time warner
Latest
HBO CEO steps down in the wake of AT&T acquisition
Richard Plepler, the CEO of HBO, stepped down from his post on Thursday, according to the New York Times. Shortly after his departure was made public, Variety reported Turner television executive David Levy will also be leaving his company. The moves appear to mark a significant shakeup within Time Warner, the parent company of HBO. The changes come just months after AT&T acquired the media company for $85.4 billion.
Apple's 'single sign-on' feature now works with HBO Go
Apple's "single sign-on" feature has only been live since mid-December but it's already attracted some impressive services. In addition to A&E, Bravo, NBC, Syfy and USA, which launched with the feature, WatchESPN added the functionality in January and, on Thursday, HBO announced that its HBOGo app will now support it as well.
GOP pushes new FCC chief to kill set-top box rental proposal
If you were excited at the prospect of no longer having to pay your local cable company a monthly stipend to use their set top boxes, boy does the House GOP have a surprise for you! Now that the FCC is being helmed by famed net neutrality opponent, Ajit Pai, Republican lawmakers are seizing upon the opportunity to squeeze a little more money out of the American public.
Comcast says Charter/TWC deal 'makes all the sense in the world'
If Comcast had any bitter feelings about the collapse of its Time Warner Cable merger, following today's announcement of a $55 billion Charter/Time Warner deal, it's not making them public. "This deal makes all the sense in the world," Comcast CEO Brian Roberts said in a statement this morning. "I would like to congratulate all the parties." On the face of it, the statement seems surprisingly gracious, especially after Comcast spent more than a year fighting for regulatory approval in its attempt at gobbling up Time Warner Cable. But it's not hard to imagine Roberts making nice through gritted teeth. Comcast's merger was enormously unpopular by regulators and the public alike, primarily because it would have severely reduce competition by combining America's No. 1 and No. 2 cable providers. As the fourth largest cable player in the U.S., Charter has a much higher chance of its deal going through without raising monopoly alarms.
Crowdfunded Veronica Mars movie will hit theaters and your living room simultaneously
It wasn't enough that the Veronica Mars film turned the standard studio model upside down by going to Kickstarter for its funds. Now word is that the feature length Kristen Bell vehicle will be available online to rent or purchase on the same day that it opens in 270 theaters across the country -- March 14th. Normally AMC (which owns 260 of those screens) requires that a movie not be available for home viewing until 90 days after its theatrical release, but Time Warner has found a way around that policy. Rather than doing a standard release and spliting the box office earnings with AMC, the company is simply renting out the theaters where Veronica Mars will be shown. That means that Time Warner is laying out a significant chunk of change up front to screen the film, but will pocket all of the cash from the ticket sales. That's in addition to a significant portion of the proceeds from on-demand rentals and digital purchases, which will mostly be delivered by cable and satellite providers. Don't expect this to become a standard model for movie releases, however. Time Warner views this primarily as an experiment that caters specifically to the passionate Veronica Mars fan base.
Cable companies and tech giants reportedly joining forces to push 'WifiForward'
Time Warner, Comcast, Charter, Google, Microsoft and Motorola aren't the most likely of allies, but it appears they'll be teaming up to form the new WifiForward coalition. According to the Wall Street Journal, the group will be pushing to expand WiFi access, primarily by lobbying the government to free up more spectrum for unlicensed uses. Each of the companies has been pushing for such measures independently, but by joining forces they're hoping to have more success. Increasing the available airwave space for WiFi transmissions will become increasingly important as the number of smartphones and overall data consumption in the US grows. Cisco Systems says that the average American consumed 1.4GB of data per month in 2013 and 57 percent of that was over WiFi. By 2018, that number could grow to 9GB per month. Notably absent from the list of companies are the mobile carriers. AT&T and Verizon in particular have invested heavily in building robust LTE networks. The less traffic traveling over those wireless frequencies, the less money the companies are generating -- and the percentage of mobile data sent over WiFi is only increasing. Google has invested heavily in WiFi across the country, and the major cable providers have joined forces to share their roughly 250,000 hotspots. Now these big players need to figure out how to take the next step.
Time Warner Cable bringing live TV to Xbox 360 later this summer
A new Time Warner Cable app coming to Xbox 360 later this summer promises access to 300 live television channels, Xbox Wire has announced. The new Time Warner app, which requires Xbox Live Gold and a Time Warner subscription, will offer more live TV channels than any other on Xbox 360. The announcement follows Microsoft's Xbox reveal event and E3 press conference, where Microsoft showcased integrated live television on the Xbox One. Microsoft's entertainment division, overseen by former CBS executive Nancy Tellem, also announced an upcoming Halo live-action series in collaboration with Steven Spielberg. Last week, i love bees creator Elan Lee joined the division.
The Daily Roundup for 02.12.2013
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Time Warner TWC TV app now lets users watch shows On Demand, live
Time Warner has released an update to its popular TWC TV app today that allows Time Warner Cable subscribers to watch On Demand content from over 4,000 television and movie titles across 91 providers. Like most pay TV viewing apps, the TWC app only permits viewing programming while your device is connected to your home wireless network; the exception is Dish Network's app, which gets around this by leveraging the company's Sling platform to stream from your actual satellite box outbound to your device, rather than pushing programs from the company's servers. The company notes that the initial offering will see some programs in high definition and some only in standard definition, explaining that "some networks don't offer their on demand product in HD, while some offer a mix of SD and HD. We don't get absolutely everything in HD today, but we will continue to add to the catalog on an ongoing basis." The updated app also includes improved support for the iPhone 5, adds a "recently viewed channels" feature to the live TV program guide, and offers bug fixes and performance improvements. TWC TV is a free download but its use does require that you are a Time Warner Cable video subscriber with a Standard (Expanded Basic) package or higher.
Time Warner Cable's iOS app updated with on-demand video
Time Warner Cable subscribers now have access to on-demand programming on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch thanks to a major update to the company's official iOS app. Now available on the App Store, version 3.0 of TWC TV also supports the iPhone 5's full display and is said to be faster and more stable than previous releases. Its live TV guide feature now includes a list of recently viewed channels, as well. Streaming video is the big addition though, and includes about 4,000 titles from TWC's full on-demand lineup in addition to programming archives from premium channels for those who subscribe to them. Not all content is in HD, but TWC says it is working to transition more of its SD on-demand content to higher resolution in 2013. [Via The Verge]
Time Warner CEO hopes Apple builds a television
If Apple ever decides to actually sell a branded HDTV, there's at least one person who will be waiting in line to buy one the first day -- Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes. At the Business Insider IGNITION conference yesterday, Bewkes commented that he thinks "Apple is a great device company." Bewkes believes that Apple can do with televisions what they've done with other device categories -- create differentiation. He believes that Apple can solve one of the biggest issues with television right now, that of trying to navigate through hundreds of cable channels. Cable companies, and the current suppliers of set top boxes, still haven't found a consistently simple way for subscribers to make sense of the boggling choice of channels, shows and time-shifting through DVRs. Bewkes is a realist, though -- he believes that other companies will enter the space along with Apple and that we'll see "as many interfaces as you can get."
HBO Go 1.71 update adds support for Jelly Bean devices
When it first landed on the Kindle Fire, HBO Go for Android tablets seemed like a dead cert. And, sure enough, it wasn't long before the service found its way on to slates with version 4.x, with one minor exclusion -- those running Jelly Bean. Well, version 1.7.1 puts that all in the past, and now means the full gamut of Android users (unless you never made it past Donut) can join in the fun. Reading this on your Nexus 7? Make haste toward the source link for the download.
Time Warner Cable expanding fiber broadband coverage in NYC, only businesses to benefit
Google, we're not in Kansas anymore, we're in New York, where Time Warner Cable is planning to drop $25 million on expanding its (up to) 1Gbps fiber broadband infrastructure. Specifically, the additional network is hitting neglected areas in Brooklyn and Manhattan, but it's not for general consumption -- it's strictly for businesses. Don't feel too disheartened though -- you might not be getting a slice of this particular fiber pie, but it's all you can eat, all the time at the free WiFi buffet.
HBO Go update supports Android tablets up to ICS
When HBO Go launched for the Kindle Fire a few weeks ago it seemed odd that the app still didn't officially support other Android tablets, but now that has changed. v1.5 is now available on Google Play, and the release notes indicate it supports Android tablets running software up to 4.04 Ice Cream Sandwich. That would appear to lock out the Nexus 7 for now but since it hasn't been widely released yet, we'll let it pass (although it is worth noting that Netflix was updated with Jelly Bean support last week.) Another recent change across the tablet apps is that Time Warner Cable is a supported provider. The usual caveats still apply (you'll need HBO and of course, pay-TV to sign in) but the updated app is available now at the source link.
HBO Go launches for Kindle Fire but continues to avoid other Android tablets
The HBO Go streaming app has been available on Android since it launched last year, however despite a steady flow of updates and even Android 4.0 support, until now it hasn't supported Android tablets. That changes today, however for now at least the only one on the list is Amazon's Kindle Fire, while other tablet owners will have to fall back to their browser and Flash streaming workarounds for access. There's a press release and quick video trailer promoting the launch after the break, while Fire owners who are also HBO subscribers (and satellite / cable TV subscribers, of course) can grab it for free on Amazon's Appstore now.
CableWiFi ties up 50,000 WiFi hotspots for cable subscribers to share
When it comes to supergroups, The Traveling Wilbury's haven't got anything on these guys. Bright House, Cablevision, Comcast, Cox and Time Warner are teaming up to share around 50,000 metro WiFi hotspots for their customers, under the banner of "CableWiFi." New York City and the Tri-State area, Los Angeles, Tampa, Orlando and Philadelphia will be among the first to get the service, with growth to more cities pledged for the future. If nothing else, it should be a good way to stick it to the man when he snatches your unlimited data plan.
Alliance for Broadband Competition forms to sway opinion against Verizon's AWS acquisition
The effort to prevent Verizon Wireless from its purchase of AWS licenses from SpectrumCo and Cox just became a bit more intense, as several opponents to the deal have now banded together to form the Alliance for Broadband Competition. The coalition includes T-Mobile and Sprint, along with advocacy groups such as Public Knowledge, the American Antitrust Institute, the Rural Cellular Association and the Rural Telecommunications Group. Today, the newly formed alliance held a press conference in which it called on the FCC and Department of Justice to block the transfer, which it said would lead to an "excessive concentration of spectrum" held by Verizon Wireless. While it's not much of an olive branch, the group similarly suggested that it would support the deal if Verizon were to divest some of its spectrum holdings, establish roaming agreements and agree to a backhaul pricing structure. As you may recall, Verizon Wireless estimates that it'll exhaust its network capacity by 2014. Regardless of how this $3.9 billion proposal shakes out, it's rather clear that something's gotta give.
Time Warner Cable's CEO doesn't know what AirPlay is, hates set-top boxes
While he might not be the first human to admit unfamiliarity with Apple's AirPlay, he's likely to be one of the most recognizable figures amongst the bunch. In a recent interview, Time Warner Cable's CEO, Glenn Britt, said one of the main challenges faced by digital video was the lack of simple ways to stream internet-based content to television sets. Naturally, that brought up the imminent question about Cupertino's streaming goods, to which he responded by saying "I'm not sure what AirPlay is," also adding that "the current Apple TV, the little thing, the hockey puck, really doesn't do anything to help enable you to get internet material on your TV." Furthermore, he went on to say, "I hate set-top boxes," as he believes smart TVs are a better streaming solution compared to other bits that require additional hardware. Perhaps this explains why the TWC iOS apps are still missing out on some much-needed AirPlay action.
Time Warner Cable is preparing for TWC TV IPTV streaming on Roku boxes
Time Warner Cable's TWC TV streaming TV service has already arrived on iOS and Android 4.0, so what's next? According to information we've received, the next stop should be connected TV platforms, starting with the popular Roku media streaming boxes. We already got a glimpse of TWC TV on an HDTV during CES 2012 when it was being demonstrated at the Panasonic and Samsung booths, and were told at the time that it could launch on "multiple platforms" later this year. While company personnel are currently being briefed on compatibility with Roku the launch could still be some time off, as previous preparations for rollouts like streaming to PCs came months ahead. We contacted reps for the company about the plan and received a "no comment" in response, so there's nothing in the way of official word just yet. Either way, if all you want to do is ditch the bulky cable box for a diminutive hockey puck, it seems like 2012 could finally be the year. [Thanks, Anonymous]
T-Mobile CEO argues to FCC against Verizon's AWS license acquisition
Well, wouldn't you know it, but T-Mobile -- the only nationwide AWS service provider in the US -- objects to Verizon's purchase of additional AWS spectrum. The company's CEO, Philipp Humm, recently took his concerns to the chief of the FCC's wireless bureau, Rick Kaplan, where he argued that Verizon's proposal to shed Blocks A and B of the 700MHz spectrum simply wouldn't be fair shake. According to Humm, Verizon is merely looking to offload its less desirable assets (as Blocks A and B are more prone to interference). While T-Mobile's leader presents a valid point in that Verizon has merely squatted on its current AWS licenses, we can't help but think that Humm would relish in the opportunity for T-Mobile to bid on these licenses. Further, if Verizon were effectively prevented from establishing a nationwide AWS network, it'd certainly reduce competition in the auction house, and therefore bring cheaper licenses to T-Mobile's doorstep. Given that everything in question here is not corporate property, but rather a public resource, what do you think is the best way forward? [Tower photo via Shutterstock]
