Category: Cable TV

Pinterest-Like Video Apps Empower Brand Builders

Posted on December 6, 2012

Video apps that simplify creation of Pinterest-like collections  are a potent new tool for brands.

The new world of “a la carte” entertainment is blurring the line between traditional, professionally-produced TV commercials and video created by “users”…the audience itself. A decade ago, we debated whether audiences would watch user-generated video. Today the verdict is clear: not only will they, but in many cases “UGV” is trusted by audiences more than agency-produced spots, particularly when real users are authentically promoting a brand’s product, service or event.

Branding expert Karen Leland’s must-read Huffington Post  blog,

Who Really Owns Your Brand?

captures this new reality in an interview with Ringz.TV founder Robert May. May describes how new video apps like Ringz are enabling companies to empower their customers and supercharge their brands through easy-to-make, shareable Pinterest-like video collections.

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Cord-Cutting: Do Cable Companies Really Care?

Posted on August 17, 2012

There have been a spate of recent articles debating the effect of Q2 2012 declines in Pay-TV subscriptions suffered by US cable and satellite TV operators  (“multi-platform video distributors” or “MPVD”s). While we believe the trends toward “a la carte entertainment”, or what we call “direct-to-consumer TV”, is unstoppable, it’s likely that MPVD  revenue lost from “cord-cutting” will be made up elsewhere.

It’s increasingly clear that dropping pay-TV subscriptions increases  entertainment consumption from the broadband pipe. Whether consumed via iTunes downloads through Apple TV or streaming video views monetized through “authenticated” iPads, phones and PCs, Comcast’s Brian Roberts, Time Warner’s Jeff Bewkes, Liberty’s John Malone and others saw this coming a long time ago. They’re betting  increased average revenue per user (“ARPU”) from DRM-supported VOD and streaming video will more than offset lost recurring subscription revenue. Today’s MPVDs are focused on making sure they’re getting a good slice of tomorrow’s cord-cutter’s spend (hello Hulu Plus, TV Everywhere,  etc.) Subscriber losses are less meaningful than year-over-year ARPU. Bottom-line: it’s about the bottom-line.

http://www.videonuze.com/article/why-has-the-definition-of-cord-cutting-become-so-squishy-

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Founder of Streaming Video App Ringz.TV Interviewed by TV of Tomorrow

Posted on July 25, 2012

TVOT founder Tracy Swedlow probes Ringz’ features, business model and roadmap in an exclusive interview with Ringz founder Robert May. Freewheeling discussion on trends in streaming video, content discovery, “over the top” television, a la carte entertainment, and next generation EPGs.

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Dish Drops AMC, Unwittingly Endorses A La Carte TV

Posted on July 3, 2012

Dish Drops AMC and Unwittingly Endorses A La Carte

TDG OPINIONS > DISH DROPS AMC AND UNWITTINGLY ENDORSES A LA CARTE
Author
Michael Greeson
Date
July 3, 2012

On Saturday night, the last day of June, the contract between Dish and AMC expired and the MVPD dropped all the network’s channels. Retransmission negotiations had failed to produce an agreement and, as of July 1, Dish’s 14 million customers no longer had access to shows like Mad Men and Walking Dead. Though this dispute will likely be resolved in the next two weeks (the time when which new programming debuts and Dish subscribers start to complain more loudly), I find Dish’s rhetoric quite revealing.

According to Dish senior programming VP Dave Shull, “AMC Networks requires us to carry low-rated channels like IFC and WE tv to access a few popular AMC shows. The math is simple: it’s not a good value for our customers.”

So let me get this right: Dish does not like being forced to pay for channels it does not want, which is what happens when networks like AMC bundle high-value and low-value channels together and tell distributors to take it all or leave it.

Seems like a reasonable argument. Dish should be allowed to select and pay for only the channels that it wants, and not be forced to pay for things it does not want. That’s the American way, right?

Ironically, this same argument is used by consumer groups against MVPDs like Dish that force consumers to buy bundles of high- and low-value channels and tell them to take it or leave it.

Strange that the argument is valid when Dish uses it against AMC, but when subscribers use it against Dish (or any other MVPD) it does not hold water. To paraphrase the industry position, “A la carte TV would undermine the entire business model that has brought a growing variety of quality content to so many consumers, not to mention significant revenue loss and the layoff of hundreds of thousands of employees.” Cannot the same argument be made by AMC against Dish or any other MVPD requesting that these bundles be broken? Of course it can.

Spewing contradictions is nothing new for MVPDs specifically or for corporations in general. For these pseudo-people, truth is a function of interest, and arguments are valid insofar as they support corporate interests (and invalid when used against them).

As Congress considers the question of a la carte content offerings—and is bombarded with data from firms like Needham intended to scare them into a decision favorable to operators—I can only hope that MVPD arguments against breaking bundles are exposed for what they are: unsound, biased, self-serving, and inconsistent with long-term consumer value (the very ethic Dish embraces when attacking AMC).

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U.S. Probes Cable for Limits on Net Video

Posted on June 13, 2012

Today’s Wall Street Journal has important implications for a la carte entertainment solutions and consumers.

Following last week’s blast from Charlie Ergen reported by SHALINI RAMACHANDRAN

“Dish Network Corp. DISH -0.18% Chairman Charlie Ergen said a new ad-skipping feature that has infuriated major broadcast TV networks is a “competitively necessary” response to the explosion of cheap Internet video. That Web video threatens the pay-TV ecosystem, he added, and it is partly caused by the TV networks themselves.”

Today’s Journal article by  THOMAS CATAN And AMY SCHATZ reports:

WASHINGTON—The Justice Department is conducting a wide-ranging antitrust investigation into whether cable companies are acting improperly to quash nascent competition from online video, according to people familiar with the matter.”

Clearly, entertainment distributors are facing Clay Christiansen’s “Innovators Dilemma”. Their strategic responses will remake the landscape of media economics for net video consumers.

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“One Ring to Rule Them All”: Ringz Unifies The Interface To Simplify Video Sharing and Social TV

Posted on June 12, 2012

 Entering the multi-billion dollar content discovery market for cord-cutting video viewers, RingGuides Inc. (“RGI”) announces Ringz.TV.

A radically different entertainment experience, Ringz’ beta app organizes thousands of web video streams in a multi-dimensional environment. Leveraging the iPad’s dual core processors and multi-touch inputs, Ringz delivers a fast-paced world where viewers flip, swipe, tap, and pinch to explore a rich media universe.

Ringz is designed to organize and monetize video sharing from all sources—“over-the-top” web streams, live IPTV and cable television, video-on-demand (VOD) services like Netflix, “free-to-air” TV broadcasts, DVRs, and local files—in a single interface that works identically on TVs, phones, tablets and PCs.

“The future of television is video sharing of multi-source entertainment. Ringz’ simple interface and business model monetizes new services like Aereo and hybrid media player products like Apple TV that mix web video, local content, and live television” said Robert May, a successful serial entrepreneur and founder of Ringz. “Ringz provides consumers with easy access to personal entertainment on all their devices, while enabling advertisers to reach aggregated audiences with consistently measureable messages.

Ringz’ initial app focuses on web streams, showcasing partners AnyClip, BAMM, MetaCafe, Turner Broadcasting’s truTV and others, plus videos uploaded via Facebook and local iTunes content. Daily “Featured Ringz” present curated videos from around the world. Scrolling Twitter #hashtags link to Ringz about events, trends and sponsored brands. Social TV is encouraged with top RingMaker promotions and Ring sharing via email and social networks. Ringz’ iPad app can be mirrored to Apple TV as a “second-screen” remote control.

Ringz’ high-energy, over-the-top design by Emmy Award-winning film designer Kirk McInroy (“Pirates of the Caribbean,” “Night at the Museum,” “Aon Flux”) was refined through consumer research with hundreds of households at CBS Television’s testing lab.  The result is an immersive second screen interface that respondents described as: “fast…like channel surfing the web”, “I can see everything at once”, ”I’m finally in control of my TV.”

Based on the patented Ikonic Navigator electronic program guide (“EPG”), Ringz is the first social TV product of RGI, an angel-funded startup based at RocketSpace in San Francisco, CA.

Ringz.TV for iPad is free in the iTunes App Store, at Ringz.tv and facebook.com/ringz.tv. Follow on Twitter @ringztv.       ###

 

Contact: Zoe Sexton, Maguffin Worldwide, +1-415-888-2565, zoe@maguffinworldwide.com

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Around The App: May 25, 2012

Posted on May 25, 2012

In addition to providing users with a cutting edge video application, each week RingzTV will highlight news and apps we believe you should know about. Tell us what you think @ringztv or here.

 

RingzTV Roundup Of News Affecting The Video World (May 25, 2012)

VIDEO

The Race: Build the Instagram of Video (WSJ)

A growing number of start-ups are providing easy ways to share videos taken from a smartphone, enabling people to add music and text and to share the results on Facebook or another social network.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304451104577390333679922236.html?KEYWORDS=viddy

 

DISTRIBUTION

Cable Execs Root for TV Everywhere, But No Timeline on Mass Adoption (Ad Age)

Even so, the idea has not been adopted by the larger mass of consumers. When will the concept have national scale? Unfortunately, there wasn’t a clear answer.

“It’s all chicken and egg. Consumer adoption is slow because there’s not a lot of content, and there’s not a lot of content because deal cycles take time,” JB Perrette, chief digital officer at Discover, said on a panel about TV content and delivery on Monday.

http://adage.com/article/media/cable-executives-root-tv/234951/

 

TRADITIONAL TV VIEWING OFFERS CABLE AN OTT OPPORTUNITY (V2M)

In the past year, the number of homes with an HDTV grew by more than 8 million to 80.2 million, leaving little doubt that the TV screen remains the dominant platform on which to consume video content. But those screens are increasingly Internet-enabled, via a set-top box, connection within the TV or through some other “Input 1″ device. For instance, Nielsen points out that gaming consoles have become strategically positioned as a secondary gateway to broadcast TV content and other options like Netflix and YouTube, and can now be found in 45 percent of TV homes, an increase of three percent over last year.

http://www.vision2mobile.com/news/2012/05/a-preference-for-traditional-tv-viewing-offers-ca.aspx

 

SOCIAL TV

Social TV: The 3 C’s To The Social TV Experience: Communication, Content And Comments (On Demand Weekly)

Viacom Media Networks (VMN) unveiled the results to their “Social TV: Viewers C’s the Moment” study. It explores the social TV phenomenon through the lens of the viewer as part of the growing shift in TV viewing from a lean-back to a lean-forward experience. Consumers engaging in Social V activities “C’s the moment” primarily by communicating, consuming content and checking comments.

http://ondemandweekly.com/blog/article/social_tv_the_3_cs_to_the_social_tv_experience_communication_content_and_co/

 

AUDIENCE

Cable Show 2012: Brands Will Survive in TV Everywhere Environment (Broadcasting & Cable)

While recent digital efforts like YouTube’s creation of 100 original channels are betting that users will seek out tailored content without the platform of a traditional TV brand, JB Perrette, chief digital officer, Discovery Communications, pointed out that early adopters of such technology, 18-24 year-olds, have more time to devote to discovering programming than a 30 year old does.

http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/484907-Cable_Show_2012_Brands_Will_Survive_in_TV_Everywhere_Environment.php

 

EVENTS

CONNECTIONS: June 5-7, 2012 (Dallas)

CONNECTIONS™ at TIA sessions offer a mix of market research, analysis, and industry insight. This approach is unique among conferences and necessary to capture the complexity of the Digital Living space and to see the opportunities in these interconnected markets.

http://www.parksassociates.com/events/connections-us/agenda

 


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Around The App: May 15, 2012

Posted on May 16, 2012

In addition to providing users with a cutting edge video application, each week RingzTV will highlight news and apps we believe you should know about. Tell us what you think @ringztv or here.

 

Around The App: May 15, 2012
RingzTV Roundup Of News Affecting The Video World

CONTENT

10 Funniest Sketch Comedy Channels on YouTube

Today, distribution is no longer a huge issue — anyone with a camera and creativity can produce potentially viral content, as we’ve seen time and time again.

That being said, YouTube may seem overwhelming for the people searching for that content. Eight years worth of content are uploaded to YouTube on a daily basis — how can you possibly find the type of comedy you’re looking for?

We’ve rounded up some of the best comedy channels on YouTube, each known for a different type of humor. Whether you like old school UCB-style sketch comedy, or outlandish, over-the-top humor, there’s likely a channel to suit your needs.
http://mashable.com/2012/04/26/youtube-sketch-comedy-channels/

 

DISTRIBUTION

Garth Ancier advises Intel on virtual-MSO plan

Hollywood and Silicon Valley may be worlds apart, but Intel Corp. is relying on a TV-biz veteran to bridge the gap.

Sources say former BBC Worldwide America CEO Garth Ancier has been serving as the face of the chip manufacturer in boardrooms at all the major content companies to advance Intel’s ambition to launch a bundle of Internet-delivered TV channels that would rival offerings from cable and satellite operators.
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118053710.html?cmpid=RSS|News| LatestNews&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

 

SOCIAL TV

The short (But Packed) Social TV Timeline (Ad Age)

March 2007 to Today
http://adage.com/article/digital/a-short-packed-trip-social-tv/234142/

 

AUDIENCE
Forrester Revises Up Tablet Projection to 112.5 Million Adults; Effect on Online Video (Beet TV)

Forrester expects that 112.5 million adults, or one-third of the adult population, will own a tablet by 2016, a revision of its previous forecast of 82.1 million.

That’s a huge jump, but it’s not just from the iPad3 announced last week. The increase is due to the success of the Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet too, Forrester says.
http://www.beet.tv/2012/03/new-media-minute-tablets.html

 

ADVERTISING

TV Dramas Account for Most Primetime Viewing, Timeshifting and Ad Spend (Nielsen)

$72 billion was spent on TV advertising in the U.S. in 2011, with $14 billion allocated during these five traditional primetime genres.
http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/media_entertainment/tv-dramas-account-for-most-primetime- viewing-timeshifting-and-ad-spend/

 

EVENTS

OMMA Video – May 17, 2012 (NYC)

OMMA Video, MediaPost’s semi-annual conference about the art and science of marketing, advertising, producing and distributing video on the Web, covers everything from innovative new ad formats, to enhanced video targeting technologies, to online television, branded Web series, and viral distribution strategies. No other show in the industry ties all the fragments together in such a cohesive and easily digestible manner, ensuring that there really is more than just something for everyone.
http://www.mediapost.com/ommavideo/

 

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Around The App: May 8, 2012

Posted on May 8, 2012

In addition to providing users with a cutting edge video application, each week RingzTV will highlight news and apps we believe you should know about. Tell us what you think @ringztv or here.

 

CONTENT

Long-Form Content on the Web – Not a Long Shot (Tubefilter)

There’s half a dozen behavioral triggers in granular content that drive us to click: Funny, Disgusting, Violent, Titillation, The Unexpected or the Controversial. Combine them and the effect is even more powerful. We click, we watch. Our brains fire endorphins in reaction.
http://www.tubefilter.com/2012/05/01/long-form-content-on-the-web/


SOCIAL TV

For TV networks, social is hugely important (USA Today)

In the heyday of television, networks and advertisers craved the hottest TV shows, those capable of producing “water cooler” conversation the next morning.

My, how times have changed in the digital era. “The water cooler used to be the next day, now it’s while the show is going on,” says Greg Kahn, executive vice president of ad-buying firm Optimedia.
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/talkingtech/story/2012-05-02/social-media-tv/54705524/1

AUDIENCE

Yahoo! Survey Reveals Tablet Habits of the Average U.S. Home (Yahoo)

One need only observe the glowing LCD screens lighting up commuter trains, meeting rooms and coffee shops to see that tablets have become ubiquitous in our personal lives. 62% of all U.S. tablet owners now say they use their tablets on a daily basis with an average use of 2.4 hours per day (Viacom). But, what we don’t often see is exactly how, when and where tablets are used inside the home. (#Infograph)
http://ycorpblog.com/2012/04/30/tablet-survey/


ADVERTISING


Online Video Turns Up Heat (WSJ)
Newer Medium’s Push for Ad Dollars Isn’t Likely to Keep TV From Eking Out Gains

Early expectations are that TV networks will win an increase in total ad commitments for the fall season in the coming weeks of negotiations with advertisers known as the upfront. Yet, some big marketers, including General Motors Co. and Samsung Electronic Co.’s mobile arm, say they are planning to shift some of their TV budgets to the Web.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304331204577356340949615260.html


EVENTS

TV.30 What’s Next? (NYC)
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/info/2028-TV_3_0_2012.php

 

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NURSE JACKIE, SEASON 4 – On Demand

Posted on May 3, 2012

On Demand Weekly provides new movie reviews of hot movies and shows on demand from the POV of watching from the comfort of your home. Today’s reviews: “Nurse Jackie” (SHO), starring Edie Falco.

Repurposed with permission from On Demand Weekly.

NURSE JACKIE
Young Women on the Verge of Life

By Jean Tait

I have to admit, by the end of “Nurse Jackie-Season 3,” I was a little disappointed. Season 2 ended on such a brilliant note, with Jackie totally busted, but somehow, in Season 3, she wiled her way out of it, and continued on exactly the same as before, with no change or growth. And as much as I love watching this ensemble, the lack of new direction started to wear thin. So I had my trepidations about Season 4.

Happily, they were unfounded. Although I don’t believe she’s quite hit bottom, yet, nor has she accepted that her personal life is a complete failure, Season 4 starts off with Jackie finally admitting she needs help. She is also beginning to see how her behavior is affecting those she loves (and who love her).

Off to rehab, it is! The change of scenery opens the door to new characters, bringing in some more of my favorite under-utilized actors as fellow re-hab patients: Margaret Colin playing a southern grande dame, and Mary Louise Wilson as Doris, an outspoken, wacky paranoiac. Also in re-hab is newcomer Jake Cannavale, all green-haired, sullen teen who becomes an unlikely sort of sponsor for Jackie’s sobriety.

Anna Deveare Smith continues to shine as beleaguered hospital administrator Gloria Akalitus who gets demoted back to wearing scrubs on the floor, which actually brings her closer to her co-workers emotionally as well as in physical proximity. Merrit Wever’s Zoey continues to beguile as her character grows up, but retains all her child-like charm. I’d like to see Peter Facinelli’s Dr Cooper grow up now a little, too.

And last, but not least, the magnificent Eve Best finally gets a little more plotline as her spiky and sexy Dr. O’Hara finds a new love, while her love for best friend Jackie gets sorely tested.

Along about the 4th episode, there is a plot twist that is a bit too much of a soap-worthy contrivance, but it’s so well cast, I want to forgive it (and I’ll also withhold judgment until I see how it plays out). I’m very relieved that Jackie’s husband (sensitive hunk Dominic Fumusa) doesn’t just roll over and forgive, either. He’s too terrific a character to turn into a sop now! But while I’m glad I’m not her friend in real life, I’d do anything for “Nurse Jackie!”

- Jean Tait

Jean Tait is a contributing writer to On Demand Weekly. Currently the Director of Programming for the Connecticut Film Festival, Jean has programmed for the Jacksonville Film Festival and Sundance Channel.

Look for NURSE JACKIE on SHO On Demand

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