read more at paidContent »
Comcast struck a new agreement with Disney that gives it access to a wide range of content from ABC, Disney and ESPN networks across a number of screens and platforms. The 10-year deal also stipulates that the companies will collaborate on developing applications for new devices. Read more »
This is the last in a series of posts that highlighted key people, companies and trends to watch in 2012 in the sectors we cover most, from… Read more at paidContent »
Call it the year of lessons learned, if not quite bubbles burst. In 2011, several trends in the connected consumer space that appeared inexorable at the start of the year seemed disorganized by the end. What does that mean for the next 12 months? From cloud-based media storage to daily deals to the fight for the digital living room, 2012 will be a year of consolidation and integration. Both entrepreneurs and investors will figure out that many once-promising standalone business models need to be grounded on more solid, integrated platforms to create real value. Companies mentioned in this report include Hulu, LivingSocial, Netflix and Zynga. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Now it’s Verizon’s turn in the government spotlight. The U.S. Department of Justice plans to look into the recent deals that the wireless co… Read more at paidContent »
Charter Communications picked up one of the hardest-working men in the cable business when it named Tom Rutledge as its CEO. And it couldn’t have come at a more critical time, as Charter faces consumer demand for TV Everywhere and increasing competition from streaming services. Read more »
The Federal Trade Commission announced today Comcast (NSDQ: CMCSA) CEO Brian L. Roberts has agreed to pay $500,000 to settle charges that he… Read more at paidContent »
Sonic.net, an independent ISP in San Francisco, plans to roll out a gigabit network to the city, putting the hub of today’s tech and web community on equal footing with Chattanooga, Tenn., and eventually both sides of Kansas City, where Google plans to lay fiber. Read more »
Verizon is getting its full turn in the rumor mill. Last week, word had it that Verizon is looking to launch an OTT subscription service. Ne… Read more at paidContent »
Two of the biggest global news brands are gaining a bigger U.S. foothold – but, while one has finally broken in to the TV mainstream, the ot… Read more at paidContent »
With the rollout of its massive Xbox Live update, Microsoft has made a strong bid for the pole position in the digital living room. And with dozens of new programming partners also included with the update, the company now offers perhaps the most comprehensive, versatile and ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Last week, Verizon announced a $3.6 billion deal to buy wireless spectrum from cable operators and resell their pay-TV services. This week,… Read more at paidContent »
Virtual MSOs might start appearing as soon as next year, according to BTIG analyst Richard Greenfield. But any streaming offering that emerges is unlikely to be priced less than $50, which means even if they do launch, the potential market is likely to be limited. Read more »
Verizon’s blockbuster deal with the major cable operators has made casualties of its future residential broadband expansion plans and its partnership with DirecTV. Verizon is wasting little time in embracing its rivals Comcast and Time Warner and overturning the competitive dynamics of the residential broadband industry. Read more »
Comcast’s Neil Smit is taking the title of CEO for the company’s cable operations, 18 months after joining the company. In that time, Smit has led an improvement in the company’s customer service, while also ramping up product development and improving customer retention. Read more »
Many cable operators are considering new pricing for broadband services that would link the amount of data their subscribers consume with the amount they pay. But Comcast isn’t one of them, as it doesn’t want to “nickel-and-dime” customers of its highest-growth service. Read more »
Cox Communications is making live TV available on the iPad, with the release of a new app that lets subscribers watch shows in their homes. The Cox TV Connect app makes it the latest pay TV operator to extend its service to new devices. Read more »
The new Xbox Live update launching tomorrow is the start of a rollout of lots of new content partners on the platform. But the big innovation will be allowing them to be navigated from a unified search mechanism powered by Microsoft’s Bing. Read more »
