Hasta La Gadget!

Aereo has been a part of a bit of controversy these past couple of months, mostly due to the fact that television networks aren’t too happy with Aereo’s business model. Nonetheless, Aereo has announced that its widening its reach past New York City, and will be launching its television services in Boston next month on May 15.

Boston residents will be able to pre-order Aereo service, which will give them access on May 15, while a wider public release for everyone in the Boston metropolitan area will take place on May 30. Aereo didn’t mention the reach that its service would have in Boston, but they do say that the service should be able to support around 4.5 million customers in 16 counties in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont.

Aereo allows users to watch live broadcast television on their mobile devices and computers. In New York currently, users pay $12 per month to stream live TV programming from over 20 local broadcast networks, including CBS, NBC, and FOX. The controversy is how the company is doing it: they’re essentially yanking the broadcast signals using their own antennas and beaming it over the internet for users to enjoy.

Aereo was announced back in January, and while it’s only available in New York City for now, the company will be launching it services in numerous states throughout 2013, including Miami, Austin, Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Washington DC, Baltimore, Detroit, Denver, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Tampa, Cleveland, and Kansas City.

Aereo’s Boston spread tempts cable company fury is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

If you’re a Comcast cable subscriber, be prepared for yet another television transition. Comcast has made official its plans to begin encrypting its basic cable channels. Comcast has begun notifying its customers in select markets that they will need to order a digital adapter if they want to continue to receive basic cable channels through Comcast.

Of course, the biggest concern is whether or not customers will have to pay for the digital adapter. However, Comcast says that it’s making adapters available for free in some markets, and they will have an adapter that works with third-party set-top boxes. However, some users may have to pay for their adapter if Comcast doesn’t provide one in their location or for their specific device.

However, those using a Comcast set-top box or a CableCARD-enabled device won’t need the adapter, and those who need one will be able to get one for free for up to two years. After that, you’ll have to pay $0.50 per month per TV in your household. Only two adapters are aloud per household, though, so it seems you’ll have to pay out-of-pocket if you need a third or fourth.

As for when the encryption will officially begin rolling out, Comcast says that they’ll be rolling it out on a market-by-market basis in the coming months, meaning that some subscribers will get it before others. The company says that the transition to encrypted cable will provide greater convenience for customers because the encryption will reduce the need for in-home appointments.

[via GigaOM]

Comcast to encrypt basic cable channels is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

It may be no surprise that people are favoring web video and streaming TV shows over regular television nowadays, but while both cable television and broadcast television are taking a hit, broadcast TV is seeing a steeper decline in ratings this season, and that’s forcing advertisers to rethink what avenues to advertise on.

According to various analysts, it’s expected that advertisers are going to spend more of their ad dollars on cable television and web video outlets like Hulu. It’s expected broadcast networks’ dollar volume could drop by 2%, while cable television’s volume could rise about 5%. Of course, these aren’t huge gains or losses, but every percentage point matters, especially when you’re facing lower ratings.

However, CBS CEO Les Moonves says that ad demand for broadcast television (at least for CBS) is growing, and Moonves expects CBS to lead in “volume and CPM increases” this season. However, ratings have taken a dive at all four big television networks (ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC) since the start of the fall season back in September.

Specifically, among viewers ages 18 to 49 ( which is the demographic that’s most prized by advertisers,) the average numbers for primetime audiences were down 23% at FOX, 7% at NBC, 3% at CBS; and 8% at ABC. However, CBS was the only major network to see an increase in overall viewership this season, with a 2% rise.

[via The Wall Street Journal]

Broadcast TV ratings continue to fall, ad sales go down with it is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Comcast will be offering a treat to all of its Xfinity TV customers. From March 25th to March 31st, Comcast will give its TV customers an All-Access Pass to 100 TV series across all of its premium channels. There will be over 3,500 episodes for you watch all week long. So grab the popcorn, pop open a beer, and get yourself well-acquainted with your couch because it’s going to be a very long week.

You will be able to watch every episode of TV’s most popular series, including: Game of Thrones, Downton Abbey, Spartacus, Dexter, Girls, and Duck Dynasty. There will be select full seasons available for popular shows like Mad Men, The Walking Dead, Psych, Parenthood, The Americans, Revolution, Touch, and Chicago Fire. You will also be able to access all of the on-demand titles available on premium channels such as HBO, SHOWTIME, STARZ, and CINEMAX.

Comcast will make it easier for you to find a free TV show to watch. There will be a Watchathon Week website that displays a full list of all 100 TV series available for watch. You will be able to watch your TV shows through Xfinity on Demand, online via Xfinity.com/tv, or through the Xfinity TV Player App on your mobile devices. If you miss out on Watchathon Week, no worries, because Comcast will also be launching a “Catch-Up of the Week” program on April 1st. Catch-Up of the Week will offer you a select amount of free TV shows, both old and new seasons, to watch each week until the end of 2013.

Comcast says that this is the “biggest catch-up ever in TV history, offering Xfinity TV customers the opportunity to binge view the hottest shows on top networks for free.” It hopes to entice its Xfinity TV customers to subscribe to its premium channels after they get a taste of all the great content available. The Watchathon Week is also a way for Comcast to allow its TV subscribers to catch-up with Game of Thrones before its season 3 premiere.

[via Business Wire]

Comcast’s Xfinity Watchathon Week starts on March 25th is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Time Warner has just announced that it will be separating itself from Time Inc. The decision was made by its board of directors who felt that this separation is the best decision for both companies. Time Warner will cut away from the magazine business and focus all of its efforts on building its juggernaut media network comprised of a huge amount of popular TV stations as well as its movie ventures.

Time Inc., on the other hand, will be operating as a publicly traded company. It will focus all of its efforts on its publications, including very popular magazines like In Style, People, Marie Claire, Sports Illustrated, Time (of course), Entertainment Weekly, and a whole bunch of others. Time Inc. will continue to do fine on its own. It’s publications are read by half of the United States’s adult population, as well as millions of other readers all around the world.

As of right now, Time Inc.’s current CEO, Laura Lang, will continue to stay on with the company while this separation process is still taking place. Eventually, however, she will find a new CEO to replace her. She is searching for someone who is “a different kind of CEO”. Time Warner’s CEO and Chairman, Jeff Bawkes, stated, “She has been a great partner who has given Time Inc. forward momentum to make this transition possible.”

Time Warner is hoping to close this deal by the end of the year. It still has to be approved by the SEC and afterwards, the terms must be finalized by Time Warner’s board of directors. Both of the companies together formed one of the biggest, fully-fledged media companies around, so it’s a bit depressing to seem them break apart. However, they both have enough pull to survive. With Time Inc.’s huge selection of magazines and Time Warner’s TV stations like TBS, TNT, CWTV, HBO (Game of Thrones!), CNN and more, both have all of the assets they need to thrive without each other.

[via Business Wire]

Time Warner cuts itself off from Time Inc. is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.