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Arris reveals Moxi DVR release 2.0 with web browser, apps and iPad remote
If your cable company is offering Arris' Moxi Whole Home DVR setup (we've seen it pop up on Shaw, BendBroadband and Wide Open West so far) you should have a few new features headed your way. This week at the NCTA Cable Show 2012 it's debuting Moxi software release 2.0 which adds in a WebKit-based browser, downloadable apps and an appstore the TV provider can customize itself, as well as APIs and SDKs aplenty to bring in third party developers. With the SDK, other companies can pair mobile devices and build in remotes or stream content, while Arris is also showing off its own iPad app (images after the break) for remote DVR scheduling. Unfortunately, we're told these upgrades won't trickle down to owners of Moxi's retail DVRs, but considering how close they came to total deactivation, we're not that surprised.
Moxi whole-home six tuner DVR on its way to WOW! customers
Just because Arris found limited success with its Moxi DVR in the consumer space, that doesn't mean it won't continue to seek success providing hardware to cable companies. Ultra TV is what the number 15 TV provider (432k subscribers) in the US, WOW!, will be calling the 6 tuner, 500GB multi-room DVR, with MoCA, VOIP and WiFi -- a deal that seems to be a bit better than the one TiVo offers for the number 16 provider in the US, RCN. The Moxi user interface in the video below looks like the Moxi we know, but we assume the DVR gateway and players will resemble the Shaw counterparts rather than the retail ones. A comment on the WOW Buzz blog indicates that a gateway and two players will set you back $25 a month, while another indicates that installs are already being scheduled.
Wide Open West lands ESPN2, ABC Family and Disney in HD
Wide Open West delivered three high-def stations to its markets in September, and now it's about to followup with three more in December. Effective December 18th, WOW! subscribers in Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Evansville will be treated to ESPN2 HD, ABC Family HD and Disney HD, and NFL Network will be relocating from the HD Pak to the HD lineup on Digital Basic Cable. Let's just call it an early present, shall we?[Thanks, Wes and David]
Wide Open West adds an HD trifecta
Man, it has been awhile since Wide Open West subscribers saw a new HD channel hit their EPG. Thankfully, it looks like the drought is over, with FX HD, History HD and FOX News HD coming to Chicago, Columbus, Evansville and Michigan. No word on whether any others are on the way, but let's celebrate this small victory before begging for more, shall we?[Thanks, David]
Wide Open West customers in Metro Detroit get new HD channels
While many of the larger cable companies have been expanding their HD lineups of late, we figured the little guys should get their time in the spotlight, too. According to a tipster parked in the Metro Detroit area, four new high-definition channels have been added to Wide Open West (or WOW!, as it were). Effectively immediately, customers in the region can look forward to Discovery HD on channel 225 (HD Theater relocated to 210), Animal Planet HD on 226, TLC HD on 227 and National Geographic HD on 228. Any WOW! subscribers in other locations receive the updates, too?[Thanks, Riscky]
Big Ten Network lands on Wide Open West
Considering just how zany this past weekend was in the world of college football, it's good to see that even more folks now have access to even more games. Wide Open West, which serves around 400,000 domiciles in the Big Ten's eight-state footprint, announced that it had landed a deal with the Big Ten Network to position the channel "on its expanded basic package." This agreement pushes the network beyond the "the 30 million subscriber mark within a month of its launch," but a number of major players (namely Cox, Charter, Comcast, Time Warner Cable [partly owned by Time Warner, parent company of AOL, which owns Engadget], and Mediacom) have still refused to shake hands on terms.
Columbus cable subscribers can now enjoy ABC and Fox in HD
Sinclair Business Group, a Baltimore-area company that owns several mid-western broadcast stations, has recently reached agreements with Insight Communications and WideOpenWest to allow them to provide their stations in high definition on their cable service. In Columbus however, Time Warner has most of the market and as yet has not reached a deal for their high definition services.The channels now broadcasting: WICS/WICD (ABC 15/ABC 20) in Champaign/Springfield, IL WDKY (FOX 56) in Lexington, KY WYZZ (FOX 43) in Peoria, IL WSYX (ABC 6) and WTTE (FOX 28) in Columbus, OH (WideOpenWest also) WSTR (WB 64) in Cincinnati, OH WKEF (ABC 22) and WRGT (FOX 45) in Dayton, OH WZTV (FOX 17) and WUXP (UPN 30) in Nashville, TN and WMSN (FOX 47) in Madison, WI will also be available on a limited number of Insight cable systems in certain markets. Sinclair indicates they will not reach deals without receiving "adequate consideration", so Time Warner subscribers, you may have those rabbit ears out for a while.
