The digital transition prompted many TV stations to jump ship from the formerly desirable VHF channels, and that reordering should affect the regulatory fee structure, commenters told the FCC. The commission agreed the changes will affect how much stations must pay and adjusted its assessment method, though not in the wholesale fashion some commenters wanted. The change is one of the issues noted in the commission’s report on assessment and collection of regulatory fees for 2010, released Friday. The commission said it must collect $335,794,000 in regulatory fees for 2010, down from $341,875,000 in 2009. The fees are meant to cover the cost of the commission’s enforcement, policy and rulemaking, user information and international activities. The commission said it used the same assessment methodology it used last year.
The most connected societies aren’t the major sources of growth of the Internet economy, said a report (www.xrl.us/bgymnd) Monday by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation on the growth and future of the 25-year-old .com domain. The media fixation on social networking has obscured much more important growth mechanisms whose success can’t be reduced to universal broadband, foundation President Robert Atkinson told reporters Monday. “It’s a mistake to put so much emphasis on broadband” and less on the applications that make the Internet useful, as the FCC seems to be doing, he said.
Growth in Norsat International’s satellite business offset declines in its microwave business, Norsat CEO Aimee Chan said. Norsat is seeing particular growth in demand for portable satellite systems, Chan said. The Canadian government put $5.97 million into Norsat through the Canadian Government’s Strategic Aerospace and Defense Initiative, Norsat said. The company will use the funds for research and development activities, Chan said. The money must be repaid with interest in 15 years. Norsat revenue grew to $4.9 million from $3.8 million for the same quarter in 2007, Norsat said.
Sony Ericsson cited “challenging business conditions” as a factor in its Q3 loss. The joint venture posted a loss of $33.6 million, versus net income of $359 million a year ago. Revenue of $3.8 billion was down 10 percent from a year earlier and little changed sequentially. It shipped 25.7 million units, down from 25.9 million a year ago. The firm reiterated its estimate for 10 percent annual growth this year for the handset industry. The company has no plans to pursue the low-end market, Global Head of Sales Anders Runebad said on a conference call. The financial situation’s impact on consumer behavior is unclear, said President Dick Komiyama. The company’s cost plans look “good enough” now, he said, when asked whether the firm would do more cost- cutting if the economy stays weak. In September the company cut 450 jobs at its North American headquarters.
Online advertising revenue grew 15 percent the first half of 2008 over that period last year, a new half-year record, the Interactive Advertising Bureau said. But a decline of 0.3 percent occurred between Q1 and Q2 of 2008, IAB said. The “essentially flat performance” between quarters, as opposed to half-year periods, stemmed partly from “cyclical advertising trends,” IAB President Randall Rothenberg said. Search and display ad revenue were up 24 percent and 19 percent the first half of the year, totaling $5.1 billion and $3.8 billion. Digital video revenue accounted for 3 percent of the display category through June, up from 1 percent through June 2007 -- the only display subcategory showing growth. Banner ads and rich-media revenue remained at 21 percent and 7 percent of the display category.
State and local officials in Ohio have offered Verizon Wireless tax credits worth $3.8 million if the company adds 500 new jobs at its customer service center in Hilliard. The Ohio Tax Credit Authority offered Verizon a yearly $380,100 tax credit if the company keeps customer service operations in the city for 10 years. That’s on top of $3.4 million in local property tax credits offered by the Hilliard City Council in a 15-year incentive package. Verizon has considered moving 300 jobs from elsewhere in the Midwest to Hilliard and shifting 200 more jobs there from other locations in Ohio as part of a $13 million expansion of customer service operations there.
Broadcast Q2 results: Tribune broadcasting and entertainment revenue rose 4 percent from a year ago to $409 million. Company TV stations added market share. But operating cash flow fell 4 percent to $116 million. Total Tribune sales slipped 6 percent to $1.1 billion. The loss from continuing operations was $3.8 billion, reversing a year-earlier profit. Tribune wrote down goodwill from its 2000 purchase of Times Mirror… Acme Communications sales from continuing operations rose 4 percent from a year ago to $8.7 million on higher TV station revenue. The loss from continuing operations widened to $11.2 million from $970,000 on writedowns and other costs.
TV-station ad sales to auto makers dropped Q2, but some local dealers are still spending to clear their inventories, executives of Nexstar and LIN TV told investors on separate earnings teleconferences Tuesday. “We've worked very hard on the local dealer side and that may be why by comparison our automotive results might look a little better than others,” Nexstar CEO Perry Sook said. In general, local ad sales are holding up better than national ads, said LIN TV CEO Vincent Sadusky. “Local is clearly pacing better than national. It’s been pacing better than national all year and that continues into the third quarter as well, but it’s weak.” Both companies cited political ad sales, retransmission consent fees and online sales as revenue sources that help make up for the shortfall in national ad spending. Nexstar’s Q2 sales increased 2.9 percent from a year earlier to $70.7 million. The company swung to a $3.8 million profit from a $1.2 million loss a year earlier on lower interest costs. Nexstar shares gained 6 percent Tuesday. LIN TV Q2 sales gained 2 percent from a year earlier to $103.7 million. It swung to a $215.9 million net loss from a $3.5 million profit a year earlier after writing down $297 million of the value of its broadcast licenses and goodwill. LIN TV shares gained 16 percent.
Viacom said its Q2 sales rose 21 percent to $3.8 billion. Profit fell 6.2 percent from a year earlier -- when Viacom recorded a one-time gain on the sale of MTV Russia -- to $407 million. Sales at its cable networks rose 11 percent to $2.1 billion.
Broadcast Q1 results: Tribune TV sales increased 5 percent from a year earlier to $278 million, on higher national ad sales. Total Tribune revenue fell 7.8 percent from a year earlier to $1.1 billion. Net income jumped to $1.8 billion on a tax gain related to the company’s new status as an employee-owned Subchapter S corporation… Gray TV sales gained 2 percent from a year earlier to $71 million, as political and online ad sales helped offset declines in local and national ads. The net loss shrank 66 percent from a year earlier to $3.8 million because of some debt Gray paid back in Q1 2007… Salem Communications sales fell 1.3 percent from a year earlier to $54.5 million. Net income increased 69 percent from a year earlier to $5 million on asset sales.