Industry Buzz Archives

The YMCA of Philadelphia & Vicinity's Y Achievers Program received an $800,000 donation from Comcast, the largest in YMCA Philadelphia's history.

"The YMCA is grateful for this tremendous commitment from Comcast," said John Flynn, CEO of the YMCA of Philadelphia & Vicinity. "Both the Y and Comcast are dedicated to building strong communities and this gift is an example of how corporations can help improve the lives of young people in the communities that we serve. With Comcast's support, the Y Achievers Program will be able to serve more students with broader services, creating a win-win situation for all."

Comcast's donation projects to help double the 500 students currently participating in the Y Achievers Program, and provide the YMCA with funding to improve the program's infrastructure, recruit additional staff and teen mentors. The additional funding will also be applied to the program's current offerings, including college tours, parental support programs, college readiness training, SAT preparation and tutoring.

"Comcast is thrilled to provide this gift to the YMCA of Philadelphia & Vicinity, as it will enable the Y Achievers program to grow dramatically and serve more students," said Comcast Executive Vice President David L. Cohen. "Moreover, Y Achievers is a model program that helps youth learn about careers and build relationships, and we are very proud to help provide our area's young people with opportunities for success."

The YMCA Y Achievers Program is an extracurricular educational and team mentoring program that focuses on 7th - 12th grade minority youth and engages them in leadership training, career exploration and character development. Participants also meet semimonthly at local universities to take part in training and workshops aimed at developing and mentoring career interest.

The financial contribution is part of the Pennsylvania Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program (EITC), in which businesses are encouraged to support state education via donation.

For more information on Comcast's donation and the Y Achievers Program, please see the Comcast/YMCA press release.

Verizon recently announced it is introducing Verizon FiOS TV's interactive media guide that the company says will help customers quickly and easily find and enjoy content from TV listings, video-on-demand catalogs and digital video recorders as well as personal music and photos from the home network. Verizon also says that future versions of the guide will add Internet radio, videos, podcasts and games to the FiOS TV multimedia platform.

FiOS TV's interactive media guide is currently deployed to customers in Indiana, Rhode Island and parts of New Jersey, and Verizon now is rolling out the new guide to other markets.

"Our new interactive media guide is the latest exciting development from FiOS TV," said Shawn Strickland, Verizon vice president of video solutions. "We've capitalized on our investment in an ultra-fast, highly responsive fiber-optic network to deliver a customer experience that marries the best interactivity of the Web with the highest-quality programming experience in the marketplace. The interactive media guide erases the lines between TV, Internet and personal media and makes it easy for customers to personalize and enjoy media throughout their homes."

Through a network download, FiOS TV customers will be upgraded to the new guide automatically at no additional cost, and they will continue to use their existing set-top boxes and universal remote controls. In the days leading up to the launch in each market, customers will receive a "driver's manual" and other communications about the guide's cool new features.

For more information, check out the Verizon press release.

Comcast recently celebrated the official grand opening of the company's second call center in Connecticut. By the end of the year, the new 77,000 square foot facility will employ more than 200 customer care representatives, who Comcast says will help meet the growing customer demand for Comcast's cable television, high-speed Internet and phone products.

"We are thrilled that Comcast made the business decision to invest in our state and create over 200 jobs in the process. This new facility underscores the fact that Connecticut is open to business and has the talented workforce to fuel business growth," said Governor M. Jodi Rell, who attended the grand opening ceremony with other state and local officials. "Comcast is a valued member of Connecticut's business community, and their expanded presence in our state will have a positive impact on the local and state economies."

Doug Guthrie, Vice President for Comcast's Connecticut-Western Massachusetts Region, thanked Governor Rell, the Town of Enfield and other state and local officials for their support. Guthrie noted that between the two call centers and 14 service centers located throughout the state, Comcast employs more than 1,100 individuals in Connecticut. He said that the new facility gives Comcast the capacity to add up to approximately 350 positions in the next few years as it continues to grow its business. In addition to the two Connecticut call centers, Comcast operates six other call centers in New England.

"Governor Rell and the Department of Economic and Community Development have been instrumental in Comcast's efforts to expand our operations in the state of Connecticut as we strive to meet the strong customer demand for our innovative products and services," said Guthrie. "Comcast's recipe for success starts with delivering a top-notch customer experience, and that includes locating our call centers in and around communities where our customers live and work."

Prior to the transition to Comcast, Adelphia/Tele-Media customer calls were entirely outsourced to other parts of the country, a trend that Comcast says it has reversed to ensure better service.

Guthrie added that the opening of the new call center coincides with the completed launch of Comcast Digital Voice, the company's residential phone service, which is offered in every Connecticut community in which Comcast provides service, including those previously served by Adelphia/Tele-Media. With phone service offered throughout the state, Comcast says the company's Triple Play bundle of digital cable with ON DEMAND, Comcast high-speed Internet and Comcast Digital Voice will also be available to customers throughout the company's footprint.

For more information on the call center, check out the Comcast press release.

Earlier this month, AT&T; announced a new phase of the company's branding strategy. AT&T; kicked off this phase by replacing the Cingular brand with AT&T; on all in-store signage, store kiosks, and point-of-sale materials in approximately 1,800 company-owned wireless retail stores. In addition, key stores in major markets also unveiled new exterior signage displaying the new brand.

The decision to move to this phase of the branding campaign is based on research that indicates that consumer awareness of AT&T; is high and ahead of expectations.

The store makeovers are also critical to prepare for the late-June launch of the Apple iPhone, for which AT&T; will be the exclusive wireless provider in the United States. Many company-owned stores have also installed kiosks promoting the complete array of AT&T; services—wireless, high-speed Internet, TV and home phone service—in the company's traditional service areas.

These broader service offerings are part of the company's ongoing efforts to integrate its wireline and wireless businesses and further strengthen its position as a complete provider of communications and entertainment services.

"Consolidating BellSouth and Cingular under the AT&T; brand was based on extensive market research and is proving to be the right decision," said Randall Stephenson, AT&T;'s chief operating officer. "Our branding campaign is performing at and above projected levels and customer response has been very positive. We are excited to move into the next phase of transforming AT&T; into the only communications provider our customers will ever want."

As part of its branding initiative, AT&T; is also now beginning to replace Cingular with the AT&T; brand in voice greetings, on new customer handsets and handset screen displays and on envelopes and statements. In addition, exteriors of most company-owned retail locations are expected to be branded as AT&T; by September, with branding of agent-owned retail stores expected to be completed by January 2008. Many of the company's high-profile sponsorships such as "American Idol" and NASCAR will be transitioned soon as well.

"The newest phase of our branding campaign communicates that AT&T; is a leader in wireless as well as in other communications and entertainment services," said Wendy Clark, senior vice president ??? AT&T; Advertising. "Our goal is to let the public know that AT&T; offers perhaps the best choices, values and convenience in the marketplace across our extensive portfolio for the communications services they want and need."

In addition to AT&T;'s wireless/wireline integration initiatives, the BellSouth brand transition campaign has also been very successful. According to weekly research numbers, unaided advertising awareness of AT&T; in the former BellSouth region has increased sevenfold.

For more information, check out the AT&T; press release.

Monster® and Comcast recently announced that Monster's recruitment services will now be available through Comcast's portal, Comcast.net, as part of a two-year deal.

Monster will be the exclusive provider of career tools and services on Comcast.net through a co-branded recruitment channel, which will offer career content and advanced search and match capabilities for hundreds of thousands job openings nationwide. In addition, employers will have the ability to post jobs, and gain access to the world's largest resume database via the co-branded channel.

"This relationship marks yet another major step forward in Monster's commitment to advance our business through the creation of new points of distribution for our services," said Doug Klinger, president, Monster North America. "Working with Comcast will allow us to capitalize upon two powerful brands to bring Monster's world-class products to key customers nationwide. We look forward to the opportunity to leverage our combined expertise."

"Comcast.net is one of the fastest-growing Internet portals in the country," said Charlie Herrin, SVP of Product Development and Portal Services for Comcast. "We are committed to delivering a great consumer experience on Comcast.net, and working with strong brands like Monster enables us to keep delivering excellent value to our customers."

Comcast.net is now a top 10 site with more than 2.5 billion page views, more than 80 million videos viewed and 15 million unique visitors per month.

If you are looking for a job, you can currently access the co-branded site at comcast.monster.com or by clicking on the 'Jobs' category on Comcast.net.

Qwest Communications recently announced that it earned a Statement of Support from Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) as a "Five-Star Employer" in Utah. This is the highest honor ESGR awards to companies for their support of employees in the National Guard and Reserve.

In addition to keeping jobs available for returning employees, Qwest offers differential pay when military pay is lower than an employee's normal salary, and the company keeps most benefits in force during a leave of absence.

"We are gratified that Qwest employees know that while they are serving their country they do not have to worry about their civilian jobs," said James G. Martin, ESGR chairman for Utah.

Qwest also maintains contact with service members and their families and helps in other ways, including organizing drives to collect comfort items for shipment to U.S. personnel serving in the armed forces.

"Employees are the backbone of our company, and we go to great lengths to support them and their families as they serve their country," said Jerry Fenn, Qwest president for Utah.

For more information, check out the Qwest press release.

As part of its continued growth in the Washington, D.C. area, RCN recently added another sponsorship to its roster. In addition to the company's agreement with the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Virginia, RCN recently announced that it has signed a two-year partnership with Kettler Capitals Iceplex, official training center of the Washington Capitals, has signed a two-year partnership to provide cable services for the team's new headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. RCN is one of the first official sponsors of the recently opened $43.7 million Iceplex.

Home of the Washington Capitals' front offices, team practice rink and training facilities, Kettler Capitals Iceplex is an indoor ice-skating complex that features two NHL regulation-sized rinks with seating for 1,200 and building occupancy of 2,100. Combined, the two rinks offer the public 12,000 hours of ice time annually. In addition to the Capitals, other user groups include Washington Jr. Capitals, Washington Jr. Nationals, Washington Little Capitals and Georgetown University, as well as local adult, college, high school and youth hockey teams.

"Kettler Capitals Iceplex is a state-of-the-art facility that deserves only the best in technology," said Washington Capitals Chairman and Majority Owner Ted Leonsis. "RCN adds cable services and a level of sponsorship that will add to the quality of the building for the community, players, coaches, fans and staff. We are excited to have RCN onboard as a new partner and look forward to the services and technology that they add to our facility."

As part of the deal, RCN will become the exclusive Official Cable Provider to the Kettler Capitals Iceplex, which includes a range of on-site branding opportunities including Web site, TVs, dasherboards, ice-resurfacing machine and in-ice recognition.

"We are proud to have been the first to offer the triple play of video, high-speed data and voice, so we are very excited to now bring a viable, competitive choice to businesses in Arlington County," said RCN President and CEO Peter Aquino. "The Kettler Capitals Iceplex is a very remarkable facility, and we look forward to meeting its cable needs and to the marketing opportunities that this deal provides for us."

According to RCN Senior Vice President, Strategic & External Affairs Richard Ramlall, the company's growing affiliation with local sports teams reflects its determination to have a positive presence in the community.

"Our company was formerly known as Starpower in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. With this new partnership, RCN's star power continues to grow," Ramlall said. "In addition to the Kettler Capitals Iceplex, our partnerships allow us to showcase RCN at D.C. United soccer games, Georgetown basketball games and at more than 140 Patriot Center concerts, community events and George Mason basketball games."

Under the terms of the agreement, RCN will provide cable video services for the Kettler Capitals Iceplex. This contract is the first since RCN created a new business unit to focus solely on serving small to medium-sized businesses.

"Our focus is on taking the time to understand the communications needs of each small business we serve. We do that with knowledgeable sales people and experienced customer care teams who are armed with service selections that make sense," said RCN Small Business Vice President John Baker. "In addition to a variety of phone rate plans for example, we offer data speeds up to 20Mbps, while DSL taps out at only 7Mbps and Comcast at 8Mbps."

Baker explained that RCN's focus is good news for small and medium-sized businesses looking for vendor choice. "We realize that choosing the right provider for phone, high-speed Internet and cable TV is critical for small business and we take pride in delivering the services and support our customers can rely on."

For more information, check out the RCN press release.

At a press conference last week on the National Mall, the Common Ground Alliance (CGA) joined with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters, the Federal Communications Commission, and representatives from national launch partners the Associated General Contractors of America, John Deere, The Travelers Companies, Inc., and Cox Communications, to ceremonially connect 811, the new national 'Call Before You Dig' number.

"Now that there is a single number to call, any time, there's no excuse for putting lives at risk by striking a utility line," said U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters. "If 911 is the number you call to report emergencies, 811 is the number to call to prevent them."

The 811 number was designated by the FCC in 2005 at the direction of an Act of Congress in 2002. Its creation was supported by more than fifteen industry stakeholder groups who encouraged its development and creation and now promote its use nationwide.

To ensure that all Americans know and use 811, today's event on "America's Front Yard" also kicked off a national public education campaign, which will use an educational Web site, television and radio PSAs, industry and consumer outreach, and local events to raise awareness of the new number and demonstrate its relevance to consumers and professionals who conduct digging activities. Additionally, the campaign's national launch partners and promotional sponsors will promote the new number through a variety of tactics designed to leverage the grassroots power of their customers, clients and members, creating awareness and positive behavioral change among those most likely to dig.

"Knowing the approximate locations of where utility lines are buried before each digging project helps protect America's pipelines, industry and people," said CGA President Bob Kipp. "We believe the new 811 number will encourage more people to have their lines marked to protect themselves, their neighbors and their community."

Nationwide, risky assumptions about the location of underground utility lines, which are buried at various depths below the ground, lead to more than one unintentional hit per minute every day, every year. Even simple digging jobs can damage utility lines and disrupt vital services to an entire neighborhood, harm those who dig, and result in expensive fines and repair costs.

For more information about the 811 service, campaign, and a new national survey on consumer digging habits, visit www.call811.com.

The average U.S. household owns 25 consumer electronics (CE) products and the average adult spends $1,200 annually on these products according to a study released today by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA®). The 9th Annual Household and Teen CE Ownership and Market Potential Study also revealed the most owned CE products and tracks the growth rates of popular product categories.

The top five growth sectors were digital video recorders (DVRs), network routers or hubs, MP3 players, cable modems and digital cameras. DVR ownership and network/routers in U.S. households grew eight percentage points since 2006 to 25 and 30 percent respectively. Thirty-two percent of households now own an MP3 player, up seven percentage points since last year. Cable modem ownership grew six percentage points and digital camera ownership rose to 62 percent of all U.S. households.

"It's interesting to note here that two of the fastest movers and shakers in the CE industry are devices that enable home networking," said CEA Senior Research Analyst Elena Caudle. "The other three products enable consumers to create, shift or transport digital content. As consumers continue to embrace digital technology this new convergence will continue to change the way Americans live, work and play."

Other categories with significant growth include HDTV with penetration reaching a quarter of U.S. homes. More than three-quarters of U.S homes have at least one cell phone; CEA estimates 178.5 million wireless phones are in use. DVD players have reached 84 percent household penetration and have surpassed VCRs, partially because of the availability of portable DVD players.

In addition to identifying top growth categories, the study reveals the five most owned products beginning with the television (92 percent), DVD player or recorder, VCR (82 percent), cordless phone (82 percent) and the cellular phone (76 percent).

"Many of the top owned products have enjoyed mass market saturation for years and will likely see growth based on upgrade and replacement sales. Some of the more intriguing categories are those that still occupy niche markets, such as mobile CE devices like GPS systems and satellite radio, which have seen healthy growth in the past few years," said Caudle.

The study also sets out the spending habits of consumers by age demographics. While adults spend $1,200 annually on CE products, teens spend $350 each year which is about half of their total annual discretionary income. Adults with children and teens spend up to $500 more on CE purchases than the national average.

"This is excellent news for the industry as children and teens who currently influence household CE purchase decisions grow up to become the next generation's early adopters," said Caudle.

9th Annual Household and Teen CE Ownership and Market Potential Study (April 2007) was conducted in February 2007. It was designed and formulated by CEA Market Research, the most comprehensive source of sales data, forecasts, consumer research and historical trends for the consumer electronics industry.

For more information, check out the CEA press release.

Verizon recently announced it is adding HGTV HD, Food Network HD and LMN HD (Lifetime Movie Network) to the company's FiOS TV national channel lineup.

"By adding HGTV HD, Food Network HD and LMN HD to our FiOS TV lineup, we're enriching the customer experience for our HD customers, who now can enjoy their favorite shows on these channels in brilliant HD and digital surround sound," said Terry Denson, Verizon vice president - FiOS TV content and programming. "With these high-definition networks, Verizon continues to deliver the breadth of content that consumers want in a way that best fits their lifestyles."

The three channels will be available in all FiOS TV markets by the end of April, bringing the total number of HD channels to at least 27 in most markets, depending on the number of local channels that broadcast in HD. FiOS TV subscribers with an HD-capable TV and an HD set-top box will receive the three new channels at no additional cost.

HGTV and Food Network are America's leading networks in home, food and lifestyle programming. HGTV HD and Food Network HD air some of the same popular shows that appear on the standard definition networks including "Cash in the Attic," "Decorating Cents," "Barefoot Contessa" and "Everyday Italian." LMN, the second highest-rated women's network on basic cable behind sibling Lifetime Television, offers nearly 200 different movie titles each month, including exclusive film and cable premieres.

John Baird, executive vice president of affiliate sales and marketing for Scripps Networks, parent company of HGTV and Food Network, said, "FiOS TV is growing in popularity just as our high definition networks are, making this agreement a winning partnership for viewers."

Louise Henry Bryson, president, distribution and affiliate business development, Lifetime Networks, said, "We're delighted to partner with FiOS TV for this HD offering, which will provide our customers with LMN's high-quality entertainment in Verizon's high-quality picture."

Verizon FiOS TV offers a all-digital programming of more than 400 total channels, 8,600 video-on-demand titles and more. It is currently available in parts of California, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia.

For more information, check out the Verizon press release.

AT&T; announced recently that deployment and sales of its IP-based television service, AT&T; U-verse^SM TV, are accelerating, in what they say is part of a strong momentum in their overall video strategy. The company also said it plans to launch AT&T; U-verse in the Los Angeles area in the coming weeks, with additional launches are planned for later this year and next.

According to recently released figures, AT&T; U-verse TV has grown rapidly since January, with approximately 18,000 U-verse television and high-speed Internet subscribers currently in service. AT&T;'s average installation rate has ramped to approximately 2,000 installations a week—five times greater than its average rate in January.

In the first three months of 2007, AT&T; launched U-verse services in new markets, including Milwaukee, Kansas City, and Dallas-Fort Worth. Earlier this month, AT&T; announced that U-verse services were available to more than 200,000 households in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, less than one month after introducing service in that market.

The company says sales are gaining momentum across its video portfolio. Following a strong fourth-quarter 2006 in which AT&T; added 111,000 bundled satellite TV users, the company added a record number of users in the first quarter of 2007. Including U-verse and satellite customers, AT&T; added more than 180,000 video users in the most recent quarter, which is more than Time Warner, Comcast, Cox and Cablevision combined added for the full year in 2006.

"Our video strategy is showing strong momentum as we add new subscribers at an increasing rate," said Ralph de la Vega, group president-Regional Wireline Operations, AT&T.; "Consumers are clearly hungry for an alternative to cable TV, and AT&T; U-verse is a very attractive choice. We offer more High Definition channels than local cable companies in the markets we serve, the ability to record up to four programs at once, and the ability to set DVR recordings remotely using the AT&T; Yahoo!® portal or, soon, a mobile device."

For more information, check out the AT&T; press release.

Best Buy recently announced the launch of a consumer electronics recycling grant program to help increase the recycling opportunities available in communities across the country. The company says the new program is part of its commitment to help consumers nationwide make safe, responsible decisions when disposing of old and unwanted consumer electronics.

The program will provide two types of grants—the first will provide support for events hosted by 501(C)3 nonprofit organizations. The second will support events hosted by other organizations in cities and townships across the country (e.g., cities, counties, public-private partnerships). Grants will range from $500 to $1,500, depending on the size and scope of each organization???s event program and the recycling need in the area.

???As the largest retailer of consumer electronics, we have a responsibility to help consumers make smart decisions when disposing of e-waste,??? said Brenda Mathison, director, environmental affairs, Best Buy. ???The Environmental Protection Agency has estimated that consumers will retire two million tons of e-waste this year—rom cell phones and rechargeable batteries to televisions, computers and appliances. We see this grant program as a way to extend our reach in communities, supporting local programs that touch all consumers and help ensure these items are properly handled.???

The recycling grant program joins a number of Best Buy programs that the company says have helped more consumers recycle e-waste than any other retailer in the United States, including:

Free recycling drop-off kiosks
You can find these kiosks just inside the door of every U.S. Best Buy store and drop off items for free. In 2006, Best Buy collected more than 90,000 pounds of old cell phones, rechargeable batteries, and ink-jet cartridges.

Recycling events
Best Buy hosts and/or sponsor weekend recycling events in its store parking lots across the United States. Since 2001, these events have collected more than 5 million pounds of e-waste. In 2006, Best Buy sponsored or hosted 40 recycling events, collecting more than 1.8 million pounds of e-waste from consumers. This year Best Buy will hold events in Florida, Minnesota. Washington State, California, Massachusetts and several other states.

Services and haul-away programs
Best Buy says it recycled more than 13 million pounds of e-waste through its services and customer haul away programs in 2006. For a nominal fee, Best Buy will haul away and recycle your television, monitor, and appliances when new purchases from their stores are delivered to your home.

Mail-in cell phone recycling
New cell phone customers receive free, postage-paid envelopes to mail old phones to ReCellular, a cell phone reuse/recycling partner of Best Buy.

For more information on all Best Buy's recycling efforts, visit www.bestbuy.com/recycling.

The Verizon Foundation last week announced a $31 million investment to provide free online educational resources to teachers, students and community organizations through Thinkfinity.org, Verizon's comprehensive online portal to 50,000 standards- based, K-12 lesson plans and other educational resources provided by some of the nation's leading educational organizations.

The $31 million commitment, which will be distributed over three years, will allow leading educational organizations to continue to produce and expand the number of interactives and other educational resources available at www.thinkfinity.org.

The Verizon Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications, which is deploying the most advanced wireline and wireless broadband networks in America. Thinkfinity is the Verizon Foundation's signature educational and literacy program, and includes the program formerly known as Verizon MarcoPolo, and the Verizon Literacy Network.

"Thinkfinity is a tremendous asset for teachers, students, parents and community organizations," said Tom Tauke, Verizon executive vice president - public affairs, policy and communications. "It's appropriate that our foundation supports a literacy and education program that is built on the technology that Verizon is deploying. The broadband networks we are building can provide a student anywhere, anytime access to the world's richest educational content created by the leading experts in the fields of history, science, mathematics and the arts."

Content for Thinkfinity is provided through the following leading organizations in the fields of education and literacy: the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the International Reading Association, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, National Center for Family Literacy, National Council on Economic Education, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Council of Teachers of English, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, National Geographic Society and ProLiteracy Worldwide.

Also on Tuesday, the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History was announced as Thinkfinity's 11th content partner. The museum's electronic outreach program creates experiences that incorporate qualities of a museum visit with the flexibility and interactivity of online tools. As a partner, the museum plans to help create family and after-school offerings on Thinkfinity.org.

"Producing interactive, engaging lessons plans is a necessity to reach our children in the classroom today," said Charmona Whitfield, an instructional technology teacher for grades K-6 at Mosby Woods Elementary School in Fairfax, Va. "Because our kids have iPods, cell phones and X-boxes, they need to truly interact with what they are learning. To simply stand in front of them and talk is not enough. Thinkfinity makes learning fun."

Whitfield said Thinkfinity also provides practical benefits to teachers. "It's a time saver," she said. "It's concise, easy to navigate. You have very quick access to tried-and-proven lesson plans."

Thinkfinity combines authoritative, standards-based K-12 educational content and robust professional development with research and evidence-based resources and practices for literacy across the lifespan.

Research published in the Peabody Journal of Education (2006) showed that providing state-of-the-art educational resources had a positive effect on student achievement, especially in schools that traditionally lacked such resources.

"Thinkfinity is an exemplary online platform for delivering high-quality resources to a wide range of stakeholders that support lifelong learners in school and beyond the school day," said Dr. Trina Davis, president-elect of the International Society for Technology in Education. "Taking an integrated approach in providing stellar resources and focused professional development assures that the needs of 21st century learners will be met in schools and communities across the country."

For more information, check out the Verizon press release.

Good news, golf fans! AT&T; announced this week that you can now enjoy more of the 2007 Masters Tournament as the company launches its first major content initiative across the three screens central to customers' lives: the wireless device, the TV and the PC.

Under an agreement with the Masters, AT&T; will provide golf fans with access to Masters previews and daily highlights, live tournament and practice range coverage, player interviews, live updates, links to real-time scoreboards and more. Masters coverage will be available through AT&T; blue room, AT&T; U-verse^SM TV, AT&T; Homezone^SM service, AT&T; U-verse OnTheGo, AT&T; Broadband TV, and Cingular, now AT&T;, wireless service. Live video, including Masters Extra and Amen Corner Live, real-time scoring and additional information is also available on the Masters official Web site, masters.org.

The deal furthers the company's commitment to deliver compelling content across the three screens. AT&T; offers customers a wide variety of content through a portfolio of advanced video, broadband and wireless services, bringing customers more of the entertainment they enjoy and strengthening programmers' and advertisers' connections with new and loyal audiences.

"By extending the excitement of the 2007 Masters Tournament across the three screens, AT&T; is giving golf fans more ways to enjoy one of the greatest traditions in all of sports," said Dan York, head of content and programming, AT&T; Entertainment Services. "As audiences look to get content on the range of digital devices, three-screen entertainment is the future. The Masters recognizes that successful programming translates to all three screens, which AT&T; can deliver to consumers, programmers and advertisers."

For more information, check out the AT&T; press release.

AT&T; Inc. announced today that the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), the nation's leading advocate of women-owned businesses as suppliers to America's corporations, has named AT&T; as one of America's Top Corporations for Women's Business Enterprises.

AT&T; and BellSouth, acquired by AT&T; in late 2006, were selected for this honor after successfully demonstrating that the companies had made a substantive commitment, both qualitatively and quantitatively, to enhance contracting opportunities for women business enterprises (WBEs). WBENC will recognize the company and other corporate leaders that demonstrate best practices for supporting women's business enterprises in the March 16 issue of Fortune Small Business magazine. AT&T; and the former BellSouth will also receive the Women's Business Enterprise Award on March 30 at a special awards presentation held in conjunction with WBENC's 2007 Salute to Women's Business Enterprises: The Enterprising Economy in Dallas, Texas.

In recognizing AT&T;, Linda Denny, interim president of WBENC, said, "AT&T; has 'raised the bar' with respect to implementing and innovating best practices in purchasing from women's business enterprises. We are recognizing AT&T; as one of America's Top Corporations for Women's Business Enterprises because the company has made a number of significant contributions that proactively integrate WBEs at all levels within its supply chain. AT&T; is also very consistent, year over year, in its ongoing commitment to this important group of vendors."

"We are honored to receive this award from WBENC. Supplier diversity is an integral part of AT&T;'s business strategy, and we pride ourselves on our world-class WBE initiatives," said Maureen Merkle, president-Procurement, AT&T.; "Like AT&T;, the former BellSouth has always had a strong commitment to supplier diversity. Now that we are AT&T;, we are in an even stronger position to cultivate valuable relationships with women-owned and diverse businesses in the communities we serve."

This is the eighth consecutive year that AT&T; has received this honor from WBENC. The company has been included among the Top Corporations since the list's inception. In 2005, AT&T; spent $2.4 billion with diverse suppliers, representing 15 percent of its procurement base, including more than $760 million with women-owned businesses. In fostering diversity and inclusion, AT&T; has created a better business environment, one that makes the company an employer of choice, a preferred business partner and an important contributor to the community.

For more information, check out the AT&T; press release.

Approximately 15 million Americans were victimized by some sort of identity-theft related fraud in the 12 months ending in mid-2006, according to a survey by Gartner Inc. These statistics represent more than a 50 percent increase since 2003 when the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported 9.9 million American adult identity theft victims.

According to the Gartner survey of 5,000 online U.S. adults in August 2006, the average loss was $3,257 in 2006, up from $1,408 in 2005. At the same time, the percentage of funds consumers managed to recover dropped from 87 percent in 2005 to 61 percent in 2006.

"Hackers are exploiting Internet auctions, nonregulated money transmittal systems, the ability to impersonate lottery and sweepstake contests, and other types of imaginative scams," said Avivah Litan, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. "The thieves have also discovered the weakest links in the U.S. payments systems. Typically, the weak links are found among the five or more million businesses that accept electronic payments from consumers, and the consumers themselves."

Electronic theft of sensitive information is a leading cause of certain types of fraud, including credit card, debit/ATM card and bank account transfer fraud. This is not the case with check forgery and new account fraud, where in-person data theft is the leading cause.

"All sensitive electronic data needs to be protected, but enterprises should be aware that the low hanging fruit for the criminals is electronic card and checking account numbers, as well as user IDs and passwords for online financial accounts," Ms. Litan said.

The average loss on new account fraud more than doubled from $2,678 in 2005 to $5,962 in 2006. Unauthorized charges to credit cards rose nearly fourfold from an average of $734 in 2005 to $2,550 in 2006. This trend reconciles with a trend cited by various U.S. card issuers who reported large increases in counterfeit card fraud in 2006. Similarly, there were large increases in checking account transfer fraud and "other" noncategorized types of fraud (for example, scams exploiting eBay, PayPal and phone companies).

"Oftentimes, consumers have no idea how criminals hijack their accounts and/or identities," Ms. Litan said. "They also typically have no clue if one or more of their personal attributes, such as their social security number, is used to piece together a new fictitious identity in a phenomenon typically referred to as synthetic identity fraud."

Regardless of the method used to steal data to commit new account fraud, the fraud itself can be largely prevented by using identity verification and scoring services.

"Enterprises that store credit card, debit/ATM card and bank account data should expect electronic data breaches and/or hacks, and migrate away from that practice while protecting their systems accordingly until they are able to do so," Ms. Litan said. "Rule-makers debating identity-theft legislation should consider comprehensive financial protection for consumers who lose money to fraud that goes beyond disparate regulations in place today. Service providers should pay for this protection when data or accounts under their custody are breached."

For more information, check out the press release.

If you started 2007 with a resolution to handle your finances better, Yahoo! recently launched a new personal finance Web site that might help you stay on track. Yahoo! says that the new site brings together the Internet's most useful tools and information to help consumers manage their personal finances. Yahoo! Personal Finance offers consumers a suite of new financial centers, covering every major area of personal finance, ranging from "Banking & Budgeting" to "Retirement." The site continues the company's media strategy of bringing together the best tools and information around a particular topic from the industry's leading providers, while also expanding advertising inventory in one of the largest advertising categories.

"The goal of Yahoo! Finance has always been to help our users make informed financial decisions, and now we're able to do that across every aspect of their financial lives," said Peggy White, general manager, Yahoo! Finance. "Not all of our users manage an investment portfolio, but we all manage a checkbook. This presents a huge opportunity for Yahoo! Finance to expand beyond our core investing-focused offerings."

Yahoo! Finance has already established itself as the Internet's number one destination for investing tools and information, and aims to expand its audience size and engagement with the addition of a new personal finance home.

For more information, check out the Yahoo! press release or visit the Yahoo! Personal Finance site.

CRO magazine recently named Motorola Inc. to its list of the "100 Best Corporate Citizens." The 2007 ranking marks the second year in a row that Motorola has earned the fourth spot on the list and the fourth time that Motorola has appeared in the top 10.

The annual ranking is based on the evaluation of more than 1,100 of the largest U.S. publicly traded companies in eight key categories: shareholders, community, governance, diversity, employees, environment, human rights and product.

"Corporate responsibility is inherent in everything we do - from our commitment to strong environmental, health and safety practices to our community support and efforts to foster a diverse and engaged workforce," said Maryann Clifford, corporate vice president, who leads Motorola's corporate responsibility efforts. "Being named as one of the country's top corporate citizens is a testament to the work of our employees around the world to uphold such strong standards that benefit both Motorola and our customers."

Analysis by KLD Research & Analytics to develop the ranking noted that Motorola is particularly effective in reporting on social, environmental and economic performance measures, and that the company has taken significant steps to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate contributions to global climate change and air pollution.

Recycling is another priority for the company. Motorola has developed a variety of reuse and recycling programs for mobile phones and accessories. The Race to Recycle program encourages U.S. K-12 students to collect used phones—Motorola or other brands—in exchange for a cash contribution to their schools.

The Motorola Foundation's global support for education-focused initiatives also was scored as a company strength in the list analysis. In 2006, Motorola and the Foundation's charitable giving increased to more than $21 million, with primary focus on math, science, technology and engineering educational programming for both teachers and students. Motorola also became a global partner of (RED), selling a range of phones from which a percentage of profits is donated to the Global Fund to help eliminate AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in Africa. The company also continues to promote economic activity in developing countries through greater access to mobile telecommunications.

"The 100 Best distinguish themselves from their peers at other large public companies by embracing higher standards—combining strong financial performance with responsible practices on environmental and social issues," said Michael Connor, publisher and editor of CRO magazine. "We salute the 100 Best for their leadership roles in the field of corporate responsibility."

Motorola has been recognized repeatedly for its corporate responsibility efforts. In addition to being named as one of the country's "100 Best Corporate Citizens," several rating agencies and indices recognized Motorola as a socially responsible investment in 2006. The company also was named one of Fortune magazine's Most Admired companies in 2006 and has received numerous awards for its employment, environment and supplier diversity initiatives.

The 100 Best Corporate Citizens list was developed by Business Ethics magazine, which was incorporated last year into The CRO, a premier membership organization for corporate responsibility officers. CRO magazine will publish the full list in its January-February 2007 issue. More details regarding the 100 Best Corporate Citizens list are available on the CRO Web site.

Sales of consumer electronics are growing at a record pace this year as online sales revenue is expected to reach the trillion dollar threshold by 2012. Online retailers are seeing the largest percentage of growth as Internet shoppers are looking for ways to save money as well as time. More and more buyers are looking to Internet malls for their everyday shopping needs. Online merchants who provide a variety of products, reasonable prices as well as fast and reliable delivery options are best positioned to lead the way now and for years to come.

Leadpile.com says online commerce to pass $1 trillion potential and make up 25 percent of all sales in the United States by 2012. Leadpile.com predicts that new "Younger Super Internet Consumer" will lead the way.

"Consumer electronics products will contribute a large part to the overall growth estimates," says Daniel Arque, President of www.GoodBuy4you.com, "which is why we have added many new products to our Web Store like digital cameras, plasma and HDTV units, computers, home theater systems, car navigation and entertainment and much more."

Growth will not be limited to Internet retailers. The National Retail Federation is forecasting that holiday retail sales will rise 5 percent over last year. That means that registers will ring up more that $435 billion in transactions. Sales last year were up 6.7 percent from 2003 levels. If recent trends continue, it is very likely that shopping centers and stores will be looking a lot like Christmas long before Thanksgiving.

"Consumers won't have to wait until the last minute to get the best deals this year because retailers are expected to be aggressive in their pricing strategies throughout the entire holiday season," said Tracy Mullin, NRF president. "Stores are planning for holiday sales and promotions, so discounted prices won't have a negative effect on profits."

For more information on the trend, check out this press release.

The New York Times Company and Monster Worldwide Inc. recently announced a strategic alliance, combining the Times Companys market-leading news and local Web sites with Monsters leading online recruitment expertise and services. Under the terms of the deal, 19 of the Times Companys newspaper Web sites, including The New York Times, The Boston Globe, the Worcester Telegram & Gazette and its award-winning newspapers throughout the southeast and California, will co-brand their online recruitment advertising Web sites with Monster. The companies say the alliance will create a new presence with local relevance and broad online reach in the careers market, supported by the combined brand recognition and marketing strength of both companies.

The enhanced and expanded New York Times Company-Monster co-branded career sites will provide job seekers and employers with the features and functionality of the Times Companys existing online job sites, combined with Monsters collection of innovative, market-leading career tools and content. In addition, recruiting professionals will now enjoy both local and national job posting capabilities through Times Company and Monster sites, along with access to the worlds largest resume database, which grows by more than 40,000 resumes each day. The co-branded sites will begin to appear in March.

"The combination of technology, reach and expertise created by this strategic alliance is extraordinary," said Janet L. Robinson, chief executive officer, The New York Times Company. "Together with Monster, The New York Times Company will significantly increase our presence in the online recruitment space as we continue to provide quality solutions and considerable value for employers and job seekers."

"This new relationship between Monster and The New York Times Company combines two world-class brands to jointly deliver greater value for both career-seeking consumers and for employers seeking talent," said William Pastore, president and chief executive officer, Monster Worldwide. "The alliance significantly advances Monsters strategy to provide highly localized online recruitment and career services, allowing Monster to leverage its expertise and full range of solutions in conjunction with the Times Companys award-winning local news outlets and powerful distribution presence."

The alliance will create the overall online recruitment leader in Boston, where Monster will join with BostonWorks.com, the recruitment Web site for Boston.com, New England's leading news site and one of the nation's biggest regional Web sites, with four million unique visitors each month (Source: Nielsen // NetRatings, December 2006). The new BostonWorks.com-Monster site will combine BostonWorks.coms leading 16 percent share of the Boston market's online job postings with Monster's 9 percent share (Source: Wanted Tech). In New York, The New York Times-Monster site will capitalize on NYTimes.com, the number one most-visited newspaper Web site in the U.S. (Source: Nielsen// NetRatings, December 2006). Monsters significant Web traffic will complement the Times Company, which is the ninth most-visited parent company on the Web in the U.S., with 44.2 million unique visitors per month (Source: Nielsen//NetRatings, December 2006).

The Best of The New York Times Company and Monster for Both Job Seekers and Employers

The co-branded sites will be designed to help employers and staffing organizations better target and more efficiently place recruitment advertising to reach both local and national talent. Recruiters new to Monster will benefit from its suite of tools designed to streamline and expedite the hiring process. Monsters existing recruiting customers will also have the opportunity to cross-advertise in the Times Companys print properties. To enable this, Monster will introduce a new "click-to-print" feature that will provide current online recruiting clients with a simple method to reverse-publish their job listings as print ads in Times Company newspapers.

On the consumer side, more job candidates will be able to take advantage of Monsters advanced search and match technology, enabling them to identify both local and national opportunities. Monsters new capabilities allow seekers to easily expand their searches using the new "More Jobs Like This" feature, or fine-tune searches based on criteria such as salary range, years of experience or the distance of jobs from a targeted ZIP code. The new co-branded sites will also feature local employment news and information, career advice and guidance, and more.

For more information, check out the New York Times press release.

Covad Communications Group Inc. recently announced that Renaissance Las Vegas, a AAA-rated 4-Diamond hotel in downtown Las Vegas, has selected Covad's wireless broadband service for their business needs.

The Renaissance Las Vegas chose the NextWeb HiCap service—with up to 100 Mbps of bandwidth— which was originally ordered to supply bandwidth to the hotel. Hotel General Manager Tom Xavier, however, was so satisfied with the service that he decided to keep it on a permanent basis.

"We require a large amount of bandwidth on a 24-hour basis for our business to function and meet our guests' needs," said Xavier. "Covad was easy to work with and quickly implemented the successful broadband solution."

"We are pleased the Renaissance Las Vegas chose Covad for its business needs," said Pat Bennett, Covad executive vice president market development. "Our competitively priced service offerings are simple to understand and easy to implement, which can result in immediate cost-savings. Ultimately, our solutions enable business owners to focus on growing their businesses instead of worrying about technology choices."

Covad offers high-speed broadband wireless to over 3500 businesses in five markets nationwide: Chicago, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Orange County and San Francisco.

For more information, check out the press release Renaissance Las Vegas Chooses Covad High-Speed Wireless Broadband.

Cox Television announced recently that it has selected Harris Corporation's OSi-Traffic™ application to manage the traffic, sales, accounting and reporting components of its business. Cox Television owns and operates 15 television stations and one cable news channel, and is a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises, one of the nation's leading media companies.

A longstanding Harris customer, Cox TV will be able to use OSi Traffic™ to seamlessly integrate other Harris products across multiple business lines. For example, Cox can integrate its Harris® ADC™ Playout Automation solution with OSi-Traffic applications. The tight integration between traffic and automation allows Cox to increase revenue by controlling inventory utilization selling, and optimizing available spots closer to airtime.

The relationship between OSi-Traffic™ and Harris applications like Medialine and Repline also creates integrated local and national sales tools for Cox Television. As one of the top national television advertising sales firms, this integration helps Cox Television develop efficient conduits between stations and agencies—increasing efficiency and decreasing errors.

"The team at Cox feels with OSi-Traffic, we're moving to a provider who understands the demands of the television business today and into the future with an emphasis on greater speed and access to information," said Bruce Baker, executive vice president, Cox Television. "The synergy of Harris systems with our stations is unique and gives us confidence that we'll not only operate better, but also more efficiently—all with a focus on better serving our viewing and advertising customers."

Harris also provides Cox with an organized migration path from its previous Harris® BMS traffic system, giving the company an uninterrupted view of historical data. Cox Television will enjoy a smooth and integrated transition process to an economical and efficient centralized traffic system. The centralized architecture also enables Cox to track broadcast revenue streams from disparate locations.

Read more in the press release Cox Television Selects Harris Corporation's OSi-Traffic™ to Manage Traffic, Sales, Accounting and Reporting.

According to a recent Nielsen//NetRatings survey, Web traffic to the blog pages of the top 10 online newspapers grew 210 percent in 2006, while the the overall unique audience growth to these online newspapers was only 9 percent for the same time period. Unique visitors to blog pages accounted for 13 percent of their Dec. 2006 Web traffic, up 9 percentage points from 4 percent in Dec. 2005.

"As Web 2.0 becomes a predominant online consumer model, traditional publishers are adopting interactive forums like blogs," said Carolyn Creekmore, senior director of media analytics, Nielsen//NetRatings. "It makes perfect sense for online newspapers, where responding to a blog posting is like writing an instant letter to the editor," she continued.

The overall unique audience to the top 10 online newspapers skewed male, with 60 percent men and 40 percent women. Among newspaper blog pages, this skew intensified, with 66 percent men and 34 percent women. But both men and women are contributing to the unique audience growth, with men increasing 226 percent and women increasing 183 percent.

"Men tend to be both early adopters of new technologies and avid consumers of news," said Creekmore. "That having been said, women make up slightly more than half of the active Internet universe and we can expect them to play an increasingly significant role in blog consumption."

For more on this trend, check out the press release Online Newspaper Blog Traffic Grows 210 Percent Year Over Year, according to Nielsen//NetRatings.

AT&T recently announced that Frost & Sullivan selected AT&T Homezone(SM) service as the 2007 North American Consumer Communication Services Product of the Year.

The Frost & Sullivan Award for Product of the Year recognizes the company that has demonstrated excellence in new products and technologies within its industry. In selecting AT&T for this award, Frost & Sullivan noted, "AT&T has incorporated a coherent product strategy to retain its competitive position in the consumer services space and to provide customers with an integrated home-entertainment experience."

"AT&T's Homezone services builds on the company's reputation as a reliable network provider and a consumer services innovator," said Jeff Weber, vice president, AT&T Product and Strategy. "This award from Frost & Sullivan recognizes the original thinking and careful planning that went into bringing this service to market and that our mission to connect with customers via the three screens they value most—the TV, the PC and the wireless phone—is working."

With AT&T Homezone services, the company became the first national telecommunications provider to offer seamlessly integrated video content and TV entertainment to the "digital living room," through both broadband and traditional satellite networks via a single set-top device.

AT&T Homezone integrates AT&T Yahoo!?? High-Speed Internet, AT&T | DISH Network satellite television and AT&T Home Networking services. It features digital videorecording, movies on demand, photo and music sharing, storage for both, and remote Web-based access to the system. It will soon also include remote access to the system through wireless devices. The service is available across most of the company's traditional broadband footprint.

"With its Homezone service, AT&T has demonstrated a commitment to delivering consistent growth in the future as it has in the past," said Piyush Arora, Frost & Sullivan analyst. "This service builds on AT&T's existing infrastructure and video delivery strategy to combine satellite TV programming with new levels of integration and on-demand content via broadband. It's a real homerun for consumers and AT&T."

For more information, check out the AT&T press release.

The Communications Workers of America recently released a new policy paper as part of its "Speed Matters" campaign, a multi-million-dollar, strategic effort that they say will help bring affordable, high-speed Internet to all Americans and to create 21st century, quality jobs.

The report spotlights the critical need for a comprehensive national high-speed broadband policy if the United States is to bring the benefits of the telecommunications revolution to all.

"High-speed networks are the infrastructure of the 21st century and the U.S. needs a national policy to get all of us there," said CWA President Larry Cohen. "This is a critical public good and where markets are slow to deliver, we need to find ways to create financial incentives to speed up private sector build out. In addition, we need to ensure that all regions of the country have access to service???including rural areas and urban communities. That's why we need a national public policy that will make sure that all Americans can benefit from high-speed Internet and other 21st century advances."

The report also points to ways that government can create financial incentives to speed up the build out of high-speed networks, including accelerated depreciation of investments and making low interest loans available to carriers in order to go forward with build out.

CWA's campaign involves working with policymakers in Congress and at the state and local levels and is building support among other public interest groups and organizations for ensuring universal access to high-speed broadband networks.

For more information, read the press release CWA's 'Speed Matters' Campaign to Press for High Speed Internet for All or visit www.speedmatters.org.

Contemplating life without my TiVo is a scary prospect but the Yankee Group says that might just happen in the near future. The technology research and consulting firm recently announced that their research shows that the standalone DVR product category will cease to exist by 2010, and its dissolution will result in the end of TiVo as we know it.

According to the Yankee Group Report, Technology on Fast Forward: 2006 to 2011 US DVR Forecast, even as DVR growth accelerates, TiVo will struggle to remain relevant in the market. They conclude that TiVo will begin to shed subscribers during the forecast period while service providers will continue to capitalize on the emerging technology and no entry cost hardware to incrementally up-sell subscribers to new services.

"The five year outlook for the DVR in the home is one of unmitigated growth and opportunity. As new technology emerges, it is important that advertisers, service providers and broadcasters remember that taking away [consumer's] ability to skip commercials is not an option," said Joshua Martin, Yankee Group, Consumer analyst. "The answer lies in innovation and evolution to reach the mass and niche markets moving forward because the era of the 30-second spot is fading away for all age groups and demographics."

During the forecast period, DVRs will become commoditized, resulting in the end of TiVo. However, according to Martin, "TiVo has incredible brand value that resonates with customers and it will be an asset to any service provider, increasing the likelihood of an acquisition."

For more information, check out the press release.

According to a new Nickelodeon research study titled "The Digital Family," families today rely on modern technology to function more than ever before, rendering former household staples such as road maps and dictionaries obsolete, as well as reducing the importance of spelling skills. Key findings of the study also indicated that kids and parents place a higher premium on "downtime," and that TV has become their medium of choice to relax. And, contrary to popular belief, parents are embracing technologies just as much as kids, and view cell phones as essential part of managing their lives, while also providing kids more freedom.

"The Digital Family" research incorporates findings from Nickelodeon's "Living in a Digital World" research project (2006), which explores technologies including: the Internet, television, cell phones, mp3 players and more. "The Digital Family" offers insights from kids 8-14 and parents of kids 0-14, and references several findings from Nickelodeon commissioned studies (Multicultural Kids Study 2006 and Nickelodeon Wireless Study 2006).

"In today's modern family, parents and kids identify technology as a homework helper, virtual babysitter, time-keeper and a center piece of a lot of family time," said Cyma Zarghami, President of Nickelodeon and the MTVN Kids and Family Group. "We found that technology has brought the need for new skills while seemingly lessening the need for others. What is very apparent is the critical role technology is playing in helping modern families functions."

The survey found that tech devices like computers and the Internet have become essential tools in daily living, making kids and parents much more productive and self sufficient. In some instances, the Internet has almost become part of the family. More than half of parents (59 percent) strongly agree that it helps them get things done and 68 percent surveyed believe it makes them more efficient and self sufficient.  As one parent from the study said, "I just didn't realize how much the internet was part of my family."

The majority of kids said the Internet helps them do better in school (85 percent) and helped them learn things (93 percent). Kids also said they believed it helps them to be more creative and makes them feel like they've accomplished something.

For more information on the results of this study, check out the press release Day Planners, Maps and Dictionaries Becoming Obsolete as Technology Permeates the Modern Family, According to a New Nickelodeon Research Study 'The Digital Family'.

Last week, CBS Research revealed new data showing that as the public at large becomes more connected to digital media, the more engaged they become in primetime television programming. Additionally, as more TV viewers become aware of the 2009 deadline for broadcasters to switch to full digital transmissions, the likelihood of them investing in new digital TV sets increases by 40 percent.

Those are just two of the major findings revealed today by a comprehensive study CBS Research has conducted examining consumers' attitudes towards digital media, and the role television will play in the near future. The project was led by David F. Poltrack, Chief Research Officer, CBS Corporation, President of CBS Vision.

Researchers found that 56 percent of those surveyed were aware that you could watch network television programs by streaming them over the Internet. Of those aware of this streaming option, 46 percent have already streamed at least one program. Of those not aware of this streaming option, when told which programs were available for streaming, 62 percent selected at least one of the 33 available programs that they probably would watch via streaming over the in the future. Analysts say it is clear that the potential for network program distribution over the Internet is just beginning to be tapped.

In addition, the research shows that people are gradually moving up to higher levels of connectivity. The segment of the population with both a broadband and a digital television connection at home has grown from 22 percent in the fall of 2005 to more than 30 percent in the fall of 2006. The same segment is most likely to watch the top broadcast network programs. In addition, this segment visits network television web sites and is increasingly likely to stream clips and full episodes of network television programs on the  Internet. Members of this upscale, better-educated "fully connected" segment are today the most engaged with the popular network programs.

"This data clearly show a correlation between connectivity and primetime television viewing," said Poltrack. "Consumers who embrace the new media are the heaviest viewers of the top network primetime programs, and this sector of the audience is growing. By offering them new ways to connect to their favorite shows???whether it's Web sites, podcasts, ringtones or other mobile features???we've been able to deepen the bond these fully connected viewers have with our programming. The research also illustrates that as viewers learn about the 2009 deadline for digital transmissions their attitudes towards investing in technology, like advanced home entertainment centers, to watch their favorite shows, changes radically. These findings really demonstrate the potential the broadcast networks have to further engage the public with our content as new technology expands our distribution options."

To read more about this new research, check out the CBS press release.

I never pass up an opportunity to talk about my home state of Michigan and sports, so I thought I would share this latest news. AT&T Inc. announced last week that it has signed a new contract to provide managed service s to the Detroit Tigers major league baseball team.

Under the terms of the three-year contract, AT&T delivered a robust Managed Internet Service (MIS) solution via a burstable DS3 connection in just one week after the contract was signed and just in time for the ALCS and World Series games.

The solution provides increased bandwidth across the Tigers converged Internet Protocol (IP)-based network. The MIS solution is intended to support advanced video and data communications, such as media connectivity, file transfers, Web-browsing and other business-critical corporate operations, for Comerica Park. The flexibility of the MIS allows the service to expand when the additional bandwidth is needed to accommodate high-volume traffic as media and corporate users take advantage of the Tigers network to stream live video and send and receive large media files, especially during the post-season when media attendance is at its highest.

As the Tigers moved into the post-season in 2006, an immediate need for a flexible network solution surfaced. To avoid network downtime, the Tigers enlisted the help of AT&T to provide a network capable of supporting the additional volume. In addition to expanded bandwidth, the network provides added redundancy and increased reliability for greater network efficiency and availability.

"We had a fantastic season this year, and as a result, we knew our network would need additional bandwidth to support the influx of data traffic," said Scott Wruble, manager of IT for the Detroit Tigers. "Thanks to AT&T, we were able to accommodate the spike in traffic we received rather quickly and without worrying over network outages or slower Internet speeds. AT&T provided a solution capable of meeting all of our networking needs."

For more information on this partnership, check out the AT&T press release.

You may have noticed that some of the posts these last two weeks have mentioned the 2007 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES). No, I didn't convince my bosses to send me to Las Vegas but I have been keeping up with all the great news coming out of the show.

If you aren't familiar with CES, here's a little background. It is the world's largest annual tradeshow for consumer technology and America's largest annual tradeshow of any kind. The first CES took place in New York City in June of 1967 with 200 exhibitors and 17,500 attendees. Since then, CES has grown tremendously. Nearly 2,700 exhibitors, filling 1.6 million net square feet of exhibit space, showcased their latest products and services to more than 140,000 attendees at the 2006 International CES.

Attendees and exhibitors come from the United States, Canada, Mexico and more than 130 other countries, including manufacturers, retailers, content providers and creators, broadband developers, wireless carriers, cable and satellite TV providers, installers, engineers, corporate buyers, government leaders, financial analysts and the media from around the world.

It's also the place where the most exciting consumer electronics get debuted every year. Some of the past product debuts include:

• Videocassette Recorder (VCR), 1970
• Compact Disc Player, 1981
• Digital Satellite System, 1994
• High Definition Television (HDTV), 1998
• Microsoft Xbox, 2001
• IP TV, 2005

As you can see, this show is pretty important when it comes to the technology we use daily. Trying to keep up with all the new products introduced this year has been a challenge but it's also very exciting. Who knows what will be the next big thing that will become something we all can't live without!

To read more about the show, check out the official site at cesweb.org. And don't forget to check back here for more CES news.

CNET News recently posted an interesting article about the future of bundled services. Most cable providers currently offer phone, high-speed Internet and cable service packages, commonly referred to as triple-play bundles. However, many companies are bringing wireless in as part of these packages as well.

"If 2006 was the year of the triple play," the article states, "2007 may very well be the year of the quadruple bundle as cable operators and phone companies start to integrate mobile wireless services into their service packages."

According to CNET, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox and Advance/Newhouse Communications will all be launching and expanding their integrated mobile phone services in 2007, a direct result of the their joint venture with Sprint Nextel.

The article also goes on to say that adding wireless to their bundles means more to cable providers than just providing customers with a one bill and savings on buying more than one service. These companies see mobility as a way to add more convenience and value to services their customers already have. However, CNET cautions that companies admit that they are still in the early stages of developing these services, so you may have to wait for the perfect quadruple bundle to be available in your area.

To read more, check out the full CNET article.

Yahoo! HotJobs recently surveyed more than 5,000 U.S. workers and found nearly half plan to search for a new job in 2007. And they say that number only represents those who will actively look. Another two-thirds of currently employed respondents said they may not actively seek out a new job, but that they would be open to one if the right opportunity came along.

Why Workers are Leaving:

• Seventy-five percent of respondents said they did not receive the bonus or the raise they expected for their performance in 2005.
• More than half of the people said they have to work on their days off at least once per month, and more than one-third said they do some aspect of work every single day.
• Twenty-seven percent think they can get better salaries elsewhere.
• Nineteen percent don't feel there is any potential for career growth in their current jobs.
• Nineteen percent want a better benefits package.

"Job seekers have a lot of leverage these days with unemployment rates at historically low levels," said Vobejda. "However, we are increasingly hearing from people that one of the main reasons they have not actually started their job search is procrastination."

Yahoo! HotJobs says it has developed a new tool, along with Assessment.com, to help you gauge your job satisfaction and career progress. People can visit a microsite located off of the Yahoo! HotJobs home page to take an assessment quiz and access new content, advice and other tools for managing one's career. The quiz features questions like, "How do you feel about your boss?", "When you wake up in the morning how do you feel about going to work?", and "Is this where you thought you'd be three years ago?".  The tool then offers advice based on your answers about the best employment options for you and possible next steps.

"One of the biggest obstacles for job seekers considering taking the next step is fear or apathy of the job search process," said Tom Musbach, editor and career expert for Yahoo! HotJobs. "Our new assessment tool provides customized guidance and is a great place for them to easily get started. The microsite also includes assistance to job seekers on developing a resume, handling the interview process and even preventing their current employers from knowing they're looking."

Another obstacle that Yahoo! HotJobs doesn't mention is the sometimes frightening prospect of moving to a different city to take a new job. If you are one of the many who plan to switch jobs this year, don't forget to check out Moving 101 here at the Home Services Guide. From finding the best cities for families and cost of living calculations to finding a trustworthy mover and giving notice at your current job, we've got you covered. The only thing we can't help with is finding you the perfect job. For more on that, check out the Yahoo! HotJobs Web site.

How much online shopping did you do this holiday season? According to new research, a lot more than you did last year. comScore Networks recently released its estimates of consumer online non-travel (retail) spending at U.S. sites for the 2006 holiday season through Tuesday, Dec. 26. During the first 56 days of the holiday season, total online retail spending reached $23.11 billion, a 26-percent increase from the same days in 2005. Sales during the week prior to Christmas (Dec. 18 ??? Dec. 22, 2006) rose 38 percent versus the same week in 2005. In addition, year-to-date non-travel e-commerce spending surpassed the $100 billion mark for the first time ever on Saturday, Dec. 23, 2006.

???Online sales continued to show strong growth during the last week before Christmas when procrastinators were clicking with confidence,??? said Gian Fulgoni, chairman of comScore Networks. ???Consumers making purchases in those final days expressed both their faith in retailers??? ability to pick and pack their orders in a timely fashion and shippers??? ability to drop them on recipients??? doorsteps in time for Christmas.???

???That online retail consumer spending for the year-to-date has surpassed the $100 billion mark is a testament to the continued growth and strength of the online marketplace,??? continued Mr. Fulgoni. ???Retail e-commerce now accounts for approximately 7 percent of consumers??? U.S. retail spending (excluding gas, autos and food), making it an important component of the total U.S. economy.???

Ranked by total retail sales for the holiday season through Dec. 26, Amazon.com topped the list of online retailers, followed by Dell.com, Yahoo.com and Walmart.com. An analysis of leading retailers by percentage increase in sales from 2005 to 2006 found that consumer electronics retailer Bestbuy.com achieved the greatest gains, followed by Walmart.com and Ticketmaster.com, with each of these three sites experiencing gains in excess of 50 percent.

For more information, check out the full comScore report.

Delphi announced this week that it has just sold its 13-millionth satellite radio receiver, setting a new milestone. The company also says it plans to showcase its satellite radio products next week at the 2007 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Delphi currently produces receivers for more than 10 new vehicle manufacturers. It also sells a variety a variety of models as add-on accessories for multiple uses at home and on the road. Delphi is familiar to most consumers of satellite radio because of its Delphi SKYFi, MyFi and ROADY family of portable satellite radio receivers. The company says that three out of four users listen to satellite radio on Delphi hardware.

"Satellite radio is changing the paradigm of radio in the U.S.," said Ken Erickson, Delphi Electronics & Safety general director of the Entertainment & Communications product business unit. "Satellite radio has not only taken a long-time analog medium and made it digital, but it has also opened a new world of offerings to customers by providing more than a 100 additional channels of programming."

Satellite radio is the radio medium that offers customers up to 170 channels of programming in addition to the traditional AM/FM radio offerings. Satellite radio programming is beamed from satellites and includes a very wide variety of music, talk, sports, news, traffic, weather and entertainment coast-to-coast in the U.S. without fading.

"Consumers now demand this level of flexibility and ownership, fueled even more today by their ability to personalize their listening experience through MP3 players," said Max Rogers, Delphi consumer electronics executive. "Satellite radio's 170 channels of individual programming offers the same type of tailored listening experience with no downloading hassles."

In addition to adding new programming to the vehicle, Delphi has developed a digital data decoder that works in conjunction with the Delphi satellite receiver to enable real-time traffic services in North America. Vehicles with a Delphi satellite receiver equipped with this data port and a navigation system can receive up-to-date traffic while playing satellite radio. The system is also capable of providing real-time weather, sports scores and stock updates.

Delphi's long history with satellite radio receivers includes celebrating sales milestones for 2.5 millionth in May 2004 and 5 million units in April 2005.

For more information on Delphi's current milestone, check out the press release.

Electronics retailer Best Buy has partnered with WhiteFence, the nation's number one site for movers looking to connect their utilities and home services online, to offer their Geek Squad and Magnolia services. Geek Squad offers PC and home network set up and connection services, while Magnolia is Best Buy's home theater set up solution. Making it easier for movers to get their home systems up and running is the aim of this strategic partnership.

The increasingly sophisticated and interconnected media options in our homes today dwarf the installations most of us grew up with. With big screen TV sales up 60 percent in 2006, most households are now connecting televisions, cable or satellite boxes, audio systems, gaming systems and TiVo digital recorders into home networks that connect to their PCs, LANs and even printers. Add to that the complexity of surround sound wiring and all-in-one remote controls that are programmed through a PC, very, very few of us can install a home entertainment and PC system by ourselves anymore.

Partly because of the services the offer, Best Buy's sales surged to record highs in 2006. The Best Buy services will be available on WhiteFence powered Web sites in early February.

In response to the merger of AT&T and BellSouth, Communications Workers of America released a statement saying that they believe the joining of the two companies will promote increased investment and build-out of high-speed networks that are critical to the region's economic growth and the nation's position in the global economy.

CWA President Larry Cohen said the merger agreement included real commitments by AT&T-BellSouth for an expanded build-out of both higher speed Internet services and DSL, an important step forward in bringing the full promise of the Internet to areas that have been passed by.

"Workers at BellSouth know that the future of communications and their own future is in the build-out of high-speed telecommunications services. This merger will help provide the resources to make this possible, and at the same time, should help create quality jobs," said Noah Savant, CWA's vice president for the Southeast and BellSouth territory. "Of course we remain concerned about the net effect on jobs within the region for frontline employees and the services we provide. We are pleased to see AT&T commitment to bringing thousands of support jobs back to the United States," Savant added.

CWA says that the United States has fallen to 16th in the world in terms of availability and access to high-speed Internet services. While most believe the availability and benefits of the Internet should be universal, residents in rural communities, low-income urban areas and other communities have less access to high-speed services. The union sees this as a growing disadvantage that needs to be addressed.

"High-tech innovation and job growth, advances in telemedicine and distance learning, and improving public safety and e-government all are possible and, in fact, are routine in much of the world. In the United States, however, current speed standards just aren't sufficient to support these kinds of services," Cohen said. "The build-out of true high-speed networks requires a huge investment of tens of billions of dollars and the AT&T-BellSouth merger will begin to provide the resources to do this," he added.

CWA is America's largest communications and media union, represents over 700,000 men and women in both private and public sectors, including over half a million workers who are building the Information Highway. Its members are employed in telecommunications, broadcasting, cable TV, journalism, publishing, electronics and general manufacturing, as well as airline customer service, government service, health care, education and other fields. The union includes some 1,200 chartered local unions across the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.

Cohen stressed that CWA strongly supports an open Internet "where consumers can go where they want, when they want. Nothing should be done to degrade or block access to Web sites," he said. CWA also believes that reserving proprietary video bandwidth is essential in order to make such a build-out possible. The FCC recognized this in reserving the IPTV space as proprietary, much as cable controls the bandwidth on the set top box, Cohen noted.

For more on the CWA response to the merger, see the press release AT&T-BellSouth Merger Will Promote Critical Build-out of High-Speed Networks.

The rising cost of land, energy, and materials is fueling a growing interest in sustainability in home design and construction. This interest is being explored comprehensively for the first time by the National Building Museum in The Green House: New Directions in Sustainable Architecture and Design.

Opened in May 2006, the milestone exhibition will remain on view until June 3, 2007 and will be supported by a fully-illustrated catalog of the same name, co-published by the Museum and Princeton Architectural Press; a major scholarly symposium; a wide array of tours, talks, workshops and special family programming; and a Web site focusing on the marketplace, methods, principles, and history of sustainable design.

The Green House: New Directions in Sustainable Architecture and Design is sponsored The Home Depot Foundation, the ASID Foundation of the American Society of Interior Designers, Bosch home appliances, and Portland Cement Association, plus other generous contributors. After its showing at the National Building Museum, The Green House will travel nationwide, with potential venues including museums in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York.

???This show illustrates that environmental priorities and the highest aesthetic standards are fully complementary,??? says Donald Albrecht, the exhibition???s lead curator. ???Today we are seeing architects and interior designers combining new, high-tech materials and old-fashioned architectural wisdom to create houses that are glamorous, comfortable, and that sit lightly on the land.???

Chase Rynd, executive director of the Museum, says, ???The National Building Museum is uniquely suited to the task of bringing the nuts and bolts, as well as the theory, of sustainable home design to the attention of Americans. This is the only museum in the country edicated to all aspects of architecture, design, engineering, construction, and urban planning.???

The Green House is the second in a series of major exhibitions organized by the National Building Museum about sustainable design, the first being Big & Green: Toward Sustainable Architecture in the 21st Century (2003).

???The potential ecological benefits that are possible through the advances in sustainability tracked in The Green House are significant in a land like ours, where more than a million single-family homes may go up in any given year, and the typical size of a new suburban home far exceeds that of previous generations,??? says Albrecht.

For the average home owner, the most popular part of the exhibition may well be the Materials Resource Room. To de-mystify the selection of environmentally-friendly materials and structural systems, this gallery presents 60 different green materials, from carpets to countertops, from concrete to metal, and from wood to paint. These include recycled glass tiles by Country Floors, textiles by Maharam, American Clay Plaster, Mioculture three-dimensional recycled wallpaper, Durapalm?? coconut palm flooring by Smith & Fong Plyboo??, Marmoleum?? flooring by Forbo Dual, EnviroGLAS?? Terrazzo, recycled rubber flooring by Ecopave, and IceStone?? recycled glass and cement countertop.

Given these resources and practical tips, and the fact that the sample house, with all its architectural quality and attention to detail, comes in at roughly $120 per square foot, the National Building Museum hopes to convince the American public that green is not only a socially conscious choice, but a relatively affordable one as well.

For more information on the exhibit, visit The Green House online at the National Building Museum Web site.

In this age of instant feedback online from consumers, smart companies are taking advantage of the situation by allowing their products to be reviewed by bloggers. While some companies have tried to outwit the public by creating fake personalities to tout the virtues of their products, the smarter ones are allowing bloggers to find their products at their own pace and to rate and review their offerings as they choose. One such provider is AT&T.

Alan Weinkrantz, a PR tech blogger, has taken it upon himself to chronicle his trial of the AT&T's new U-verse service. Because he lives in San Antonio, Alan was an early trial user of the AT&T U-verse service. Owner of his own PR firm and frequent blogger, he started documenting his experiences and observations on the service in May of this year. Things really heated up when he began to make daily posts at his blog, www.3screens.net, to document his experience of having AT&T's HD (High Definition) broadcast television service installed and deployed at his home.

Alan has not only writes about his experience as an AT&T trial user, but also makes suggestions and commentary about the company's strategy. He even spoke at the TelcoTV Conference in Dallas where he addressed his experiences and observations about being a U-verse customer.

"I can???t recommend blogging and social media to clients unless I???ve done it and have been successful," he said in an interview with MidwestBusiness.com. "This is a fortuitous set of events because I???m in San Antonio and became a trial U-verse." Alan went on to say that "there are enough analysts and technical experts in the world. I don???t think the world needs more ???experts???."

His commentary about the service is open and honest. No service is perfect and Alan isn't shy about noting drawbacks, including small things like no clock on the set-top box or overload of certain types of channels.

In addition, he makes it clear that he's only paying such close attention to one provider because he lives in the firm???s service area. ???If I lived in an area served by Verizon, I would be doing the same thing about them," he assured MidwestBusiness.com. "AT&T is really just my plumbing supplier.???

Read more about Alan's experience with AT&T U-verse service at www.3screens.net. You can also check out his press release and his interview with MidwestBusiness.com.

DSL???s subscriber base went up to more than 173 million while global broadband subscribers reached more than 263 million over the last year. Each week, 1.25 million people signed up to broadband according to the latest statistics prepared for the international DSL Forum by industry analyst Point Topic. An additional 65 million people subscribed to broadband in the period???with two-thirds of new subscribers choosing DSL that delivers broadband over telephone lines.

According to the Forum, DSL is by far the most popular broadband access technology in the world at 65.6 percent market share, rising to 82 percent in the European Union???the world???s largest broadband region.

Sixteen countries now have more than two million DSL subscribers, together representing just under half of all broadband customers using this technology. Globally, the largest broadband market in the world is the USA with more than 55.5 million subscribers, followed by China at 48.5 million. Japan in third place has almost 26 million. Together, they account for almost half of all broadband connections across the world.

"As the global reach of broadband into people???s lives continues to grow, the range of access technologies used to deliver its benefits is also expanding to capitalize on the various available infrastructures," said Michael Brusca, president of the international DSL Forum. "Even though DSL is the predominant delivery technology in the world, the DSL Forum is working to extend the benefits of our own specifications to be equally applicable for other network technologies and to address the service delivery needs of the ever-growing range of multimedia devices and applications that depend on broadband for their success.???

To read more about these findings, visit www.dslforum.org.

Are you football fan upset over not receiving the NFL Network? The American Cable Association wants to  help you get your voice to be heard. They have created a new Web site to encourage cable subscribers to demand "Sports Choice Now" from the NFL Network.

The site isn't shy about it's opinion, either:

Cable companies want to carry the NFL Network on their cable systems and be fair to all of their customers???those who are football fans and those who are not. Therefore, the price must be fair for the value of the NFL Network.

Cable companies would like to include the NFL Network in a sports package or sports tier???this would allow all cable customers to get the NFL Network if they wanted to without requiring all customers to pay for this expensive programming. We think that is fair for sports fans and for those who are not.

The site includes a link for consumers to tell Congress that they would like to receive the NFL Network on a tier or if they are not a sports fan and do not want to be required to pay extra for the channel. You will also find video, a myths vs. facts information page and current press clips that detail criticism of the network.

If you are interested in learning more about The American Cable Association's opinion on the matter or you would like Congress to know how you feel, visit out www.sportschoicenow.org. If you want to hear the other side of the story, check out I Want NFL Network, a site run by, you guessed it, the NFL Network. And finally, if you can't wait for your cable provider to make the channel available, consider switching to DIRECTV or DISH Network satellite TV service. Both providers include the NFL Network as part of the standard programming packages.

According to a recent article in The New York Times, Comcast is testing a service in Pittsburgh and Denver that will allow customers to download a movie via the company's On Demand service on the same day it becomes available for purchase on DVD.

Consumers usually have to wait 30 to 45 days from when a movie is released on DVD for it to be available On Demand. ???This is a sampling mechanism for the title,??? Andrew Mellett, vice president for the video-on-demand division of Warner Digital Distribution, told the Times. ???I don???t expect it to cannibalize sales on DVD. What we are really interested in seeing is whether this increases the buy rates.???

The Times reports that Comcast has declined to comment on the project, although it has been advertising films??? availability in local newspapers. According to the paper, Comcast has been the industry leader in offering free and paid video on demand, compiling a library of 8,000 movies and television episodes in an attempt to lure subscribers and distinguish itself from satellite TV.

Also quoted in the article is a representative from Blockbuster, which could be hurt by the success of simultaneous release. The company said that the sales and rentals of DVDs represent the largest revenue stream for the studios and ???we believe that they will be very cautious in introducing any new less profitable service that could be cannibalistic to the rental and retail channel.???

For more details, check out the full New York Times article On Demand and on DVD at the Same Time.

There's a new wrinkle in Internet shopping that's set to help protect shoppers but which may end in confusion and disaster for many small on-line vendors, according to The Wall Street Journal. In a move to counter "phishing" (when online crooks impersonate legitimate vendors to lure unsuspecting consumers into a scam) Microsoft's new Internet Explorer 7 Web browser will contain a feature that turns your Web address bar green when you've landed on a legitimate e-commerce site, as defined by Microsoft. Sounds like a great idea, right?

The problem is that the necessary certificates to get IE7's 'green light' are generally only available to larger companies. That's because the new certificates, which are called EV SSL's (short for extended validation secure-sockets-layer) will be offered only to corporations and limited liability companies. Sole proprietorships, general partnerships and individuals will be unable to purchase certification. And so your Aunt Edna will be suspect if she tries to sell her hand made holiday wreaths on her personal Web site.

There's no denying that phishing is a legitimate security issue, but considering that the Internet grew on the efforts of individuals and person-to-person connections, it seems a shame to deny legimate, honest individuals who sell valuable goods and services online the ability to stand in the green zone with larger companies. If only Microsoft could find a way to turn this process around and create "red zones" where truly dangerous and suspect sites could be identified and action taken; that would leave individual vendors free to do what they've always done and make the Internet the quirky, free-for-all it's always been.

For the last few months, I've been closely following the Time Warner Cable/NFL Network dispute. Judging from the latest news, it appears that the two companies have put aside their differences for the college football bowl season.

Earlier this week, NFL Network accepted an offer from Time Warner Cable to provide a ???freeview??? of the National Football League???s cable service on its digital-basic tier in the New York region Dec. 24-30.

According to the Washington Post, Time Warner Cable said last week it would either carry the Texas Bowl on basic cable or the entire free preview on its digital basic. The NFL Network initially balked but changed its mind. Time Warner Cable is currently largest multiple system operator that doesn't carry the channel.

In a prepared statement about the offer, NFL Network communications director Seth Palansky said, ???In light of the fact that 75 percent of Time Warner???s New York-area customers subscribe to the digital-basic tier, we have concluded that its offer represented the quickest and best way to bring Rutgers??? appearance in the Texas Bowl to Time Warner subscribers and to make the freeview a reality.???

The Texas Bowl football game between Rutgers and Kansas State is scheduled for Dec. 28. Without the agreement, fans in the area with Time Warner Cable service would not be able to see the Scarlet Knights' first bowl game appearance in the school's history.

???In addition, we have let Time Warner know that if they are interested, we would extend this same freeview to subscribers of Time Warner in affected regions in Kansas and Texas (both states in which state universities are participating in bowl games that NFL Network will telecast) on similar penetration terms,??? he continued. ???However, the New York resolution is not tied to the additional freeview offer in Texas and Kansas.???

While this may be a small step toward healing the rift between the NFL and the cable giant, the situation is far from being resolved. The NFL Network is still requiring that the channel be available on the most widely distributed package but Time Warner Cable is holding strong to offer it on a premium sports tier to avoid passing the cost of the network on to its customers.

For more on this development, check out the WP article NFL Network in N.Y. freebie carriage deal.

EMBARQ recently announced the opening of its first Technology and Innovation Center^SM in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the Andre Agassi Boys & Girls Club. In addition to modernizing the existing lab with new computers and educational software, the Center is now equipped with new furniture and EMBARQ products and services, including high-speed Internet as well as local and long-distance phone service, a value of more than $40,000.

EMBARQ says that the Center is the latest initiative in the company's ongoing commitment to education and to the communities where it provides communications services.

"It is rewarding to see the EMBARQ Technology and Innovation Center come to life," said Angela Quinn, president, Boys & Girls Clubs of Las Vegas. "Thanks to EMBARQ's generous donation of advanced technology, our kids now have the world at their fingertips, which will help them improve their education and life skills."

As part of its efforts to further the success of the Technology Center and the local Boys & Girls Club, EMBARQ says employees will volunteer in a variety of capacities, including mentoring and after-school programs. Many of the volunteers have been involved with the Club for years and now have the opportunity to further their commitment to Las Vegas youth with the opening of the Technology Center.

"EMBARQ is honored to support the Andre Agassi Boys & Girls Club by offering financial, technological and volunteer resources," said Dan Hesse, EMBARQ Chairman and CEO and a member of the national board of governors for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. "We are pleased that the Center will provide Las Vegas youth with the technological resources necessary to further their education and explore the world around them."

EMBARQ has been a long time supporter of Boys & Girls Clubs and plans to open EMBARQ Technology and Innovation Centers at Boys & Girls Clubs in Franklin, Indiana; Ft. Myers, Florida; and Louisburg, North Carolina, in Jan. 2007, with several more at locations to be determined later in the year.

To learn more about the Boys & Girls Clubs of Las Vegas, visit www.bgclv.org. You can also check out the press release EMBARQ Launches Technology & Innovation Center at Boys & Girls Clubs of Las Vegas.

According to a recent press release by ComEd, their residential customers may soon have a wider selection of electricity suppliers. Several retail electric suppliers have expressed interest in serving Illinois consumers. Three new retail electric suppliers recently filed to seek certification from the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC), and four additional suppliers have been certified to provide service over the last few months.

BlueStar Energy Services, WPS Energy Services and Direct Energy have said they are considering entering the Illinois residential electric market. BlueStar is already certified by the ICC to provide service to residential customers, but has not begun offering it yet.

Residential customers have had the ability to choose another electricity supplier other than ComEd since May 2002, as part of the Illinois restructuring law passed in 1997. However, ComEd says that other suppliers couldn't compete with its "artificially low rates" during  the decade-long, state-imposed freeze on electricity rates that is set to expire at the end of the year. As proof, the company points to a June 2006 report from the federal government's Electric Energy Market Competition Task Force that found the absence of market-based rates was the primary barrier to residential competition.

"Consumers want a choice of electricity suppliers. They know that the forces of competition drive prices down," said Guy Morgan, CEO of BlueStar, a retail electric supplier based in Chicago. "Once electric rates increase to reflect the going market price, it will create an environment where BlueStar can compete to serve Northern Illinois residents."

Those Illinois residents will soon find out if this is the case. A bid to freeze electricity rates for three additional years failed in the Illinois House last week, increasing the possibility that ComEd customers may see price hikes in their utility bills by January.

For more information, check out the ComEd press release or the Chicago Sun-Times article Lights out on ComEd rate freeze.

The Qwest Foundation recently announced the Qwest Teachers and Technology grant program to provide teachers vital technology for their classrooms. Qwest is providing a $900,000 donation that will help fund innovative technology grants so that individual teachers across the country can greatly improve education in the classroom. The grants will be administered by Qwest partner organizations in 12 western states.

The grant program will recognize and reward public school teachers who use innovative technology in the classroom to improve the education experience for students.

???The advancement of technology in the classroom is key to continuously improving our local and national education system,??? said Teresa Taylor, Qwest???s executive vice president and chief human resource officer. ???The Qwest Teachers and Technology grant program is a unique opportunity for educators to find innovative ways to bring technology into the classroom and better prepare students to succeed.???

The grants will be awarded to teachers through a competitive grant process. Educators will be able to submit applications for the Qwest Teachers and Technology grants beginning at: www.qwest.com/community. The site will provide specific instructions on the grant process, including a time line for application dates.

The Qwest Foundation???s core principle is that investing in education provides lasting value for the future. The Qwest Foundation awards grants to community-based programs that generate high-impact and measurable results, focusing on pre K-12 education.

To read more about the program, check out the Qwest press release.

Time Warner and Time Warner Cable recently announced they will host "Home to the Future," a three-week interactive home installation at Time Warner Center, Jan. 17 through Feb 6, 2007, curated by renown museum exhibit designer Edwin Schlossberg of ESI Design.

The exhibit will include two rooms on both the first floor and second floors of the Time Warner Center, each featuring innovative digital technologies from across the Time Warner Cable portfolio including, digital phone, vdeo On demand, DVR (digital video recorder), high-definition programming and RoadRunner High-Speed Online.

"Home to the Future" will also present videos on new Time Warner Cable digital entertainment functions Quick Clips and StartOver, as well as a sampling of other digital initiatives from across the Time Warner family of businesses???from Warner Bros. and New Line to Time Inc., Home Box Office, AOL and Turner Broadcasting. The exhibit will include a series of themed ancillary events???in cooperation with Time Warner partners in film, television and music.

Fore more information about the Home to the Future and associated events, check out www.hometothefuture.com.

TiVo recently announced that it has signed CBS Interactive to deliver original programming created for the Web directly to television through the TiVoCast service. Additionally, TiVo signed on a list of other partners to deliver broadband content to the television including Reuters, Forbes, dLife, Plum TV and Nano. Launched earlier this year, the TiVoCast service brings a whole new line-up of content to the television by offering broadband video previously found only on the Web and not widely available on TV.

CBS Interactive is the first network deal for TiVoCast. The content will consist of original programming from CBS's online destinations including CBS.com, CBS's broadband channel innertube, CBSNews.com and CBS SportsLine.

"This represents a great opportunity for CBS to showcase its growing online content on the television platform," said Quincy Smith, President, CBS Interactive. "TiVo's TiVoCast service allows for us to extend our reach, join other content innovators, and ultimately learn more about our audience with content such as Katie Couric's "Eye To Eye" from CBSNews.com, fantasy football shows from CBS SportsLine.com, or the wealth of original programming currently available on CBS.com."

"Web video has become an explosive pop culture phenomenon and TiVo is leading the way in bringing it from the PC to TV," said Tom Rogers, President and CEO of TiVo. "Television remains the number one platform on which consumers prefer to watch video so TiVoCast is a win-win both for consumers who enjoy the comfort and convenience of TV and for content providers who want to extend their reach."

TiVo also is announcing new content partnerships with Reuters, Forbes, dLife, Plum TV and Nano. These new channels join a stellar line-up of TiVoCast partners which includes leading video content providers: the National Basketball Association (NBA) and Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), The New York Times, Heavy, iVillage and CNET among others.

All the Web-based video content is included in the TiVo subscription fee and available to any broadband connected TiVo Series2??? TiVo box, with TiVoCast available on Series3??? TiVo boxes later this year.

For more, check out the TiVo press release.

RadioShack recently announced the launch of four new online consumer electronics educational courses through the RadioShack Learning Center at http://learningcenter.radioshack.com. Completely free, the courses are designed to allow consumers to learn about technology in an interactive, self-paced format.

"Since the launch of the RadioShack Learning Center in October, we have seen a lot of consumer excitement and interest in these classes," said Cara Kinzey, RadioShack's senior vice president-information technologies. "We know more consumers than ever are researching their technology purchases online before they shop, and the November courses cover some of the most popular product categories we offer. No doubt a major reason why this initiative has been so well received is that it taps a prevalent need for something RadioShack is known for: helping people get the most out of technology in every neighborhood in America."

New courses being added for November include: Digital & Wireless Accessories for Your Car, The Wireless Mobile Office, Designing the Ultimate Home Theater and Digital Music Essentials. November courses are available for enrollment through December 8.

The free courses are moderated and taught by subject matter experts from across the country, including award-winning authors, technology leaders and technology professionals. Powered Inc., which worked with RadioShack to develop and host the course content at the new RadioShack Learning Center, is a provider of online consumer education programs for some of the world's leading brands, including HP and Sony.

For more information, check out the Radio Shack press release or visit the Radio Shack Learning Center.

Qwest Communications and the Minnesota Vikings recently announced a new sponsorship agreement that names Qwest the ???Official Communications Services Provider of the Minnesota Vikings.??? Per the new agreement, communications services for the Vikings training facility in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, will be exclusively provided and maintained by Qwest.

???We are very pleased to announce we are partnering with a world-class organization such as Qwest,??? said Steve LaCroix, Minnesota Vikings vice president, sales and marketing. ???The Vikings??? training facility will be set up exclusively with Qwest services, which will allow staff and players to enjoy the ease, convenience and reliability of Qwest high-speed Internet, DIRECTV?? service and Qwest Digital Voice.???

In addition to recognition as the official communications services provider of the Minnesota Vikings, the agreement includes Qwest???s increased support for local Vikings charities and community events in Minnesota.

For the 2007-2008 season, Qwest will co-sponsor the Viking Children???s Fund Golf Tournament, which benefits the team???s in-house charity, and will be the title sponsor of ???Vikings Community Tuesdays,??? the community outreach efforts led by Minnesota Vikings players.

???Qwest is proud to be a sponsor of the Minnesota Vikings, and ???through our world-class communications services???help bring more football to the Vikings??? training facility and Minnesota communities,??? said John Stanoch, Qwest Minnesota state president. ???Qwest is also thrilled to work with the Vikings to promote community programs and charitable activities. We look forward to a solid partnership with the Vikings ??? a win not only for Qwest, but also for Vikings fans and Minnesotans.???

For more information, check out the press release Qwest Communications and Minnesota Vikings Strike Strategic Agreement for Communications Services.

A new survey by BusinessWeek magazine shows that AT&T is one of the best places to work for recent college graduates. The magazine polled directors of undergraduate job placement centers and 37,000 undergraduate students to compile a list of 100 finalist companies for its "Best Places to Launch a Career" list.

BusinessWeek then examined entry-level pay, benefits, retention efforts and training programs at the 100 companies and compared them with compensation levels at other employers in the same industries. AT&T ranked 26th on the list, the only company in San Antonio to be included. The top ranked company for recent graduates is the Walt Disney Co. in Burbank, California.

"We value the energy and ideas that students and recent graduates contribute to our company, and we work very hard to recruit and retain the best talent in the world," says Karen Jennings, AT&T's senior executive vice president of human resources and communications.

AT&T officials also say their efforts to recruit women and minorities contributed to the high ranking. The company's work force is 45 percent female and 35 percent of people of color. Forty-four percent of AT&T's managers are women.

A report by the National Association of Colleges and Employers indicates that entry-level hiring is expected to increase by more than 17 percent in 2007.

For more information, check out the press release AT&T ranked as national leader in perks for entry-level workers.

According to a recent article in The Desert Sun, Time Warner Cable and NFL network are no closer to a deal than they were when I posted about the dispute in September, making it unlikely for a resolution before the network begins airing live games on Thanksgiving Night.

The article quotes NFL Network spokesman Seth Palansky on the issue. "Time Warner has made it clear to us they will not carry our channel," Palansky said. "With that being the case, we're working hard with people who do carry us to have special promotions to offer service to those customers."

In response, Time Warner Cable senior vice president of corporate communications Mark Harrard told the newspaper, "We want to be competitive on our basic [cable package], and we can't be competitive if basic absorbs the high price of the network, particularly a niche network. We are ready to sign up today or yesterday, if it makes business sense. We haven't been able to at this time. It's not a matter of who will yell chicken."

For more information on the ongoing dispute, read the full Desert Sun Times article No settlement in sight between Time Warner and NFL Network. If you are interested in switching from Time Warner Cable to a provider that offers NFL Network, check out packages that include the network from DIRECTV or DISH Network.

Last month, I posted about the AT&T-BellSouth merger being postponed. Officials were supposed to discuss the issue further, but the special meeting regarding the acquisition was never convened.  Now The Associated Press is reporting that the FCC vote has been delayed again, with no further discussion scheduled.

According to the AP, failure to attach conditions to the merger brought a sharp response from the two Democratic commissioners, Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein, who accused the Justice Department of failing to protect consumers. Their opposition meant that AT&T was facing a potential 2-2 tie vote, which would have required a fifth vote from Robert McDowell, a former lobbyist for a trade group that opposed the merger.

AT&T's did offer last minute concessions, including $10-per-month Internet access in its service area, free modems, promises to freeze prices temporarily for competitors that use the company's networks, and even a pledge to bring back some BellSouth jobs shipped overseas. However, consumer groups criticized the concessions as "short-term candy for a few instead of long-term lower prices and better choices for all consumers."

For more information, check out the article FCC Delays Vote on AT&T-BellSouth Deal.

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed an executive order near the end of October to make it easier for the state to build broadband networks. According to the official press release, the goal of the order is to ensure all government agencies are using the best technologies to serve the people and create a broadband task force that lets experts from government and business work together to identify and eliminate obstacles to making broadband Internet access available across the state.

"California is home to the greatest technology entrepreneurs. Let's show the world what we can do," said Gov. Schwarzenegger at the UC Davis Health System Pediatric Telehealth Colloquium in San Francisco, where a doctor examined an 11-year old leukemia patient by video about 100 miles away in Sacramento. "If we want to stay number one in technology, we need action. In countries like Japan and South Korea, the people have access to great technologies at lower costs than anywhere in America. We can do that. Michigan has one of the largest wireless broadband networks in the country. We can do that. That???s why I???m signing an executive order to help make California a leader in the telecommunications revolution."

After his speech to the colloquium, the Governor joined Silicon Valley CEOs and executives to discuss the economic development that increased broadband adoption would spur. "Broadband will help build California so we can grow our economy by competing in the global marketplace," said Gov. Schwarzenegger. "California must remain competitive so we continue to attract the best, brightest and most creative workforce in the world."

Research conducted on the California "One Gigabyte or Bust" Broadband Initiative estimated that enabling broadband access for 50 percent of Californians would have enormous economic impacts on the state, adding over $365 billion annually to the state's economy within seven years and helping create or retain two million sustainable jobs. Similarly, the California Communications Association estimates that every dollar invested in broadband networks generates $3 in economic activity, and that every $1 billion in telecom capital spending equates to 7,000 new telecom jobs???including jobs in network construction, engineering, operations and the creation of new equipment and products.

A U.S. Commerce Department study released this year found that the availability of broadband is directly tied to business growth???especially among new technology-intensive firms. The Governor's office believes that greater broadband access will directly support California???s world-leading technology industry???creating jobs both in the communications sector and for high-tech companies like Intel, Google, Yahoo!, and eBay, which rely on Internet usage to drive business. They also feel that increasing broadband deployment will also further support the California economy by making the state an attractive home for the nation???s???and the world???s???preeminent scientists and researchers.

To read the full text of the executive order, see the official press release Gov. Schwarzenegger Signs Executive Order to Help Make California the Leader in Telecommunications Revolution.

With its recent launch of telephone service in Santa Barbara and Palos Verdes, California, Cox Communications has officially launched telephone service in all Cox markets. Cox will continue to expand its telephone service footprint in the communities it serves in early 2007.

According to Cox, more than 1.9 million households and 150,000 businesses rely on the company's Digital Telephone for quality and reliable telephone service. Cox says it does not transport phone calls through the public Internet. Rather, in some markets, the company uses Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology to transport phone calls over a private, managed IP-based data network. With this architecture, a broadband connection is not required for Cox telephone service. Recognizing the characteristics of cable telephony and its commitment to reliability, ADT Security Services recently announced that it recognizes Cox Digital Telephone as a primary method of alarm transmission.

???Cox???s number one commitment is to its customers,??? said David Pugliese, Cox???s vice president of product marketing. ???Our customers rely on us to deliver a reliable connection every day???for every type of residence or place of business. ADT???s announcement today further validates our collective commitment to customer safety.???

Cox says that, as the pioneer of cable telephony, its long-term strategy has been to deliver the convenience, quality and value of Cox Digital Telephone to all Cox markets. The company's 2006 telephone launches included Santa Barbara and Palos Verdes, California, Northwest Arkansas, Sun Valley, Idaho and Cleveland, Ohio.

To see if Cox Digital Telephone is available through WhiteFence in your area, enter your address now.

AT&T has launched a new home monitoring service that the company says will help customers stay more connected to their homes and families while they are away. Available nationwide, the new service enables customers to use both personal computers and Cingular wireless devices to access streaming digital video and other real-time data and information from their homes???at virtually any time and from anywhere.

AT&T considers this new service an example of the company's continuing commitment to innovation, and its strategy for delivering converged, IP-based services that enable customers to access content, critical applications and information virtually anytime, anywhere, and using any device.

The AT&T home monitor service combines live and recorded video (non-audio) capabilities with a range of environmental sensor options to provide customers with a toolkit to help them stay connected to the people and things they value most. For example, the service allows users to remotely control lighting in their homes, and it can provide a range of alerts and reports on home conditions, such as motion, door and window activity, water leakage, and temperature changes.

"Keeping track of home activities is increasingly challenging today, as we spend more time on the road and on the run," said Susan Johnson, senior vice president of Business Development at AT&T. "The new AT&T home monitoring service will provide an affordable, easy-to-use solution for a variety of challenges in managing a household. This service is ideal for a wide range of potential applications, from keeping an eye on children, elderly parents or pets to monitoring a second home or vacation home."

The service allows users to customize alerts and actions based on their specific needs. For example, a user can program the service to send a text message alert to a cell phone when motion is detected in an area of the home, while at the same time automatically turning on lighting and recording video of the same area.

The service is available via AT&T to customers of Cingular Wireless services, and can be accessed via virtually any Cingular wireless phone or PDA capable of supporting Internet access and Java, as well as nearly any broadband-enabled PC. The service is optimized for residential customers who subscribe to AT&T Yahoo! High Speed Internet as well as Cingular services.

The company says the new home monitoring service is an example of the new generation of converged, IP-based services that AT&T is working to deliver for residential and business customers. To maximize these extensive networks, AT&T and Cingular are developing and deploying advanced technology to enable seamless sharing of information between wireless and wireline networks and devices. Ultimately, AT&T will use this unified network to enable virtually seamless connectivity anywhere, anytime, and on almost any device, giving consumers what they want, when they want it, wherever they are. Increasingly, services will be accessible from any of the "three screens" that many consumers value most: the TV, PC and cell phone.

"Our home monitoring service is an early yet powerful example of the potential of converged services," Johnson said. "As AT&T works to blend the lines between communications applications, customers will no longer be tied to a specific device to access a specific service. Voice, data, and video services will be accessible from a range of devices, allowing customers to communicate and access information how they prefer, wherever they happen to be."

For more details, check out the AT&T press release.

ADT Security Services has announced that it is joining forces with cable and telecommunications providers to help ensure its security systems will continue to be able to communicate with its monitoring centers if a customer switches to an IP-based telephone service. ADT outlined a set of characteristics that this next generation of phone services providers must meet in order to be a primary method of transmitting alarm signals to ADT's 24-hour a day monitoring centers.

IP-based telephone providers Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cablevision, Charter, Cox Communications and Bright House Networks have confirmed that their networks meet the characteristics required by ADT to be a primary method of alarm transmission. Cable IP-based phone services provider's calls travel over privately managed networks, rather than the public Internet used by many other IP-based phone services.

"ADT recognizes the customer benefits associated with alternative phone services including VoIP, digital phone and other IP-based phone services," said ADT's Chief Operating Officer John Koch. "We also recognize that not all of these services are created equal. The safety and security of our nearly six million monitored customers across the United States and Canada continues to be our chief focus as we review these new communication technologies and the potential differences in their ability to transmit alarm signals reliably to our customer monitoring center network."

Koch said over the past several months, ADT has brought together numerous parties from both the cable and telecommunications industries to better understand the differences among IP-based phone providers in how they set up and maintain their networks. The result is a set of phone network characteristics that ADT has taken into consideration in determining how to best serve the interests of its customers. Traditional telephone services already have acceptable characteristics in place and therefore are not affected by this change.

The characteristics outlined by ADT include whether the provider has a managed and maintained physical facilities network with major and minor disaster recovery plans in place that include specific network power restoration procedures, whether the provider makes available professional installation of its IP-based phone service that preserves primary line seizure for alarm signal transmission, and whether the provider's physical facilities network provides real-time transmission of voice signals, carrying alarm formats unchanged. If an IP-based phone services provider has not informed ADT that it meets these characteristics, ADT will continue to require its customers using such phone services to either keep their traditional phone line or to install a cellular transmission system.

Regardless of the type of phone service used, ADT always recommends that customers use an additional back-up method of communication to connect their alarm system to ADT's monitoring centers, Koch said.

"One of the key findings is that technology has moved extremely quickly regarding these phone services and how they operate with alarm systems," Koch said. "As the industry leader, we took the initiative to outline these phone network characteristics so that we can continue to provide our customers with high quality alarm monitoring services regardless of their phone service type."

For more information on IP-based phone compatibility, see the ADT press release.

BellSouth recently announced that it has entered into a non-exclusive agreement with Resident Interactive, Inc. to jointly market a community Web portal service in planned communities in BellSouth's service area.

Under this sales teaming agreement, BellSouth, together with Resident Interactive, will offer a community Web portal service, known as Digital Village Service, as part of BellSouth's comprehensive communications portfolio for planned communities that includes voice, video, high-speed data, security and Wi-Fi hotspot solutions.

Resident Interactive's Digital Village Service allows homeowners associations and property managers in single family home, apartment and condominium developments to create a more connected community. The Web portal service is a virtual representation of a neighborhood where residents can meet, form groups, make plans and link with local businesses.

"Developers are increasingly identifying community web portals as a differentiating amenity for their residents," said Phil Jacobs, president - Community Technologies, BellSouth. "The Digital Village Service is a logical complement to BellSouth's comprehensive technology portfolio and provides additional solutions to communities through a trusted source."

BellSouth and Resident Interactive will jointly market the Digital Village Service and coordinate deployment of services with community managers. Resident Interactive will provide ongoing customer service and technical user support.

"Our mission is to establish outstanding, long-term relationships with our customers and strategic partners, while delivering software with unmatched reliability and customer service that exceeds expectations in every respect," said Dennis Papalois, president and CEO of Resident Interactive, Inc. "The teaming agreement with BellSouth will greatly expand our capabilities to meet this objective in more communities across the Southeast. It is truly a winning proposition for developers and residents."

For more information, check out the press release BellSouth and Resident Interactive, Inc. Sign Teaming Agreement to Deploy Web Portal Service in Planned Communities.

This Halloween, Comcast, in partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment and Lionsgate, will unveil its new horror-movie network FearNet. The new offering will allow fans to watch movies through Comcast's video-on-demand service and on the Web at FearNet.com. Other elements include full-length trailers, a search engine/horror movie encyclopedia, news, a community site and a trivia game.

First announced at Comcast???s video-on-demand upfront in April, FearNet's on-demand platform will serve 200 horror titles a year, with about 70 hours of programming a month, including a number of Japanese- and Spanish-language productions and blood and guts in high-definition. Titles like "Bram Stoker's Dracula," "Night of the Living Dead" and "The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre" will be offered free to Comcast's 11 million digital cable subscribers.

Web surfers will be able to watch nine movies for free each month???for a total of 50 titles a year???as well as 100 shorts, which include original programming from directors such as Wes Craven.

According to Reuters, the FearNet launch plan was purposely designed to cater to the adults 18-34 demographic, who increasingly are watching and consuming media on demand while multitasking like never before. "This generation wants content when they want it, how they want it and where they want it," said Diane Robina, president of emerging networks for Comcast Programming Group. "To me, besides usage and revenue numbers, these channels in general will be successful if fans embrace them and like what we've created for them."

For more information, check out the Reuters UK article Comcast Corp. scares up horror broadband site or the official FearNet site.

AT&T has been named as one of America's "Top Companies for Minorities" by The Diversity Network, a diversity recruitment and consulting service that recognizes best-in-class companies committed to a culturally and ethnically diverse workforce. The Diversity Network will recognize AT&T among other "Stewards of Diversity" in the Oct. 30 issue of Fortune magazine.

AT&T was selected for this honor based on its achievements in three areas: diversity within its employee base; long-term commitment to supporting diversity and inclusion across business functions and management structure; and diversity initiatives benefiting customers, business partners and the community.

This honor comes on the heels of several other recent diversity achievements, including a Corporate Citizenship Award presented by the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME) and recognition by LATINA Style as one of the 50 Best Companies for Latinas to Work For.

"There is a good reason why AT&T is consistently recognized as a top company for diversity and inclusion," said Karen Jennings, AT&T's senior executive vice president of human resources and communications. "AT&T has a long history and a deep commitment to creating a positive work environment filled with professional growth opportunities and tailored for people who come from a wide range of backgrounds. This commitment to diversity and inclusion is at the very core of our identity."

AT&T's 50-state workforce is 45 percent female and 35 percent people of color. Women make up 44 percent of the company's managers, far above the average of most Fortune 500 companies. In 2005, AT&T spent $2.4 billion with diverse suppliers, representing 15 percent of its procurement base. In fostering diversity and inclusion, AT&T has created a better business environment, one that makes the company an employer of choice, a preferred business partner and an important contributor to the community.

For more information, see the press release AT&T Inc. Named as One of the 2006 Top Companies for Minorities.

Seventy-seven percent of consumer electronics (CE) purchases were influenced by Internet research according to the joint Consumer Electronics Association (CEA??) and Yahoo! study Understanding How Consumers Use the Internet to Research and Shop for CE Products.

The study, conducted by Hall and Partners, explored the path to purchase for five CE products: cell phones, computers, digital cameras, digital music players and televisions, and found that online research time directly correlated to product price. As the price of a product increased so did the amount of time a consumer spent researching that product. The least amount of time spent researching was on cell phones at nine hours and the most times spent researching was 15 hours on televisions. For those who purchased, the average amount of time spent researching online was 12 hours.

"Of the total $32.5 billion spent on the CE products tracked in this study, online research influenced a striking 77 percent or $25.1 billion," said Senior Director of Market Research Tim Herbert, CEA. "Consumers naturally want to make informed CE buying decisions and we found they are turning to the Internet for their research. This includes search engines, manufacturer's Web sites, retail Web sites and shopping engines."

Although the majority of CE purchases are made at retail locations, the findings showed there are many reasons why a consumer would research online before purchasing in-store. Seventy-three percent of consumers said comparing prices of the same product at different stores is easy to do online and 64 percent said they preferred online because there is a wider variety of products. Forty-five percent of those who research online and purchase offline use a search engine during the information-gathering process.

The study also looked into the differences between "searchers" and "non-searchers" based on self-reported search engine usage during their research and purchase process. "Searchers," defined as those who use search to research CE goods, represent 47 percent of the offline and online purchasers surveyed. They are more educated about what they buy, increasingly likely to advocate brands by word-of-mouth and are often considered a resource of information by friends and family. They consider more brands and are 114 percent more likely to consider Internet display advertising in their research process.

"Although 'searchers' and 'non-searchers' are very similar demographically, those who prefer to use search to research and purchase CE products have a totally different mindset," said David Rubinstein, Tech and Telecom Category Director for Yahoo! Search Marketing, "Their high level of engagement and willingness to share information with others makes them an ideal target audience for CE manufacturers and retailers."

While the Internet plays a powerful research role, print media, family and friends, retail displays and other traditional sources also aid the purchaser when buying a CE product. Consumers still use these sources to learn about new brands, compare brands and products and get overviews of different categories.

"Today's information-hungry consumers turn to multiple sources. Traditional sources of information are still leveraged by purchasers in the shopping process. These include print and television ads, word-of-mouth and the in-store experience. The average consumer uses six different sources to guide their decision. Getting the right mix of sources is critical to a manufacturer's success," said Herbert.

The study consisted of a 25-minute survey of sample of both consumers who intend to and those who have already purchased consumer electronics devices. It also investigated customer brand loyalty based on manufacturer versus retailer website visits.

For more information, check out the press release.

CNET recently announced the official launch of its video destination, CNET TV, as well as a partnership with Verizon to distribute CNET???s video through on-demand television. The latest partnership extends the reach of CNET content and its original videos to even more people interested in today???s latest tech and consumer electronics.

Launched earlier this year, CNET TV offers an environment where users can find all of CNET???s videos. In addition, CNET TV makes a selection of the site???s popular video content available for distribution on television. The partnership with Verizon follows on successful partnerships with Cox Communications and TiVo, Inc., which currently make CNET???s videos available to consumers through their on-demand services. Verizon, which currently offers Verizon, FiOS TV in seven states, will also make CNET???s video content available to its on-demand subscribers, including product reviews, help and how-to videos, and commentary on breaking news.

Online, CNET TV is also introducing downloadable content, making CNET???s videos available to consumers while they are on-the-go. Users can subscribe to a video podcast they???ve created based on their own play lists or with the existing channels on CNET TV. For example, a person looking to buy a new flat-screen TV could create a playlist with the latest product reviews and tips and tricks from CNET???s experts that they can take with them shopping.

???The latest VOD partnerships are further proof of CNET???s unique ability to create video programming that helps demystify technology and help people get the most out of their products,??? said Joe Gillespie, executive vice president of CNET. ???With the official launch of CNET TV and these additional partnerships, CNET videos are available everywhere our consumers want ??? online, offline, and on-the-go.???

According to CNET, CNET TV quickly became a popular destination as a result of its unique design and personalization features, which includes a virtual remote control, a ???draggable??? interface so users can move things around, full-screen playback, playlists, and customizable channels and backgrounds. With more than 30 original videos produced each week and a library of thousands of videos, CNET TV gives people a single destination to easily find the latest videos on their favorite technology products and topics. Since launch, streams have increased 152 percent thanks to popular video features like the Buzz Report, Car Tech, Insider Secrets, Prize Fight and First Look from the Lab that help consumers figure out what gadgets to buy and how to get the most out them.

For more information, check out the CNET press release.

According to CNet News, the Federal Communications Commission has canceled its meeting in which it was supposed to vote on the proposed $80 billion merger of AT&T and BellSouth.

The FCC had planned to vote on the merger during its regular open meeting on Thursday, but removed it from the agenda and postponed the vote until Friday.

The apparent cause of the first postponement was the FCC split between Democrats and Republicans on the merger. Chairman Kevin Martin, a Republican, had been pushing for the deal to be approved without any restrictions, according to CNet sources. But the two Democratic commissioners, Jonathan Adelstein and Michael Copps, were upset over the Department of Justice unconditional approval of the merger earlier this week.

In an effort to sway the Democrats to their side, AT&T apparently submitted alternative proposals to the FCC on Thursday, according to a story first published by Reuters. Even though the Republicans control the commission with three of five seats, it's crucial for at least one of the two Democrats to approve the merger, since one of the Republicans, Robert McDowell, has said he will not vote on the merger, because he had worked for a group that represents competitors to AT&T and BellSouth before joining the FCC.

"We firmly believe, as do three foreign countries, 18 state commissions and the Department of Justice???every regulatory or legal entity that had an obligation to examine the benefits of this merger???that no conditions on this merger are necessary for this combination to be a public benefit," said Michael Balmoris, an AT&T spokesman. "However, we are open to discussing with the Democratic FCC commissioners reasonable conditions on the merger in order to obtain unanimous approval, so long as they do not affect our ability to deliver merger benefits to customers and shareowners."

For more information, check out the article FCC vote on AT&T/BellSouth merger postponed.

Two months ago, a federal appeals court blocked a trial judge's order that would have required DISH Network to disable more than 3 million digital video recorders. Last week, the U.S. District Court of Appeals agreed that the DVRs can stay in operation while the direct-broadcast satellite provider appeals the original court injunction.

"We are pleased the Federal Court found that [DISH Network parent company] EchoStar has a 'substantial case on the merits' and blocked the Texas decision for the duration of the appeal," said the company in reponse to the court ruling. "This action by the Federal Court reinforces our belief that the Texas court made significant errors during the trial process and we look forward to complete vindication of our position."

TiVo sued the satellite TV service provider in 2004, alleging that EchoStar and certain subsidiaries violated a TiVo patent related to the storage and playback of television. A jury ruled in April that EchoStar infringed on Tivo's patented TV-viewing technology in making set-top boxes for its customers.

In August, the federal district court judge who presided over the jury trial issued the injunction against EchoStar, ordering it to pay TiVo $89.6 million in damages???more than the $74 million awarded by the jury. EchoStar had secured a temporary stay of the injunction, but this week???s stay will be in place as long as the DBS company pursues its appeal.

In their official statement in response to the ruling, Tivo said, "We are confident that the jury's decision in TiVo's favor will be upheld once the Federal Circuit has the opportunity to review the entire record in this case. It is important to note that most injunctions in patent cases are stayed pending appeal, and the appeal itself will be decided on a totally different standard of review."

For more information, check out the Bloomberg article EchoStar Can Sell Digital Recorder During TiVo Appeal.

lcatel recently announced it has now surpassed 100 million DSL lines shipped, doubling its total shipments since October 2004.

Ten years after pioneering the broadband access market, Alcatel says it continues to set the pace for the industry with its ISAM product family, a purpose-built 100 percent triple play IP access solution, which 100 new customers have selected in the past two years. In addition, 16 of the top 20 DSL operators in the world are utilizing Alcatel's broadband access solutions. Moreover, 17 operators are also engaged with Alcatel in GPON projects in all regions.

"Alcatel, in surpassing the 100 million DSL line shipment milestone, has set a new benchmark for DSL access vendors, a feat which is especially impressive given the increasing competitive pressures in this market," said Erik M. Keith, Senior Analyst for Broadband Infrastructure at Current Analysis Moreover. "Alcatel's continuing ability to retain its global DSL market leadership, and set new quarterly and annual DSL port shipment records in the process, is a testament to Alcatel's corporate fortitude as well as its long-term commitment to the global broadband access market. This achievement also highlights Alcatel's success in the IP DSLAM sector, where the Company has garnered more than 100 ISAM customers to date."

Read more in the press release Alcatel Passes 100 Million DSL Lines Milestone and Sets the Pace for the Industry.

Market Watch is reporting that the AT&T-BellSouth merger delay will end soon. According to the business news site, the Federal Communications Commission has scheduled a vote for Oct. 12 at the behest of Chairman Kevin Martin, who has insisted on trying to meet the agency's informal 180-day deadline on reviewing proposed mergers.

However, the deal also has to win approval from the Justice Department's antitrust division. While the two agencies tend to consult each other through the review process and Justice typically issues its ruling several days or weeks before the FCC, there have been exceptions. The most notable occuring when the FCC was the first agency to block the DIRECTV-Dish Network merger a few years ago.

According to Market Watch, regulatory analysts have long predicted that the AT&T-BellSouth merger would pass regulatory muster with few conditions attached because the companies do not compete in many markets and they co-own Cingular Wireless, the nation's biggest mobile company. The merger has already won approval in all U.S. states in which the two companies have a large presences, as well as the foreign countries in which AT&T operates.

For more information, check out the article AT&T-BellSouth merger set for vote.

EMBARQ recently announced that Jessica Velasquez has been chosen as EMBARQ's National Service Hero.

During National Customer Service Week Oct. 2-6, EMBARQ recognizes eleven Service Heroes from among 3,000 customer service representatives for going the extra mile to provide outstanding care to local residential customers. From the ten finalists, a team of executives chose Velasquez as the overall EMBARQ National Service Hero.

Velasquez, an Embarq associate for three years, has received many unsolicited customer commendations on her service skills while serving in the Altamonte Springs call center. According to customer surveys, Velasquez has successfully resolved customer issues on the first call on nearly 96 percent of her calls this year.

"EMBARQ is fortunate to have hundreds of representatives whose work with our customers qualifies them as 'service heroes,' so the selection process was difficult," said Gerald Piper, director of EMBARQ call centers - east region. "Jessica is a shining example of what EMBARQ looks for in a representative. She is committed to providing exceptional customer service on every call and has a consistently positive, upbeat attitude that permeates throughout the Altamonte Springs call center."

Bob Sloboda, vice president of sales and service for Sprint's Consumer Markets Group, announced Velasquez's selection today at the EMBARQ Call Center, 850 East Altamonte Drive, Altamonte Springs, Fla. Velasquez received a $500 gift certificate, a trophy and a bouquet of flowers for being named the National Service Hero and other prizes for being one of the ten Service Heroes. The call center managers took all customer service representatives to lunch as a "thank you" for their commitment to EMBARQ customers.

"Jessica's efforts stand out from a hard-working group of associates who go the extra mile to provide the best customer service possible," Sloboda said. "The results she delivers everyday are based on attitude, patience, communication and confidence. Her commitment to friendly service is appreciated all year long, but especially during National Customer Service Week."

Read more about the award in the EMBARQ press release.

The Federal Communications Commission announced last week that it has ended its investigation into Time Warner Cable's decision to drop the NFL Network back in August without providing appropriate notice to subscribers. At the time, the FCC ordered Time Warner Cable to reinstate the NFL Network while it investigated a complaint issued by NFL Enterprises over the issue.

The FCC reached a consent decree in which Time Warner Cable agreed that it violated an FCC rule that requires cable operators to provide customers 30 days??? notice before deleting a channel. The agency said it would take no action against the company and closed the investigation.

While Time Warner Cable is still in talks with the NFL Network, no agreement has been reached. The network is hoping to complete a distribution deal before its package of live Thursday and Saturday night National Football League games launches on Thanksgiving night.

For more on the issue, check out the Digital Pro Sound article Dressler's Last Play: NFL Network Talks.

BellSouth and Protection One, Inc. have announced an agreement to deliver security services to planned residential communities in the BellSouth region. The joint sales and marketing arrangement is an expansion of the existing relationship between BellSouth and Protection One formed in 2001 to market security systems to residents and business owners in the southeastern United States. BellSouth?? Security Systems from Protection One?? currently provides intrusion, heat, smoke and carbon monoxide detection equipment and related services to customers in 18 cities.

"Security is a critical element in new and existing communities, and BellSouth can now deliver a package of voice, video, data and security that is attractive to developers and residents," said Phil Jacobs, president, BellSouth Community Technologies. "BellSouth continues to pursue relationships with industry leaders to develop broad solutions that meet the needs of its customers."

BellSouth Community Technologies is BellSouth's most recently formed business unit, established last year. The new organization focuses on alliances with developers and owners of single family planned communities, apartments, and condos to develop technology deployment plans and to promote and offer one-stop shopping for BellSouth's full range of communications and entertainment services. This agreement provides for the inclusion of BellSouth Security Systems from Protection One in BellSouth's portfolio of services designed for planned communities.

Protection One is the leading provider of security amenities to the multifamily housing market and will market BellSouth Security Systems from Protection One through Protection One's Network Multifamily division as part of this new arrangement.

"We believe adding our expertise as the leading provider of multihousing security to the comprehensive services already offered by BellSouth will be a tremendous benefit to builders and developers, greatly assisting in streamlining the completion of their jobs," said Richard Ginsburg, president and chief executive officer, Protection One. "We continue to look for ways to further expand our relationship with BellSouth, combining both companies' ingenuity in services and marketing to offer high quality products to broader audiences."

Two months after the integration of Southern California's Adelphia and Comcast operations, Time Warner Cable announced a series of product and customer service improvements to its acquired systems. Starting next month, Time Warner Cable Los Angeles Region will roll out a regionwide standardized digital channel line-up, new genre-based programming blocks, additional high-definition channels and ethnic-language networks, 100 percent digital picture and sound, the launch of new High-Speed Online packages, the start of e-mail domain name changes, and the beginning of Digital Phone launches.

To assist customers during this major transition, Time Warner Cable has launched a comprehensive customer communication campaign consisting of television, radio, outdoor and print advertising. Customers also will receive direct mail, bill inserts and e-mail messages to ensure each customer is aware of the myriad changes.

"Today's announcement is a first step in Time Warner Cable's commitment to offer consumers the best in cable products and services," said Roger Keating, Executive Vice President, Time Warner Cable. "We know from customer feedback and proven successes in other parts of the county that customers want more quality programming that's value driven and rich with choice. These enhancements are designed to address these customer needs."

To see if service is available in your area, visit the Time Warner Cable information page.

In a recent keynote address at the annual conference sponsored by the Fiber to the Home (FTTH) Council, Verizon Telecom Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Bob Ingalls said their competiitors are coming up short on their ???me-too??? claims of offering a fiber-rich network for high-speed Internet and TV service.

???As the FTTH Council has already acknowledged, Verizon is the only major provider in the country that is building and offering service over an all-fiber network,??? Ingalls said.  ???The claims by the competition ??? most notably the cable industry???that they offer a similar fiber-dense network fall a mile short???the last mile.???

In September, the FTTH Council announced that Verizon has earned the council???s first certification for a network that provides fiber all the way to customers??? homes and offices.

In his presentation, Ingalls outlined Verizon???s plans for building the nation???s largest all-fiber network, including an $18 billion net investment over a seven-year period (2004-2010). Verizon told investors and analysts last week that it plans to pass 18 million premises with its fiber network by the end of 2010???more than half the approximately 33 million households in the company???s 28-state wireline service area.  The company is on target to pass 6 million households by the end of this year.

Verizon is also seeing strong customer demand for FiOS TV, which was launched in its first market just over a year ago.  By the end of the third quarter of 2006, Verizon expects to have more than 100,000 FiOS TV customers, and the company estimates that about two-thirds of FiOS TV customers have discontinued their cable TV service.

Verizon has set a target of 175,000 FiOS TV customers by year-end 2006 and making the service available to 1.8 million households.  This would be a market penetration rate of approximately 10 percent.  More than 1 million households are already currently eligible to purchase FiOS TV services, due to Verizon???s progress in obtaining state and local cable franchises.

Verizon???s goal is for FiOS TV to have a market penetration rate that ranges from 20 percent to 25 percent by 2010???or from 3 million to 4 million FiOS TV customers???based on its estimate that approximately 15 million households will be video-ready by then.

Nearly 80 percent of FiOS TV customers have purchased three services???voice, data and video???from Verizon, with customer loyalty that has exceeded the company???s initial expectations.

???Verizon???s FiOS Internet services continue to gain market share with unmatched reliability and speeds that make applications like photo and video sharing, blogging, digital movie downloads, video chat and conferencing, and interactive multi-player games a part of everyday living,??? Ingalls said. ???Meanwhile FiOS TV is setting the pace for signal clarity, HD channel lineup and video on demand, all at competitive prices.???

For more information, check out the Verizon press release.

The Arthur W. Page Society has named AT&T Inc. as the winner of the 2006 Page Principles Award by for the company???s massive communications response in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The annual award recognizes an outstanding demonstration of effective corporate communications and the application of the Page Principles, which are the seven communications management concepts upheld by the Page Society. The award will be formally presented to AT&T during the Arthur W. Page Society???s 23rd Annual Conference in October.

Roger Bolton, president of the Arthur W. Page Society, said the competition???s panel of judges was most impressed by the AT&T entry. ???I salute AT&T and everyone who was involved in the unprecedented relief effort to reunite families after Hurricane Katrina. The company demonstrated that its operating principles, which are very much aligned with the Page Principles, are more than just words???the company acted on its values and delivered on its promise to do the right thing for the communities it services. The Page Society congratulates AT&T for the technology, leadership and compassion demonstrated in the wake of the storm.???

???Our mission at AT&T is to keep people connected in good times and bad," said Selim Bingol, senior vice president, Corporate Communications, AT&T. "Given the unprecedented scale of the disaster, helping the victims of Hurricane Katrina was especially gratifying and humbling work. We are guided by the Page Principles so this recognition from the Page Society means a great deal to AT&T.???

For more on the award, check out the San Antonio Business Journal article AT&T honored by communications management group for Katrina efforts.

According to a new study featured in a recent USA Today article, more than 100 million Americans, or three out of every five Internet users, viewed video online in July.

Data on both streaming, which requires a live Internet connection, and downloads, in which a user saves a file that can be viewed later or offline, was recorded by ComScore Media Metrix, an Internet marketing research provider. The company says that 107 million people streamed or downloaded nearly 7.2 billion video clips???an average of 67 apiece.

ComScore also reported that Yahoo was tops with 38 million unique users, followed by News Corp.'s MySpace.com at 37 million and YouTube at 31 million. Unlike with MySpace and YouTube, which emphasize user-generated video, the Yahoo offerings generally came through content partnerships. Yahoo only recently started a video-sharing service.

AOL, the Time Warner Inc. unit seeking to boost traffic to its ad-supported sites largely by expanding its video offerings, did not make the top three. AOL and other Time Warner video had 26 million users, placing it fourth ahead of Microsoft, Viacom and Google.

Fore more information, check out the USA Today article.

The Georgia Tech Information Security Center recently announced it is creating a partnership with BellSouth and Internet Security Systems to explore security surrounding the emerging Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology. As communication services migrate to Internet-based platforms, it is important that the security and dependability users expect in the current public switched networks be maintained with these new converged technologies. At the GTISC VoIP Security Summit held in April 2005, GTISC initiated a dialogue with security and telecommunications industry leaders, including ISS and BellSouth, to proactively address security associated with this emerging technology.

Internet Security Systems and BellSouth have committed to a two-year research program totaling $300,000. This funding will enable GTISC faculty and graduate students to work with ISS and BellSouth technologists to develop and evaluate solutions that address VoIP security. In return, BellSouth and ISS will have access to the resulting intellectual property.

"BellSouth is committed to ensuring security is an integral component in all our products and services and working with GTISC and ISS is one way to continue that focus with next generation products such as VoIP," said John Heveran, VP-Chief Information Security Officer, BellSouth.

Read more in the TelecomWeb article BellSouth, ISS Back VoIP Security Effort.

The Associate Press is reporting that the chairman and a ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee have asked the Justice Department to delay approval of the merger of AT&T Inc. and BellSouth Corp. until a federal court decides whether two previous mergers were in the public interest.

Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., and ranking member John Conyers, D-Mich., sent a letter earlier this week to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales asking the department delay its decision until a federal judge rules on the merger of SBC Communications Inc. and the old AT&T Corp., as well as the merger of Verizon Communications Inc. and MCI Inc.

Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sens. Patrick Leahy of Vermont and Herb Kohl of Wisconsin, wrote a similar letter questioning whether Justice has been approving mergers too hastily, counter to the intent of federal law.

For more information, check out the article Lawmakers call for delay in AT&T/BellSouth merger.

Intel and DIRECTV recently released details for what they are calling the world???s first digital set-top box. With integrated digital media adapter (DMA) functionality verified to work with Intel?? Viiv??? technology, the DIRECTV digital set-top box will allow customers to access and enjoy their pictures and music on their TVs directly from Intel Viiv technology-based PCs.

In a keynote at the Intel Developer Forum, Intel President and CEO Paul Otellini detailed plans for DIRECTV???s new set-top box, the DIRECTV Plus?? HD DVR, which marks the first time a major service provider has endorsed an integrated DMA deployment in the home through a set-top box, which could be deployed to customers virtually overnight via a software download starting in December. Otellini reinforced that the DIRECTV Plus?? HD DVR is in the final stages of Intel Viiv technology testing and verification.

Delivering the ability to record and view 200 hours of standard definition content or 50 hours of MPEG 4 high-definition programming, the new DIRECTV Plus?? HD DVR receiver verified with Intel Viiv technology will allow consumers to enjoy new experiences that combine the best of the TV with the best of the PC.

???With a simple software download, DIRECTV Plus?? HD DVR customers nationwide can enjoy on their TV favorite photos and music albums that have been tucked away on their PCs,??? said Kevin Corbett, vice president of Intel???s Digital Home Group and general manager of the company???s Content Services Group. ???Having the nation???s leading satellite television service provider with a 15 million and growing customer base introduce the world???s first Intel Viiv technology-verified set-top box is a significant milestone, accelerating the number of connected digital homes.???

???Intel Viiv technology delivers the power, simplicity and functionality to connect these products in an easy and seamless fashion so DIRECTV customers can enjoy their favorite digital content in the living room,??? said Romulo Pontual, chief technology officer at DIRECTV. ???Our strategic relationship with Intel, and joint commitment to an industry standards-based approach for securely delivering a premium TV experience on multiple devices, will ensure that DIRECTV customers have the flexibility to view content when, where and how they want it.???

The two companies expect this capability to accelerate the adoption of connected digital homes by providing a substantial footprint of interoperable set-top boxes and PCs.

Read more in the Intel press release Home ???Intel, DIRECTV Poised to Connect PCs and TVs in U.S..

Starz Entertainment and Sony Pictures Television have signed an exclusive agreement that provides Starz Entertainment with the rights to more than 500 movie titles from the Sony library. The company will be able to offer the content on multiple distribution platforms, including its 16 linear channels, subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) offerings and the broadband video download service, Vongo.

The library deal runs from 2008 to 2014 and provides Starz Entertainment's flagship Starz and Encore channels exclusive rights to a selection of Sony's library films, however the VOD deal for Vongo will be begin next month. Starz and Encore deliver programming to 15.1 million and 27.1 million homes respectively through cable, satellite and telco providers and its other advanced services. This new deal broadens the already-established relationship that gives them exclusive first-run premium cable channel outlet for all of Sony Pictures Entertainment's films.

"This partnership with Sony Pictures Television validates our position as a leader in movie entertainment and demonstrates our strategy to make a whole range of recent and beloved content available to our subscribers on all of our platforms," said Stephan Shelanski, Starz senior vice president, programming. "We are pleased to offer our subscribers access to Sony's extensive library of theatrical films that includes content from 'Gandhi' to 'Ghostbusters' to 'Godzilla,' via cable, or satellite, VOD and over broadband."

For more information, check out the press release.

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Mobile ESPN, a start-up cellphone company backed by Walt Disney Co., will announce as soon as today that it is closing down operations.

Launched at this year's Super Bowl, the company developed cellphones that feature a variety of sports-centric content and features. According to the WSJ, however, it has struggled to build a customer base in a fiercely competitive cellular industry.

Mobile ESPN operates through an agreement with Sprint Nextel Corp., paying for wholesale access to the carrier's network and then reselling service to its own subscribers. THe WSJ says that the company is now expected to shift its strategy significantly, getting out of the phone business to focus on its content.

For more information, check out the WSJ.com article Mobile ESPN Is to End Venture, Seek New Strategy.

SIRIUS Satellite Radio has announced the availability of Stiletto 100, the company's first live portable radio, featuring WiFi, Yahoo!??? music purchasing software, and the ability to save music subscribers love for playback later.

Available this month, Stiletto 100 lets users listen to live SIRIUS programming almost anywhere in a small, stylish package, as well as store up to 100 hours of SIRIUS content. The device features WiFi capability for connection to SIRIUS' Internet radio services that allows for listening anywhere an accessible WiFi network is available.

User's own MP3/WMA files can also be stored on the Stiletto 100 and managed with the included My SIRIUS Studio??? software for Windows??? PCs. Stiletto 100 is compatible with most Windows-based Internet music providers' download and subscription services.

The Yahoo! Music Jukebox??? software will be included with the device, allowing users to bookmark individual songs into a favorites list, which can be accessed by a PC application when the unit is connected to user's computer. The application allows users to look up and purchase songs, full albums, or explore artists' other offerings through the Yahoo! Music Jukebox ??? software or other compatible online music download or subscription services. Once the song is purchased or rented, it can be transferred onto the Stiletto 100.

Measuring 4.7" x 2.0" x 1", Stiletto 100 stores up to 100 hours of live SIRIUS Satellite Radio programming (2 GB), has a large 2.2" bright display, Aurora graphic user interface and a six-way navigation control that provides easy one handed access to all features and content.

Other features include 30 channel presets; SIRIUS Replay???, which allows users to pause, rewind and replay 60 minutes of live radio; Game Alert???, which prompts the listener when favorite games are being broadcast and alerts when scores change; Game Zone???, listing all of the users favorite teams in one virtual category; and parental controls and channel lockout.

Read more about it in the press release SIRIUS Introduces the Stiletto 100, Its First Live Portable Satellite Radio. 

According to a new economic study commissioned by the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) and conducted by Microeconomic Consulting and Research Associates (MiCRA), consumers and small businesses could save a total of $101.5 billion on their phone bills over the next five years as a result of competition from facilities-based providers of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service. Residential cable telephony consumers could save an average of $135 each year or more by using a cable provider???s telephone service, the study finds.

???Robust facilities-based phone competition is a huge win for American consumers," said Dr. Michael Pelcovits, Principal at MiCRA and lead author of the study. "This study shows that preventing a phone company lock on the market provides residential and small business customers innovative new services at enormous savings.  The economic impact of $100 billion of phone savings is truly dramatic.???

The study found that by 2011, nearly 24 million Americans are likely to purchase phone service from their cable companies. The study concludes that the traditional phone companies are compelled to respond to competition by cutting prices???creating yet additional savings for the customers that the incumbent phone companies retain.

Other findings include:

• Comprehensive cable telephony services are priced as low as $34.95 per month, plus approximately $6.00 in taxes and other fees.  Comparable services from AT&T and BellSouth cost approximately $50.00 per month, plus fees and taxes.
• Residential users of cable telephone services are estimated to grow from 10.0 million in 2007 to 23.7 million by 2011.
• Residential customers of incumbent telephone companies could save $70 billion over five years if incumbent telephone companies are forced to respond to the competitive challenge by facilities-based VoIP providers.

For more details on the survey's findings, check out the NCTA press release New economic study shows substantial economic benefit of facilities-based phone competition.

AT&T recently announced that approximately 2,000 previously outsourced technical support jobs will be added to the AT&T payroll. The jobs???which have been outsourced both domestically and overseas???are related to supporting AT&T's DSL customers who self-install their service or have other basic questions about the service.

"This is one more example of how we're working together with our union to add jobs in growing parts of our company," said Bill Blase, executive vice president-Labor Relations. "We're pleased that the Communications Workers of America has recognized the mutual importance of creating these jobs with competitive wages and benefits that enhance the company's ability to compete while creating good jobs."

The DSL jobs are the second group of jobs that the company and the union have agreed to create in recent months. Previously the company and most regions of the CWA agreed on a contract covering premises technicians who will perform installation work at customer homes for AT&T's new U-verse^SM video service. Hiring of those workers is under way as the product is rolled out. The company is currently assessing where to locate the DSL jobs, which will be added to the AT&T payroll by the end of 2008.

For more information, check out the San Antonio Business Journal article AT&T plans tohire 2,000 DSL jobs.

According to a recent USA Today article, the average American home now has more television sets than people. The article states that the threshold was crossed within the past two years, according to Nielsen Media Research, with an average of 2.73 TV sets in the typical home and 2.55 people.

In addition, the article quotes other interesting Nielsen findings:

• Half of American homes have three or more TVs, and only 19 percent have just one. In 1975, 57 percent of homes had only a single set and 11 percent had three or more.
• In the average home, a television set is turned on for more than a third of the day???eight hours, 14 minutes, an hour more than it was a decade ago.
• The average person watches four hours, 35 minutes of television each day.

Read more in the USA Today article Average home has more TVs than people.

New insights into the performance of leading VoIP providers were recently released by Keynote Systems, a company that specializes in Internet and mobile test and measurement services. Keynote???s third VoIP competitive intelligence study revealed that overall VoIP quality has improved across the board since Keynote???s last study in December 2005 and that the leading VoIP providers have actually surpassed PSTN (traditional phone service) in overall audio quality, but still lag behind PSTN in audio delay.

Twelve leading VoIP providers were part of the benchmark study, including AT&T, Comcast Time Warner Cable, and Verizon. Keynote measured the relative performance of the leading VoIP providers in the New York and San Francisco markets, including digital cable, adapter-based VoIP (hard phone) and PC-based software (soft phone) services, as well as the performance of leading VoIP providers against PSTN service in those cities. Keynote then rated the leading VoIP service providers on critical performance factors that influence the end-user experience using Keynote Voice Perspective??, which is Keynote???s VoIP quality test and measurement product.

The company found that overall reliability among the various competing VoIP providers had improved across the board and that the leading digital cable providers had in fact outperformed PSTN in overall reliability. Overall reliability is a computed index score based on performance measurements in three performance factors: service availability, average number of dial attempts and dropped calls.

Leading digital cable VoIP providers were also found to deliver better audio quality than the competition, with the leading cable providers achieving excellent audio responsiveness (a measure of audio delay) and audio clarity (measured by Mean Opinion Score, or MOS), two key contributors to overall audio quality.

Improved VoIP quality is more important than ever, as analysts estimate that residential adoption of VoIP service will grow to more than 26 million homes in 2008 in the United States, up from 6.5 Million in 2004. ???As VoIP continues to move into the mainstream and challenge the incumbent carriers in major markets nationwide, consumers have started focusing on two important differentiators, audio quality and pricing,??? said Vik Chaudhary, vice president of marketing and product management at Keynote. ???As the results of the Keynote study indicate, VoIP providers have overcome a major hurdle in the past seven months by addressing concerns about overall audio quality, but they still have work to do to improve the consistency of their service levels during peak versus non-peak hours and to decrease the variation in performance levels between the top performers and the rest of the pack.???

Read more about the study in the press release Leading VoIP Providers Outperform Regular Phone Carriers in Overall Audio Quality, Keynote Reports.

AT&T and Comcast recently announced a distribution agreement to deliver Comcast linear and on-demand programming as part of the AT&T U-verse(SM) TV programming lineup.

Under the agreement, Comcast will offer the following programming to AT&T U-verse TV customers: E! Entertainment Television, The Golf Channel, OLN (soon to be Versus), AZN Television, PBS KIDS Sprout, Style Network, G4, Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Comcast SportsNet West and SportsNet New York.

"We are pleased to be able to offer the numerous networks and on-demand content from Comcast Networks to customers of AT&T U-verse TV, which is designed to deliver a truly revolutionary entertainment experience," said Dan York, head of programming, AT&T Operations, Inc.

"Comcast???s networks engage viewers in some of the most attractive and targeted demographics with top-quality programming. From E! Entertainment to the Golf Channel, we offer something for everyone and are pleased that AT&T sees the high value that these networks have in reaching TV viewers," said Bill Bridgen, executive vice president for distribution and development, Comcast Networks.

For more information, check out the press release AT&T U-verse TV to Include Comcast Networks' Content.

Yahoo! and Current TV, a pioneer in "viewer created content" (VC2) for television and the Web, have partnered to deliver high-quality video content to one of the largest audience on the Web. The launch of the Yahoo! Current Network combines the best in user submitted videos plus professional, studio-produced content to air side by side in a co-branded environment, leveraging the highly customizable Yahoo! Video platform.

"Current TV empowers young adults to actively participate in creating the television they want to watch, but in a broader sense, we're about giving young adults a voice," states Current TV co-founder and chairman Al Gore. "Current's mission has always been to spark a global conversation among young adults. Partnering with Yahoo! helps us advance this mission."

Yahoo! Current Network's daily video offerings blend pop culture awareness with journalistic sensibilities to offer a smart, irreverent take on trends, news and personalities. Videos created and submitted by users will be featured alongside professionally produced segments narrated by Yahoo! Current Network hosts to inform and entertain enthusiast and mainstream audiences. All Yahoo! Current Network content can be easily found, via a search shortcut, by going to Yahoo.com and searching for "Current."

"Current TV's strengths in producing and programming some of the most creative video content available, combined with Yahoo!'s leadership in online video and user-centered communities creates a unique experience. The new Yahoo! Current Network helps publishers find an audience and be discovered on the biggest network on the planet," said Dan Rosensweig, chief operating officer for Yahoo!. "In addition, the Yahoo! Current Network allows advertisers to reach highly targeted audiences in an engaging environment."

The Yahoo! Current Network debuts with four channels on Yahoo! Video that allow users to view and upload videos, participate in rich communities and share their passions. Each channel will feature a daily selection of the best viewer created video submissions and professionally produced Buzz videos. These featured videos will be programmed into a set of custom branded channels with all content discoverable through Yahoo! Video.

Through user participation features found on Yahoo! Video, including the ability to rate, review and share videos, all viewers can voice their opinions and share their favorite content. Users can personalize their experience by subscribing to channels, grouping videos related by source or topic and making videos viewable from their blogs or Web sites.

Current TV, which launched August 1, 2005, is the first national network created by, for and with an 18-34 year-old audience. The network shows young adults what's going on in their world, in their voice. Current is available in 30 million U.S. homes via Comcast (channel 107 nationwide), Time Warner Cable, and DIRECTV (channel 366 nationwide). For more information, check out www.current.tv.

Comcast and CBS announced that they will make eight of the CBS Television Network's primetime entertainment series available to viewers at no cost through the cable operator's digital cable ON DEMAND service. Included in the video-on-demand (VOD) offerings will be the network's three CSI shows, Survivor, NCIS, Numb3rs, Jericho and Big Brother.

The new deal replaces the previous agreement between the two companies to offer CBS programming for 99 cents per episode only in markets served by CBS owned and operated stations. Now, each of the CBS series, which will include paid commercial spots sold by CBS, will be available for free to Comcast digital cable customers with ON DEMAND throughout the country. Episodes of the shows will be available for on-demand viewing starting on the day after their network airing and will remain available for four weeks.

"Video on demand has fundamentally changed the way people watch TV. Our customers have watched more than three billion ON DEMAND programs in addition to their regular linear TV viewing since 2004," said Brian Roberts, Chairman and CEO of Comcast Corporation. "CBS took a giant step forward in experimenting with prime-time video on demand last season, and we're pleased to partner with them to make their most popular prime-time programming available for free on VOD, which continues to provide a great value for all of our digital cable customers."

For more information, check out the article Comcast and CBS Introduce Free ON DEMAND Episodes of Primetime CBS Shows for Comcast Digital Cable Customers.

While Time Warner Cable and Common Sense Media are focusing on helping parents making better viewing choices for their children, the U.S. Senate focused on passing a bill to mandate a study examining the effects such exposure has on the cognitive development of children.

The Children and Media Research Advancement Act, sponsored by Senators Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and Sam Brownback, R-Kan., among others, will establish a research program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC, working with the National Academy of Sciences, will examine existing research and set new research priorities regarding how screen media???including television, computers and video games??? effects children. It will also issue grants over six years to researchers to examine the impact of media on a child's social, cognitive and physical development.

Read more about the new bill in the AdWeek article Senate Calls for Media Study.

A recent Investor's Business Daily article posted on Investors.com gives an in-depth profile of BellSouth's plans to upgrade its broadband service. According to the article, BellSouth plans to upgrade about 10 percent of the households it serves to 50 megabits per second Internet access, nearly 10 times faster than its current service, starting in the second half of 2007.

Targeting more than 1.3 million homes, the upgrade would effect subdivisions and house complexes where the company has already installed the fiber-optic wiring required for the service within 250 feet of homes. Focusing mostly on suburban areas of the Southwest, the upgrade will use a technology known as VDSL2, a faster version of the DSL technology used by phone companies.

The article also quotes a Bernstein Research report that shows BellSouth in fifth place among U.S. broadband Internet providers with 2.6 million subscribers, behind Comcast's industry-leading 9.34 million, as well as AT&T, Verizon and Time Warner Cable.

Read more about BellSouth's plans in the article BellSouth To Give A Boost To Its Broadband Services.

Several news organizations are speculating that cable, telephone and Internet service provider RCN has hired The Blackstone Group to look into a possible sale of the company. According to a Bloomberg.com source, the Herndon, Virginia-based company is struggling to compete against rivals such as Comcast and Time Warner, the two largest U.S. cable companies, in part because they have more leverage with cable networks.

Representatives from The Blackstone Group and RCN declined to comment to the media about the rumors.

For more information, check out the article Struggling RCN Considers Putting Itself Up for Sale.

TiVo Inc. has announced the launch of their high end TiVo?? Series3??? HD Digital Media Recorder. The first stand-alone TiVo product that is HD compatible, the new DVR will be available beginning mid-September. The TiVo Series3 HD box is the world's first THX??-certified, digital video recorder, delivering audio and video that maintains the fidelity of the original broadcast.

"TiVo continues to be the best way to watch television and we are very proud to extend the TiVo experience into the world of high definition with the release of the TiVo Series3 HD box," said Tom Rogers, CEO and President of TiVo.

The TiVo Series3 HD box allowis consumers to experience TiVo service features such as Season Pass??? recordings and WishList(c) searches in high-definition. The company says that extensive video analysis and performance testing by THX ensures content will always playback at the maximum quality and resolution.

Dual tuners gives subcribers the option to record two different shows in HD at the same time, while watching a third pre-recorded show. With the high quality OLED front-panel display, the TiVo Series3 HD box shows what is recording, even when the television is off. The box enables users to record up to 32 hours of HD programming, or up to 300 hours of standard definition recording.

The TiVo Series3 is designed to fit seamlessly into the most discerning home theater systems. It is compatible with digital cable, with the use of a CableCARD, analog cable and is the first TiVo to support over-the-air digital HD (ATSC). Later this year, the boxes will also support the TiVoCast service feature which allows users to access content directly through their broadband connection.

"Our subscribers have eagerly anticipated the day they can use our services in high definition," said Jim Denney, Vice President of Product Marketing at TiVo. "The TiVo Series3 HD DVR gives our customers the best way to experience HDTV in visual and audio performance, an easy, intuitive way to find and record HD programming and a broad set of multimedia and networking capabilities that greatly exceed other generic offerings available allowing subscribers the freedom to enjoy their favorite programming whenever they chose to do so."

The TiVo Series3 HD box will join the existing TiVo product line, and will soon be available for $799.99 at retail stores including select Best Buy, Circuit City, Ultimate Electronics, Fry's and online at www.tivo.com. For more information, check out the TiVo press release.

According to Multichannel News, Comcast is planning to announce a Web-based service that will act as an electronic guide and search engine for computer users trying to sort through thousands of scheduled television shows, on-demand videos and high-definition programs.

Rumored to be called TV Planner, the service will be introduced along side Comcast first ???fall lineup??? launch of video-on-demand programming. The company plans on touting the Web service's ability to sort through large amounts of on-demand programming quickly.

Viewers will be able to click on a listing and instruct a digital recording machine to store a copy of a chosen program. Through a recommendation engine that will be eventually added to the service, users will also get suggestions about what other programs might interest them.

The TV Planner service will launch this fall and be exclusively for Comcast cable subscribers. The 10 million Comcast high-speed Internet customers will be able to reach the service through the company's Comcast.net portal, which provides a wide range of video and multimedia services. Comcast's other 12 million or so customers can also search for scheduled shows and on-demand programs by going directly to a Web site set up for providing the guide services.

Read more in the Multichannel News article Comcast Plans a 'TV Guide' on the Web.

California's legislature passed an amended bill this week, by a vote of 64 to 5, that aims to increase competition among cable television providers and make it easier for telephone companies to enter the market. The bill eliminates city-by-city franchises, which proponents said made it nearly impossible for rivals with new technologies to enter California's market for TV entertainment services.

The bill comes at an opportune time for the telephone and cable companies that are fighting to sign up as many customers as possible for a bundle of services including telephone, cable television and high-speed Internet access. AT&T and other telecom giants have been lobbing to eliminate similar laws requiring franchise deals with municipalities before they are allowed offer TV service.

"California has led the way in the evolution of new technology, and with this bill, our state's policy toward contemporary TV and entertainment technology is catching up to the times," said Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, a vocal supporter of the legislation.

In an analyses by the state Senate's Rules Committee, researchers found that more than 60 percent of the state's TV-watching households have cable reception, while 27 percent subscribe to satellite service and the rest use conventional antennae.

Read more about the bill in the CNET News.com article California passes bill easing cable rules.

Verizon recently announced that its Verizon One high-tech phone, which integrates multiple functions, now has several new features at no additional cost to its users. These enhancements include e-mail access, enriched weather maps, the latest entertainment news, sneak peaks at upcoming movies, wireless home networking, the latest lottery results and the ability to transfer cell-phone photos to the Verizon One phone.

"These newest features enrich the Verizon One experience for our DSL customers," said Christopher Pizzirani, Verizon's vice president of broadband management and development, "and increase the value of this state-of-the-art information tool for the home."

The system is available to Verizon Online DSL customers nationwide and integrates a DSL modem, 802.11g wireless router, 5.8 Ghz cordless phone, wide color-touch screen, Verizon SuperPages features, family-event planner and reminder, and a one-touch access point for weather, news, sports, stocks and entertainment information. Up to four additional handsets can be added to each Verizon One phone at an additional cost. The device allows consumers to set up a wireless broadband network connecting computers within the home with straight-forward setup screens, and also features customized information services and a touch-screen display personalized with photos, including those downloaded from cell phones.

"Verizon One eliminates the need for multiple, costly devices," Pizzirani said, "including separate modems, phones and electronic organizers. The value of Verizon broadband is made even better with this communications command center."

Read more in the article Verizon to Sell Verizon One Wi-Fi Hotspot Phone Manufactured by Westell.

Earlier this month, I posted about the FCC decision that required cable operators to distrubute CableCards, a technology that allows digital cable subscribers to receive cable without a cable set-top box. The device will be available for the majority of U.S. cable customers by July, 2007, according to the ruling.

Chris Kohler over at Wired News posted a good article this week that gives an overview of the CableCard technology and what it means for you. He answers some of the most common questions so you can decide if it's right for your home:

What advantages does using a CableCard offer me?
There's no giant, ugly box with associated wires taking up space in your entertainment center. Also, the costs to lease a tiny, inexpensive CableCard from your cable provider should be significantly less expensive than leasing the box -- usually around two bucks. They can also send it to you in the mail rather than having to arrange an installation appointment. Finally, electronics manufacturers can sell devices capable of tuning in to your full cable lineup directly, without kluges likes TiVo's IR blaster.

What are the disadvantages?
CableCard is a one-way system, so you won't get an interactive program guide???you'll just have to use the static, non-interactive onscreen listing. You also can't order pay-per-view or on-demand programming.

Check out the rest of article CableCard Swipes at Set-Top Boxes to learn more.

Vistula Communications Services, a VoIP supplier for major telecommunications carriers and Internet service providers, recently announced the selection of its V-Cube??? platform by DirecPath to run a pilot program for the delivery of DirecPath???s consumer VoIP service offerings. DirecPath is a new partnership between The DIRECTV Group and Hicks Holdings LLC that was formed to provide bundled DIRECTV programming, broadband voice and data and security services to multiple dwelling unit (MDU) and gated-community owners across the United States.

Vistula will allow DirecPath to manage the communications needs of a diverse range of MDU and gated-community properties, and to add to its suite of bundled services the benefits of a secure, simplified, scalable and highly resilient VoIP infrastructure.

???We are committed to meeting the needs of owners and residents in MDU and gated communities nationwide and providing them with a unique and compelling value proposition,??? said Paul Savoldelli, chief executive officer of DirecPath. ???Vistula???s hosted VoIP service will be an important part of that value proposition, enhancing our ability to include VoIP as part of our seamless, cost-effective suite of bundled services."

Read more about this new venture in the CNET.com article DIRECTV test IP telephony.

Earlier this month, AOL officially announced it was planning to offer some of it's services for free. Now The New York Times is reporting that a leading software watchdog group is warning users away from AOL???s free client software.

A report by the group StopBadWare.org found that the software displayed characteristics consistent with badware. The term describes a variety of downloadable applications that try to install extra components on a computer without clearly informing users of what they are or what they will do.

The StopBadware organization was founded in part to assist consumers in spotting shady software. The group is jointly run by the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School and the Oxford Internet Institute of Oxford University.

After receiving tips and complaints about the AOL software from users at its Web site, StopBadWare decided to test it. While they found nothing malicious in the AOL installation, John G. Palfrey Jr., executive director of the Berkman Center, said that software did not have to be malicious to violate consumer trust.

???We currently recommend that users do not install the version of AOL software that we tested,??? the StopBadware.org Web site read yesterday, ???unless the user is comfortable with the level of risk we identify or until the application is updated consistent with the recommendations in this report.???

For more information, check out StopBadWare's open inquiry on AOL 9.0.

DISH Network's parent company suffered a setback this week in its battle with TiVo when a federal court judge delayed a countersuit it filed against the DVR pioneer.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Caroline M. Craven of Texarkana blocked EchoStar Communications Corp.'s patent-infringement lawsuit against TiVo and Humax USA Inc. while the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office reviews patents claimed by EchoStar. Craven, who issued the stay last month, made it final when EchoStar declined to appeal, TiVo spokesman Elliot Sloane said Monday.

TiVo sued EchoStar in 2004, and in April a jury in Marshall found that EchoStar had infringed on a TiVo patent in making its own set-top box with DVR capabilities. This month, the judge who presided over that trial ordered EchoStar to pay $89.6 million in damages???more than the jury had awarded.

The trial judge, David Folsom, also ordered EchoStar to disable more than 3 million of its DVRs that jurors found used elements of TiVo technology, but a federal appeals court this month delayed Folsom's order while the case is appealed.

EchoStar filed its own lawsuit against TiVo in 2005. TiVo issued a statement Monday saying it was pleased with Craven's decision to delay the countersuit while the government reviews EchoStar's patents. TiVo charges that patent officials failed to review older technology that would make EchoStar's patent claims invalid. The countersuit had been scheduled for trial early next year.

EchoStar spokeswoman Kathie Gonzalez said Monday the company is "anxious to get to trial because we believe TiVo's DVRs infringe on our technology," but acknowledged it will be a long process. In a regulatory filing, the company said the Patent Office review "could take many years."

Read more about this issue in the Yahoo! News article Judge delays EchoStar suit against TiVo.

You will soon be able to download short video clips of five CBS prime-time shows onto your cell phones or PDA from billboards in New York City's Grand Central Station, according to a recent Wall Street Journal article.

Starting in September, anyone with Bluetooth-enabled device standing within 36 feet of the new billboards will be able to access video clips. The free video clips will be delivered over the wireless connection directly to the Bluetooth-enabled device without the need to use the mobile Internet, freeing customers from being charged by their carrier for data usage.

As more and more TV viewers begin to use DVRs to skip through advertising during their favorite shows, companies are forced to find new and creative ways to market their products. CBS has already announced plans to promote its new fall TV shows by stamping logos on eggs.

While billboards and neon lights have been a staple of outdoor advertising for years, with the introduction of Bluetooth technology, they can now be used as an extension of traditional mediums to provide a more multimedia experience. The technology is already being used all over Europe to allow people to download movie clips and pictures.

Read more about this advertising trend in the TIME article Getting On Board: An old advertising medium is being reinvented.

Time Warner's AOL recently announced partnerships with 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, Universal Pictures, and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group that will offer consumers downloadable movies through the AOL Video portal. These new partnerships complement the more than 17 video content partnerships and more than 45 on-demand channels that AOL Video announced in July. Available to anyone on the Web at AOLvideo.com, the AOL Video portal is a one-stop, high-quality entertainment destination to find, watch and share millions of free streaming and pay-to-download video content from across the Web, broadcast and cable television, and movies.

Through AOL Video, popular movie titles???including recent DVD releases and a large selection of movies representing all genres???from 20th Century Fox, NBC Universal, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group will be available for purchase and download with prices ranging from $9.99 to $19.99 per movie. Once downloaded, movies can be viewed offline as well as on other PCs and compatible portable devices.

Read more about AOL Video in the CNET News.com article AOL to sell digital movie downloads.

AT&T Inc. recently announced a Letter of Intent with Vistana, Ltd. to build a fiber network to deliver the AT&T U-verse^SM suite of services, which includes Internet Protocol television, high-speed Internet access service and, eventually, voice services, to a new, mixed-use high-rise structure in historic downtown San Antonio.

To date, the AT&T Smart Moves program has signed more than 9,000 contracts with leased properties for AT&T communications and entertainment services, reaching 1.8 million units across the country for these types of bundled services. At The Vistana, AT&T will provide its first fiber deployment for U-verse to a multifamily and retail property.

AT&T will make Internet Protocol-based communications and entertainment services available to residents who will move in to The Vistana. Officials held unveiling ceremonies this week at nearby Milam Park in San Antonio. AT&T U-verse TV and high-speed Internet services are currently available in San Antonio, and the company plans to make U-verse services available in Houston and additional markets later this year.

"We know that the demand for the next generation of entertainment and communications services doesn't distinguish between suburban and urban living," said Brooks McCorcle, AT&T vice president and general manager for the San Antonio market area. "We look forward to working with The Vistana to serve the hundreds who will reside here, and we consider this new agreement a real turning point for our Smart Moves program. It's another strategic way that we are connecting customers with our next generation of services???while providing property owners with added value that helps differentiate their properties in a growing, fiercely competitive marketplace."

Construction on The Vistana will begin in late 2006 and will be complete in late spring 2008. The Vistana will be a 14-floor, 530,000-square-foot art deco building that will include a four-floor parking garage with more than 450 spaces and 246 market rate rental apartments above, including the top two floors of two-story penthouses. The sixth-floor amenity deck will include a theater, among other features. The building is expected to open in late spring 2008.

In addition to the millions of rental units served through the Smart Moves program, since 2005, the total number of single-family homes under AT&T Smart Moves contracts has increased from about 460,000 to more than 930,000???including those that are fiber-enabled and others that involve bundled services and other types of networking.

To learn more about this new development, check out the AT&T press release.

With EarthLink's New ProtectionPack??? featuring Anonymous E-mail Addresses, EarthLink subscribers can protect their identities and reduce the amount of spam they receive. EarthLink's Anonymous e-mail is the latest protection tool to be introduced by the company, which has been an innovator in creating and delivering security products for its customers over the past twelve years. EarthLink was the first ISP to offer spamBlocker, a permission-based e-mail solution that enables subscribers to better manage their inboxes, and ScamBlocker, which helps protect users from phishers.

"Most of us get about 200 e-mails a week, and some of it is still junk mail sneaking past our blocking tools," said Stephen Currie, EarthLink's director product management, communication products. "EarthLink's ProtectionPack featuring Anonymous E-mail adds another layer of protection that helps subscribers out-smart spammers and cut-down on the bogus e-mail messages that clog inboxes and can lead to fraud."

EarthLink subscribers can activate this service by visiting www.protectionpack.net and enter their EarthLink e-mail address and password. After verifying the security code and clicking "submit," five new Anonymous E-mail Addresses will immediately be provided and linked to the subscriber's account. A ProtectionPack folder will automatically be created in the subscriber's EarthLink Web Mail account, with a folder for each Anonymous E-mail Address. Subscribers will have immediate access to these separate addresses for Web site registrations, online shopping, or sending and receiving e-mail without exposing their identity.

Read more about this new protection tool in the EarthLink press release.

I posted about Qwest calling for data retention laws yesterday, but the company is now saying that the comments were a mistake and it is actually skeptical of the mandates by Congress.

In an interview with CNET News.com, Jennifer Mardosz, Qwest's corporate counsel and chief privacy officer, said that she misspoke during a panel discussion organized by the Progress and Freedom Foundation in Aspen, Colo. "I just completely misspoke there," Mardosz said. During the panel discussion, she said Qwest "absolutely" supports House of Representatives legislation sponsored by Rep. Diana DeGette mandating data retention???a requirement that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said will aid in terrorism and child exploitation investigations. "I associated (DeGette's) name with the female Colorado legislator that introduced the state legislation," Mardosz said. "That was just a pure and honest mistake that I made."

Qwest's revised position is more in sync with other telecommunications companies, which say they are already required by law to cooperate with criminal investigations and have been generally skeptical of broad, new mandates.

For more information on Qwest's turnabout, read the CNET News.com article Qwest on data retention laws: Oops.

In an effort to combat unauthorized data brokers obtaining and selling its customers' calling records, AT&T's services division filed a lawsuit in U.S district court in San Antonio, Texas, this week to block 25 unnamed defendants who have allegedly pretended to be customers to gain access to account information.

AT&T said that the so-called data brokers had fraudulently obtained records for some 2,500 customers. The company believes the lawsuit will help it identify the perpetrators through e-mail addresses and Internet Protocol addresses. Once it identifies the data brokers, the company plans to seek an injunction as well as a return of profits earned from selling customer information. In addition, AT&T customers affected by the data breach have been notified and access to their online accounts has been frozen.

Earlier this year, wireless phone companies Cingular, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless each filed lawsuits against companies that own Web sites that allegedly sell customer information. T-Mobile and Cingular have each won temporary restraining orders against perpetrators.

AT&T said it has taken additional steps to prevent this type of activity in the future. "Regrettably, there are always people looking for ways to circumvent the system," Priscilla Hill-Ardoin, chief privacy officer for AT&T, said in a statement. "But we intend to remain vigilant in order to keep our customers' information secure."

Read more about what the company is doing to protect its customers' privacy in the AT&T press release AT&T Services Inc. Files Suit to Bar Data Brokers from Unauthorized Access to Customer Data.

In the wake of AOL's release of user search data, broadband company Qwest Communications is the lone provider strongly endorsing federal legislation requiring Internet providers to keep records of their customers' behavior.

"We support legislation," Jennifer Mardosz, Qwest's corporate counsel and chief privacy officer, said this week. "We want to be at the table. We want to have these discussions. The main thing is what's reasonable and balancing the interests of privacy and law enforcement." According to Mardosz, Qwest already keeps logs for more than 99 percent of its services for one year.

The endorsement is an unusual stand for Qwest, which defended its customers' privacy rights when requiring the National Security Agency to obtain a court order to conduct electronic surveillance, according to a USA Today article in May. Their enthusiastic support of mandatory data retention could make it politically easier for members of Congress to enact new laws even if other companies remain staunchly opposed.

Read more about Qwest's position and the propsed legislation in the CNETnews.com article Qwest calls for mandatory data retention laws.   

The joint venture formed by Satellite TV giants DIRECTV and EchoStar Communications has pulled out of the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) advanced wireless services license auction. Expected to be one of the highest bidders, they put up more than $972 million for the auction. But earlier this week, they began scaling back on bids and eventually withdrew from the auction completely.

The satellite TV providers were seeking the license in a bid to build a wireless broadband network. Using a technology called WiMax, they could have provided a broadband service offering downloads between 2 Mbps and 4 Mbps. Satellite TV companies like EchoStar and DirecTV are fighting for survival as they face more competition from cable and, more recently, telephone companies. These companies have the ability to offer bundles of services that include high-speed Internet access, telephone and TV service. Satellite TV companies can currently only offer TV service. While EchoStar and DirecTV have separately partnered with phone companies Verizon Communications and AT&T, they are likely to lose these partnerships as more phone companies begin TV services as well.

Read more about the auction in the CNETnews.com article Satellite TV providers exit FCC auction.

According to a recent Philadelphia Inquirer article, the bundling of cable TV with phone and Internet services has helped Comcast pick up new voice customers and increase retention of its existing subscribers.

On average, Comcast's triple-play customers spend about $120 monthly with the company because many buy extra products and services such as digital video recorders and premium channels such as HBO.

Competitors like DirecTV and Verizon are having a difficult time keeping up. Satellite packages often start at about $30 a month, almost eliminating the advantage that existed when cable companies offered only video for $50 and up monthly. While phone companies are slowly starting to offer television, they are years away from making it available to most customers.

According to Merrill Lynch analyst Jessica Reif Cohen, telephone companies are blaming their slower growth on cable competition. She recently told clients that, "AT&T's chief financial officer acknowledged on the company's second-quarter earnings call that the introduction of the triple play by cable operators into AT&T markets was negatively impacting subscriber growth."

Triple play also helps Comcast boost customer loyalty. Comcast has been offering triple play to Boston customers longer than in any other market. The company gained about 1,000 subscribers in the second quarter, where last year it lost 16,000. For most customers, the competitive pricing of triple play and complicated process involved in switching back to their old phone-service provider keeps them with Comcast longer.

Read more about how Comcast is growing with triple play bundles in the Philadelphia Inquirer article Comcast's 'triple play' wins fans on Wall St.

Verizon has been in the news a lot lately. The company announced this week that it is planning a DVR that allows its customers to watch programs recorded on mutliple TVs in any room in the house. Made by Motorola, Verizon's Home Media DVR allows customers to record programs on up to three televisions at once.  It also lets users watch one program while recording another.

Similar to TiVo's broadband services, the DVR includes software that allows Verizon customers to access collections of pictures and music stored on networked computers. The company said that the system doesn't currently support copy-protected, but would in the future.

The DVRs will be available with Verizon's new fiber-optic TV service, called Fios, that reaches directly to the side of a customer's home, bringing customers nearly limitless bandwidth capacity. As I posted about yesterday, Verizon's Fios TV service was created to draw in new customers and help the company compete with cable operators, which have added telephone service to their bundle of TV and broadband services.

"We've deployed the best platform in the industry, from the core of our fiber-to-the-premises network right through the home to every device on the network. Now we're adding cool new features that capitalize on the speed and interactivity that the FiOS platform makes possible," said Marilyn O'Connell, Verizon's video vice president.

Verizon's FiOS service is now offered in parts of seven states, according to the company: California, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Virginia and Texas. Verizon says the service also benefits cable subscribers, as rates for cable service have been shown to drop when FiOS enters the market.

A new AdAge.com article is speculating that Comcast is gearing up to raise it's online profile. Writer Abbey Klaassen reports:

"The cable operator has bulked up its online-sales team and plans to open its Comcast.net portal to all its customers???increasing the potential audience from its 10 million high-speed-data subscribers to its 23 million video subscribers. And that's just for starters.

According to TV network executives familiar with Comcast's plans through content-carriage negotiations, the cable operator has Yahoo-size ambitions and sees the Internet as key to raising its profile, and share of ad budgets."

The article also includes interesting statistics on Comcast's current online presence. Comcast.com currently gets 1.5 billion page views per month and it's the number three in terms of repeat business, making it the most-used broadband portal in the United States. Of the company's broadband customers, about 70 percent use the Comcast.net portal and have Comcast.net e-mail address. In addition, the company's broadband player, The Fan, tracks at more than 60 million views a month from its viewer base of 10 million high-speed customers.

Read more about Comcast's future online in the full article Comcast's Online Goal? Become Another Yahoo. 

According to a new press release by Cox Communications, satellite customers are switching  from their current service to Cox triple-play bundles in record numbers. The company states that among new connections, the percentage of basic cable customers who are former satellite customers has nearly doubled in two years.

"In 2004, 6 percent of our basic connects were former satellite customers; in 2006, we've driven that number to 11 percent," said Esser. "The convenience and value of buying video, telephone and Internet services from one provider and our superior customer care experience are bringing more and more DBS customers to Cox."

Cox's success in attracting satellite customers helped the company gain approximately 84,000 basic cable customers since July 2005. Advanced video services such as cable-only On DEMAND, high-definition and DVR also contributed to new customer acquisitions and a reduction in churn, Esser commented.

"Former satellite customers are great cable customers; over 40 percent buy the full three-product bundle," Esser said. "We're retaining and winning back the best video customers in the marketplace with bundled services that are individually compelling and a good value. In markets where we've offered the three-product bundle the longest, more than 70% of our customers choose two or more services and approximately 40 percent take all three???video, Internet and telephone."

Cox is touts itself as America's leading bundler, noting the company's nearly 10 years of experience in offering video, telephone and Internet services and the fact that its bundled customers are 41 percent less likely to leave for another provider.  "Today, Cox is better at bundling than anyone else in the business," Esser said. "This is proven by the customers we're winning away from both DBS and telephone company competitors and by our customer satisfaction which continues to increase."

Over the last four years, Cox has topped nine national and regional J.D. Power and Associates' studies of customer satisfaction, including highest honors in residential telephone and high-speed Internet, and commercial data.

Cox also remains the nation's leading provider of cable telephony with more than 1.8 million residential subscribers. Cox has the highest telephony market penetration to basic subscribers of any cable company, at nearly 35 percent. "Cox's early entrance into the telephone business is key to the company's ongoing success," said Esser. "Today, 70 percent of our telephone customers subscribe to our triple play."

At the close of the second quarter, Cox had more than 3.2 million bundled customers, 5.4 million basic video subscribers, and 3.1 million high-speed Internet customers.

The New York Times technology writer Ken Belson recently wrote an interesting article about what Verizon is doing with its fiber-optic network in New York City. Part of an extensive project to replace Verizon's older copper network with the more durable fiber lines, the company will spend about $20 million by the end of 2010 to reach millions of homes from Florida to California. However, New York is their primary focus because residents there are the biggest buyers of video, Internet and phone services. Verizon plans to spend about $3 billion dollars to reach that market of customers.

Ken writes, "With such a high concentration of potential customers, competition is fierce???and Verizon has been losing ground. Time Warner Cable, Cablevision and others are stealing about 1,000 Verizon phone customers a day, and their discounted services are making it hard for Verizon to win them back???another reason to get the fiber network up quickly."

The article goes into detail about the hurdles Verizon faces during the project and what it could mean to New York City residents in the future.  You can read more about the project in the full article Verizon Is Rewiring New York, Block by Block, in a Race for Survival.

In a bid to take on download-giant iTunes, FOX plans to make its movie and television shows available for download. Coming in October, several releases will be available through FOX's Direct2Drive service, including "X-Men: The Last Stand" and "Thank You for Smoking," for around $20 a download. Direct2Drive will also make available FOX's "24" and "Prison Break," and FX's "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" for $1.99 an episode.

The service will use a platform that is currently used to sell video games and allow playback and transfer to devices running Microsoft's Windows Media Player technology. Copyright protection will limit playback to two Windows computers, each supporting one portable device. Over the next year, video sales will come to other Fox sites as well, including MySpace.com.

I posted last month about a Yankee Group research study that showed tremendous growth in voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calling. I recently found a new report by Light Reading's Cable Industry Insider that showed similar results. The report, Cable VoIP: Prospects for Sustainable Growth, found that in 2005 alone, North American cable operators signed up approximately 2.2 million VoIP customers, climbing from 500,000 subscribers at the end of 2004 to more than 2.7 million.

The report also speculates that cable operators, led by Cablevision, Cox Communications and Time Warner Cable in the United States, are increasingly taking control of the VoIP market as a result of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 that freed phone and cable companies to compete against each other for voice customers.

For more on this trend, check out Lightreading's Cable Industry Insider.

The Chicago Tribune reported recently that AT&T was the first company in Indiana to file a statewide application with the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission that would allow it to provide new television services to some of its customers. The application would allow AT&T to offer its U-Verse service, which provides many of the same benefits as digital cable or satellite television, and put the company in direct competition with satellite TV and cable companies.

AT&T Indiana President George Fleetwood and other proponents said the new options would spur competition and drive down the cost of cable services. The company cited a major telecommunication deregulation law enacted by the General Assembly earlier this year as a reason for investing $250 million over the next three years to bring new video and broadband services to Indiana. The law allows companies to provide cable-like TV services without seeking approval from individual cities and towns.

Read more about this new development in the Chicago Tribune article AT&T takes step toward offering video services.

Verizon Business recently announced it has signed a contract to help modernize and upgrade the telecommunications infrastructure on U.S. Army posts, camps and stations worldwide over the next decade.

"We are supporting Army communications from the installation level all the way up to the front lines," said Paul Bates, vice president for global professional services and enterprise solutions for Verizon Business. "This effort is intended to increase network capabilities and boost bandwidth around the world. As the Army moves to EoIP???or Everything over IP???Verizon Business will provide the latest technology to help the government increase networking capabilities while maintaining affordability.''

The Internet protocol (IP) services will provide network efficiencies while increasing the speed of the flow of information???including voice and data???from the front lines. In addition, the Army will have increased flexibility to turn up communications quickly.

As a leading communications provider to the U.S. Department of Defense, Verizon Business has a long history of providing secure and reliable mission-critical networks to the federal government. For more information about Verizon FNS, visit www.verizon.com/fns.

I guess all the gearing up I've been doing for the new NFL season has me focusing on sports, so I am also going update on the Time Warner/NFL Network dispute I posted about last week. According to several news reports, Time Warner Cable has threatened to go to court to overturn a decision forcing the cable company to reinstate the NFL Network on some of its systems.

"Given the extraordinary nature of the injunction and the immediate harm it will cause if not lifted immediately, Time Warner will have no choice but to obtain judicial relief to protect its interest and those of its customers, if the bureau or the commission has not acted by 10 a.m. eastern time on Monday," the company said in its Aug. 3 appeal to the FCC.

Time Warner argued that the FCC acted without giving it a chance to respond, the agency exceeded its authority by requiring the channel be restored and that the order "inflicts severe, immediate and irreparable harm" on Time Warner Cable and its customers.

The FCC's Media Bureau rejected Time Warner's requests to stay its decision, reconsider it and refer the matter to the five FCC commissioners for a ruling. "The Commission's obligation is first and foremost to the consumer???not to the private interests of Time Warner or NFL Network???and because of this we again find continued carriage to be in the public interest," said FCC spokeswoman Rebecca Fisher. The agency also noted that approximately 30,000 complaints had already been registered with the two companies.

Time Warner Cable has said the NFL Network wants a 350 percent increase over the rate Adelphia was paying, or approximately $100 million. A spokesman for the channel disputed that rate and said the fight was about whether it would be relegated to a sports package or available more broadly. "No other provider in the country carries us on a sports tier and we refuse to have Time Warner do so," said NFL Network spokesman Seth Palansky. "We have not had any subsequent conversations but would hope that we can soon."

About one-third of the subscribers Time Warner acquired had received the NFL Network, but the majority saw it by paying for a digital or sports package instead of through a basic cable package, according to the company.

According to the Business Journal of Phoenix, Cox Business Services, a part of Cox Communications, recently announced they signed a deal to provide high-speed Internet, local and long distance digital phone service, and digital cable television at the new Arizona Cardinals stadium.

Scheduled for its first game Saturday, the stadium will have a 100-megabyte Internet connection throughout the entire facility with the capacity for Cox to increase bandwidth for events such as the Super Bowl, which will take place there in 2008. Nearly 1,000 phone lines also are available to the stadium's business offices and for public use. In addition, flat-screen television monitors in the stadium's luxury suites can be linked to digital cable or a closed-circuit option for viewing events commercial free.

According to The New York Times, cable and satellite television giants are planning to get into mobile phone and wireless data services. The newspaper reported that Time Warner, Comcast, Cox Communications, EchoStar Communications and DirecTV will be among the 168 bidders in the government???s multibillion-dollar auction of radio spectrum. It appears that these companies are preparing to go head-to-head with AT&T, Verizon Communications and other companies that sell traditional phone lines, broadband connections and wireless services, and are now focusing on television as well.

An alliance that includes DirecTV and EchoStar put in the largest deposit for the bidding, more than $972 million. Another alliance, led by Comcast, Cox, Time Warner Cable and others, put down $638 million. T-Mobile, Cingular Wireless and Verizon Wireless have made separate deposits.

Cellphone companies are expected to counter the cable and satellite companies by adding to their stores of spectrum, particularly in cities where their networks get the most use. They may also bid up the price of some of the 1,122 licenses on sale to make it more expensive for their rivals to gain a foothold in an already intensely competitive market, said analysts who spoke to the newspaper.

Learn more about this issue in The New York Times article Cable and Satellite TV Set Their Sights on Airwaves.

Hospitals across the country are providing patients with amenities they are  more used to experiencing in five-star hotels through interactive television,  high-speed Internet and other perks. LodgeNet Entertainment Corp., known for providing the services to major hotel chains, has installed interactive TV  systems in 10 hospitals across the country and plans to add the service to many  more in the future. Patients can use the systems to order movies, request extra  food or blankets, and even watch educational programming that is specific to a  their condition and treatment.

In addition to interactive TV, hospitals like Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano in Plano, Texas, plan to offer other hotel-like perks, including room service from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Baylor currently offers wireless Internet access for laptop users and a "business center" on each floor, equipped with personal computers so that visitors can have access to the Internet and e-mail.

Read more about this new trend here.

Sprint Nextel announced an expansion of its relationship with Time Warner Cable, the second-largest cable operator in the United States. They have been selected to help provision Time Warner Cable's digital phone service in an additional 14 service areas. Time Warner Cable will utilize Sprint Nextel's IP network to offer VoIP-based telephone service across most the 28 million homes it currently services.

Sprint Nextel currently serves cable companies with a total of more than 1.2 million VoIP subscribers across more than 1,100 rate centers. Over a one-year period, Sprint Nextel is expected to provide cable telephony wireline services to cable companies serving over 2.5 million subscribers. The new five year agreement marks Sprint Nextel's continued expansion into the cable market.

"Sprint Nextel has proven to be an excellent partner and we look forward to expanding our relationship with them," said Glenn Britt, president and chief executive officer of Time Warner Cable. "Time Warner Cable now serves 1.6 million Digital Phone customers, and telephone has become one of the fastest growing segments of our video, high-speed data and voice bundle."

As part of the agreement, Sprint Nextel will carry long-distance traffic for Time Warner Cable residential customers and provide 911 services, relay systems and operator services. Digital phone calls begin on the Time Warner Cable network and travel to its regional data centers. Calls are completed over the Sprint Nextel nationwide network. From the customer's perspective, their inbound and outbound calls will continue to be seamless.

Read more about this new agreement in Sprint Nextel's press release.

According to a new study released by iSuppli, Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) is expected to attract 63 million subscribers by 2010???a more than 26-fold increase over last year. The largest jump in numbers is expected to come next year when subscriptions will hit 15 million, tripling 2006 totals.

Expected to differ from traditional TV network programming on several fronts, IPTV can offer interactivity, integration across multiple platforms and enhanced services. Interactive functions could include e-commerce, communication and electronic voting. Proponents of the technology envision some of the enhanced services to include on-demand gaming, music and home networking management.

Read more about iSuppli's study here.

The Federal Communications Commission believes that if broadband over power lines (BPL) takes off, more Americans in rural and underserved areas will be able to take advantage of high-speed Internet access, in addition to forcing companies who currently dominate the cable and DSL market to lower their prices to compete for consumer business.

The FCC unanimously adopted an order designed to reaffirm and build on a set of rules issued for the technology in 2004, which had drawn a number of reservations from both inside and outside the industry. The original guidelines focused on preventing the nascent Internet service from causing harmful interference with radio signals that rely on nearby frequencies, such as those commonly used in aviation and in zones near U.S. Coast Guard and radio astronomy stations.

Though interest in Internet access over the electrical grid began years ago, only about 50 such systems currently exist in the United States, and the vast majority remain in the developmental or experimental phase. That's in part because of resistance from amateur radio operators, who complain that BPL could disrupt their systems and those of public safety organizations if deployed without limits.

The push for commercializing the technology appears to be growing, however, with two companies announcing late last year that they plan to offer BPL to 2 million homes and businesses in northern Texas in the near future, and California regulators this spring gave the go-ahead to test the service in that state.

To learn more about broadband over power lines, check out the CNET news article FCC pushes for broadband over power lines.

BellSouth has launched two Web sites to provide consumers with innovative ways to relate new technologies to their everyday lives. BellSouth Home of the Future Today (www.bellsouth.com/homeofthefuture) and BellSouth Gear(TM) Store (www.bellsouth.com/gearstore) will incorporate interactive features to engage visitors and educate them about new and upcoming products.

BellSouth Home of the Future Today allows visitors to virtually tour a home that is fully-equipped with high-speed Internet service, home networking, broadband and wireless applications, as well as digital satellite television service through DIRECTV. Visitors can tour various rooms of the house, including the living room, kitchen and home and remote offices, where the featured products and services are most used.

BellSouth Gear(TM) Store helps consumers match their lifestyles with an array of available products and services from BellSouth, like cordless telephones, consumer electronics, broadband service and home networking.

"Many consumers who shop online are looking for some help with their technology purchase decisions," said Randy Roberts, vice president of wireless and consumer devices for BellSouth. "BellSouth Home of the Future Today and BellSouth Gear(TM) Store offer unique ways for consumers to explore and weigh the benefits of various BellSouth products as well as apply the usefulness of those products to their individual lifestyles."

According to a new survey, a majority of consumers polled (57 percent) continue to be interested in bundling all telecommunications services under a single provider.

???The trend is clear. Consumers like the idea of one company delivering all of their entertainment, information and communications services???and they???re seeing their cable companies as the source,??? said Char Beales, President and CEO of the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing. ???They realize that by bundling video, phone and Internet products, they can eliminate the inconvenience of dealing with multiple providers and reduce costs."

Cable customers are considerably more interested in getting phone service from their cable company than from other, non-cable VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) service providers. Nearly one-third of digital (29 percent) and premium cable customers (32 percent) are interested in leaving their current telephone service provider to receive phone service from their cable company. In addition, basic cable subscribers (23 pecent) are more interested in phone service from their cable company than from non-cable VoIP providers (11 percent).

The study also shows a growing interest in receiving additional services from local cable companies, such as high-speed Internet, and local, long distance and mobile phone services, when compared to 2004 data.

Alltel Wireless, America???s largest network, announced today that the innovative Fastap??? keypad, created by Digit Wireless, is now available exclusively for its customers on the LG AX490 phone. Available beginning Aug. 3, the LG AX490 is the only phone in the United States to feature this cutting-edge technology.

The Fastap keypad allows for dual levels of functionality by integrating the traditional 12-number keypad with raised buttons for each letter of the alphabet. The keyboard simplifies virtually every phone function and provides easier and faster access to mobile phone-based applications including text messaging, instant messaging, picture and Web browsing.

Fastap meets the growing needs of Alltel Wireless??? customers by providing a groundbreaking technology that allows for quicker and easier data entry and retrieval, while keeping with the traditional phone design. For example, customers who download Alltel???s Axcess Instant Messaging application to their LG AX490 now have an affordable, easy, seamless and always-on mobile messaging experience.

Read more about this new phone in Alltel's press release.

We posted about the AOL rumors last month, and now AOL has officially announced that its software and e-mail as well as various other products will be made available for free to broadband users.  The new strategy is aimed at increasing the audience for AOL???s portal which can be turned into lucrative internet advertising and speeding the transition away from AOL???s declining traditional dial-up business.

Among the AOL products that will be available for free to anyone with an Internet connection are: AOL???s integrated software; communications features, including AOL e-mail, instant messaging, a local phone number with unlimited incoming calls; and safety and security features, such as parental controls. To encourage former members to return to using the AOL software, e-mail, instant messaging and other AOL products, they will be able to reactivate their screen names, if given up within the last two years.

Previously, AOL customers lost their aol.com email address when they switched to high-speed internet connections, meaning these customers were flocking to rivals Yahoo, MSN and Google who already offered free email services. AOL said it would also step up its search engine capabilities and add to social networking options available to customers.

To read more about this announcement, check out the AOL press release.

TiVo Inc., a creator of and leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVRs), announced that it has been recognized by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences with a 2006 Emmy Award for outstanding achievement in enhanced television programming.

"TiVo is proud to receive an Emmy Award and recognition from the Academy and its peers for the innovative services that it provides in enhancing the viewing of television by bringing it to a whole new level," said Tom Rogers, President and CEO of TiVo.

This year's Interactive Television Emmy Awards recognize original interactive television programming content, applications and services that have been deployed in the United States between June 1, 2005 and May 31, 2006 and that have demonstrated creative excellence. Other finalists in this category include AOL Music on Demand, CNN Enhanced and DirecTV Interactive Sports. Awards will be presented at the Creative Arts Awards Ceremony at the Shrine Auditorium in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday, August 19.

AOL, the Internet branch of Time Warner Inc., is revamping its online video Web site with more than 45 video-on-demand channels and an improved search engine to attract broadband users. Aolvideo.com will allow users to watch music videos and movie trailers from companies such as MTV and Warner Bros. They will begin testing the site on Aug. 4 and then make it available to all viewers on Aug. 22.

The video-on-demand online channels will offer TV programs such as "SpongeBob SquarePants" and "Laguna Beach" for $1.99 per episode, and the site may eventually sell movies to download. AOL will also make money from selling online ads as users watch movie trailers and home-made videos for free as part of their initiative to break into the lucrative online video search market currently dominated by Yahoo! and Google.

According to new research, adults in households that have digital video recorders (DVRs) actually watch less TV than adults in the general population. The findings by Mediamark Research, an audience-measurement firm, seem to conflict with major broadcast network researchers who told advertisers in November that people in households with a DVR watched 12 percent more hours of TV a day than those without. David F. Poltrack, chief research officer for CBS, said the Mediamark numbers were unreliable, because they were derived from people's often-low reports of their own TV watching. The figures suggesting that adults who use a DVR watch more television come from Arbitron's 2,000-person machine-recorded survey in the spring of 2005, but it covered only the Houston market.

While Verizon Wireless proudly claims its wireless "Broadband Access" service is unlimited, some customers are finding Verizon's definition doesn't match their expectations. The service uses a technology called EV-DO that allows users to access the Internet at high speeds from their laptops, just about anywhere. Verizon labels this service "broadband" because it has average download speeds of 400-700 kilobytes per second. However, when customers use it like they would other broadband connections, Verizon is likely to cancel their account, according to ConsumerAffairs.com.

Under Verizon's terms and conditions, the company hardly goes out of its way to explain the limits on their definition of "unlimited broadband access." Customers who take the time to read the fine print will find that "services cannot be used: (1) for uploading, downloading or streaming of movies, music or games; (2) with server devices or with host computer applications, including, but not limited to, Web camera posts or broadcasts, automatic data feeds, Voice over IP (VoIP), automated machine-to-machine connections, or peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing." Jeffrey Nelson, Verizon Wireless spokesman, said that calling the service "unlimited" is not misleading. "It's very clear in all the legal materials we put out," he said. "It's unlimited amounts of data for certain types of data."

Stephanie posted in May about AT&T phasing out the Cingular brand, and it looks like AT&T plans to continue the trend when its purchase of BellSouth is approved. AT&T is banking its future on the fact that, despite problems in the past, it is still the most recognizable name in the phone business. Like Verizon and other telecommunications companies, AT&T is also selling bundles of services and wants to have a single brand for all its products.

???The BellSouth and Cingular names are not just at the iconic level globally,??? said Wendy Clark, vice president for advertising at AT&T, in a recent New York Times article. ???When you have an integrated solution, the nomenclature of wireless and wireline will become blurred to the point where you need a single brand. It???s about one-stop shopping.??? The rebranding effort will be a large undertaking, and not without risks. BellSouth and Cingular don't have the history of the AT&T brand, but the companies currently have a more than 70 million customers between them.

AT&T also plans to organize a national campaign to reintroduce its brand. The company declined to provide specifics about the campaign, but said the scale and message would be in line with their current efforts to rename SBC, which has included a redesigned blue globe and the catchphrase ???Your World. Delivered.???

You can read more about AT&T's plan in the New York Times article AT&T Bets Its Brand Is More Than Nostalgia.

Motorola and Yahoo! announced that they will sell new Motorola devices preloaded with Yahoo! services starting in 2007. The phones will come with Yahoo! Go for Mobile, a Web application that includes Yahoo's mail, search, address book and local information programs, and be available on millions of handsets in the Americas, Europe and Asia. Motorola and Yahoo! plan to jointly market the new handsets.

Read more about this new partnership in Motorola's press release.

YouTube announced this week that its viewers are now watching more than 100 million videos per day. The site holds the leading position in online video with 29 percent of the multimedia entertainment market in the United States, according to the latest weekly data from Web measurement site Hitwise. Delivered for free, YouTube videos account for 60 percent of all videos watched online. In June alone, 2.5 billion videos were watched on the site. More than 65,000 videos are now uploaded daily to YouTube, up from 50,000 in May, the company said. The site also boasts nearly 20 million unique users per month, according to Nielsen//NetRatings.

YouTube is currently developing advertising and other means of generating revenue to support the site, including partnerships with NBC and Hollywood production companies.

AT&T announced a distribution agreement with MTV Networks and BET Networks to deliver MTVN and BET linear, high-definition, on-demand and digital music programming as part of the AT&T U-verse TV??? channel lineup.

"The MTV Networks and BET Networks brands are among the strongest in television," said Dan York, head of programming, AT&T Operations Inc. "We are very happy to be offering the wide array of MTV Networks and BET Networks program services to AT&T U-verse customers."

AT&T U-verse TV is delivered by Project Lightspeed, the company's initiative to expand the fiber-optics network deeper into neighborhoods to deliver U-verse TV, AT&T Yahoo!?? High-Speed Internet U-verse Enabled and, in the future, Voice over IP services. Through its subsidiaries, AT&T expects to reach nearly 19 million households by the end of 2008.

For a full listing of the channels that will be available, check out the AT&T press release.

AT&T and Wi-Fi start-up MetroFi submitted a proposal to build and operate a wireless broadband network in Riverside, California. The proposed network would provide free Internet access throughout the city with download speeds of 500Kbps and upload speeds of 256Kbps. AT&T will include a persistent advertisement on every Web page in exchange for the free access and proposed offering a paid service to Riverside residents allowing them to subscribe to a 1Mbps download broadband service.

When cities began looking into building Wi-Fi networks, phone and cable companies like AT&T, Comcast and Time Warner lobbied against them. They feared that cities owning and operating Wi-Fi networks would allow them to unfairly control the market. But now that many cities are considering partnerships with private firms, those same companies are beginning to bid for the chance to build the networks.

Read more about the bid at CNETnews.com.

As more TV viewers use digital video recorders (DVRs) to watch their favorite shows, networks and advertisers are beginning to look for ways to keep them from skipping over advertisements. According Mike Shaw, ABC's President of Advertising Sales, the network has held discussion on the use of technology that would disable the fast-forward button on DVRs, with the primary goal to allow TV commercials to run as intended.

While some industry experts fear taking away the fast-forward button would lead to consumer backlash, Shaw disagrees. "We're just training a new generation of viewers to skip commercials because they can," he contends. "I'm not sure that the driving reason to get a DVR in the first place is just to skip commercials. I don't fundamentally believe that. People can understand in order to have convenience and on-demand (options), that you can't skip commercials."

Shaw said it's crucial for ABC and other networks to hold these discussions now while DVR penetration is still in its early stages. DVRs are currently in approximately 10 percent of U.S. TV households.

Read more about Shaw's comments in the article ABC hopes to halt fast forwarding.

On July 12, CEA's Market Research Department is hosting a free Webcast that will compare home technologies that builders are offering with what homebuyers want in their new houses. The Webcast will unveil new consumer research and compare the results with data from the most recent technology survey with homebuilders in the United States. To find out more about the presentation, you can read the article Do Home Buyers Want New Home Technologies?

Consumers who purchased technology, such as home theater and monitored security systems for their new homes, exhibit high levels of satisfaction, according to research recently released by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). According to the "New Home Buyers and Technology Purchases" study, overall satisfaction is above 75 percent for all the technologies tested: owners of home theater systems have the highest satisfaction rate at 89 percent. The study was presented by CEA's Director of Research Joe Bates at the Pacific Coast Builders Conference in San Francisco, California.

After two years of extreme hurricane activity, it is not surprising that the business community of Metropolitan Miami ranks No. 1 in the nation for business continuity planning. AT&T Inc. announced today that of its 10 markets surveyed for AT&T's national study on business continuity planning, Miami businesses ranked as the best prepared to recover from disasters.

Eighty percent of the city's IT decision-makers surveyed said that their business has a continuity plan in place, as compared with 73 percent nationally. Additionally, 54 percent of the respondents with a plan said their plans have been updated in the last six months and 36 percent said their plans have been tested in the last six months. 

According to an article in Telco Media News, Sen. John Stevens is very positive about the revised telecom bill.  Stevens' believes the bill will "create a level playing field, between cable and the Bells, encourage competition and the deployment of broadband, and in the process, create even more jobs as we go along."

Stevens detailed some of the steps that the bill has gone through to get it up and ready. According to the article, "local governments caught the attention of Stevens during the first hearing on his telecom legislation. After that panel, Stevens instructed committee staff to work with local government interests, USTelecom and the National Cable and Telecommunications Association to seek a compromise on franchise reform."

I will keep you updated as the bill continues its journey.

Yesterday, Senator John McCain formally introduced Consumers Having Options in Cable Entertainment (CHOICE) Act. This act is McCain's attempt to introduce cable a la carte to the pay-for-TV business. According to the article McCain Releases A La Carte Bill, McCain said, "There is only one option available: Buy a package of channels, whether you watch all the channels or not. The alternative is to not receive cable programming at all. Why have cable companies and cable programmers refused to give consumers the ability to buy and pay for only those channels consumers watch? Simply because they do not have to. They are the only game in town." McCain's bill aims to change that. You can read the article to find out more about the bill and some of the early responses to it.

Jeff Halpern  from Bernstein Research has estimated that 5.5 million people will subscribe to IPTV by 2010. Although this may seem like a high number, Berstein Research has actually lowered its estimations. It had previously projected that IPTV subscriptions would reach the lofty number of 5.5 million by 2009, an entire year earlier than now estimated. Halpurn attributes the lowering in subscription projections to "slower franchise approval process, greater technological challenges and slower deployment into residential MDUs than originally forecast," according to the article Analyst: 5.5 Million Telco Video Subs in 2010.

Things are heating up in congress about net neutrality. Carol Wilson from Telephony Online wrote a good update recently on what is going on in her article, Net neutrality heats up again. You should check it out to keep up with the situation, since what happens has the potential to greatly affect how we use the Internet.

The Organization for the Promotion and Advancement of Small Telecommunications Companies (OPASTCO) has voiced their support for Senator Ted Stevens work with the "Communications, Consumer's Choice, and Broadband Deployment Act of 2006."

According to the article Rural, Small Telco Interests Praise Stevens Bill, John Rose, the OPASTCO President, said that "this is a good bill, and it is obvious that Sen. Stevens worked with many others to ensure that the USF is a sustainable resource for consumers everywhere. Sen. Stevens is to be commended for including provisions on video access that will not only provide consumers with more choice, but will also make deployment of broadband services by rural telephone companies easier." Work on the bill began today.

According to the National Cable & Telecommunications Association, there are 110.2 million television households in the United States. Cable companies (large and small) account for 65.4 million households.  The two largest satellite providers (DIRECTV and Dish Network) account for another 25.7 million households. Other television households options include over-the-air television households, c-band satellite households (large dishes), private condo/apartment master antenna systems (known as SMATV), and other telecommunication company's video offerings (most notably AT&T's uVerse and Verizon's FIOS).

The biggest cable companies like Comcast and Time Warner get the majority of the media attention, but did you know that there are over 7,900 individual cable systems that service those 65.4 million cable customers? Companies like Comcast are known as Multiple System Operators or MSOs, because they hold multiple local cable system franchise rights.

The 15 largest MSOs by subscribers are as follows (source: NCTA website from Kagan Research):

1. Comcast Cable Communications  (21,449,000 subscribers)
2. Time Warner Cable (10, 957,000 subscribers)
3. Cox Communications (6,300,400 subscribers)
4. Charter Communications (5,884,500 subscribers)
5. Adelphia Communications (4,885,700 subscribers)
6. Cablevision Systems Corporation (3,027,000 subscribers)
7. Bright House (2,240,000 subscribers)
8. Mediacom Communications (1,423,000 subscribers)
9. Insight Communications (1,281,600 subscribers)
10. CableOne (640,600 subscribers)
11. Cebridge Connection (448,300 subscribers)
12. RCN Corporation (370,000 subscribers)
13. WideOpenWest (357,000 subscribers)
14. Bresnan Communications (290,000 subscribers)
15. Service Electric (284,400 subscribers)

It should be noted that Adelphia (#5) is in the process of being sold off in pieces due to their bankruptcy proceedings to Time Warner and Comcast.  Also, Cebridge (#11) has moved ahead of CableOne with their announced (but not yet completed) acquisitions of several Cox and Charter systems.

Are you worried you cannot afford to connect or maintain your phone line? You may qualify for aid on your telephone bill through the Low Income Program of the Universal Service Fund, which can help you pay for your local telephone costs.

If you qualify for the program, which is administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), you will be able to get quality telecommunications for fair, affordable rates. The Low Income Program is comprised of the Lifeline, Link Up and Toll Limitation Service (TLS) programs. Rules for program support were established in 1997 by the Federal Communications Commission.       

Lifeline support reduces the cost of local telephone service. It can apply to either a wireline or a wireless service (though only one line per family can qualify). Non-tribal customers can get up to $10 off of their bills, while those who live on reservations or tribal lands can get up to $25 off. Lifeline support does not cover any taxes, surcharges or mileage charges that you can incur through your phone service.

Link Up support lowers the price of the one-time costs of connecting your phone service. Also, with Link Up support, customers qualify for a deferment program in which customers can defer up to $200 of the costs of connecting your phone line. You only can qualify for Link Up support one time per residence. Non-tribal customers can qualify for up to 50 percent of their installation charges or up to $30. Tribal customers can qualify for up to 100 percent of their installation charges. TLS allows customers to block all or some toll calls from their number.

All three of these services work together to insure that everyone can get fair prices on their phone service, even if they maintain a low-income household. If you are interested in finding out if you qualify for assistance for your phone service or to find out more details about the programs, go to the Web site for Lifeline Support.

According to Jupiter Research, 53 percent of people with DVRs skip through advertisements. If these consumers skip through advertisements 100 percent of the time, advertising revenue could drop by $8 billion. According to the article Study: Commercial-Skipping Could Threaten $8B in TV Ads, Jupiter Research suggests "television networks and advertisers rethink programming and advertising strategies to cope with how DVRs are being used."

Another interesting find made by Jupiter Research is that they found that most households with DVRs don't watch any more TV than households with DVRs. So, if you are holding off getting a DVR because you are afraid that it might make you and your family couch potatoes, you should go ahead and get a DVR.

To find out more about this research, you can go to Jupiter Research's Web site.

On Monday, AT&T announced that it is launching its AT&T Mover???s Advantage program through a business partnership with WhiteFence. As you may know, WhiteFence is the nation???s leading one-stop comparison shopping marketplace for essential home and move-related services.

AT&T Mover???s Advantage will provide a one-stop moving solution to millions of AT&T customers, who can now easily create their own AT&T bundles for voice services, high-speed internet, satellite TV and Cingular wireless, as well as set up their other utilities and other home services in one simple stop. You can read AT&T's press release or WhiteFence's press release to find out more about the AT&T Mover's Advantage program and its services. If you would like what you find out and would like to use the services provided by the AT&T Mover's Advantage program, you can go to www.att.com/move or call 1-800-MOVE-ATT.

On Monday, Ted Stevens, the chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, released a draft telecom bill that touches on several hot topics of today. According to the article Net neutrality missing from sweeping telecom bill, Stevens said in a statement that the bill "attempts to strike a balance between competing industries, consumer groups and local government."

Some of the important points made in the new bill include:

• Video and Audio Flag
  • An Audio Broadcast Flag that will ban digital over-the-air radio and digital satellite devices that can record broadcasts.
  • Also, under the Video Broadcast Flag, some receivers that allow users to record broadcasts may be banned.
• New Taxes - Imposes taxes on broadband and VoIP services.
• Municipal Broadband - Cities and states would set up their own municipal broadband networks.
• Internet Neutrality - The FCC would have to publish a yearly report on any problems with net neutrality.

These and other changes will be enacted by this bill if it is passed into law as is. According to the article Senate Telecom Reform Bill Surfaces, the senate committee will hold two public hearings about the bill as well as an executive session after Memorial Day to mark up the bill.

You probably didn't need a survey to tell you that the Internet is important in Americans' everyday lives. But just in case you didn't realize how important, a survey recently done by Pew Internet & American Life Project reveals that more and more people are turning to the Internet to help in life's major moments. In their memo on the survey, the researchers state that over the three-year period from January 2002 to March 2005, "Internet use grew by:

54% in the number of adults who said the Internet played a major role as they helped another person cope with a major illness. And the number of those who said the Internet played a major role as they coped themselves with a major illness increased 40%.

50% in the number who said the internet played a major role as they pursued more training for their careers.

45% in the number who said the Internet played a major role as they made major investment or financial decisions.

43% in the number who said the Internet played a major role when they looked for a new place to live.

42% in the number who said the Internet played a major role as they decided about a school or a college for themselves or their children.

23% in the number who said the Internet played a major role when they bought a car.

14% in the number who said the Internet played a major role as they switched jobs."

If you would like to view the report, you can go to this PDF document of the report, The Internet???s Growing Role in Life???s Major Moments.

In BellSouth???s first quarter earnings release, it was announced that the BellSouth/DIRECTV package added 105,000 customers during the first quarter. BellSouth has been the most successful telecom venture for DIRECTV as they have contributed 628,000 new subscribers to DIRECTV via its service that bundles the satellite TV offering along with DSL and voice.

As Stephanie mentioned in a previous post, most people are assuming that DIRECTV will be replaced by Echostar???s Dish Network once the AT&T acquisition of BellSouth is complete, which is expected to occur in 2007.  Echostar has been a longtime partner of SBC, the predecessor company of AT&T.  By the close of the acquisition, BellSouth will likely have over one million DIRECTV customers. Those one million households will be a huge ???swing vote??? in the initial primaries of the latest reincarnation of the video wars. Dish Network is best positioned to capture those one million subscribers.

As the "net neutrality" debate continues, analysts have begun to ask just how hard would it be to actually block VoIP traffic like some of the telecommunications companies have suggested. In the article Analysis: Blocking Skype Won't Be Easy, author Art Reisman discusses just how difficult it would be to detect and block Skype traffic.

The author describes his efforts to detect and block Skype traffic as the CTO of a company that specializes in bandwidth control and traffic shaping. He concludes the discussion on the topic by writing that "to date all my common tricks for determining VOIP traffic on the Internet have been thwarted by the Skype designers."

So, if Internet Service Providers eventually do begin to block VoIP traffic from providers like Skype, they might find that it is easier said than done.

A change may be coming in how telecommunication companies market to consumers. In previous years, most telecommunication provider's marketing plans were created in a corporate office and then disseminated to local offices. Now, as these companies try to penetrate the video market, they may have to change the way they communicate to these consumers who are used to the hometown presence of their cable companies.

For example, Verizon is starting to implement grassroots marketing plans in areas where it's FiOS TV service is available. There efforts include going door-to-door to offer the Verizon FiOS TV services and putting Verizon logos on pizza boxes and chinese takeout containers. Such small town efforts are expected to be adapted by Verizon offices nationwide. While this may be an uphill battle to become as ingrained into communities as local cable companies, it would be a battle well worth winning.

At the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) National Show in Atlanta, Georgia this week, cable executives plan to spend a good bit of their time discussing the threat of IPTV. In the article Cable takes aim at phone companies, author Kenneth Li writes that John Alchin, CFO of Comcast Corp.,  told Reuters that "a central focal point of the show will be where does the competition stand."

Much of the conference will involve discussing the ways that the cable industry is fighting back against the phone companies. They will discuss the cable industry's plan to soon sell wireless services along with cable services to entice consumers. Also, they will discuss their plans to increase the efficiency of their broadcast capacity and get more business customers, according to Li. In order to increase their efficiency, some cable companies plan to employ "switched broadcast video," which will allow cable companies to deliver only the channels their customers select.

According to the article US lawmakers worry about sports in Adelphia deal, two senators sent a letter to Federal Communication Commission (FCC) to outline their concern over Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Inc.'s buyout of Adelphia. In the letter, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens and Senator Byron Dorgan wrote that they are worried about the exclusive sports contracts that may result because of the deal. Exclusive sports contracts could prevent competition.

Both DIRECTV and DISH Network have already voiced their displeasure about the deal and how it may adversly affect competion. The senators urged the FCC to look into allegations of possible anti-competitive behavior and to take action if the allegations proved true. Representatives from Comcast and Time Warner continue to stand behind the deal, saying that the Adelphia buyout will actually increase competition in areas like phone service.

DIRECWAY, a great service offered through WhiteFence, has recently changed its name to HughesNet. HughesNet provides quality high speed Internet over satellite. With HughesNet, you get all the benefits of high speed Internet even if you live in a rural area where you cannot get DSL or cable. HughesNet is available nationwide. You can find out more about HughesNet on WhiteFence.

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, deregulation is the act or process of removing rules or regulations. As it applies to electricity, deregulation was sought to aid competition among electricity providers. Congress passed the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act in 1978. This act opened wholesale power markets to non-utility producers of electricity, creating the foundation for electricity deregulation.

With the Energy Policy Act of 1992, congress tried to promote greater competition in the bulk power market. Through this act, states were allowed to restructure their electric power industry to create more competition. As states across the nation adopt deregulation, they are experiencing varied amounts of success.

One state that has had a great deal of success with electricity deregulation is Texas. Several state governments are looking at Texas's deregulation system for guidance. If you live in Texas and would like to see the variety of electricity providers available in your area, you can go to WhiteFence.

As I have mentioned in the past, the FCC reported that cable a la carte could cut your cable bills by up to 13 percent. Though this may be a true statement, it also is misleading. According to Bruce Leichtman of Leichtman Research Group, to actually save money with the a la carte system, consumers would have to get less than 16 to 20 channels. So, if you only watch a few channels, you would actually save money; however, if you like several TV shows on different stations, a la carte cable would not work for you.

You may have heard that we are currently in a transition period from analog television to digital television (DTV). Analog television has been the standard since we began to use magnetic waves to transmit picture and sound. February 17, 2009, has been set as the end of the transition period to DTV as the national standard.

DTV is better than analog in several ways. DTV will give you access to a wide variety of different and new services. With DTV, the information is transferred in "data bits." The amount of space required to transmit these "data bits" is much smaller than what is required for analog television. Not only is the sound and picture quality improved with DTV, but due to the DTV's efficiency, DTV also frees up some of the broadcast spectrum, allowing space in the spectrum for other uses.

Although you will be able to watch TV on your analog TV once the transition is complete (through a set-up box that converts the signal), you will have to get a new digital television if you want the full quality of DTV.

To find out more about DTV, visit the FCC's Official DTV Web site.

A new survey conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project indicates that 24 percent of rural Americans have broadband access at home as compared to 39 percent of urban dwellers. Both statistics are drastically up from 2003 data that indicated only 9 percent of rural users and 22 percent of urban users had broadband Internet access.

Availability of quality broadband access is the root cause for the jump in rural usage as more cable companies have completed their footprint build-out (which extends to the most rural franchise areas) and the acceptance of broadband satellite companies like DIRECWAY.

The survey contacted 5,262 US adults in the winter of 2005.

If the AT&T and BellSouth's merger is successful, satellite providers may be affected a great deal. You might not know this, but DISH Network services are offered by AT&T while BellSouth offers bundles that include DIRECTV. With the merger, who knows which of the rival satellite companies, if either, will be included in deals from the new AT&T. This and several other matters will have to be settled for the AT&T/BellSouth merger to occur smoothly.

Did you know that the average American household spent almost $1,900 on home energy costs in 2005? That is almost $160 per month. With the natural gas prices soaring throughout the year, Americans spent approximately $600 more than in 2004. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, nationwide natural gas prices delivered to the home averaged $16.49 per thousand cubic feet which is a rise of 41 percent from earlier in the year. This season???s cost is actually twice that of the price from the 2001-2002 winter costs. Expectations for 2006 are even higher. So what can you do about it?

1. Since heating and cooling costs account for half of your overall bill, consider simple household repairs like weather stripping, proper insulation and programmable thermostats.
2. In most cases, for each degree you lower your temperature in winter, you can save 5 percent of your total bill.
3. Have you checked out your energy company???s energy audit programs?  Many utilities are now doing free (or nominal cost) audits to show you how you can be saving money each month on your bill.

In the FCC's 12th Annual Report to Congress on Video Competition published on Friday, the FCC reported that cable had lost a little more than 2 percent of the market, while at the same time, Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) companies have gained more than two percent of the market.

Several developments have caused these changes, but an important issue highlighted by the report that may be speeding the change in the market is the method in which cable is trying to maintain its dominance. As DBS has become increasing competition for cable companies,  in general the cable companies have not lowered their prices for their cable services. Instead, they have responded by offering more services, like expanding their channel programming or offering a triple play bundle. But DBS providers and other competitors to cable have caught onto this trend, and have begun to expand their networks or partnerships so that they can also offer their own versions of the triple play, making the companies more viable competition to cable . A list of  key findings can be found on this press release of the FCC's 12th annual report on video competition.

It appears that Google is going to be offering VoIP services in the near future. An SEC filing on January 31st shows that Google, Inc. has entered an agreement to use VoIP Inc.'s VoiceOne Communications to make their way into the VoIP industry. To find out more about Google's venture into the world of VoIP, click here to view the filing.

In 2002, Regional Bell Operating Companies (RBOCs) had almost 160 million access lines. Today, that number is less than 130 million. Berstein Research has forecasted that total access lines will decline at a rate of about 5 percent year-over-year through at least the end of 2007.

Two technology advances have drastically changed the landscape for the landline telephone market. First, as broadband high speed has become the norm for United States Web surfers (broadband penetration of online households has already exceeded 50 percent and is expected to reach 75 percent by 2010), the need for a second landline (for use with dial-up Internet service) has evaporated. Secondly, and more importantly, wireless phones have displaced landlines as the primary means of telephony communications in younger adults. Many households with adults under 30 do not have a landline at all. This phenomenon is known as ???wireless displacement.???