Verizon to Use LTE Multicasting and AWS for Expanded Video Programming

Verizon will use LTE multicasting to deliver the Super Bowl in the New York area, a Verizon spokeswoman said. Verizon is increasing the amount of live video available into the 20-25-channel range, McAdam said. That will likely increase as Verizon broadens use of AWS spectrum acquired in 2012 for $3.6 billion from Comcast and other cable companies, analysts have said. Verizon’s LTE service is available in 501 U.S. markets, and carries 63 percent of its data traffic, the company has said.

Verizon’s new video services will likely include out-of-market sports programming and could potentially have the Redbox Instant video streaming service, which will “scale over time,” McAdam said. Redbox Instant, a joint effort between Verizon and Redbox parent Outerwall, carries 4,600 titles from Epix, Lionsgate, NBCUniversal, Paramount Pictures, Relativity and Sony Pictures. Redbox Instant was originally designed to allow downloading of content to devices and was to be available on PS4 and Vizio TVs. “There will be more things that you can watch live” in 2014, largely because Verizon can use the AWS and wants to “keep ahead of the competition,” McAdam said.

Verizon began deploying AWS this fall as it faced a capacity crunch in some major markets, including New York, analysts have said. In New York, where Verizon has 300 cell sites, the company is “fortifying” 49 of them and has completed work on all but seven, McAdam said. Verizon’s AWS also can be used in 50 other markets and might be deployed to handle video, freeing up other spectrum for data traffic, McAdam said. Verizon also is working with chip suppliers on compression that would enable video to be delivered with the same quality at 2 Mbps in 2014 as it was at 10 Mbps this year, McAdam said.

Verizon is continuing to test voice-over-LTE (VoLTE) with a goal of rolling out service in first-half 2014, McAdam said. Verizon will have a 4G VoLTE-capable handset by year-end 2014 and those models that are VoLTE-compatible will require a software update, the Verizon spokeswoman said. VoLTE will offer a “suite” of high-end services including HD voice and conference calling and will enable Verizon to “manage the spectrum” better, McAdam said. Verizon also will get about a $5 cost savings on VoLTE handsets, he said.

Verizon is continuing to move subscribers to fiber cable, with less than one million continuing to be reached via copper, McAdam said. “Our goal is to minimize the amount of copper out there.” While Verizon is upgrading its FiOS network, deploying in “a lot of new markets isn’t in the cards” in the U.S., McAdam said. But Verizon is seeking approval from the Glen Cove, N.Y., city council for a FiOS franchise that would compete with Cablevision. If the council approves the proposal, it would then go to the New York State Public Service Commission for final approval. Verizon has already wired 85 percent of Glen Cove and if gets the commission’s approval, could start service as soon as January, the company has said.

With the FCC’s approval last week of Verizon’s proposed $130 billion buy of Vodafone’s 45 percent of Verizon Wireless (CD Dec 5 p5), the deal moves to the wireless carrier’s shareholders who are scheduled to vote Jan. 28, McAdam said. The acquisition, which also must get approval from Vodafone shareholders, is expected to close in Q1, McAdam said. While Verizon has enough wireless spectrum to see it through 2017, it remains interested in upcoming auctions, McAdam said.

UBS Conference Notebook

Time Warner Cable will deploy a six-tuner set-top box with one terabyte of storage by Q2 as it seeks to expand distribution of its cloud-based user interface, President Rob Marcus said. TWC has been testing a first-generation cloud-based user interface with about 1.4 million set-tops in upstate New York, but expects to replace it with a new version in 2014, Marcus told us. TWC will have 2 million set-tops deployed with the cloud-based UI by year-end, Marcus said. The multi-tuner media server, which will be offered with satellite set-tops, will likely start with the first-generation interface, he said. The cable operator will launch the all-digital TWC Max in 2014 in select markets featuring DOCSIS 3.0 modems, advanced wireless gateways and data speeds up to several gigabits, the company said. TWC hasn’t disclosed which markets will get the revamp, but is well underway to make the New York market all-digital, said Ellen East, TWC’s executive vice president and chief communications officer. TWC Max also could be offered in markets where optical fiber is already installed, including those served by recently acquired DukeNet. DukeNet provides commercial fiber in North Carolina and is headquartered in Charlotte which also is a hub for Time Warner Cable data services. TWC also is targeting DSL customers with a new cable broadband package offering 1 Mbps upload/2 Mbps download speeds for a $14.99 monthly fee. The low-end promotion started in November, Marcus said. TWC has set a goal of converting 500,000 DSL customers to cable in the next 18 months, Marcus said. TWC’s TWC TV app will be available on a sixth platform in the “next several days,” joining iOS and Android-based products, Roku, Netflix, Xbox and others, said Marcus, who declined to identify the new platform. The subscription takes for new TWC packages with 5 GB and 30 GB data caps has been “relatively light” so far, with most new subscribers signing on for an unlimited service, Marcus said. The plan with a 5 GB cap offers a $5 discount on a user’s monthly bill. TWC deployed 5 GB and 40 GB data caps in 2008 and added one for 100 GB a year later. Marcus made little direct mention of a reported potential joint bid by Charter and Comcast for TWC or a separate effort said to be in the works by Cox Communications. “I have to do what I think is right to maximize value for shareholders and at this point in time, running the company as well as we possibly can is the right answer,” Marcus said. “We have consistently said that we weren’t going to let our personal agendas get in the way of making the right call for what is in the best interests of shareholders.”