cable show

BOSTON -- Is Netflix a friend or foe to the traditional cable TV companies? Cox Communications CEO Patrick Esser says it's a "frenemy."

There's no question that Netflix and other over-the-top Internet-based video services have shaken things up for traditional TV distributors and content owners. But is Netflix destroying the cable industry's business model?

Cox's Esser acknowledged today during a panel discussion here at the National Cable and Telecommunications Association's Cable Show that there are times when Netflix may compete for an audience with cable TV providers. But as a broadband provider, he … Read more

BOSTON -- Comcast is taking aim at wireless operators with new services introduced here at the NCTA's Cable Show that will undercut mobile carrier fees for text messaging and offer an alternative to mobile data services.

Over the past two days Comcast has made two new product announcements that could threaten revenue for wireless companies. At the same time, though, the company is also partnering with the nation's largest wireless provider, Verizon Wireless.

In the latest Comcast product announcement, the company said it will allow its voice subscribers to make phone calls and send text messages for free … Read more

BOSTON -- Discovery Communications CEO David Zaslav warned Dish Network that it's playing with fire when it comes to a new commercial hopping DVR technology.

During a panel here at the National Cable and Telecommunications Association's annual tradeshow, Zaslav told CNN's Erin Burnett that the new feature Dish Network introduced recently on its Hopper DVR, which skips advertising during shows that are recorded from broadcast TV, could disrupt the industry in a negative way. He said the model is unsustainable since program owners need the advertising revenue to help cover the cost of their shows.

Dish co-founder … Read more

MTV and Comedy Central fans may soon be able to get that programming through the Time Warner Cable iPad after all.

Viacom, which owns MTV and Comedy Central, and Time Warner Cable have put their legal fight over whether Viacom content can be viewed through the iPad app on hold, according to a story in The Wall Street Journal. Viacom filed a lawsuit against Time Warner Cable in April, shortly after the cable operator launched its new iPad app allowing cable TV subscribers to watch programming available via their cable package on their iPads while in their home.

The companies … Read more

CHICAGO--Michael Powell left the communications sector six years ago when he finished his term as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. Now he's back.

In March, the National Cable & Telecommunications Association hired him as president and CEO to advocate on behalf of the cable industry.

Powell, who served as the FCC chairman from 2001 to 2005, helped bring FCC regulation into the broadband age. Under his leadership, the FCC began dealing with communications move from voice to data services. And he helped push for more powerful digital applications and away from antiquated analog ones. Powell also pushed the … Read more

CHICAGO--Comcast showed off 1 gigabit-per-second downloads and cloud-based channel surfing here today as it demonstrated features for its next-generation broadband and TV services.

CEO Brian Roberts took the stage at the National Cable & Telecommunications Association's Cable Show, where he showed how the company's hybrid-coaxial infrastructure is capable of delivering a 1GB connection to the home. Using an 11-mile demonstration cable network, he showed how an entire season of the hit show "30 Rock" in HD could be downloaded in just 1 minute and 39 seconds. Roberts commented that with slower, older connections, this download could … Read more

CHICAGO--Cable operators say they are happy to compete with Netflix. But they think the high cost of sports and live programming will ultimately keep Netflix out of the game.

During a panel discussion here today at the National Cable & Telecommunications Association's Cable Show, Robert Marcus, COO of Time Warner Cable, and Michael Wilner, CEO of Insight Communications, a cable operator based in Kentucky, said that without live programming and sports Netflix and other over-the-top video providers will never be able to compete head to head with them. (The term "over the top" is used to refer … Read more

CHICAGO--Cable operators and executives from their video content providers say they're doing all they can to avoid falling into the same trap as the music industry.

That's why executives from three of the largest cable operators in the U.S.--Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and Cox--along with some heavy hitters from the content business--Time Warner, News Corp. and Viacom--took the stage today to explain how they're embracing online technology. In a panel discussion here on the first day of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association's Cable Show led by Liz Claman, FOX Business Network anchor, the … Read more

CHICAGO--Cable giant Comcast is teaming up with Skype to offer its subscribers video calling on their TVs, in a move that could bring more affordable video conferencing to the home.

On the eve of the Cable Show here, the companies today announced that Comcast will be offering the Skype service through the TV to its broadband subscribers. The companies are still working out all the details of the service, and they're expected to begin testing it in the next few months. The Cable Show is an annual conference and trade show, where cable operators from around the country gather. … Read more