Nextel, still fighting to make certain FCC’s 800 MHz rebanding plan includes giving it spectrum at 1.9 GHz, has offered a new concession, giving up additional spectrum at 800 MHz to be used by public safety. The proposal appears designed in part to give FCC Chmn. Powell additional cover if he sides with Nextel against other wireless carriers, which have made the case Nextel instead should get 2.1 GHz spectrum. Nextel had proposed giving public safety 2.5 MHz and the new plan would essentially double that to 4.5 MHz. Based on Nextel’s numbers, the offer is worth $863 million more than the previous proposal, or $5.155 billion, a spokesman said.
Gemstar-TV Guide and Comcast will launch their first jointly developed electronic program guide (EPG) by late summer, CEO Jeffrey Shell told us after the company’s annual shareholders meeting in N.Y.C. The companies, which formed the Guide Works joint venture this year, are essentially reworking the I-Guide that Gemstar previously had under development, and will introduce it first on Comcast’s cable systems, he said. The EPG will be a key ingredient in the Guide Works’ efforts to establish a cable standard for program guides, said Shell, whose company received a $250 million up-front licensing fee from Comcast and will market the jointly developed product to other MSOs. Gemstar has a 49% of Guide Works and has contributed 100 employees, while Comcast holds the remaining 51%, Shell said. Meanwhile, Gemstar’s EPG agreement with Time Warner Cable, will likely result in parts of the guide rather than the whole package going on the MSO’s system, Shell said. Gemstar also is planning to further expand its TV Guide Channel, which is expected to reach 80 million homes when it launches on EchoStar’s DISH service later this month. In conjunction with a revamped version of the TV Guide Channel, Gemstar is developing TV Guide Land, an on-demand guide that will provide highlights of TV shows mixed with editorial. TV Guide Land -- which will likely be available on Comcast systems as well as DirecTV and EchoStar satellite services -- also will allow the viewer to pause, fast forward, rewind and scroll through programming, Shell said.
Gemstar-TV Guide and Comcast will launch their first jointly developed electronic program guide (EPG) by late summer, CEO Jeffrey Shell told us after the company’s annual shareholders meeting in N.Y.C. The companies, which formed the Guide Works joint venture earlier this year, are essentially reworking the I- Guide that Gemstar previously had under development, and will introduce it first on Comcast’s cable systems, he said.
With the transition to larger glass substrates and better yields, LCD and plasma TV companies are pumping out a greater variety of sizes as they fill in gaps in product lines and in some cases enter the market for the first time.
A combo VCR and DVD recorder for dubbing VHS home movies to DTV will join 2 new DVD-RW decks in Pioneer’s recorder line, the company said Wed. in a product rollout that also included 2 digital cable-ready plasma TVs and 2 DVD-based automobile entertainment systems.
As Apex geared up to start shipping its $499 ApeXtreme PC game console hybrid with DVD player and PVR by the end of summer, technology supplier Digital Interactive Systems Corp. is getting results from talks with other CE and PC makers about using its “drop & play” engine for PC gaming functionality, DISC Pres. Avraham DorEl told Consumer Electronics Daily at the E3 Expo in L.A.
FCC action on several petitions for reconsideration of the FCC’s Triennial Review Order could occur soon, FCC Chief of Staff Bryan Tramont said late Fri. at the FCBA’s annual seminar in Cambridge, Md. Tramont said proposed FCC action on the petitions will begin circulating among commissioners on the 8th floor “in the next few days.” Among those teed up: Petitions seeking clarification of the TRO’s effect on multiple dwelling units (MDU), he said. NTIA recently urged the FCC to clarify definitions in its fiber-to-the-home rules for residential multi-unit premises (CD May 3 p6). Tramont answered a wide range of questions submitted ahead of time by FCBA members: (1) Asked if he thought “it’s time to rewrite the Telecom Act,” Tramont said it’s time to at least think about it and “we're thinking about it internally.” There’s “a lot of pressure” on the current regulatory scheme from new technology, he said. (2) The broadband over powerline proceeding will likely be done in early fall, he said. “NTIA filed data last week and we'll look at that. Our hope is to bring the rulemaking to a close in the Sept. timeframe.” (3) On industry efforts to negotiate commercial interconnection agreements, it’s “troubling” that state regulators might “reopen” those negotiated agreements: “In a world in which you're trying to drive commercial negotiations, the idea that somehow [an agreement] would only be the opening bid that states might reopen is a troubling one. So that gives cause for pause.” (4) Indecency complaints have risen from 240,000 in 2003 to 550,000 so far this year. The concern about indecency is “grass roots driven, so we have an obligation to respond [but] the line drawing is a challenge to us It’s a difficult exercise.” (5) The FCC’s Spectrum Policy Task Force is “entering a 2nd stage in which it’s starting to look at what else needs to be done,” he said. “In about a month they will have some recommendations that go to the commercial space as well as the govt. side.” (6) The FCC is still planning to wait for an industry consensus plan to emerge before acting on intercarrier compensation, he said. If it appears consensus will take “dramatically more time than anticipated we're prepared to move forward,” he said. However, the agency’s preference is to get an industry proposal, Tramont said.
LAS VEGAS -- The PVR is rapidly evolving beyond just a recording device, but broadcasters remain concerned about content protection and advertisers still view the technology as a serious threat, speakers said at the NAB convention here. A major milestone, due to ship in the next several days to dealers, is the first HD-PVRs for DirectTV, which will retail for about $1,000, said Skip Pizzi, Microsoft mgr.-technology policy. But, with such evolving technologies, “there are lingering concerns on content protection and ad-skipping,” he said.
The PVR is rapidly evolving beyond just a recording device, but broadcasters remain concerned about content protection and advertisers view the technology as a threat, speakers told the NAB convention in Las Vegas.
Qwest said it had lost $307 million in the 4th quarter, reversing its $2.7 billion profit a year ago, and said its revenue fell 5.6% to $3.5 billion. It said growth of long distance and business and consumer data revenue had partially offset continued competitive pressures in local voice and wireless services, as well as the de-emphasis of some non- core services. Qwest said in the 4th quarter it had lost access lines at the same rate -- 0.9% -- as the 3rd quarter. Excluding 145,000 MCI lines disconnected 2nd quarter, it said total access lines decreased 3.9% year-over-year. However, Qwest executives told investors in a conference call they expected slower access line declines in 2004 vs. 2003. They said line losses typically declined with Qwest entry into long distance. Qwest said it had strong growth in its long- distance and DSL businesses. It said it had increased its long distance subscriber base by 36% in the 4th quarter to 2.3 million customers. Since introduction of Qwest Choice, which bundles local, long distance and high-speed Internet services, in mid-Dec., Qwest said it had more than doubled its daily net subscriber additions. It said in the first 8 states it offered long distance, more than 26% of consumer lines included that service, exceeding the company’s 25% year-end target. Qwest said the number of DSL lines increased 10% in the quarter to 637,000. It said 80% of 2003 DSL growth came in the 2nd half, as the company expanded service to more than 1,000 additional neighborhoods and communities. The company said Qwest Choice had driven a 30% increase in weekly DSL line additions in early 2004, compared with a year earlier. Qwest said it planned to further expand DSL coverage to more than 60% from 45% of total access lines by year-end, making DSL available to more than 6 million homes. An AT&T spokeswoman said Qwest’s growth in long distance and DSL lines had made “crystal clear the wisdom of the Congress in pushing for a competitive telecom market… The Telecom Act is working and it’s vital for regulators and policy-makers to stay the course.” However, Qwest Chmn. Richard Notebaert said in the conference call: “There is no need for UNEs, and we have seen some of our utility commissions actually… put on pause hearings [on] UNEs.” Qwest said deployment of additional DSL facilities boosted capital expenditures for the quarter to $615 million from $561 million in the 4th quarter of 2002. For the full year, it said capital expenditures were $2.1 billion, compared with $2.8 billion in 2002. The company said total cost of sales plus other expenses for the quarter were $2.6 billion, compared with $2.5 billion for the 4th quarter of 2002, with investments to support products launches and increased pension and retiree healthcare costs driving the increase. Qwest Vice Chmn.-CFO Oren Shaffer said he expected the company to improve its free cash flow in 2004 by focusing on cost management; a $2 billion capital program; and lower interest expense. In 2003, Qwest recorded free cash flow from operations of $87 million -- a $463 million improvement over 2002. Qwest also said it had reduced total debt by $5 billion during 2003. During the quarter, the company said it completed the purchase of $3 billion of outstanding debt and cut its credit facility by $500 million. Qwest said it planned to expand VoIP coverage throughout the Minneapolis/St. Paul consumer market and introduce its business VoIP offering in the first half of 2004. It said it expected to offer VoIP services in all major metropolitan markets within its local region by the end of the year. In the call, Notebaert said VoIP would probably not become “truly significant” this year, but said: “As we are going forward, getting in there, being prepared, especially as cable competitors are going VoIP, is very important for us.” Qwest also said it continued to work with Sprint to introduce national wireless calling plans and said it planned to roll out the services March 1 to customers in its 14-state local service area.