cable tv

I woke up at 8 a.m., bleary-eyed. I realized something was wrong. It hit me: I forgot to watch "Curb Your Enthusiasm" last night. New episodes tend to post instantaneously, or at least a half hour after the start of broadcast. How could I have missed it? I started to plan when I'd watch.

Suddenly, I realized, I'd become TV Man again.

I've spent a summer trying out HBO Go, the iPad/Android/iOS/browser streaming-video app HBO launched at the end of April. While I bemoaned its limited availability for most people, I was able to get a trial code to look at the service--something I couldn't have done otherwise in NY, even if I still subscribed to cable (which I don't). Meanwhile, I'm still watching Netflix as my go-to general streaming service, although I'm considering a drop in my plan from two DVDs and streaming down to no discs at all.

Both HBO Go and Netflix represent two ends of a new world of streaming-video content that's simultaneously exciting and repelling customers. They tackle the issue from two different angles: Netflix is a standalone subscription service, an alternative to standard TV. HBO Go is a service that requires being part of an HBO-inclusive cable package in order to use; it's supplemental to standard cable as we know it.

At this point, neither one is perfect, but each can learn from the other. And I hope they do, because The New Television, as I like to call it, is something I love. I just don't want it to get muddied along the way.… Read more

Live news coverage from CNN and Headline News is now available on mobile devices to subscribers of certain paid TV services.

Time Warner, which owns CNN and Headline News, announced today that its regular news channel programming will be streamed live over the Internet and available for people to view on their laptops, smartphones, or tablets if they subscribe to certain paid TV services.

Cable, satellite, and telco TV providers offering the service to their subscribers include: AT&T, Comcast, Cox Dish Network, Suddenlink, and Verizon Communications. Notably missing from this list are Cablevision and Time Warner Cable. Time … Read more

Motorola Mobility has launched a new device that can bring HDTV to a household of basic cable subscribers.

The new High Definition Digital Terminal Adapter (HD-DTA) is a small adapter that's able to convert a regular digital signal into one that's high-definition without the need for a pricey set-top box, according to Motorola.

Complete with a digital tuner, HDMI interface, and RF (radio frequency) outputs, the HD-DTA itself is a small set-top device that can be placed out of sight and send the HD signal to multiple outlets throughout the house. A remote control lets TV watchers control the device without relying on line of sight.

Beyond offering cable consumers high-definition content, the device is designed to trim expenses for cable companies and other operators that no longer would have to deal with expensive set-top boxes.

"Service providers continue to look for options that deliver HD content to their customers while reducing their overall costs," Larry Robinson, vice president of Home Devices, Motorola Mobility, said in a statement. "The Motorola HD-DTA is an ideal solution for basic subscriber households."

Being demoed at the Cable Show in Chicago this week, the Motorola HD-DTA is expected to debut later this year.… Read more

Yesterday I posted this item as a bonus deal, and it sold it out very quickly--at least on Amazon's site. However, you can still get the Ceton InfiniTV 4 card for $265.16, plus $8 for shipping, and allow me to explain why it's worth having.

If you have a spare Windows 7 desktop PC you can devote to media center duty, the InfiniTV 4 will turn it into one of the best DVRs on the planet.

It's a PCI card that accommodates a CableCARD tuner from your cable company. Once installed, it bestows four digital tuners. (… Read more

Cablevision is the next cable operator on Viacom's hit-list as the company tries to stop cable companies from offering apps that stream its content on iPads.

Last week, Viacom notified Cablevision that its iPad app, which delivers live TV and video-on-demand to its subscribers on their iPads while they're inside their homes, is not authorized. This is just the latest move from Viacom in a battle to maintain control of its content on mobile devices. Last week, the company became involved in two lawsuits with Time Warner Cable over the cable operator's iPad app.

On Thursday, Time … Read more

Looking to cut the cord on cable TV? PlayOn is one of the services that can help ease the transition. It slings shows from your Windows PC to various devices, including game consoles, media center boxes, and an increasing number of handheld devices. It's kind of like Roku, with your PC filling the role of "the box."

In the past, PlayOn offered a free trial that expired after just 14 days, but now you can try PlayOn free of charge for one month. It's a great chance to see if it can really take some (or … Read more

Americans, little by little, are cutting the proverbial cord on cable television. But that doesn't mean they're breaking up with their cable companies.

In addition to controlling most of the paid TV market in the U.S., cable companies are also poised to dominate the broadband market. This means that even when people drop their pricey cable TV packages, they're still likely to pay the cable company for access to the Internet, which is used to deliver the video streams to their TVs. For cable operators, it's a "heads we win; tails we win" … Read more

Costs from its pending acquisition of NBC Universal and lower subscriber growth took a bite out of Comcast's third-quarter earnings.

For the quarter ended September 30, the cable company reported net income of $867 million, an 8.2 percent decline from $944 million in the year-ago quarter. Net income per share was 31 cents for the quarter just ended, compared with 33 cents a year ago. Earnings were impacted by the $66 million in total expenses that Comcast was forced to take in relation to its NBCU transaction. But the third-quarter profits were also hit by a 3.5 … Read more

The number of pay TV subscribers in the U.S. declined slightly during the second quarter, but it's the economy and high unemployment--not so-called cord-cutters--that are to blame, according to a new report from In-Stat.

The number of "cord-cutters," or people who go cold turkey on their cable TV in favor of online programming, is actually low and is having a minimal effect on the industry, according to In-Stat's data released yesterday. The report also found that satellite TV and so-called telco TV (such as Verizon's Fios and AT&T's U-verse) both continue … Read more