Should electric utilities be permitted to enter digital communications without rate-of-return penalties?

If you search distant memories -- or search the Web if you are under 30 -- you may remember a very interesting marketing character, Reddy Kilowatt.

Created in 1926 by Alabama Power Executives, I am not really sure what Reddy stood for -- most likely reliable energy delivered over electric lines.

Based on the recent activity by power companies in the digital-services industries, maybe it’s time for Reddy to resurface as a symbol for broadband services over the same power lines.

Delivering tremendous amounts of digital content and communications to consumers could make Reddy Megabit an instant success -- especially with the Nickelodeon generation.

If a sponge named Bob can talk, then a lightning bolt should be ...Read More

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Live TV is rapidly becoming a distant memory.

Even in the entertainment and sports world, Janet Jackson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. have driven network executives to introduce delays into live broadcasts. CNN’s news and ESPN’s SportsCenter are admittedly recorded and rebroadcast -- over and over and over again.

A vast number of cable subscribers maintain service just to catch new episodes of one or two shows each week. Take a moment to scan your cable guide in order to estimate the quantity of original, first-aired programming.

Of the $45 per month subscribers pay for video, at least half is for replayed broadcasts. Essentially, cable companies are already centralized DVRs. The magnitude and value of “re-viewed&#...Read More

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Ten years ago, those words brought to mind a tremendously successful European telecommunications company. How things have changed. Today, cable and wireless describe the video industry’s foray into the cellular business.

The FCC’s recent auction of advanced wireless spectrum found a few new participants. Namely, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox and Bright House Networks decided to partner with Sprint Nextel to acquire spectrum that reaches close to 100 million homes. Hopefully, this venture will fare better than the original Cable & Wireless.

Most analysts tout this as the cable provider’s attempt to pursue the “Quadruple Play” bundle, but I think this venture is far more strategic and significant to the video industry.Cable operators -- especially Comcast and Cox -- have felt the wrath of Verizon&#...Read More

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