The FCC will likely decide by November between competing cable industry and CE proposals for bidirectional plug-and- play, NCTA officials said Wednesday during a news briefing in N.Y. The FCC is weighing a two-way solution backed by the NCTA that uses OCAP as standardized middleware layer, and a rival proposal from the CE industry that makes it optional in plug- and-play units. The CE industry’s proposal for a DCR+ platform that would cost the cable industry “hundreds of millions” of dollars to upgrade hardware and network equipment to comply, said Kevin Leddy, senior vice president for strategy and development at Time Warner Cable. It would also likely force cable companies to drop features like Time Warner’s “Start Over” time-shifting service, which lets users pause and rewind programs in progress, and caller ID, available to customers who buy an MSO’s phone service, Leddy said. Time Warner launched Start Over in Columbia, S.C., and has expanded it to 16 markets, including Texas, Leddy said. CEA has countered that DCR+ lets devices have a “limited set” of interactive features including video-on-demand, impulse pay-per-view and switched broadcast video, without the OpenCable platform. It also has argued that DCR+ would permit access to all interactive services offered by MSOs through OpenCable, but with “minor modifications to that technology and its licensing agreements.” MSOs are deploying OCAP-compatible set-top boxes from Motorola, Panasonic, Samsung and Scientific-Atlanta at a premium of “a few dollars” over existing models, Leddy said. Time Warner has shipped 150,000 OCAP-enabled S-A and Samsung STBs in 10 markets, including 50,000 in N.Y., Leddy said. Samsung has supplied “a little north” of 30,000 STBs for the New York market and is in discussions with Time Warner on an HD- capable model featuring a 160 GB hard drive, Leddy said. Time Warner also tested OCAP in a Samsung 56W DLP-based rear projection TV in two markets, but the project was scrapped this year in part because of the $300 premium. NCTA officials said they were surprised by Samsung’s decision, since the cost of adopting OCAP will drop as manufacturing volumes increase. Comcast also has trials in several markets using Panasonic’s OCAP STB. The first OCAP-enabled products, including STBs and TVs, will arrive in late 2008, said Mark Coblitz, senior vice president for strategy at Comcast. Panasonic showed a 42W plasma set to the FCC earlier this fall, he said. Though the OCAP-based plasma set will be sold at retail, STBs will continue to be leased by MSO customers, Coblitz said. Comcast has tested Panasonic’s STB in the Denver, Colo., Derry, Mass., Union, N.J., and Willow Grove, Pa., markets. MSOs have said they want avoid the pitfalls that have dogged one-way CableCARD-ready CE products, only about 280,000 on which have been activated in TVs, though about 4 million have been bought, NCTA officials said. The cable industry also is pushing for a device about the size of a paperback book that would be supplied by each pay-TV provider to connect to a CE product and provide access to services from MSOs, telcos and satellite operators, industry said. The device will would based on a single chip and is “a few years” from hitting the market, Coblitz said.
The FCC will likely decide by November between competing cable industry and CE proposals for bidirectional plug-and- play, NCTA officials said Wednesday during a news briefing in N.Y. The FCC is weighing a two-way solution backed by the NCTA that uses OCAP as standardized middleware layer, and a rival proposal from the CE industry that makes it optional in plug-and-play units. The CE industry’s proposal for a DCR+ platform that would cost the cable industry “hundreds of millions” of dollars to upgrade hardware and network equipment to comply, said Kevin Leddy, senior vice president for strategy and development at Time Warner Cable. It would also likely force cable companies to drop features like Time Warner’s “Start Over” time-shifting service, which lets users pause and rewind programs in progress, and caller ID, available to customers who buy an MSO’s phone service, Leddy said. Time Warner launched Start Over in Columbia, S.C., and has expanded it to 16 markets, including Texas, Leddy said. CEA has countered that DCR+ lets devices have a “limited set” of interactive features including video-on-demand, impulse pay-per-view and switched broadcast video, without the OpenCable platform. It also has argued that DCR+ would permit access to all interactive services offered by MSOs through OpenCable, but with “minor modifications to that technology and its licensing agreements.” MSOs are deploying OCAP-compatible set-top boxes from Motorola, Panasonic, Samsung and Scientific- Atlanta at a premium of “a few dollars” over existing models, Leddy said. Time Warner has shipped 150,000 OCAP-enabled S-A and Samsung STBs in 10 markets, including 50,000 in N.Y., Leddy said. Samsung has supplied “a little north” of 30,000 STBs for the New York market and is in discussions with Time Warner on an HD-capable model featuring a 160 GB hard drive, Leddy said. Time Warner also tested OCAP in a Samsung 56W DLP-based rear projection TV in two markets, but the project was scrapped this year in part because of the $300 premium (CED April 30p1). NCTA officials said they were surprised by Samsung’s decision, since the cost of adopting OCAP will drop as manufacturing volumes increase. Comcast also has trials in several markets using Panasonic’s OCAP STB. The first OCAP-enabled products, including STBs and TVs, will arrive in late 2008, said Mark Coblitz, senior vice president for strategy at Comcast. Panasonic showed a 42W plasma set to the FCC earlier this fall, he said. Though the OCAP-based plasma set will be sold at retail, STBs will continue to be leased by MSO customers, Coblitz said. Comcast has tested Panasonic’s STB in the Denver, Colo., Derry, Mass., Union, N.J., and Willow Grove, Pa., markets. MSOs have said they want avoid the pitfalls that have dogged one-way CableCARD- ready CE products, only about 280,000 on which have been activated in TVs, though about 4 million have been bought, NCTA officials said. The cable industry also is pushing for a device about the size of a paperback book that would be supplied by each pay-TV provider to connect to a CE product and provide access to services from MSOs, telcos and satellite operators, industry said. The device will would based on a single chip and is “a few years” from hitting the market, Coblitz said.
Broadcasters and minority activists agree the FCC should relax media ownership rules (CD Sept 28 p9) to help women and people of color buy radio and TV stations, they said in filings. Clear Channel, the NAB, the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters (NABOB), the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition and 29 groups led by the Minority Media and Telecommunications Council (MMTC) also agreed on how the FCC should define firms eligible for relief. Instead of targeting only minorities, the commission should exempt disadvantaged businesses from several limits on the number of stations that can be owned by a single company in each city, they said.
The SEC wants comments on a new Internet-based campaign to alert investors about “questionable” pitches for securities transactions. By sharing information “more immediately” via its PAUSE program, the commission hopes to help investors avoid “online boiler room” and advance fee schemes, it said. The agency seeks public comment on PAUSE before it begins. The SEC public Web site will carry details on unregistered soliciting entities triggering complaints. Comments can be filed at www.sec.gov/other.shtml or by e-mail to rule- comments@sec.gov with file number S7-24-07 in the subject line.
A compromise FCC order giving wireless carriers five years to upgrade systems before their success in locating callers will be measured at the public safety answering point (PSAP) level (CD Sept 11 Special Bulletin) landed with a thud among carriers. The FCC approved the order late Tuesday in an unusual night meeting.
Google’s YouTube unveiled its ad format Wednesday, ending speculation about how Google would make money from advertisers without alienating viewers. The ads appear on the lower portion of the video as a translucent overlay, after about 15 seconds of viewing. Viewers who click on the overlay are shown another interactive video, such as a movie trailer, while the main video is paused. Those who don’t click will see the ad disappear after a few seconds.
Google’s YouTube unveiled its ad format Wednesday, ending speculation about how Google would make money from advertisers without alienating viewers. The ads appear on the lower portion of the video as a translucent overlay, after about 15 seconds of viewing. Viewers who click on the overlay are shown another interactive video, such as a movie trailer, while the main video is paused. Those who don’t click will see the ad disappear after a few seconds.
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) unveiled a PVR for PS3, along with new PSP products and services on the eve of the Games Convention in Leipzig, Germany. PlayTV is a combined TV tuner and PVR that will ship in the U.K., France, Italy, Germany and Spain early in 2008, with other PAL territories to follow “in due course,” SCEE said.
About 95 percent of U.S. TV viewing occurs live, though more than 20 percent of viewers own PVRs, Leichtman Research Group said, citing a survey it did with 1,300 adults. Two years ago, the survey showed fewer than 10 percent of viewers using PVRs, which let viewers pause, fast-forward and rewind live TV. Those functions make it easy for viewers to skip ads during programming, but Leichtman said that’s not what they value most from the devices. “While 84 percent of DVR owners rate the ability to skip commercials as very important, just 8 percent of DVR owners say it is the greatest benefit of having a DVR,” it said. Most PVR owners say they have HDTV sets. About 45 percent use their PVRs to record fewer than six TV programs a week, the study found. The group predicts more than 60 million TV households will use PVRs by 2011.
About 95 percent of U.S. TV viewing occurs live, though more than 20 percent of viewers own PVRs, Leichtman Research Group said, citing a survey it did with 1,300 adults. Two years ago, the survey showed fewer than 10 percent of viewers using PVRs, which let viewers pause, fast- forward and rewind live TV. Those functions make it easy for viewers to skip ads during programming, but Leichtman said that’s not what they value most from the devices. “While 84 percent of DVR owners rate the ability to skip commercials as very important, just 8 percent of DVR owners say it is the greatest benefit of having a DVR,” it said. Most PVR owners say they have HDTV sets. About 45 percent use their PVRs to record fewer than six TV programs a week, the study found. The group predicts more than 60 million TV households will use PVRs by 2011.