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Tuesday, April 24, 2007

AT T and Verizon Bring TiVo To Your Phone




I'm always wondering why and sometimes why not. Opportunities to enhance the usage of tv intrigue me. I'm still waiting for the social networking sites to become linear and on-demand. Heck TMZ is creating a tv show. So when I saw the above headline tying in TIVO with Verizon Fios and AT&T U-Verse, I wonder where is the Comcast announcement. Comcast has been working with TIVO for a couple years to brings its software into the Comcast DVR experience. And yet, no TIVO, no mobility, nothing. Are the telephone companies more aggressive marketing behavior, the kinds of moves that will encourage consumers to switch cable providers? The race may be getting tighter. Speculation remains that Cablevision on Long Island is nervous about the Verizon push. My only advice to all the players, at the end of the day, don't forget about service. Over deliver to your customer - faster response to calls, faster service calls, faster resolution of problems, rewards and smiles. Neighbors talk!

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

X Buys Y/Time Warner exiting cable?



That headline continues to be the mantra in the digital world and I wonder is another bubble bursting. So many news stories with the same 3 words with the most recent being Google Buys Doubleclick. How big is big and will they topple or will the FCC be forced to put a stop to it like the split up of AT&T.




Now the story is that Time Warner is willing to spin off its cable systems to buy an internet company. So now I ask which statement is true "Content is King" or "The Pipeline is King". Does it mean that the infrastructure is less important to the future business. Perhaps so, taking a look at what happened to the telephone company and how traditional phone service is treated like a commodity. Hard to differentiate which is better for telephone reception - copper or IP or even cellular. Some homes now don't even have a hard line in their home and use their cell phone exclusively.

Wasn't it less than a year ago that Time Warner wanted to sell AOL; now they may want to strengthen AOL and buy Yahoo and others to add to their empire. Now AOL and their content partners may be the future.

So what does the consumer want. How many different platforms need to house the Time Warner (or NBC or ABC, etc) content for the consumer to find it. How many different sites must we surf to find the stuff we want to read, listen to, and watch. Perhaps we need to customize our own site with windows inside windows to place the channels we want; we simply click to enlarge or click a PIP to see a few larger windows at a time. Frankly, I only need one place to find each content producer's material - I'll copy and embed your channel into my web page. Cuz right now, my favorites/bookmark needs a bookmark!

Monday, April 9, 2007

Thursday, April 5, 2007

The Masters


I'm excited, the first golf major of the season starts today. The pressure is on both Tiger and Phil. Tiger can take it, not so sure about Phil.

Live sports, the perfect opportunity to utilize all the technology available to us: USA Network/CBS for coverage as they want to describe it to you, broadband, with scoreboard updates and video of certain holes including Amen Corner, mobile to keep us updated while we rush to get home to get more news on our favorite players. There is radio to hear the coverage, interactive features online, and who knows how many blogs and analysis with predictions on who will win.

Perhaps one day, the Masters organization will offer subscription coverage allowing you to watch the golfer you choose or simply stick with one hole and you pick the angle at the moment. Perhaps it will be free because their exclusive sponsors, Cadillac and IBM, allow it as long as their ad sits alongside the action. Soon, the front row seat may truly be at our monitor or TV set.