| This week's sponsor is Amdocs. |  | Webinar: Is your strategy for small and medium-sized businesses bringing rewards?
Wednesday, December 4th, 11am ET / 8am PT / 4pm GMT Gain insights into where service providers are currently experiencing problems in the sales cycle, with a benchmark for the SMB market by sector, as well as ideas on how to increase efficiency. Register Today! |
Also Noted: Spotlight On... Huawei demos LTE Broadcast in Asia with Smart Communications
Kaman joins Rentrak; Cox usage meters are not accurate and much more...  Holiday promotion madness: Online video providers, vendors vie for subscribers and sales
How are online video providers going after new subscribers this holiday season? With Black Friday and Cyber Monday looming, a few are already gearing up the marketing machine to entice viewers to switch to their channel or purchase their online video-capable equipment. Here are some strategies the largest providers and vendors are putting into motion this holiday season: Special Report
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| This week's sponsors are Ateme, Harris Broadcast, Kontron, Ramp, Vubiquity and PacketVideo Corporation. |  | eBook | Making Money from Multiscreen Cable operators and networks are slowly building a platform that could make multiscreen programming and advertising a much bigger business. Learn more today. |
Today's Top News 1. Comcast partners with Nielsen to experiment with ads for on-demand content
Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is teaming with Nielsen to determine a way for advertisers to insert current ads into on-demand episodes that are being viewed by consumers days after they originally air. In an interview with Variety, Comcast's senior vice president and general manager of video services Matt Strauss said that the companies are working in conjunction with some of the networks to determine a measurement for on-demand commercial ratings that would find out if the audience that is watching VOD content is useful to companies that sponsor TV programs. In other words, can this audience be measured and is there a business model for advertisers? Comcast and Nielsen hope to have some answers in the first quarter of 2014. And many experts believe that once there are some metrics to measure the viewership of VOD content, on-demand will become a part of the networks' ad sales efforts. Comcast also believes that the tests it's conducting with Nielsen may help TV networks gain more ground in the overall ratings race. According to Variety, since 2007 advertisers have paid only for viewers who watch the commercials that accompany the program when it first airs. But TV networks, which are seeing audiences watch shows several days beyond that window, think they ought to be paid for more. However, that concept has been met with resistance from media buyers. According to Comcast, 43 percent of on-demand viewing of a current episode takes place within three days of the show's original air date. Using on-demand commercial ratings and adding the exact same ad load that accompanied the current episode to prior episodes, Comcast estimates 60 percent of viewing would take place within that three-day window. Interestingly, earlier this year CBS Corp. announced it would begin releasing ratings information that include data on viewing from cable video-on-demand and online video sites. One of the goals behind CBS' strategy was to help it drive increased advertising revenue from distribution on the free VOD platforms major cable MSOs offer subscribers. For more:
- see this Variety article
- see this Deadline article Related articles:
CableLabs shines spotlight on VOD advertising potential
CBS lifting veil of secrecy on VOD data
Ad-supported VOD is pay-TV's 'missed opportunity' Read more about: Comcast
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| This week's sponsor is Qualcomm. |  | Webinar: LTE Advanced in unlicensed spectrum?
Tuesday, December 10th, 1pm ET /10am PT As the operators prepare for the looming 1000x data challenge, small cells and utilizing all spectrum resources are in the front and center. But, does it work? What is needed? Tune into this webinar to get the answers Register Today! |
2. TWC may face contentious negotiations over new SportsNet LA network
Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) may have difficulty persuading other Pay-TV providers to carry its new regional sports channel in Los Angeles. Sources told the New York Post that several distributors are planning to decline the Dodgers network, named SportsNet LA, because of Time Warner's pricey fees. According to sources, which were not identified by the Post but said to be close to the negotiations, TWC is expected to charge distributors $5 per month per subscriber for the network. That fee would then increase to $8 per sub per month over five years. The No. 2 cable operator was able to secure distribution for SportsNet and Deportes channels last year by using some tough negotiating tactics. The $5 per month per subscriber fee that Time Warner is asking is high for a regional sports network. By comparison, the Post reports that Madison Square Garden in New York, which carries the Knicks and the Rangers, charges roughly $5 for two channels. TWC wants to offer the SportsNet LA on expanded basic cable and not as a separate sports tier, sources said. However, if its negotiations fall short, the company may consider other options, such as rolling the Dodgers rights into Time Warner Cable's existing SportsNet channel rather than launching a standalone channel for LA. Time Warner reportedly paid $8 billion over 25 years for rights to Dodgers games. As part of the deal, TWC agreed to carry the Dodgers channel and get other Pay-TV distributors to also carry the network. TWC is also making tweaks to its regional news networks. Earlier this month the company said it was changing the network of its 16 regional news networks to Time Warner Cable News, except for its network in New York City, which will be called Time Warner Cable News NY1. For more:
- see this New York Post article Related articles:
Time Warner Cable rebrands regional news channels
Rogers NHL pact sees Canadian operator double Comcast's hockey rights fees Read more about: Time Warner Cable
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3. DirecTV, Dish lead in customer satisfaction
Satellite providers DirecTV (Nasdaq: DTV) and Dish Network (Nasdaq: DISH) topped a recent pay-TV customer satisfaction study from London-based research firm YouGovBrandIndex. According to the study, DirecTV scored a satisfaction ranking of 21, which is the same score it received six months ago in an earlier study. Coming in second was Dish Networks, which scored a 16, a two point gain over its ranking of 14 six months ago. The cable operators didn't fare as well as their satellite competitors. Cox Communications scored a 14, and Cablevision Systems Corp., (NYSE: CVC) scored a 5, which was down four points from its score six months ago. And Comcast Corp., (Nasdaq: CMCSA) the largest cable provider in the U.S., scored a 1, which was slightly higher than its negative 1 scoring six months ago. Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) scored an abysmal negative 10, which is a decline from its negative 7 rating six months ago. YouGovBrandIndex's satisfaction scores range from 100 to negative 100 and are compiled by subtracting the negative feedback from the positive. A zero score means equal positive and negative feedback. YouGov's study asked consumers: "Are you a satisfied customer?" All respondents must be 18 or older and results are based upon 30,000 interviews conducted during 2013. High profile TV blackouts such as Time Warner's blackout of CBS stations in August were likely factors that contributed to the cable industry's poor ratings in the 2013 study. Cable operators also scored poorly in an August study by the Temkin group that ranked customer service. Charter Communications (Nasdaq: CHTR) placed dead last, and Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) was ranked No. 234 out 235 total companies listed. For more:
- see this MediaPost article
- see this BrandIndex post Related Articles:
Charter, TWC, Cox, Cablevision ranked last in Temkin customer service ratings
Bright House, Dish Network rank top in customer satisfaction study
ACSI: FiOS, DirecTV, U-verse top subscription TV biz in customer satisfaction
Verizon's latest call center technology: Pick your own CSR
Cox tops J.D. Power business wireline survey Read more about: YouGovBrandIndex, Comcast
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4. Merger speculation is propelling TWC stock price up 45%
Speculation about a potential purchase of Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) by Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA), Charter Communications (Nasdaq: CHTR) or Cox Communications is causing the company's stock to soar. According to Craig Moffett of MoffettNathanson Research, the company's stock has increased in price 45 percent over the last six months. On Friday, TWC's stock closed at $138.22. In a research note, Moffett said that because of TWC's rising stock price, a potential buyer, such as Charter, Comcast or Cox, will have to pay $150 a share or more to buy Time Warner Cable, which is too much. Moffett said he doesn't believe the price should be more than $120 a share and his target price for the stock is $108. Moffett cautioned that Time Warner Cable is not doing that well and is using "outsized broadband price increases to paper over otherwise terrible operational performance." He said that any synergies between Time Warner Cable and its potential buyer would not be that great (he estimated about $12 per share in synergies) and cautioned that overpaying for Time Warner Cable would be perilous to a potential acquirer. So which company is likely to pursue Time Warner Cable? Moffett said if Cablevision acquired Time Warner, it will likely face regulatory costs that would diminish the value of the acquisition. He also said that if Cox, Comcast and Charter tried to divvy up Time Warner Cable, that would also diminish synergies but it would also eliminate any potential bidding war. Last week Bloomberg reported that executives at Comcast and Charter Communications were holding preliminary talks aimed at acquiring Time Warner Cable, which could help each operator expand cable system clusters in Los Angeles, New York and other markets. For more:
- see this Deadline article
- see this MoffettNathanson Research report (sub. req.) Related articles:
Report: Comcast, Charter may chop up Time Warner Cable
Britt: TWC open to mergers that 'make money for our owners'
Malone floats scenarios for Time Warner Cable – Charter merger
Comcast CFO says M&A possible, but not at debt levels John Malone is comfortable with
Malone: Cable must consolidate to compete with Google, Apple Read more about: Charter
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5. Amazon's Bezos dodges questions about set-top box plans
Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) CEO Jeff Bezos deftly dodged questions by "60 Minutes" reporter Charlie Rose about his company's reported secret set-top box project that would allow customers to watch streaming video without a cable provider.  | | Bezos | In an interview with Bezos that aired Sunday evening, Rose asked Bezos if Amazon was working on such a set-top box. Bezos replied: "I can't answer that question. I don't want to talk about the future roadmap of our devices… I'll just have to ask you to just stay tuned." Amazon has been dodging questions about its reported plans to launch a set-top for several months. Back in April, Bloomberg Businessweek reported that Amazon was working on a device that would stream video over the Internet and plug into a TV to provide access to an array of Amazon video offerings such as video-on-demand, Instant Video and Amazon Prime. Although all of Bloomberg's sources requested anonymity, the fact that the company was working on such a device was not surprising. There already are other companies out there working on similar projects such as Roku, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) TV and Boxee. Supposedly, Amazon's set-top box efforts are being headed by its Lab126 division in Cupertino under the direction of Malachy Moynihan, who formerly served as Cisco's (Nasdaq: CSCO) vice president of emerging video products and spent nine years with Apple during the turbulent 1980s and 1990s. During the "60 Minutes" interview, Bezos did reveal Amazon's experimentations with drones that the company thinks could eventually deliver packages directly to customers. However, he said it would likely not be commercially available for another 5 or more years. For more:
- See this Multichannel News article Related Articles:
Amazon doesn't think the set-top box is dead
Cisco, TiVo veterans reportedly helping Amazon build set-top box
NTT Plala plans Android-capable IPTV set-tops Read more about: Amazon
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Also Noted SPOTLIGHT ON... Huawei demos LTE Broadcast in Asia with Smart Communications Huawei successfully demonstrated LTE broadcast technology (also known as LTE multicast) in Southeast Asia working with operator Smart Communications in the Philippines. The companies used the 2.1 GHz spectrum for the demo. Using evolved Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Services (eMBMS) technology, Smart streamed pre-loaded videos on three channels from its base station in Quezon City to another base station in Makati. The videos were viewable on three LTE-capable handsets provided by Huawei, as well as a TV set equipped with a device that converts data received by an LTE SIM. Smart claimed the successful trial shows that its LTE network, which launched in August 2012, is on par with those of U.S. operator Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ) and Australian operator Telstra, both of which are testing LTE Broadcast. Article. Industry news from around the web. > Rentrak named Laurie Kaman Senior Vice President of Branded Entertainment. Press release > Cox Communications reportedly has usage meters that are not entirely accurate. Article Telecom News > Akamai is adding more power to its growing cloud and network security services portfolio by acquiring Prolexic for about $370 million in cash. Article > West Virginia might have to return $2.5 million in broadband stimulus funds if competitive provider Citynet can't convince the NTIA to approve its middle mile fiber project. Article > CenturyLink will soon be able to give its public sector customers greater power to resolve network issues by signing an agreement to sell Uplogix's remote network management solution. Article Wireless News > BlackBerry's interim CEO Jon Chen issued an open letter to BlackBerry's enterprise customers in which he declared that the company is here to stay. Article > The CTIA announced the launch of a global, multi-carrier, common database for LTE smartphones ahead of schedule. Article > Demand for Apple's lower-priced iPhone 5c is coming strongly from lower-income consumers, according to a new report from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech. Article And finally … Beyonce and the Royal Baby were the most searched people of 2013 according to Bing. Article > Is your strategy for small and medium-sized businesses bringing rewards? - Wednesday, December 4th, 11am ET / 8am PT / 4pm GMT Gain insights into where service providers are currently experiencing problems in the sales cycle, with a benchmark for the SMB market by sector, as well as ideas on how to increase efficiency. Register Today! > LTE Advanced in unlicensed spectrum? - Tuesday, December 10th, 1pm ET /10am PT As the operators prepare for the looming 1000x data challenge, small cells and utilizing all spectrum resources are in the front and center. But, does it work? What is needed? Tune into this webinar to get the answers Register Today! > Unraveling the LTE Roaming Puzzle- Wednesday, December 11th, 2pm ET/ 11am PT This webinar will delve into the challenges of LTE roaming as well as explore potential solutions. Register Today!
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| > Account Executive – Cablevision - Edison, NJ The Account Executive is responsible for selling Optimum Lightpath Products and services to mid market companies in an assigned geographic area. This position will sell to new accounts as well as to existing accounts as assigned. The AE-II will generate leads by cold calling, networking and referrals as well as closing leads generated through various marketing initiatives...Learn More > Need a job? Need to hire? Visit FierceWirelessJobs | |
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