The Commerce Dept. has assured PBS it’s ready to assemble an emergency appropriation to help public TV stations damaged by Hurricane Katrina, PBS Senior Vp- Technology & Operations Edward Caleca told us. The Corp. for Public Bcstg. also is developing a plan to assist the stations, he said.
A Senate Commerce Committee field hearing on E-911 and VoIP issues is set for today (Thurs.) in Great Falls, Mont. Witnesses include National Emergency Number Assn. Pres. David Jones, Vonage CEO Jeffrey Citron, Assn. of Public-Safety Communications Officials’ Wanda McCarley, 911 Institute Exec. Dir. Greg Rohde, Intrado Chmn. George Heinrichs, CenturyTel Gen. Mgr. Jeremy Ferkin, Mont. Dept. of Administration Dir. Janet Kelly, Blackfoot Telecom Gen. Counsel Bill Squires and Mont. PSC Chmn. Greg Jergeson.
As Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast, countless people -- in the storm’s path and around the world -- turned to the Internet for up-to-the-minute news and information. As the historic storm came ashore Mon., media outlets braced for the worst -- and used the Internet as a bullhorn.
Despite blown-off roofs and frothing seawater flooding stations, many broadcasters on the Gulf of Mexico stayed on the air despite Hurricane Katrina, though some couldn’t be reached by phone or e-mail.
Rivals Intelsat and PanAmSat said they'll combine in a deal which, if approved by regulators, would have Intelsat acquire PanAmSat for $25 a share in cash, or $3.2 billion. The combined fleet would have 53 satellites, with about 20 in the N. American arc -- an armada that would make Intelsat by far the world’s largest satellite operator, outdoing even SES Global’s count of 35 craft in the sky.
Customer service convenience is driving demand for bundled home communications, according to a survey from Telephia, a performance measurement company. “Cable TV operators and national and RBOC companies are empowered by the growth of emerging technologies such as VoIP and IPTV,” since they let them offer richer bundled service packages to customers, Kanishka Agarwal, vp-new products, said. “Certainly, this will lead to intense competition among the providers, and those who deliver customer convenience in billing, pricing and care will be well- positioned to win.” In the survey, 71% of respondents said having one bill for all services was an important benefit. More than half (54%) said discounts from bundling also were important, while 40% of respondents noted that a single contact for customer care was an advantage, the company said.
The hackers believed responsible for the Zotob and Mytob worms were arrested in Turkey and Morocco less than 2 weeks after the viruses were unleashed on the Internet. The worms crashed federal govt. computers, including more than 1,000 Senate PCs, and wreaked havoc on systems at major U.S. news outlets including CNN, ABC and N.Y. Times (WID Aug 18 p1). The viruses and variants hit computers running Windows 2000 platforms by exploiting a security loophole in Microsoft’s software.
Portable music subscription service fees must drop below $10 a month to draw a substantial number of MP3 player owners, a forthcoming Parks Assoc. report indicates. The study found 41% of MP3 player owners in the U.S. would balk at spending more than $10 monthly for a music service, the firm said Thurs. Asked about that sum in local currencies, 62% in the U.K. agree, as do 49% in France, 52% in Germany and 56% in China. On average, 1/3 of MP3 player owners in the 5 nations think music services should be free. U.S. subscriptions to Napster and Rhapsody run about $15 per month; emergence of budget services like Yahoo Music could alter the marketplace, analysts said. Yahoo can keep its price low since its other revenues subsidize the music service, said analyst Harry Wang. “Pure-play” services may not be able to cut prices but can ally with telecom carriers and other ISPs to offer music in bundled packages. For example, Napster recently said it is partnering with BellSouth (WID Aug 16 p7). Music providers also must be cautious when expanding internationally because consumers’ price expectations vary by country, the report said. For instance, MP3 player owners in the U.K. and Germany are tighter than owners in France and the U.S.
CD and DVD producer/distributor Genius Products said gross revenue soared 121% to $5.1 million in its 2nd quarter ended June 30. But losses grew to $4.9 million (12 cents per share) from $1.2 million (5 cents) a year ago due to what it called “unique expenses,” including “write down of obsolete products such as VHS tapes.” The firm said last week it plans to support the Universal Media Disc (UMD) format for Sony’s PlayStation Portable (PSP) and will release 4 children’s animated TV series on UMD as well as DVD, starting later this year, in a deal with BFC Berliner Film Companie Distribution. Titles: Adventurers - Masters of Time, Altair in Starland, Mission Odyssey and Shadow of the Elves. CEO Trevor Drinkwater said Genius plans to continue “exploration of emerging technologies” including digital streaming, pay- per-view and Video on Demand. Genius realigned its management in Q2, he said, making “dramatic improvements in our supply chain information systems and operations, completion of a significant acquisition, addition of proprietary and branded products and the beginning of 3 significant sales programs with major national retailers” that it didn’t name. In March, Genius acquired American Vantage Media and its Wellspring library, a move Drinkwater said “primarily” drove its significant revenue increase. Genius recently expanded its relationship with NBC and plans to release 2 New Line Home Entertainment titles under the Sundance Channel Home Entertainment Festival Favorites line, it said. Drinkwater said “we believe the future of the DVD business is extremely bright,” predicting “a solid 5% to 10% CAG [Compound Annual Growth] over the next 3 years.” He said “our main focus will continue to be on improving the fundamentals of our business model, while aggressively searching for proprietary content that we should be able to mine for years to come.”
The FCC shouldn’t alter rules on co-adjacent and first-adjacent full power FM stations, NAB said in response to the latest Commission proceeding on low-power FM (LPFM) ownership and technical issues. NAB said action on suggestions to reduce interference protection of full power FM stations “could deny thousands of listeners the benefits of FM station upgrades or new FM service, including digital radio.”