LRG: Cord cutting significantly affecting pay TV industry

Despite a strong quarter for cable operator broadband net additions, the pay-TV industry lost video customers for the first time during the first quarter of 2013. A recent survey by Leichtman Research Group found that some consumers are ditching pay-TV subscriptions for a mix of free over-the-air TV and online video. Story

Betting on original TV online

This week, while the broadcast networks' prime time schedules are winding down for summer, Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) will add a new season of “Arrested Development” to its library. The show, developed and originally carried by a broadcast network, was revived by Los Gatos, Calif.-based Netflix and arguably represents its highest-profile foray yet into original programming. The timing is smart. TV seasons are expiring and Hollywood's summer blockbuster run hasn't yet exploded onto screens. Die-hard fans of “Arrested Development” are eager to see new episodes and have been primed with a steady barrage of marketing

New Device Chart Lets You Compare Today’s Streaming Boxes and Content Platforms

There’s more than a dozen streaming media boxes on the market today and trying to compare their technical specs and which content platforms they support can be a challenge. So I’ve put together an updated chart which compares the top 14 devices. This is an update to last year’s chart and includes recently released boxes from Roku 3, Hisense, Asus, Nintendo and also many of the new content platforms like Redbox and others. You can download a high-res PDF copy of the chart by clicking on the image below and you can always find the latest version of the chart at www.StreamingMediaDevices.com I will update the chart throughout the year when new devices come out and new content platforms are supported

YouTube revenue projected to surge to $20B by 2020

YouTube could bring in $20 billion in sales each year by 2020, analysts at Morgan Stanley wrote in a note to investors this week, according to CNBC and others. Morgan Stanley stock analysts who follow YouTube's parent Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) guessed that YouTube stands to make $4 billion in sales and $711 million in operating income in 2013. They projected a potential increase to $20 billion in sales and $5 billion in income by 2020. Morgan Stanley analysts aren't alone in predicting growth for Google's online video unit.

Twitter gets some NBA clips

Twitter began embedding some NBA highlights in certain tweets this week. Through a deal with the basketball league and its digital media partner Turner Sports, the clips will appear within official NBA tweets with the hashtag #NBARapidReplay during the rest of the playoffs, according to a report in Bloomberg. So far, sponsors include Taco Bell and Sony Pictures, a quick survey of the clips on Twitter revealed

Microsoft’s Xbox One makes play for living room

Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) continued its push for a larger role in living room entertainment with its new game console and entertainment center, Xbox One. Microsoft described the device–it boasts 8 GB of RAM and an enhanced Kinect visual and audio interface–as a single device for providing all entertainment and communications bound for the living room TV set, from online video to games and traditional TV. Microsoft also said it will produce a live-action TV series with Steven Spielberg for its Xbox Live platform based on the popular Halo game series.

Hulu said to attract pay-TV distributors

More potential bidders have emerged for Hulu, and incumbent pay-TV distributors are now said to be among those interested in the online video company. Reports indicate that Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC), DirecTV (Nasdaq: DTV) and perhaps one other pay-TV company have expressed interest in buying all or part of Hulu from its owners–Disney (NYSE: DIS), Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA), News Corp. (Nasdaq: NWSA) and Providence Equity Partners.

The Evolution Of Content Delivery: From Bits And Bytes To Integrated Workflows

Getting content from point A to point B is only half the problem. The other half is addressing the complexity of making sure that the right content is delivered to the right audience. Content delivery is evolving by converging the physical delivery with the workflow pieces required to create and manage the content that enables customers to capitalize on a heightened level of efficiency to their business.

Learn About Infrastructure Cost Management at The Content Delivery Summit

As content delivery services become increasingly complicated and diverse with dominant IaaS players, multi-CDN strategies, private cloud deployments, and 3rd party SaaS platforms, trying to track operational costs per delivery service and region can be very difficult. On Monday at the Content Delivery Summit in NYC , Stackpop will showcase a new platform designed to specifically address the pain points of Ops and IT professionals who manage the technical infrastructure that makes their companies run smoothly. See the latest tools that allow you to simplify managing, sourcing and optimizing infrastructure services from multiple vendors, while providing visibility into costs and contract terms for managing your IT deployments. Now in its fifth year, the Content Delivery Summit is a one-day conference designed to bring together telecom carriers, service providers, content owners, and industry vendors for a detailed look at CDN platforms for the delivery of video and content acceleration. Online registration is now closed, but readers of my blog can still register onsite using my own personal discount code of DR13, which gets you a ticket to the show for only $395.

Deploying an Operator CDN to Enhance Customer Experience

On Monday at the Content Delivery Summit in NYC , Akamai and Charter Communications will discuss industry trends leading network operators to evaluate and implement CDN software, and will showcase Charter Communications’ successful implementation of CDN. Charter will explain its decision to utilize a standard CDN approach to video, the challenges and best practices for implementation, its architecture, rollout process, results and next steps. Now in its fifth year, the Content Delivery Summit is a one-day conference designed to bring together telecom carriers, service providers, content owners, and industry vendors for a detailed look at CDN platforms for the delivery of video and content acceleration. Online registration is now closed, but readers of my blog can still register onsite using my own personal discount code of DR13, which gets you a ticket to the show for only $395. Speakers and presenters include: Netflix, eBay, LinkedIn, Redbox, Telefonica, Deutsche Telekom, TeliaSonera, Comcast, Charter Communications, Telstra, Pacnet, Telin as well as many of today’s leading solution providers.

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