Warner Bros. Keeps DVDs Longer - More Regulatory Probs for LightSquared - Analyst: Sayonara 'Sports Tiers'
Strategy:
Warner Bros. unveiled a new 'deal' with
Netflix,
Redbox and
Blockbuster that will double the window before disc-rental services have access to the studio's hit movie titles. According to
AllThingsD, the services will have to wait 56 days after WB's DVDs go on sale before they're available for customers. (The previous window had been 28 days.)
Editor's Note: An
UPDATED report says Redbox parent Coinstar hasn't agreed to the deal.
Rules & Regs: A provision of the
National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 could throw another wrench into
LightSquared's plans for a national wireless network. The language in question was added to the bill by Reps.
Michael Turner (R-OH) and
Loretta Sanchez (D-CA) that says the FCC can't approve LightSquared's plan until the agency has "resolved concerns" about possible interference with military GPS systems.
Forbes has details. ---
Google,
Facebook and
Twitter have all endorsed a new online piracy bill offered by Rep.
Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Sen.
Ron Wyden (D-OR) as an alternative to the widely-panned
SOPA and
PIPA. According to
Hillicon Valley, the new
OPEN Act would direct online patent infringement claims against foreign websites to the
International Trade Commission (ITC) as opposed to holding search engines and domestic websites accountable for deleting illegal links and content.
Read more.
Analyze This: So when will we see a sports-only tier? Not any time soon, says
Nomura Securities'
Michael Nathanson, in light of last week's
Disney/Comcast deal. The carriage agreement between the two "should put to rest the idea that
ESPN will be forced onto a sports tier in the coming years. Why? "If Disney agrees to put ESPN on a sports tier or a smaller basic tier for a small distributor like
DISH Network, we think they would be contractually forced to offer
Comcast the same terms which takes money out of ESPN’s pocket." ---
Morningstar analyst
Peter Wahlstrom says
Liberty Media is "hands down" the most likely buyer for
Barnes & Nobel's Nook tablet business.
Rumor Mill: A handful of rumors have emerged from the
DISH Network camp this week, including a wireless broadband service to select U.S. markets, a new 3-tuner DVR called the "Hopper" that comes with a 2 terabyte hard drive and a built-in
Slingbox, and news that the company is going to drop 'Network' from its moniker. Stay tuned. --- With no presence at
CES, and a late-January press conference that will reveal how
AppleTV will likely "limp" along for another year,
Cable360 says Apple (and
Google, for that matter) are learning that the TV biz is still about content. "Apple's cutting-edge technology is nice, but content is still king, and Apple doesn't have it."
Read more.
$$$:
Time Warner Cable is said to be interested in bidding for the
LA Dodgers. With the company planning two new cable channels with the
LA Lakers, TWC Sports President
David Rone has said the Dodgers are at the top of the company's "wish list."
LA Times has details. --- When
Open Range filed bankruptcy, the wireless provide owed U.S. taxpayers more than $70M from a loan it received when
George W. was president. But a group of creditors now blame the
Obama administration - namely the
USDA and the
FCC - for the company's demise by breaching the loan contract. The
Washington Times has
the story. --- Filings with the
FCC show
Michael Pascucci, who sold
WLNY to
CBS last month for $55M, is now selling three low-power stations to an investor group associated with
Hoak Media for $6.5M. ---
KIT digital acquired assets and 18 OTT-related patents from
Sezmi for ~$27M.
Tech: The iPad: Is it a computer, or is it a wireless device? Says
Comcast Interactive Media SVP & GM
Matt Strauss: "The answer may be different depending on if you're streaming content from a browser or an app." And, as reported in
Variety, the distinction (or lack thereof) stems from HTML5 and how websites become more optimized for mobile.
Read the story. --- Last week came news that
LG was going to unveil its
GoogleTV-enabled HDTVs at
CES. According to Google's official blog, the search giant has partnered with several electronics firms for a handful of GTV-related stuff.
Check it out. ---
ActiveVideo Networks said it will unveil the latest version of its CloudTV platform for MVPDs that supports apps written in HTML5.
Advertising: The old 'get rid of cable' routine?
DIRECTV is running a series of new ads that urge cable customers to… well, "get rid of cable." They're funny. Watch the satcaster's new ads titled "
Stray Animals," "
Roadside Ditch" and "
Dog Collar" at
YouTube.
Disputes:
Allbritton Communications has filed an emergency petition with the
FCC asking the agency to force
Shentel Telecommunications to return
WJLA Washington to its Virginia subs. The station went dark on Jan. 1 when the two sides couldn't come to a new retrans agreement.
Over, Up & Under There:
Amazon's
LOVEFiLM has teamed up with
ITV to enable members to instantly stream titles from the UK broadcaster. The SVOD deal gives subs access to ITV archives and premium content on most connected devices.
Green: The
Super-efficient Equipment and Appliance Deployment (SEAD) Initiative launched its first SEAD Global Efficiency Medal competition designed to encourage the production and sale of more energy-efficient electronics. The first competition will focus on flat-panel TVs from four regions (Australia, the EU, India and North America) with one international winner to be crowed king. More info can be found at
SEAD's website.
People:
FCC Chair
Julius Genachowski appointed
Zachary Katz as the agency's Chief of Staff who will succeed
Eddie Lazarus at the end of January. Other staff moves include:
Sherrese Smith, Chief Counsel and Senior Legal Advisor;
Josh Gottheimer, Senior Counselor to the Chairman;
Amy Levine, Senior Counsel and Legal Advisor; and
Michael Steffen, Legal Advisor to the Chairman. ---
CTHRA announced its 2012 board of directors naming
Cox Communications VP of development
Erin Hand as president;
Scripps Networks Interactive HR EVP
Christopher Powell as VP;
Comcast HR SVP
William Strahan as treasurer and
Time Warner Cable HR EVP
Tomas Mathews as secretary. ---
NBCU Entertainment marketing president
Adam Stotsky was promoted to general manager of
G4.
Letters to the Editor: Just to bring clarity to your cutting the cord comments so often posted in your news letter. We too have joined the cord cutting crowd. However like many of our friends and associates who have also recently cut their cords, we’re getting our TV fix from a set of rabbit ears. You're (sic) newsletter articles on cord cutters continuously fails to state the obvious on where most cord cutters truly are getting their TV. Free over the air broadcast HDTV is alive and well in America and is utilized by more people than you prefer to comment on.
-Unsigned•
Editor's Note:
The following letter wasn't written to us, but we thought it was worth forwarding. The letter was penned to the editors of the Athens News upset that Time Warner Cable is switching her local Columbus, Ohio stations to those coming from W. Virginia. Here's the full text. ---
Catch today's media market news in The Evening BRIDGE. •
