Michael's Insight

Networks reclaiming ad inventory from Hulu

Networks grapple with Hulu ad sales [Variety]

Variety released a very interesting article about the growing battle Hulu is having to fight – not with Google TV or Netflix's streaming – but with its network executive partners from ABC, NBC, and FOX. Like everything else in the broadcast world, the debate comes down to ad sales.

Hulu began by forming partnerships with many of the main broadcast networks, becoming the first online source for the broadcasters' programming outside of the broadcasters' own web sites. As Hulu has grown, so have its opportunities for revenue growth, in particular the opportunity for ad sale revenue. Recently, broadcasters have begun to reclaim many of the ad spots on Hulu’s streaming videos. For example, according to Variety, NBC has claimed all the ad inventory on Hulu streams of “The Office” and “30 Rock.”

As soon as Hulu came on the scene, many wondered whether the broadcasters would eventually cannibalize their core business. This is particularly worrisome for broadcasters when you consider that Hulu viewers don’t show up on Nielsen, yet Nielsen still remains the major measuring stick for a broadcast station’s advertising sales.

SlingPlayer now available for the iPad

Slingbox for the iPad: Something To See Here [Wired]

You’ll have to pay $30 for the app, in addition to the latest Slingbox hardware that you’ll have to install on your TV, but with the new Slingbox for the iPad you'll have the best mobile video content - because you can take your cable channels and DVR with you. Sling Media launched the app this week to compliment existing SlingPlayer apps for the iPhone, Android, Windows Phone and BlackBerry. While it's nice to have TV on a mobile phone, the iPad is much better suited to watching TV with its larger screen size.

Wired's review of the iPad app indicates that streaming video performance over Wi-Fi is outstanding, though you might have some trouble with latency issues if you're watching over AT&T's mobile network. With the extra real estate on the iPad screen, the controls for television's remote control and operating the DVR are larger and easier to operate as a result.

Users will need a high speed broadband connection to connect the Slingbox hardware, which comes in both SD and HD versions.  Insight's fast Internet speeds are perfect for this.

 

Feds seize P2P site domain names

Homeland Security Seizes 70+ Websites for Copyright and Trademark Violations

The federal government took a significant step toward combatting online piracy of software, movies, TV shows and music late last week when the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency seized the domain names of more than 70 web sites that trafficked in P2P links and conterfeit consumer goods. ICE is the agency responsible for federal copyright enforcement. Many of the sites were so-called "Torrent trackers," which serve as search engines for those seeking links to pirated content that can be downloaded on the Bit Torrent P2P protocol.

ICE obtained a seizeure warrant for the domain names of sites that included Torrent-Finder.com, a well-known Torrent tracker. Now, when users looking to download pirated content visit the site, they're greeted with a government notice indicating that the domain has been seized by the government.

Will ICE's action have a long-term impact on online piracy? I'm not so sure as the government was only able to take the site domain names, not the servers that run the sites. With a new domain name, a Torrent tracking site can be back in business in a few hours. But, the government's actions do send a signal that it's serious about the impact of online piracy and its copyright enforcement powers. Pirates are now on notice that the U.S. government is on their case.

Retailers slash Google TV device prices

Struggling Google TV devices have prices slashed at retail

Retailers gave Google TV a dose of bad news during the after-Thanksgiving shopping rush. Currently, Sony is the only HDTV manufacturer that has integrated Google TV into its sets, and Sony's online store and Best Buy decided to give Sony's Google TV lineup a sharp price discount for the holiday shopping season. As a number of blogs pointed out over the weekend, that's not usually a vote of confidence for a product line that's just a couple months old.

It's unclear what lead to the price cut - whether it's lagging sales, a number of poor consumer reviews recently or a lack of online content accessible to Google TV in the wake of all major broadcasters blocking devices with the Android-based operating system.

While Google hasn't been able to break the ice among content owners, they have had recent success with consumer electronics manufacturers. A number of companies have indicated that they paln to join Sony in producing televisions with Google TV.

TechCruch posted this weekend that retailers' decision to cut prices might signal the impending death knell for Google TV. It's worth noting that Google pursued a similar strategy with their Android mobile operating system - a first release that wasn't completely baked that was geared toward early adopters. Later versions of Android have been improved to the point that sales of Android-powered devices have now outpaced iOS devices. If Google follows that playbook again, it's likely the company won't be discouraged by stumbling out of the block. Based on the company's announcements, we know that third-party apps are coming for Google TV next year, a fact that may breathe new life into the product.

Insight launches Broadband 50.0 in Louisville

On the heels of this week’s announcement concerning Louisville moving to an all-digital network, I’m pleased to make another big announcement concerning our largest market – Insight’s 50.0 broadband service is now available in Louisville.

It required a tremendous amount of work to upgrade our network to the DOCSIS 3.0 platform throughout the region (not to mention in our other markets we’ve already rolled out – Northern Kentucky, Evansville and Bowling Green), but that work is now complete and we’re thrilled to provide by far the fastest Internet available in the Louisville area.

As I’ve mentioned in previous announcements, this new service will offer 50 Mbps download/5 Mbps upload speeds to customers throughout Louisville.

And just as we did last week in Northern Kentucky, Evansville and Bowling Green, if you’re a Broadband 20.0 customer, you’ll be receiving an email today inviting you to become one of the first to experience Broadband 50.0. In the coming days, all of our broadband customers will be receiving communications letting them know that they are also eligible for the upgrade.

There’s a lot going on here at Insight right now and more will be more coming in other districts very soon. Stay tuned.

Rupert Murdoch developing iPad-only "newspaper"

A News Corp. Newspaper, but Not in Print [NY Times]

For all the rave reviews of the iPad, the newspaper apps have been a mixed bag of criticism and praise. While some have been better received than others, News Corp's Wall Street Journal iPad app is as close to a game changer that there is.

Rupert Murdoch sees an opportunity here and News Corporation has announced they are developing a new “newspaper” strictly for the iPad and other tablet devices. Murdoch and News Corp are hoping that by building the newspaper specifically for a tablet, as opposed to trying to adapt an already existing paper into an app, the product will be much more well received by tablet users.

The new iPad-newspaper will be called “The Daily” and it has already been reported that $30 million has been invested and a staff of 100 people has been gathered to begin work on the project. Some fairly big names have been added to the staff as well. The New Yorker’s music critic, a high-profile television producer, and the former head of Page Six, the celebrity gossip page of the New York Post, have reportedly signed on.

Newspapers are arguably the industry that has been hurt more than any other by recent advances in technology. The argument often used about newspapers is that they have to find some other medium to get their content out to customers. The days of people getting a stack of paper delivered to their door every morning are nearing an end. While there are many questions remaining regarding “The Daily,” it’s good to see there may be some future for newspaper-type content.

Web video consumes 37 percent of Internet traffic during peak hours

Web Video Hogs Up 37 Percent Of Internet Traffic During Peak TV Hours [TechCrunch]

At the Web 2.0 Summit last week Mary Meeker, an analyst for Morgan Stanley, gave a presentation that included some interesting slides on web video traffic. Meeker focused on “peak traffic” hours, which are the periods during which bandwidth utilization is the heaviest.

These peak hours tend to be during traditional TV hours – both primetime and late night programming. Netflix for example has peak hours from 8:00pm to 10:00pm.

During these hours, 37 percent of all Internet traffic is taken up by streaming video. Netflix accounts for 21 percent, with YouTube coming in at 10 percent and Flash Video at 6 percent. Regular HTTP traffic is only 23 percent of peak hour traffic, and “Other Traffic” makes up 26 percent.

These numbers can be a little misleading because the report is based on bandwidth used. Since video takes up significantly more bandwidth than other web browsing, it’s not so surprising that online video has such high percentages. Also, the longer the video obviously the greater the amount of bandwidth utilized. That is why you see Netflix at 21 percent and YouTube at only 10 percent. Netflix simply has much longer, and more bandwidth-hogging, videos.

In fact, if you look strictly at the total number of minutes spent viewing video, YouTube’s 23.5 billion October minutes dominates Netflix’s 750 million. In terms of unique visitors, Netflix saw 20 million in October, compared to YouTube’s 116 million. Still, Netflix takes up a much greater percentage of bandwidth.

Viacom blocks Google TV

Viacom drops the ban hammer on Google TV devices, blocks streaming episodes [EngadgetHD]

It’s the same story, just a different programmer. On top of the bans put in place by the major broadcasting networks, as well as Hulu, access to Viacom streaming episodes has been blocked to Google TV.

Viacom is the company that owns popular networks such as MTV, Nickelodeon, and Comedy Central. Like many other programmers, episodes of their shows are available to stream online. However, if you try to access these streams via either a Logitech Revue or a Google TV enabled Sony TV, all you will see is a large black box with the following message: “Sorry, this content is unavailable for your device.”

Through its combination of Internet and cable/satellite content, Google TV has the potential to be a force in aggregating content on TV. However, whether this idea can ever overcome the reality of the business interests of programmers remains to be seen.

This isn’t the first battle these two companies have waged against each other. In June, Google won its case against Viacom regarding programming appearing on YouTube. Viacom brought the copyright infringement case against Google, but lost because the court found that Google’s policy of removing the videos as soon as they were notified was sufficient.

Insight’s Louisville network going all-digital

  Earlier this year, we announced that Lexington and Northern Kentucky would be Insight’s first two markets to transition to an all-digital format. Once that transition is completed, customers will have access to more than 100 HD channels, multi-room DVR and the fastest Internet speeds available.

At that time, I told you that we planned to make this digital conversion in each of our districts and to “stay tuned.”

Today, we are announcing that Louisville will be our next market to transition to an all-digital service. As a result, these incredible TV and Internet products that we announced in Lexington and Northern Kentucky will also be coming to our customers in Louisville.

In early December, we will begin communicating with our customers to tell them what they need to to in order to prepare for this transition, called the Digital 6.10 Upgrade. Channels that are currently transmitted in analog will be provided in digital after this conversion.

As we’ve done previously, we’re committed to making this conversion as seamless as possible. In fact, you might be interested to know that we’re very close to reaching the 100% mark in Lexington of customers who have access to digital and we’re now well above 95% in Northern Kentucky. And that's no small accomplishment. Remember it's not just about the big TV in the family room (which is likely to be watching digital already) but also the seldom-used TV in the guest bedroom as well.

I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating; this is a complicated process that won’t happen overnight. We’ll be certain to keep you posted about our progress as we work hard to minimize any disruptions caused by the process. When we begin to transition channels in Louisville – something that won’t begin to happen until next year - we’ll be communicating to every customer to make sure the transition is as seamless as possible.

And as I previously mentioned, for those of you in other Insight markets, stay tuned. We will be announcing the timing of the rest of the districts as soon as we finalize our schedule.

FCC plans to make another run at net neutrality before the new Congress convenes

Sources: FCC chief to move on net neutrality proposal [Politico]

First, a federal court ruled that the FCC didn’t have authority, absent Congress granting it to them to regulate net neutrality. Then Republican seats gained in the election made advancing the issue through Congress even more daunting. Finally, the FCC omitted net neutrality from their most recent meeting agenda, and it seemed net neutrality was moving off the FCC's list of priorities.

Well, it seems that FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski doesn't give up so easily. Politico reports that he is developing a plan for net neutrality that could be put into action as early as a month from now.

Net neutrality involves the imposition of rules on network operators to ensure that all web traffic is treated exactly the same. The operators are concerned that those rules might be enforced without regard to how some traffic degrades users' network experience. Internet-based companies like Google favor net neutrality rules because they want a guarantee that their sites will reach all customers and all devices just as quickly as all other Internet traffic.  Behind the headlines, that means they don't want anyone else's content ever being positioned ahead of theirs. 

But the bottom line for Service providers is that both wireline and wireless operators are skeptical of net neutrality initiatives that rigidly prohibit network traffic management that is necessary to ensure their networks operate smoothly for a broad customer base.

Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), who chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee, recently tried to advance net neutrality legislation but was unsuccessful. Waxman’s plan primarily would have subjected wireline providers to net neutrality rules, leaving wireless providers pretty free to regulate traffic as they pleased.  His proposal also accomplished this regulation under Title I which is less regulatory than the alternative, Title II, which is being pushed by most net neutrality advocates.

Most industry members accept some net neutrality regulation under Title I but will oppose any attempt to regulate the Internet under Title II, for fear that the later regime would eventually result in very heavy regulation in the future. 

The details of Genachowski’s proposal are unknown at this point, and FCC spokespeople are alleging any reports of FCC net neutrality rules are speculation at best. However, sources say that Genachowski’s plan could look very similar to the one offered by Waxman, though some increase of wireless components could be included.

For now, we’ll have to watch for the FCC’s December agenda. Genachowski’s office is reportedly trying to get an outline released by Wednesday, which would be the December meeting deadline. The agency will meet on December 15 to address whatever issues they listed on Wednesday's announcement of the agenda.

Though much of this may be speculation at this point, Genachowski recently stated that although their progress has been slowed, net neutrality rules will happen. If Genachowski moves forward with this reported plan, expect the new Congress to weigh in, as many of its members believe that any network neutrality regulations are within Congress' jurisdiction, not the FCC's while others believe the government should not be in the business of regulating businesses unnecessarily.

Insight launches 50 Mbps broadband in Northern Kentucky, Evansville and Bowling Green

A couple weeks ago, I announced that we would soon be rolling out the next generation of broadband to our customers in Evansville and Bowling Green.

I’m proud to now say that our infrastructure upgrade is complete and the DOCSIS 3.0 platform — along with its 50 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload speeds — is now available in these areas.

And to top it off, we’re now rolling out these advanced service in Northern Kentucky, as well.

If you’re a Broadband 20.0 customer, you’ll be receiving an email today inviting you to become one of the first to experience Broadband 50.0. Soon after, we will be advertising Broadband 50.0 to all our customers interested in upgrading their Internet connection.

This is a really exciting announcement and it’s only the beginning. Broadband 50.0 is far superior to any other generally available home Internet offerings in the area. As I mentioned, we’ll be making announcements soon about other Broadband offerings, new HD channels, multi-room DVR’s, and exciting new programming on cn|2.

And if you live in Louisville or Lexington, sit tight. I’ll be making announcements about Broadband 50.0’s availability in those districts in the coming days, so stay tuned.

Senate Communications Subcommittee grills News Corp and Cablevision on retrans dispute

Kerry To Industry: Find Consumer-Friendlier Route To Retrans [Multichannel News]

During the Cablevision/Fox blackout, Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) was one of the loudest voices calling for, at the very least, a “thoughtful dialogue” on reforming the current retransmission structure so that consumers are no longer in danger of being victimized by these negotiations.

On November 17 the Senate Communications Subcommittee, which is chaired by Senator Kerry, held a hearing, at which multiple industry representatives (including Cablevision’s Tom Rutledge, News Corp’s Chase Carey, Time Warner’s Glenn Britt, Univision’s Joe Uva, and Ovation’s Charles Segars) testified on the issue. Kerry continued to push for a compromise that would prevent retrans blackouts. He even stated that if thoughtful dialogue between broadcasters and cable providers did not ensue, government action would be proposed.

The theme of the senators' questions were that a free marketplace (without government action) was preferred, but this did not seem to be a truly free marketplace. Kerry cited the billions of dollars worth of spectrum that has been allocated by the government to the broadcasters at no cost to the broadcasters. Cablevision’s Rutledge spoke up at this point, saying that the spectrum was now being used “in a way that is abusing customers.”

Senator Kerry was not able to get many definitive answers when he asked about the actual prices being paid for programming. News Corp’s Carey would not reveal the price that Cablevision finally agreed to pay. Kerry said they would have to have more clarity on this issue before any new policy could even be considered.

Kerry admitted that he would love for the government to continue to have a role that was supervisory at best in retransmission negotiations. He would prefer that programmers and providers reach a compromise on their own. In fact, even though government action was considered, Kerry never suggested anything stronger than having the FCC act as mediator (something much weaker than binding arbitration).

Still, the dialogue continues and here’s to hoping some sort of compromise that will make these negotiations more reasonable and less likely to take programming away from consumers is ultimately reached.

Hulu serves over 1 billion ads in October

comScore: Hulu Generated 1.1 Billion Video Ad Impressions In October [TechCrunch]

In September, comScore reported that Hulu had 793 million video ad views. One month later, that number climbed to over 1.1 billion ad views as a result of the beginning of the fall television season.

Marketing research company, comScore, has released their monthly video data report for October and the report shows online video ads on all sites reached 45.5% of the U.S. population. Further, this percentage of the population was hit with video ads an average of 34 times during the month. Over one percent of all minutes spent viewing online video was spent watching video ads, and video ads accounted for over 12 percent of the overall number of videos viewed.

In not-so-surprising news, YouTube leads the way in terms of overall video viewership with 146.3 million unique viewers in October. Yahoo! was a distant second with 53.8 million uniques.

Overall, online viewership saw another increase in October. Online video content was watched by 175 million U.S. users, who each watched an average of 15.1 hours for the month. Of all the U.S. Internet users, 84.1% watched online video of some sort.

German cable provider field tests 1 Gbps broadband

Mach Schnell! Germany's Kabel Deutschland Tops 1 Gbps in Field Trial [Bit Rate - Multichannel News]

DOCSIS 3.0 has now broken the 1 Gigabit-per-second speed barrier under real-life conditions. Kabel Deutschland, a German cable company with roughly 8.9 million customers, conducted a field trial to test the speed limits of DOCSIS and achieved speeds over 1 Gbps.

The test was conducted in a multi-dwelling unit in Hamburg, Germany and used a 862-MHz system to reach the ultimate speed of 1.17 Gbps. The system (a CMTS and EuroDOCSIS 3.0 broadband equipment) that achieved the speeds was provided by Cisco.

Perhaps what’s even more impressive is that in the field test, these speeds were reached while still providing over 100 digital and 32 analog channels, which Kable Deutschland currently provides to its subscribers.

It will be a few more years before any speeds this high will be commercially available to Kabel Deutschland customers. Currently their subscriber base can get speeds as high as 100 Mbps.

Samsung signing up for Google TV sets

Samsung looks to get down with Google TV in 2011 [EngadgetHD]

Google TV may be having trouble getting broadcasters and other programmers on board, but they're having early success in getting TV manufacturers to buy into the Android-based operating system. First it was Sony which teamed up with Google and launched the first Google TV enabled sets, and now Samsung appears to be the second.

According to Engadget, it is likely that Samsung will be announcing this new line of HDTV sets with integrated Google TV early next year. 

Samsung, LG, and Panasonic had at one point all been rumored to have passed on Google TV. The concern with Samsung was the competition with the Samsung Apps marketplace that the company had developed. Panasonic and LG appear to be staying on the sidelines for now.

Look for Samsung to make an announcement sometime in January around the time of the Consumer Electronics Show.

Qualcomm CEO sees progress, hurdles in FCC goal to reclaim wireless spectrum

Qualcomm CEO Jacobs Confident Broadcasters Will Give Up Spectrum [MultichannelNews]

A significant focus of the FCC over the past several months has been the allocation and freeing up of spectrum to help stem the spectrum crunch created by increased mobile data demand. The FCC's National Broadband Plan included a plank geared toward making additional spectrum available for new wireless technologies.

In order to get that product into the market, Qualcomm had to overcome some spectrum issues of its own. CEO Paul Jacobs explained in an interview on C-SPAN’s Communicators that they purchased the spectrum for their FLO TV product at a spectrum auction, which the FCC would like to employ in order to free up spectrum currently used up by broadcaster over-the-air signals.  Through the auction, Qualcomm was able to incentivize the broadcasters to hand over their spectrum to make way for Qualcomm.

Jacobs clearly believes in these auctions, and though he admitted that the FCC’s goal of 500 Mhz over 10 years was ambitious, he believes that “large chunks” of that spectrum could be made available if the FCC held more of these auctions.

It will also be interesting, if this does make its way through Congress, to see how attached the broadcasters are to their over-the-air signals. Jacobs believes the broadcasters occupy roughly 300 Mhz of spectrum, which would be a significant step toward the FCC’s ultimate goal. With most people getting their programming through digital cable or satellite, the need for over-the-air is obviously diminishing, and that spectrum could be used for more advanced wireless technology.

Netflix runs into fragmentation problems with Android

Netflix: Android Is Too Fragmented And Not Secure [Silicon Alley Insider]

Netflix's streaming service is available on several different devices - from gaming consoles to the iPad. But if you have a mobile device running Google's Android, it may be quite some time before you can stream Netflix content on your device. While streaming is been available for both iPhone and Windows Phone 7, Netflix has run into roadblocks developing streaming for Android due to the fragmented and potentially insecure nature of the operating system.

Greg Peters of Netflix’s product development team spoke out about Netflix’s concerns over Android. He said that the “lack of a generic and complete platform security and content protection management system” has led Netflix to shy away from Android because of the related piracy concerns of the major studios, with which Netflix has to negotiate in order to get content rights.

Another issue with Android is the fragmented nature by which Netflix will have to be deployed to Android devices. Netflix does not have a Digital Rights Management system or a common platform security management system on Android, so they are forced to take a fragmented approach by dealing with each individual handset manufacturer. What this boils down to is some Android handsets will have access to Netflix while many others will not. A few lucky Android devices will likely get Netflix streaming sometime early next year.

There are obviously plenty of benefits to the open-source platform of Android, but when it comes to major labels and video streamers like Netflix, the openness creates a wealth of issues.

Comcast releases iPad app

Comcast’s Awesome Xfinity TV Remote iPad App Is Available Now [Gizmodo]

Since its release earlier this year, the iPad has been the catalyst for innovation all over the place, and the cable industry is no exception. Several providers have announced plans to bring an iPad app to their customers, and Comcast has just released their Xfinity app.

The Xfinity TV Remote iPad app allows subscribers to use their iPads as a souped-up remote control to record, search, and even share their favorite shows. With the Xfinity app, you can scroll through your channel lineup through an easy-to-use, attractive guide or you can search using the pop-up keyboard.

When you find the show you’re looking for, you can simply hit the “WATCH ON TV” button to have the show play on your television, or you can hit “RECORD” to save the show to your DVR. You can also you the record function to set up DVR recordings remotely. Another interesting feature is the share button, which allows you to send a show to a friend. The friend will receive a notification on his or her iPad and will be able to watch or record without even having to find which channel it’s on.

It’s a very good start for a cable-connected iPad app, and Comcast has already stated that other features, including advanced searching and video streaming will be included in future updates. They have also announced that apps for Android and BlackBerry mobile devices are in the works as well.

Comcast is the largest U.S. cable operator and most other companies are following their iPad strategy closely to see if it makes sense for a wider industry rollout.  We'll keep an eye on it.

Fox blocks online programming from Google TV

No Streaming for You: Every Major Network Site Blocks Google TV [Gizmodo]

Fox has decided to join the three other major broadcasting networks - ABC, CBS and NBC - in their decision to block online video content from Google TV users. Until last week, Fox was the only network that still allowed Google TV users to playback episodes from its website. Hulu, which provides content from ABC, NBC and Fox also blocked Google TV.

Broadcasters are using the browser signature for Google TV, which is based on the search company's wildly popular Android mobile operating system, to identify and block attempts to playback the online versions of their shows. Google TV is currently available in a Logitech set-top and a line of Sony HDTVs.

For its part, Google has attempted to convince broadcasters to leave their content open for playback on Google TV. Those negotiations have yet to prove fruitful, and by the looks of things, those negotiations appear to be moving backward instead of forward.

iPad users wait for iOS update, multitasking support this month

Rumor: iOS 4.2 waylaid by Wi-Fi bug? [CNET News]

iPhone users have had the benefits of iOS 4.x several months now - primarily device multitasking. On the other hand, iPad users have been waiting patiently until Apple releases iOS 4.2, which is expected this month. According to CNET, the company originally planned to release the new version of the iPad's operating system last week, until a bug that affected wi-fi connectivity was discovered.

I had noticed last week that, upon synching the iPad, it was checking daily for software updates, much more often than ususal.  Finally, at the end of the week, my iPad showed that it will check again on November 20, suggesting that Saturday is now the earliest possibility for the update. 

Apple developers have had access to beta versions of iOS 4.2 for app compatibility testing purposes since last month. When the final beta - the "Gold Master" - was released, many developers reported a problem that prevented their iPads from connecting to wi-fi networks or dropping the connection after a few minutes.

So, here's hoping that Apple can quickly resolve the bug. The iPad is a great device that has the potential to be revolutionary once users' have the ability to run multiple apps and switch seamlessly between them.

Fox executive says that blackout is the government's fault

The Man Who Blacked Out World Series Blames Washington [Bloomberg]

Chase Carey, the News Corp executive who likely was the very one who decided to pull Fox signals off of Cablevision during the recent standoff, is speaking out about the black-out and doling out blame. Carey says the fact that customers lost two weeks of Fox programming including the National League Championship Series, the first two games of the World Series and a New York Giants football game is the fault of -- now get this -- the government!

In one respect, I agree.   Standoffs like this one are exposing the woefully inadequate consumer protections that current government retransmission rules have. But, Carey’s argument isn’t that the government is to blame merely because they didn’t act to fix the rules -- according to Carey, it's because public officials gave Cablevision the impression that they might act on their behalf. 

Could have fooled me. 

Absent the FCC's decision to send out a press release that said they were actively monitoring the situation and several former and current FCC officials calling for intervention Carey seems to think that Cablevision would have given in to their excessive fee demands. 

Is it possible that Cablevision drew out the length of the Fox blackout in the hopes that the government would jump in to fix the situation? That's really doubtful and sounds a lot like an attempt by Fox and Carey to deflect blame. Any change in the retransmission rules would have been a lengthy and even more contentious process, involving not only these two companies but the entire broadcasting and multichannel provider industries, Congress and the FCC. 

Regardless of where the blame for the Cablevision/Fox dispute lies, there's an important question that Carey's interview raises. 

Who should the law protect from the collateral damage caused by these disputes -- the broadcasters' financial interest or consumers' access to programming?  After all, networks are using their exclusive rights to high-value events, like the World Series, in ways that look, act, and quack likes monopoly power in the marketplace.

And there is no prohibition from them doing so.

Under the current retransmission rules, it's clearly not the latter.

FCC opens Google wi-fi snooping investigation

F.C.C. Investigates Google Street View [NYT: Bits] 

Last month, I wrote a post about the Federal Trade Commission closing its case on the information gathering tactics of Google Street View. Google had disclosed that it had been collecting data transmitted over unsecured wi-fi networks, including passwords, entire e-mails and other sensitive information through its Street View vehicles.

The FTC closed its case and Google reported they had ended all wi-fi data collection, so it appeared Google may be in the clear. 

Not so fast. 

On Wednesday, the Federal Communications Commission announced that it would conduct an investigation of Google’s practices to see if any laws were violated. The investigation was spurred on by a complaint filed by the Electronic Privacy Information Center on May 18, shortly after Google first disclosed that they had inadvertently collected data. The complaint alleges that the collections by Google constitute a violation of Section 705 of the Communications Act, as well as the federal Wiretap Act.

Google Street View first appeared in 2007 and has since expanded to provide 360 degree street views throughout the U.S. and in over 30 additional countries. Several European countries and state attorneys general in this country are also investigating Google’s practices.

The FTC closed their case because they were satisfied in Google’s assertions that privacy protections were being improved and none of the collected data would be used. While it's take a bit longer than the other authorities, the FCC is apparently seeking a more substantial answer.

A new web browser aims to tackle the social web

Web Browsing Takes a Social Turn [NYTimes]

Marc Andreessen who co-founded Netscape, which created the world's first commercial web browser, along with several other former Netscape executives, is launching a new startup built around RockMelt, a new social web browser.

Andreessen and his fellow “Netscape Mafia,” as they’ve come to be known, have been out of the browser business for some time, but they see an opportunity with all of the social networking sites that are out there to change the way users currently interact with their browser. Andreessen believes that the browser is still the most used program on most users' computers, but current browsers are failing to keep their features up-to-date with the new social web.

RockMelt doesn’t look vastly different from other browsers, except for the vertical panels on the left and right sides of the browser window. These panels are RockMelt’s way of keeping using connected to their social networks of choice. The left panel lists the user’s friends and shows their Facebook profile picture.  This panel also allows users to keep tabs on the activities and status messages of their friends.  The right panel has thumbnails for the user’s various social networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, etc.).

Another new feature RockMelt includes is a “Share” button, which a user can click to instantly post a web page, video, or other item to Facebook, Twitter, and so on.

RockMelt’s features aren’t all social networking related. RockMelt also fetches all the pages resulting from a Google search, so that those sites can be quickly previewed before a user decides to click through.

The “Netscape Mafia” is going to have a bigger hill to climb if they want RockMelt to have the same success as Netscape had in its heyday. At Netscape’s zenith it merely had to compete with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (though this was still a very heated battle). Now Apple, Google, and Mozilla are battling for the top browser spots. Chrome is the newest participant, and despite the strong Google name and promotion, it has only garnered 8 percent of the browser market.

Nielsen finds that 80 percent of TV viewing still in standard definition

80% Of TV Viewing Still In Standard Definition [Broadband Reports]

Just when HDTV's have finally crossed the threshold of majority status in American households, Nielsen brings everything down to earth with a report that indicates that 80 percent of all television viewing still happens in standard definition. Nielsen reports that 56 percent of American homes now have at least one high definition television, making it one of the most quickly adopted technologies of the past two decades. But, it's still not the screen most of us turn to when we watch television.

Nielsen found that only 13 percent of total viewing on cable and 19 percent of broadcast is on an HD screen. 

How is that possible, you ask? There are a number of factors. First, 44 percent of homes still only have SD sets. That means those households are watching 100 percent SD. In the homes with at least one HD set, at least one-third of viewing still happens on another TV in SD. And on that HDTV, around 20 percent of viewing occurs on channels that are not in HD. Total those factors, and fully 80 percent of viewing remains the standard definition that we've had for the past 60+ years.

Not to mention how often I walk into the living room and see my wife watching an SD version of a channel that is also available in HD.  I understand that's something that happens in many, many US households.  My own totally unscientific opinion on advanced digital television is that women are much more interested in time shifting and ad skipping while men are more focused on HD.

Net neutrality not on the FCC docket for November

FCC To Ignore Net Neutrality This Fall [DSLReports]

A tentative agenda for the FCC’s November 30^th meeting has been released and net neutrality, one of the most significant and most controversial topics of the year, is noticeably absent. 

Net neutrality has been a political quagmire for much of the past two years. Network operators have opposed having the government get involved in defining net neutrality claiming that no one can actually point to a problem in need of solving.  They add that since there are no ISP's blocking legal content on the Internet, why create unnecessary regulation which often creates unintended problems. 

Of course, content owners have recently become very aggressive at blocking content.  Couple the ISP opposition with waffling support from other major industry players, plus the cautious stance the FCC has taken and strong opposition from members of Congress on both sides of the aisle, it seems net neutrality was destined to come up short.

Net neutrality falling off the agenda also comes just weeks after many industry leaders suggested the FCC move their efforts away from an issue unlikely to see consensus reached (net neutrality) and instead turning their focus toward the more broadly supported implementation of the National Broadband Plan.

The main issues that are on the agenda are all related to increasing wireless bandwidth for broadband, which was a significant plan of the agency's National Broadband Plan. Those agenda items are TV spectrum innovation, experimental licensing in wireless space, and opportunistic use of underutilized spectrum.