Todd Spangler's blog

An Over-the-Top News Guy With a Pipe Dream and Green Screen

By: Todd Spangler Feb 25 2013 - 6:20pm

What do you get when you cross-breed the Huffington Post, Time Warner Cable’s NY1 news wheel and Pandora?

If the idea works, you might get Sii.TV, the brainchild of former New York Times tech reporter Saul Hansell.

Does Cox Have a 'Flare' for Cloud TV?

By: Todd Spangler Feb 22 2013 - 12:04pm

In the ever-popular Trolling for Trademarks Dept.: Cox Communications last week filed for trademark protection on “Flare” and “My Flare,” which among other things cover access to streaming Internet video and “cloud storage services.”

Cord-Cutting: Wishing Doesn't Make It So

By: Todd Spangler Feb 20 2013 - 1:07pm

Lots of people aspire to being “cord-cutters.” There’s an undeniable populist yearning to want to stick it to The Man for the evil of forcing them to pay “too much” money for TV news and entertainment.

But how many have really done it, instead of just wishing they have?

Cisco Still Really Loves (Most) Set-Tops

By: Todd Spangler Feb 19 2013 - 9:27am

Cisco Systems went into damage-control mode after CEO John Chambers told Wall Street last week that it’s decided to give up on low-end set-top box deals (see Cisco Is 'Walking Away' From Low-Margin Set-Top Deals: Chambers).

Intel’s TV Dream: Crazy Like an Xbox, or Insane Like FLO?

By: Todd Spangler Feb 13 2013 - 1:53pm

Intel is gearing up to launch a hugely ambitious over-the-top live and on-demand TV service that could be spectacularly disruptive -- or DOA

(see Intel Plans to Launch 'Smart' Internet TV Bundles This Year).

Teeny-Tiny TV? It's All In the Wrist

By: Todd Spangler Feb 11 2013 - 12:59pm

You know those unceasing rumors of an Apple HDTV? Those are being supplanted, at least this week, by speculation about an Apple "iWatch."

About Those Faulty Broadband Meters: None of Them Are Used to Track Usage Limits

By: Todd Spangler Feb 7 2013 - 1:17pm

A story on GigaOm today suggested that there is a serious problem with the usage meters that certain Internet service providers are using to track the amount of bits their customers are using.

According to the story, NetForecast -- a Charlottesville, Va.-based company that certain ISPs use to audit their usage-monitoring processes -- found that five out of seven of its client ISPs had usage meters that were more than 1% off the mark in measuring actual usage.

Cable Operators: As Popular as Health Insurance Carriers

By: Todd Spangler Feb 6 2013 - 6:13pm

Here's a measure of how poorly people think of cable companies: Consumers are roughly as likely to recommend their TV or broadband provider as their health plan.

No, it’s not news that lots of people hate their cable (or telephone) company. But it seems like there’s a real opportunity for MSOs to push people toward the love side of the love/hate equation.

Blackout Bowl: Funny Junk-Food Ads, Please!

By: Todd Spangler Feb 4 2013 - 9:44am

According to user-behavior data, junk-food ads were among the most popular Super Bowl XLVII commercials -- while Hulu users voted for two heartstring-tugging spots as their faves.

Taco Bell, M&Ms and Doritos scored big with their ads based on TiVo's measurement of how many times the ads were rewatched (and Pepsi landed at No. 8).

YouTube About to Find Out If A La Carte Works

By: Todd Spangler Jan 30 2013 - 12:04pm

YouTube is aiming to co-opt the dual revenue stream of cable TV, hoping to launch paid access to two dozen or so "channels" for somewhere between $1 and $5 per month as soon as Q2 of this year, AdAge reported.

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