Comcast Says Future Of TV Is X1

Great read in Business Insider called  "How the battle for TV's future could take over your whole house".  Matt Strauss, EVP of Comcast Video Services, sees TV evolving in a new way.  The TV continues to be the centerpiece of the house and that smarter features out of the X1 cable box offers the user more control.  "X1 is a cross between an advanced TV guide and a virtual assistant, and Comcast thinks it will compete with the likes of Amazon's Alexa-powered Echo and Apple's Siri-powered Apple TV."  With a touch of the microphone button on the remote, the X1 box can find channels, shows, answer simple questions, and possibly more.

Strauss believes that the X1 box can be the "hub" for which the home can likely get smarter.  As we tend to have TVs in almost every room, attaching an X1 box to each TV that all communicate up to the cloud and share back info, creates a unified smart home experience.  And while we may not always want the TV screen to be on, the X1 box is always on.  That opens itself up to a larger future.

From my own experience with X1 so far, I see the potential.  The next generation of boxes will need to work on voice command without remote button push, like the Amazon Echo.  One could say, "X1, what is the weather today",  just as we ask Alexa.  It could potentially then answer back rather than put answer on screen.  Than we could say, "X1 turn TV on or off", again without a remote button push.  The future possibilities are endless.  Perhaps a partnership for Comcast and Apple Siri to explore.

As to the Comcast plan, As Business Insider suggests, "So for Comcast, winning the future of TV could mean winning the entire house in the process."  I agree.

Facebook To Stop Ad Blockers From Working

As much as we all seem to hate ads, they are the lifeblood, the revenue, that drives the growth off many media businesses.  But too many, too cluttered, too irrelevant, and they make the experience of watching or reading content less enjoyable.  In the digital world, ads also tend to slow down the streaming process, as they attempt to figure out which ad to present and run on site.  As a result, many users have installed ad blockers to quicken the web load refresh process and let users enjoy only the content. 

Facebook says they have figured out how to "block the blockers" to help them assure that ads are seen and their revenue grows.  But in an attempt to aid the user, Facebook is also offering more control on what ads to see and what ads to hide.  How much more control remains to be seen and whether it is more useful to the viewing experience. 

While some use ad blockers to improve the page load, others use ad blockers to improve personal privacy and protection from possible malware.  Many want to be anonymous in their viewing process and do not want to be tracked.  While my biggest gripe is how ads slow down the page from loading, I also believe that a number of the ads presented are simply not relevant to me.  That Facebook wants to improve that experience is helpful, but more importantly, they need to improve the load refresh of the page. 

Walmart Buys Jet.com To Catch Up To Amazon

Today, Walmart announced that they are indeed buying Amazon competitor Jet.com.  Likely to close by end of year, the rationale to purchase seems obvious, play catch up to Amazon. But to make it work, the strategy will require a visible way to make the physical stores and online presence a bigger, better, more enticing experience than what Amazon already offers.  Not an easy task.

According to the NY Times, "Under the deal, Walmart and Jet will continue to operate as distinct brands."  Walmart believes initially, they will have leverage to price their products lower and yet still profit.  But as Amazon demostrates, it is more than just lower prices.  Convenience, delivery, a wide range of products and services from many vendors, plus the Prime business of cheaper delivery and streaming content truly helps the Amazon brand.

Walmart and Jet.com, operating independently may not be an ideal fit.  Finding the synergistic elements as well as the marketing approach that clearly shows the benefits to the end user are essential.  That will take a lot of work.  Done well, it could make them a venerable competitor.  It could also draw in other brick and mortar retail operations to build out their own delivery operations as well.  We see it already with supermarket chains offering home delivery services.  And department stores seem willing to ship for free merchandise not already available in store for pickup to the home.  So for Walmart, Jet.com must do something more to take away Amazon market share. 

Once the acquisition closes, it will be fascinating to see how good a fit the two brands can make.  But the real win will be if it adds value to the operation and delivers results that exists today.  Retail is a tough world, operating on thin margins.  Walmart and Jet must see that this merger is a good move for both. 

I Upgraded My Comcast Cable Box

As much as we would love all our devices to work without extra boxes on top, the added features and benefits that a cable boc can bring might just offset working directly from a smart TV.  Of course, that depends on the frequency in which devices automatically upgrade and improve their features and benefits.

For now, my TV viewing requires a cable box to watch cable programming, a DVD to watch certain videos, and a Google Chromecast to stream Netflix and other videos.  I have yet to add the Apple TV, waiting either for a better price or some wow feature to make me want to buy it.

I did upgrade my Comcast cable DVR box to the new X1.  I like the added memory by storing DVR content in the cloud and I like the ease of recording and search.  And mostly, I like the voice control on the remote to access and switch channels.  Just press the button and say NBC and the box switches the channel.  Say the name of a show and it will find it for recording.  Overall, I am happy with the upgrade.

But there is still work to be done to improve the X1 more. There is still a long latency switching channels and certain features are cumbersome to access.  I wouldn't mind a quicker way to delete a watched show and an undo button if you accidentally erased something (although it may be possible to recover a deleted program).  The TV Guide is not as clean as it could be nor easy to navigate smoothly.  And the remote still has too many buttons that can make finding the right one to hit a chore.  Still, the voice feature is a real winner and one that makes me glad to have upgraded. 

Who Wants MTV?

Viacom was part of the birth of cable networks.  It created MTV and its first music video was from the Buggles, "Video Killed the Radio Star".  Many have worried that digital streaming has done the same to cable.   Radio has survived but has certainly changed if not weakened.  IHeartRadio, a major radio player faces the prospect of bankruptcy.  But back to MTV and the question on everyone's mind, do people still want their MTV? (Sorry Dire Straits).

Can MTV and its owner Viacom keep their eye on the business while facing so much scrutiny around the competency of its founder and controlling owner, Sumner Redstone.  If quarterly financials are an indication, then not likely.  Per the NY Times, "Viacom reported a 29 percent decline in profit in the latest fiscal quarter, putting its management in the hot seat as it continues to wage a brutal fight for control of the entertainment company."  Not just double digit but more than a quarter percent drop in profitability.  The noise coming from ownership control seems to have created quite a distraction to the running of the business.  A shame given the once powerful brands like MTV, Comedy Central and Paramount.

Given that Redstone needs to be ruled competent or incompetent while he currently owns a significant block of shares likely means the inability for an outside company to come in with an acquisition offer.  The courts must first decide whether Redstone, his daughter, or someone else has voting authority to those shares.  Any offer for Viacom would have to take a backseat until that is first decided.  But the media market is changing quickly and the value of MTV et al may no longer be there.  Does anybody want their MTV anymore?

Is Time Warner More Appealing To Apple

Time Warner released its quarterly earnings and the news seems to be well received.  With future earnings expected to rise, the content business is growing.  At the same time, Time Warner announced plans to buy a 10% stake in Hulu, a streaming competitor of Netflix and Amazon.  HBO continues to operate outside the Hulu platform with its subscription service HBO Go.  That service is also growing.  And lastly, there are rumors that Hulu plans to build a streaming platform to offer live feeds of cable nets.  Adding services like CNN, TBS, and TNT to Disney and Fox sounds like the start of a compelling OTT competitor to cable. 

Does this make Time Warner a more interesting asset for Apple?  To own HBO, cable nets and a piece of Hulu could be a real get for Apple.  And it would instantly propel Apple into the video streaming space with major content players.  Add to that the Warner Bros studio and Apple could apply its influence into more immersive theatrical film experiences. 

The End Of Physical Money Coming Soon

I have been wondering, will we soon no longer need to have physical currency?  Can the US Mint finally stop printing bills and manufacturing coins?  Can we finally go 100% cashless?  Given the speed of acceptance of digital currency, that future may be a decade or less away.

While many like to carry cash in their pocket or feel safer with dollars stuffed under their mattress, millennials have been embracing instant payment services, like Venmo, to transfer monies from one bank account to another.  At the same time, thanks to online banking, check writing has been reduced as bills are paid online and automatically from customer to provider.  Mortgage checks, credit card and utility bills, and more are paid online.  And people are using Square and Pay Pal and others to pay their share of household bills as well as other transactions. 

And as the NY Times reports, banks are beginning to embrace instant payments too.  "On Monday, Wells Fargo joined JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and US Bank in allowing customers to send money in seconds to one another’s bank accounts using just a phone number or email address." Many may still question the security of such transactions, but the ease of use and immediate access to funds cannot be denied.  Our smartphone will be our wallet and our penny jar will become a nostalgia item.  Unfortunately, the rise of hacking and ease at which our data has been stolen from company databases may still scare a large number of people.  But once solved, the likelihood that physical monies become obsolete, another result of the rise of digital technology, could be happening in 5 years if not in the next decade. 

What Is The Apple Content Strategy?

What does Apple really want to do with their content business?  Do they want to simply distribute or do they have interest in owning original content?  Is Apple Music a competitive threat to Spotify and Pandora?  And can Apple TV be a better choice than other platforms for OTT subscription services?  So are the many questions that just scratch the surface of what is Apple's content strategy.

It has left many to wonder if Apple will buy Tidal to its Apple Music business.  Is acquiring content like Carpool Karaoke really a property to differentiate Apple Music?  And is there a connection to Apple TV?  There seems to be lacking a material strategy to show what Apple wants to do in the content space.  It just might take a definitive acquisition to show the public its cards. 

I say make a play for Viacom, and let MTV, Comedy Central, and Showtime be your anchors.  Make a play for Time Warner and its stable of Turner Networks and Warner Bros.  With these networks and libraries of content, Apple would quickly build a library of content and be a player in the content space. 

Amazon Shows Real Growth

The US Economy may be sputtering, but not Amazon.  Its online retail business, its cloud business, its subscription business all are growing in double digit figures.  And Wall Street seems to be happy with how Amazon spends its money too.  Per the NBC New report, they are building more distribution centers, investing in more online content, and spending where it matters to drive future growth and profitability. 

And while I have seen little about how well its products are selling, Kindles, Echos, etc., the infrastructure is expanding to manage it.  Where Amazon expects to be in 5 or 10 years remains to be seen.  Will its cloud business be the catalyst for future growth or is online retail the centerpiece of its empire?  And what future diversification is in store for the company?  For now, Jeff Bezos, CEO, isn't revealing his hand; but, he surely has some aces under his sleeve.