Also Noted: Spotlight On... High-speed Internet pricing varies widely at telcos
NBCVU veteran Brian Hunt joins Viamedia; Razorsight's Alan Stiffler named to board of advisors and much more... Special report: The battle for union contracts
 Negotiations between the large U.S.-based telcos and their wireline unions--the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW)--continue to be a major storyline in the wireline side of telecom. As the major telcos have been migrating towards IP-based services and their legacy wireline voice service revenues have declined, it has cut into revenues that would be used to pay for union health and retirement benefits. Check out our new feature  Follow @FierceCable on Twitter!
News From the Fierce Network:
1. Sprint extends Ethernet reach into Spain via Interxion
2. Dish, SoftBank poised for bidding war over Sprint
3. Telstra tightening up IPTV division; Consorteum Holdings partners with KO Entertainment
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Today's Top News 1. Time Warner Cable adds out-of-home viewing to TWC TV app
Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) said it'll launch an upgrade for its Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) iOS app on Wednesday that will allow subscribers to view live and video-on-demand programming from several networks outside the home.  | Source: Time Warner Cable | The upgrade, which will be available for download at 10 a.m. ET, will let subscribers watch live programming from BBC America, beIN Sports, Big 10 Network, FearNet and GMC on the iPad, iPhone, iPad Mini and iPod Touch devices. The MSO said it'll also offer local cable news programming, and video-on-demand content from several networks, including TV Guide Network, Hallmark Channel, Univision, FearNet, and Viacom's (NYSE: VIA) BET, Comedy Central, Logo and Nickelodeon. Time Warner Cable COO Rob Marcus told analysts on an earnings call in January that Time Warner was working on signing broader carriage deals with programmers that include rights to out-of-home viewing. He said the TWC TV app generated more than 750,000 unique users in December. Adding more out-of-home content to the apps could drive increased usage and help the MSO compete with DirecTV (Nasdaq: DTV) and other rivals. The MSO has also made multiplatform viewing options the centerpiece of a new ad campaign. For more:
- see the release Commentary: How Comcast, Charter and Time Warner Cable will use TV Everywhere to steal DirecTV and Dish subscribers Related articles:
Time Warner Cable adds VOD content to TWC TV app for PCs and Macs
Time Warner Cable signs former Steelers coach Bill Cowher to endorsement deal
Time Warner Cable to deploy 'souped up DVR' in second half of 2013 Read more about: iOS, Time Warner Cable
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2. Time Warner Cable shutting down circuit-switched phone service on former Insight system
3. FCC: National Emergency Alert System test failed on 27% of cable headends
About 27 percent of 2,944 cable headends nationwide failed to receive the Emergency Alert System notice that was sent during the first national test of the alert system conducted in November 2011, according to an FCC report. Cable system headends performed better than broadcasters during the national EAS test, the FCC said. About 83 percent of 11,498 broadcasters that participated successfully received the notice, compared to 73 percent of cable headends, the FCC said. Satellite TV providers had results similar to cable operators and other wireline providers, according to the FCC. The commission doesn't name any individual pay TV distributors or broadcasters in the report. But several reports about glitches emerged in the weeks after the test was conducted, including DirecTV (Nasdaq: DTV) subscribers who said they heard a Lady Gaga song instead of the emergency alert tone. Some Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) subscribers in Virginia reported that they saw the feed for home-shopping channel QVC during the test. While there were some technical glitches, the FCC report concludes that the test "was a success in that it demonstrated that the national EAS would generally perform as designed, if activated." The FCC's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau also recommends that the FCC team up with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to conduct a second national test. For more:
- see the FCC report (.pdf) Related articles:
Zombie prank prompts FCC to warn cable operators, TV stations to protect Emergency Alert System
FCC attempts to shut down Florida cable operator for violating signal leakage, EAS rules
FCC: Cablevision's Bresnan system monitored wrong Emergency Alert System channel
GAO to review National Emergency Alert System test
Glitches hit national test of Emergency Alert System Read more about: FCC, EAS
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4. Comcast promotes Butz to EVP of sales and marketing operations
Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) said Tuesday that it promoted 20-year company veteran Greg Butz to EVP of sales and marketing operations for its Comcast Cable unit.  | Butz (Source: Comcast) | The nation's largest cable MSO said Butz, who reports to Comcast Cable EVP and COO Dave Watson, will continue to run consumer marketing for its Xfinity products and focus on evolving its subscriber acquisition, retention and segmentation strategies. Butz joined the company in 1993 as director of business development for its former cellular communications division, and moved to the cable division in 1999. Butz is also a former SVP of marketing and business development for Comcast Online. "He has done a terrific job leading our consumer marketing and retention strategies, and is crucial to our success as we continue to innovate and deliver the best products and services to our customers," Watson said in a prepared statement. For more:
- see the release Related articles:
Comcast promotes Daley and McCue to assistant treasurers
Comcast names Hank Fore regional SVP for California
Comcast shifts regional VP Rodrigo Lopez to Oregon and Southwest Washington division Read more about: Comcast
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5. Amdocs targets cable MSOs, mobile providers with Wi-Fi Experience Solution
Amdocs launched a new Wi-Fi product that could be used by cable MSOs to support subscribers on Wi-Fi-based phone services or to allow customers watching video on a tablet in their homes to stream the video uninterrupted on their way to work. The technology vendor said it is targeting both fixed broadband providers such as cable MSOs and mobile providers with the Wi-Fi Experience Solution, which it unveiled at a conference in Berlin. Amdocs, which supplies a billing platform to several pay TV providers, including Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) and DirecTV (Nasdaq: DTV), said the product could allow service providers with Wi-Fi networks to target casual users with the option of buying a one-day pass to access their networks. Of all U.S. cable MSOs, Cablevision (NYSE: CVC) has built the most extensive Wi-Fi network on its cable systems in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, where it has 70,000 Wi-Fi hotspots. The MSO has said it is also studying how it may be able to offer subscribers a hybrid mobile phone service that would rely on Wi-Fi and cellular networks. Amdocs didn't announce deals with Cablevision or any other cable MSOs, but a spokeswoman told FierceCable that the Wi-Fi Experience product does have the ability to support a hybrid mobile phone service. Comcast, Verizon Wireless (NYSE: VZ) and other cable MSOs have been developing products through their joint innovation lab in Silicon Valley that are focused on offering cable and wireless phone subscribers new ways to consume cable programming on mobile devices. The Amdocs product has some potential to be used to support Verizon and its cable partners, since it can allow an authenticated cable subscriber watching subscription video programming on a mobile device connected to a Wi-Fi router in his home to continue viewing the same program on a 3G or 4G network. For more:
- see the release Related articles:
Comcast developing 'magical' mobile video product with Verizon Wireless
Cablevision may launch WiFi voice service; warns of 'significant' impact from Hurricane Sandy
Amdocs adds over-the-top and self-service capabilities to billing solution
DirecTV extends Amdocs' billing deal; Cablevision to pay dividend
Amdocs extends Comcast deal; Viacom posts revenue gain Read more about: Cablevision, Directv
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Also Noted SPOTLIGHT ON... High-speed Internet pricing varies widely at telcos In today's spotlight, FierceTelecom takes a look at pricing of high-speed Internet services offered by AT&T (NYSE: T), Verizon (NYSE: VZ) and other telcos. Wide gaps exist between the fees charged for DSL and fiber-based services, and there are also significant differences in prices for the same product from different providers. For example, while Verizon charges $205 monthly for its 300 Mbps FiOS Quantum tier, Lumos Networks (Nasdaq: LMOS) subscribers must pay $750 monthly for its 300 Mbps product. Read more Cable industry news from across the Web: > Managed broadband services provider ZCorum said it was named a "Business of Excellence" by the city of Alpharetta, Ga. News release > Razorsight named former Neustar and Cable & Wireless executive Alan Stiffler to its board of advisors. News release > Viamedia named former NBCUniversal executive Brian Hunt SVP of affiliate relations and business development. News release > Univision said it'll report first-quarter earnings on April 23. News release IPTV News > Australian researchers are working with Ericsson's IPTV platform technology on a proof of concept that uses IPTV to deliver tailored educational video content to people with diabetes. Article > Verizon is pulling its most popular widget, YouTube, from its FiOS interactive menu, the carrier has informed its existing customers. Article Telecom News > Interoute, a European cloud service platform provider, has chosen Infinera's DTN-X platform as its 100G platform of choice on its Pan-European network. Article And finally… WWE said it raised more than $500,000 for Hurricane Sandy relief efforts. News release > Competitive Carriers Global Expo - April 17-19 - New Orleans CCA is the premier trade show and conference for the competitive mobile ecosystem and brings together decision-makers for networking, learning and sharing best practices. CCA is the nation's leading association for competitive wireless providers. To register www.ccaevents.org. > Fierce Innovation Awards 2012 Live Announcement of this Year's Winners - Now Available On-Demand Please join Jason Nelson, Publisher of FierceWireless, FierceTelecom, and FierceCable as we announce the winners of the Fierce Innovation Awards 2012. Click here to RSVP today.
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