Phoenix Center Says Don't Allow AllVid Program To Rise

A new study by the the Phoenix Center says it all in the title: "Outliving Its Usefulness: A Law and Economics Argument for Sunset of Section 629."

"The benefits from a successful implementation of Section 629 are murky at best, but we know the costs of such regulatory interventions are enormous," said study co-author and Phoenix Center President Lawrence J. Spiwak. "If the Obama Administration is truly serious about removing regulations whose costs exceed the benefits, then it's time to sunset Section 629."

"Economic logic indicates that a retail market for set-top boxes is inefficient. As a result, when the Commission first attempted to implement Section 629 with CableCard in a relatively stable environment, it faced an uphill battle and the agency lost on all fronts," says study co-author and Phoenix Center Chief Economist Dr. George Ford. "In the technologically dynamic and increasingly competitive video market that exists today, the effort to implement AllVid is hopeless. Section 629 is now fifteen years old and has outlived its usefulness. Perhaps expecting such a result, Congress provided the FCC a clear path to set the regulation aside. The agency should take it."•

Apple's iCloud – Who Gets Gored?

With Apple's iCloud now official, reports are surfacing over whose goose might get gored by the new service.  Among those cited are mobile operators whose networks could feel the burden of additional usage without additional revenues.  Also on the list are Amazon and Google who will see additional competition from the storage, syncing, email etc flowing from the iCloud.  And, of course, if the iCloud gets married to Apple TV it could be a whole new ballgame.•

Etc: OTA Report – "Fairness" Dead – Mobile Players

Cord Cutting:  Knowledge Network says that over-the-air onlies have bumped up by nearly 9% to 45.6M in the U.S. over the past 12 months.  Of those, 17M rely exclusively on OTA for TV programming, a bump of 1%. --- On a related subject, MTV Networks says that in a self-reported survey, ~66% of mobile TV app users say they use the apps daily. 

Inside the Beltway:  FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, in a letter to House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI), said his agency would delete the Fairness Doctrine and related provisions from the Code of Federal Regulations "so that there can be no mistake that what has been a dead letter is truly dead." --- Senate Commerce Cte vote was 21 - 4 moving the spectrum auctions forward ... timing for full Senate, not to mention the House, vote was up in the air last night.

Wireless: The AT&T/T-Mobile deal could hinge on how LightSquared's terrestrial/mobile satellite spectrum play fares against GPS opposition and on how well Charlie Ergen can package his own terrestrial/MSS business, note analysts Rebecca Arbogast and David Kaut at Stifel Nicolaus.  With the FCC continuing to signal a willingness to remove the satellite service obligation for MSS nets, those two plays could give credence to a strong competitive marketplace.  Stay tuned for lots of action on all these issues across the next few weeks.

Services:  Comcast is taking its $39.95/month home-security service, now available in Houston, to six new markets including parts of Philadelphia, Portland, OR, Jacksonville, FL, Sarasota/Naples, FL, Chattanooga, TN, and Nashville, TN. --- Clearwire expanded its WiMax in Philly and Pittsburgh.

People:  The FCC has a lot of new faces in key spots as Rick Kaplan is new chief of the Wireless Telecommunication Bureau, Robert Naylor is new CIO and Marius Schwartz is new chief economics in the Office of Strategic Planning & Policy Analysis. --- Kendra Cleary, Corry Hart and Laura Diefenbach have all been named VPs of national sales at ION Media Networks.  

Online:  DIRECTV has picked NeuLion to provide websites for its three Root networks.  You'll find them at RootSports.com. 

Analyze This Redux (in case you missed it from The Evening BRIDGE): Talk about upside, Collins Stewart’s Tom Eagan is adding coverage of Rentrak with a ‘buy’ rating and a target of $34 ... a big jump from closing yesterday at just over $19.  Rentrak signed Lockwood Broadcasting yesterday. --- BTIG’s Walter Piecyk notes Sprint resolved a balance sheet debt issue with Clearwire by reducing its voting interest below 50%.

At Retail:  According to a study from DisplaySearch, consumers have yet to gravitate to new features as a reason to purchase new TVs.  Bigger and better pictures are still No. 1. --- The Consumerist notes that Netflix has lifted its limit for devices to stream its programming to 50.  
 
Advertising:  eMarketer tells us that content length is key if you want people to finish your video ads.  The study comes from Limelight Networks which found that 15-second ads have a 20% boost on completed viewing vs. 30 second ads.  Length of content also counts as long form content draws better ad viewing stats.

Heads-Up Redux (in case you missed it from The Evening BRIDGE)! The Cable Center’s Customer Care Committee (C5) picked Amdocs as its exclusive “presenting sponsor.”

Get tomorrow's headlines today with The Evening BRIDGE ... every weekday, after the Bell.•

ADVERTORIAL: Cable Show Educational Program Features Rich Slate of Over 50 Sessions

Appearances by leading industry executives highlight a rich content program containing over 50 sessions with more than 250 speakers at The Cable Show 2011 in Chicago, June 14-16.

Leaders in the television, technology, advertising, social media and political sectors will be featured during three General Sessions and a special closing session at The Cable Show 2011. General Session panels include leading industry CEOs such as Brian Roberts (Comcast Corporation), Jeff Bewkes (Time Warner, Inc.), Chase Carey (News Corporation), Philippe Dauman (Viacom, Inc.), Sanjay Jha (Motorola Mobility), Glenn Britt (Time Warner Cable), Tom Rutledge (Cablevision Systems Corporation) and Pat Esser (Cox Communications).   Additional General Session highlights include a panel featuring top advertising CEOs on Wednesday;   a one-on-one interview with FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski also on Wednesday;   and an exclusive interview with media icon Oprah Winfrey on Thursday.

Cable advertising will also be prominently featured at this year’s show as top industry figures from national cable networks, media agencies, local cable advertising organizations and political advertising firms participate in the CAB Advertising Program. The program is presented in association with The Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau and includes sessions co-produced by Canoe Ventures and NCC Media. Among the subjects featured are political advertising, advanced video platforms and network-affiliate collaboration.

Technical highlights for this year’s show include the Spring Technical Forum, a collaborative effort involving NCTA, SCTE and CableLabs® devoted to emerging technologies and a special IPv6 Summit. Produced in partnership with Comcast and Time Warner Cable, the IPv6 Summit includes panel sessions examining the transition to the new Internet addressing protocol and the implications for cable providers, Internet devices, content producers, retailers and consumers. The summit also features a pavilion showcasing IPv6-compliant electronics devices and a ticketed luncheon with keynote speaker Tom Powers, Chief of Staff at NTIA.

The Cable Show 2011 exhibit floor will feature a new showcase known as ‘The Park’, an open-air, live-events stage hosting product introductions, demonstrations and conversations about technologies, products and content. Segments will include demos of new portable video apps, a live consumer focus group, a dialogue around broadband deployment and much more.

The session slate is rounded out with additional topics covering Business Services, Finance, International, Marketing, Operations, and Public Affairs. Content co-producers include ACC, The Cable Center, Cable Europe, Cable in the Classroom, CableLabs and CTAM.  
Full schedule and registration information for The Cable Show is available at www.thecableshow.com.•