What is the Internet, Anyway

Great video from the Today Show with Katie Couric and Bryant Gumbel. Boy have we come a long way since 1994.

Apple's Lemming 1984 Ad Keeps Coming True

Apple's Super Bowl commercial, modeled after 1984 and showing lemmings all in a line marching to their death is all coming true, and ironically it is due to Apple. With each new release of product, consumers are waiting in line for hours for their turn. Today, that line is for the Verizon version of the iPhone. "After less than one day Verizon sold out of its online pre-order stock of iPhones. When the phone goes on sale in stores in a week, we fully expect to see people lined up for blocks." And this need to follow the pack and wait in line with the hope of receiving a phone is a little too much. You can't wait a few more weeks for things to settle down. Afraid you might miss something. I simply find this need to wait in a line amusing and a little sad. Of course, it is all good business for both Apple and Verizon. With inventory selling out, the demand over supply mentality only builds more want. All I can say is chill. A couple more weeks to wait won't kill anyone and you will probably get better service getting your iPhone authorized.

Cord Cutters Rejoice, Hulu Adding More Content

For those tired of their cable bills and eager for more web content, more is coming your way. Viacom and Hulu have partnered again to allow Viacom content to be viewed across the web. "Content under the agreement to be added to the Hulu Plus $7.99 monthly subscription service will come from Viacom media networks including Comedy Central, MTV, BET, VH1, Spike TV and TV Land." In addition to the subscription portal, Viacom will be providing content into the free space as well. For those with kids though, the exception is its Nickelodean content including Dora, Spongebob and other shows. It has been about a year since Viacom pulled its content off Hulu so this new agreement is good news for those consumers waiting patiently for the return of shows like The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.

And with the Comcast NBC deal signed, Comcast retains an ownership stake in Hulu but not a voice in its strategic direction. A lost sub to a Hulu subscription is certainly not a zero sum game. Still as Hulu continues to grow, NBC and its new owner Comcast will find some benefits of this arrangement. And Comcast continues to push itself through TV Everywhere and its own mobile content. The more content Comcast enables on computers and smartphones, like the recently announced Turner deal, the more Comcast remains connected to its consumers' needs.

XFinity TV App Now Offers On Demand

Quick, update your iPad and iPhone XFinity App, with new on demand deals struck, Comcast is making video content available on your mobile device. "The free app initially offers several hundred titles to customers, with access contingent on their cable TV tier. Full episodes include HBO's Boardwalk Empire, Showtime's Weeds and TNT's The Closer. According to Comcast, the streaming feature is available over any Wi-Fi connection." The most recent mobile video deals are with Time Warner networks including HBO, TBS, and TNT. And while on demand access is one step closer to TV Anywhere, missing still is accessibility to linear content.

Take for example today's unrest in Egypt. Having a linear feed of CNN on your mobile device means access to current news and information. And extra eyeballs should also mean higher ad revenue. It is the next step to true TV Everywhere and Anywhere.

Till then, it is nice to enjoy more video content on the go. This updated App is a strong step forward. But please, lets not stop.

Netflix May Be Worried

I love competition. Competition makes everyone work harder. Competition pushes innovation. And it keeps the economy humming. And hopefully, it keeps prices to the consumer at reasonable levels. As digital media becomes the product of the future, it pushes companies to reinvent themselves in this space.

Netflix has done it, converting from a mail house of DVDs to a streaming media mecca. And at the same time raised the competitive eyebrows of cable. But just as quickly as Netflix is chasing cable, Amazon may be chasing Netflix, based on a rumor circulating around. What is Amazon's true competitive play. The article also speculates a purchase if Redbox as well as distribution deals with premium providers.

And where does Apple want to be in this competitive arena. How does Apple TV partner or compete with this cord cutting rivals? "Netflix may be vulnerable, according to Michael Pachter, an analyst with WedBush Securities. 'It's a giant opportunity, and Amazon and Apple are the only two guys that have all the elements necessary to effectively compete: access to content, big balance sheets, good technology to deliver content, and some installed customer base they can easily market to.'" I couldn't agree more.

Hey Brother, Can You Spare A Charge

One of my favorite Twilight Zone episodes had a character finally getting what he wanted, to be left alone to read his books. As he bends over to grab one, his glasses fall and smash. He was left with all he could read, but without the ability to see. And so goes the nature of the mobile device. Left untethered, we have the capability to phone others, read, listen to iTunes, watch videos, tweet, and surf. But what do we do when the power runs out.

This is my dilemma with buying one device to do it all. Knowing my un-smart phone can make and receive calls, I don't want to risk draining it on other uses. Letting a second device manage the other non-essential tasks provides some relief that an important call won't be missed. It also means carrying 2 devices. Buying one device, say an iPhone or Android to do it all concerns me. What if the phone loses power after surfing and yet I still need to receive an important call. Do I rush into the nearest Starbucks for a charge and a latte? Am I charging my phone every time I am near an outlet just to be certain I have power during the day? How can I both use this mobile wonder that connects me without losing a complete charge to connect me?

Will we find ourselves begging for a charge wherever we go. Searching for an outlet at every meal. Or is it time for companies to make that quantum leap of sustained battery use. Today I am charging my iPod every night and that is for a device that doesn't make a phone call. It is that concern that keeps me from trusting one smartphone to do it all.

Interactive Content, Take Two - ABC Tries Again

A big argument, when watching sports on TV has been the amount of clutter filling the screen. Banners, bugs, pop ups, and often meaningless data meant to divert our attention form the action on the field. And sometimes, the statistics aren't what we want, when we want it. So what does work. Well with the rise of tablets and smartphones, incremental and interactive info can be shared concurrently with the action.

I haven't seen it offered yet with sports programming, but ABC keeps trying interactivity with its own TV series. The first was the show My Generation, but as it was not highly watched, it was lost on the radar. In this second attempt, a ratings winner will be used, Grey's Anatomy. Using a technology called Sync, the action on screen matches the interactive application on the iPad. "Sync is able to time content to a TV broadcast via Nielsen’s Media-Sync Platform, which allows mobile apps to automatically detect and synchronize with TV programming using audio watermarks. Programmers like ABC have been experimenting with all sorts of interactive-TV strategies for years in hopes of increasing viewer engagement and opening up new advertising opportunities."

I like where this is going. I would love to see this application tied to sporting events. The Super Bowl is a week away. An interactive iPad app tied to the on screen action would be a huge win. So much potential.

Linked In to Go IPO

LinkedIn is surely a terrific networking tool. I am constantly surprised the connections and information it has enabled. Like the Kevin Bacon game, it helps us recognize just how close we may be to another, especially in a job hunt and business development world. And it is those relationships and those connections that help to develop new ones.

So it is no surprise that such a business tool should find itself ready to go public and capitalize on such value. "LinkedIn Corp. plans to raise as much as $175 million in what’s likely to be the first public offering for a major U.S. social-networking site." Can incremental revenue continue to rise through subscription, advertising, and other means? Will users continue to upgrade to paid subscriptions and can advertising break through the clutter? Certainly those buying this IPO would believe that their is far more growth ahead. In a bad economy LinkedIn has done well; will it also prosper once the unemployment numbers decline? That it has multiple revenue streams is a huge plus. And for now LinkedIn is an amazing business and job search tool.

Netflix Has More Cable Subs Than Many Cable Operators

Netflix subscriptions have hit a milestone, exceeding 20 million subscribers. Few cable operators come close to that number. And while the subscription fee is far lower than a cable subscription, so are the costs. "Netflix said it added 500,000 subscribers during the quarter, giving it a total of 20 million, and expects to end the first quarter with 21.9 million to 22.8 million." That is some exceptional growth.

As winter snows have kept us homebound, we have pushed through our on demand choices, free, premium, and yes even transactional. Trying to find shows that would appeal to a boy and girls' sensibilities as well as their parents. Not too violent, not too romantic, but enough to appeal to the very wide interests of my family. Not easy. And yes, we also make concessions, one action movie for one romantic one. But as we sift through the on demand choices, we wonder, should we consider adding Netflix. And with that purchase, do we drop a premium, two, or more.

So I wonder, is Netflix an additive purchase by these 20 million consumers or a shift? Are these new subscribers dropping services or even cord cutting to take advantage of a Netflix subscription, or are they adding to their choice? Is Netflix playing a zero sum game against cable or simply augmenting the playing field for consumers eager to get content across more devices? I certainly would love to see that percentage of homes that have both a cable and Netflix subscription and those that have dropped a premium in favor of Netflix. An interesting research study of the entertainment landscape.