VOD

Comcast: 2.4 Billion VOD Hours Served in 2012

TV Is Now Top On-Demand Category, With Subs Watching More Than 80 Million Hours of Episodes Monthly
TV Is Now Top On-Demand Category, With Subs Watching More Than 80 Million Hours of Episodes Monthly

TV shows have become the most popular content on Comcast’s video-on-demand service, which overall delivered 2.4 billion hours of VOD across all categories in 2012, up from 2.1 billion a year earlier, according to the MSO.

By comparison, Netflix claims its members stream more than 1 billion hours of video per month.

Comcast, TWC Lose VOD Movie-Rental Share

AT&T, Verizon Generate More Transactional VOD Revenue per Sub Than MSOs, Satellite Ops: NPD Group
AT&T, Verizon Generate More Transactional VOD Revenue per Sub Than MSOs, Satellite Ops: NPD Group

AT&T and Verizon Communications grew their share of the $1.3 billion U.S. transactional video-on-demand movie rental market in 2012 by four percentage points -- at the expense of Comcast and Time Warner Cable, according to research firm NPD Group.

Overall, VOD movie rental revenue grew 3% in 2012, according to NPD. Cable operators captured 56% of all VOD movie rentals last year, down from 60% in 2011.

Mayweather Inks PPV Pact with Showtime

Covering Six Fights in 30 Months, Deal Calls for Promotion on CBS Platforms
Covering Six Fights in 30 Months, Deal Calls for Promotion on CBS Platforms

In a major move within the boxing and distribution communities that strikes a body blow to its premium channel rival, Floyd “Money” Mayweather has inked a long-term pact with Showtime Networks and its parent CBS Corp. that could cover up to six pay-per-view bouts over the next 30 months.

Time Warner Cable Adds VOD Content to TWCTV.com

Operator Offers 4,000-Plus Titles from 91 Partners
Operator Offers 4,000-Plus Titles from 91 Partners

Time Warner Cable video customers can now access more than 4,000 TV shows and movies on-demand from 91 programming partners at TWCTV.com via their PCs or Macs, for no additional charge.

In December, the MSO launched video-on-demand content for its TWC TV app for iPad; an Android version of the app also is in the works.

Canoe Seeks MRC Approval for VOD Ad Service

MSO-Owned Firm Begins Accreditation Process for Dynamic Ad Insertion
MSO-Owned Firm Begins Accreditation Process for Dynamic Ad Insertion

Canoe Ventures, aiming to ramp up its national video-on-demand advertising business this year, said it is in the initial stages of securing accreditation for its VOD ad-insertion reporting service from the Media Rating Council.

Canoe, jointly owned by the six largest U.S. cable operators, in February 2012 shut down its interactive TV efforts -- laying off about 80% of the company's employees -- to focus exclusively on VOD advertising.

Netflix Acquires Shows From Warner Bros. TV

Series Include 'The Following,' 'Revolution,' '666 Park Avenue'
Series Include 'The Following,' 'Revolution,' '666 Park Avenue'

Netflix said it acquired the rights to eight serialized dramas from Warner Bros. TV that have appeared on broadcast and cable networks.

Titles including Fox’s much anticipated The Following, NBC’s freshman hit Revolution and 666 Park Avenue, cancelled by ABC.

Netflix’s rights allow it to stream complete season of series after they air on their linear television outlets. Financial terms were not released.

U-verse Counters Netflix With Movie VOD Package

AT&T Also Debuts Apps for Viewing Personal Photos and Videos on TV
AT&T Also Debuts Apps for Viewing Personal Photos and Videos on TV

AT&T is launching U-verse Screen Pack, a $5 monthly subscription video-on-demand for watching unlimited movies on TV and other devices, aiming to provide an alternative to Netflix, Redbox Instant by Verizon and other over-the-top video services.

The telco also introduced two new U-verse TV apps, available for no extra charge: PacketVideo’s Twonky Beam for accessing personal videos on TV, and Pix & Flix for viewing photos.

M-Go Streams Out Internet Video-on-Demand Service

Joint Venture of DreamWorks, Technicolor Looks to Vie with Apple’s iTunes, Others
Joint Venture of DreamWorks, Technicolor Looks to Vie with Apple’s iTunes, Others

Aiming to take a shot at Apple’s iTunes and other online video storefronts, M-Go, a joint venture between DreamWorks Animation and Technicolor, launched a public beta of its Internet streaming service that will let consumers rent or purchase movies and buy TV shows -- and watch them across a range of devices.

The service will compete with iTunes as well as other Internet video rental and download-to-own services such as Walmart’s Vudu, Amazon’s Instant Video and Best Buy’s CinemaNow.

Stones Roll to PPV Satisfaction

Industry Hopes Event Revives Concert Genre
Industry Hopes Event Revives Concert Genre
The Rolling Stones’ Dec. 15 pay-per-view concert served up some performance satisfaction for cable and satellite distributors, who hope the event will usher in similar non-sports pay events in 2013.

Cablevision To Launch FUNimation Channel

Olympusat Anime Channel To Air As Premium SVOD Service
Olympusat Anime Channel To Air As Premium SVOD Service

Cablevision Systems will offer the anime-themed FUNimation channel as part of its subscription video on demand lineup, the MSO announced Friday.

The 40 million subscriber Olympusat service will retail at a suggested price of $6.95 per month and will feature anime titles from Japan dubbed into English, according to Olympusat officials.  

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