Cable Companies Can Remain Leaders

We've heard of the triple play - phone, cable, broadband, now is the time to really embrace the quad play. No, I don't want cable companies buying Sprint or getting into the mobile phone business. rather, the fourth play is Wifi. With so many products accessing the web and cable content, cable companies should control that connection too. Need connection to your home voice mail, manage your DVR, or watch a show from work, why not on a device connected to your cable's Wifi platform.

For the cable company, a pricing strategy could include discounts based on level of service. A triple play customer gets the best discount, the double play customer a little less of a discount. It encourages retention of cable verse both telco and cord cutters. Obviously there is a cost to build out a wireless platform. But consider a consortium across the top cable companies, Comcast, Time Warner, Charter, Cablevision, and Cox, and the cable customer could have a real benefit to staying with their cable provider.

And customers could buy ipods, ipads, and other mobile devices without the expensive cell coverage. A less expensive wifi connection gets them all the coverage they need. Certainly the need is there for better wifi coverage. Cable companies could once again own the market and remain the leader.

Sirius and Bubba Separate

While content is king, I guess not all content is valuable. Certainly not for Bubba the Love Sponge. "Bubba heads to the "New Media" frontier of online radio provider radoio. While Bubba heads for the internet he is also pushing for this loyal following to drop their subscription to Sirius XM. Many took to his Twitter and Facebook pages to announce that they had called Sirius XM to cancel."

Does Bubba have that strong an audience to affect subscriptions to Sirius. Doubtful. Perhaps Howard Stern could have that influence, but few others.

Best Buy The TV Network

TVs in retail locations are not a new thing. Supermarkets, Walmart, and others have strategically placed thousands of TV screens to capture our attention while we wait in line. So can the Best Buy On Channel "filled with original editorial content spanning everything from how-to videos and gift guides to new-technology primers and behind-the-scenes looks at popular movies" be any different? Certainly if it ventures outside the confines of its own stores it may have a chance. Distribution deals, gaining access on the Netflix platform, Apple TV, and other internet and mobile platforms is necessary; access on a cable platform could be ideal. It wouldn't necessarily have to be as a linear channel. offering these nuggets of info via on demand could be educational, informative, and valuable to the average consumer. And driving them back to a Best Buy store, the win.

2010 TV Viewing Continues to Edge Up

Hey broadcast and cable TV, consumers still like to watch TV! "Americans watched more television than ever in 2010, according to the Nielsen Company. Total viewing of broadcast networks and basic cable channels rose about 1 percent for the year, to an average of 34 hours per person per week." And while cable viewership grows, broadcast viewership is stronger. Even with video content access on computers and mobile devices, consumers like to watch TV in a lean back, television experience.

Still, we should look broader at usage as content is the thing and where it is watch may be of less importance to the fact that it is watched at all. Thanks to DVRs and On Demand, convenience has been served for the viewer on the television to match the convenience of mobility. Subscription and ad revenue,no matter where it is paid, all lines the pockets of content creators and distributors. And with more devices to watch on, there is even more demand for content. So keep producing more TV shows, there is an audience for it.

Facebook tops Google as most visited site in U.S.

Congratulations to Facebook, the most visited site in 2010. "The social network site edged out Google.com (GOOG.O) with 8.9 percent of all U.S. visits between January and November 2010, while Google.com ranked second with about 7.2 percent of all visits, according to online measurement service Experian Hitwise." Usage across all websites continue to grow as we have become a nation of online users. And no worries for Google. When you consider all its related sites, like You Tube, and add them together,
the Google company leads all.

Happy New Year to all!

New Business Alert - Set Up Home Networking

The Consumer Electronic Show is next week and new announcements are expected. This one by Verizon FIOS seems to echo what Time Warner Cable demonstrated earlier this year at the NCTA Cable Show. "Verizon will debut a home-management service for FiOS next year that will let customers remotely lock or unlock their doors, check video cameras, adjust thermostats and power settings, and control lights -- via a smartphone, PC or FiOS TV widget." So much potential for cable to be the eyes and ears to the home. And a great opportunity for someone to come and offer both sales and installation to the home. While some may be able to connect remote cameras, new thermostats and other equipment, most consumers will prefer to hire someone to install it for them.

Theatrical Film Revenue Down

As the year is near its end, it may be worth noting that movie ticket sales and revenue are down for the year. Was it high ticket prices, a bad economy, or the technological impact of on demand, no word yet, but it would be hard to discount all three from having an impact. Per the numbers, ticket sales are down 12 billion tickets, the lowest number since 1996. Thanks to higher ticket prices, last year was a banner year for sales. This year revenue is below 2009 with 2 days remaining, but still above $10 billion, a healthy amount.

So less people are going to the movies but still paying more. Still they are watching movies, through on demand, DVD, and other means. So likely, the revenue coming to movie studios should be higher given the additional distribution streams selling movie views.

So what were the most financially successful films in 2010? According to The Numbers, Toy Story 3 is number 1, with Avatar close behind. Alice in Wonderland, Iron Man 2, and Twilight Eclipse round out the top 5. Clearly 2010 was the year of sequels, with 3 of the top 5 and 4 of the top 10. Sequels should once again top the list in 2011. And of course 3D also helped with more than half of the top 10 films.

So watch your wallets and choose where you want to watch. 3D is clearly helping to push consumers to the theater. Budgets also cause others to wait till On Demand or DVD to catch up. In either case, the revenue continues to remain strong.

Another Year End, Another Contract Negotiation

The year is almost over and once again a cable company faces another programming contract negotiation. This time it involves Time Warner Cable and Sinclair Broadcasting. "A blackout would affect 33 stations reaching more than 5 million Time Warner Cable customers and block channels such as Fox and ABC in Columbus, Ohio, and CBS in Portland, Maine, Sinclair said." Have we become hardened to such news. Typical stuff. And when it doesn't affect your own particular home, do we even care. Eventually every increase in fees eventually translates to higher cable rates to the home. And with no wall in sight, it looks like these rates will only continue to rise.

The solution, obviously is disruptive change. New technology, new service providers, new sources for content that cause us as consumers to bypass our current platform for a new one. Today, it is called cord cutting. Rates are only rising and consumers must either pay the piper or stop feeding it.

Apple 2011 Plans

Can Google of Microsoft beat Apple? It seems rather than innovate, they copy more to catch up than to lead. For Apple, the future is iPhone for Verizon, the next generation iPad, and new iPhone features. And let us not forget what Apple TV might finally emerge as a real must have product too. "Analysts are of the stern belief that 2011 will further have Apple’s domination in media headlines. Apple iPad 2, a revamped tablet with Apple FaceTime video chat and Verizon iPhone, a CDMA iPhone on the country’s largest cellular service provider Verizon Wireless will be the stars of 2011 for Apple." I know I keep waiting for the Verizon iPhone to be released although I have been told that I should wait till the 4G version is released, possible late in 2011. Till then, perhaps the iPad 2 is on my list.

While Google tries to be original, all Microsoft seems to do is keep releasing updates to its operating system. Their only recent success has been the XBox. But is that enough to continue or do they need some new blood to retake the technology lead. It seems they may have been resting too long on their laurels.