Filed under: BROADCAST/CABLE
BROADCAST/CABLE
It’s official. At a press conference held just minutes ago, WGA announced it would go on strike as of Monday, November 5th. First shows effected by the strike – late night talkers which depend on writers for their day and date opening monologues. Those shows will likely go into repeats as soon as the strikers begin picketing. The majority of the scripted TV series would begin to see the effects of a strike in 1st and 2nd qtr 2008. (http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117975256.html?categoryId=2821&cs=1 11/2)
Two years after fending off investor Carl Icahn and his quest to break apart Time Warner, the media giant is reported to be considering a plan to split off cable, publishing and AOL. (http://www.cnbc.com/id/21581790/site/14081545 11/1)
Viacom, owner of MTV and the Paramount film studio, says third-quarter profit rose 80%, fueled by cable advertising and the hit movie “Transformers.” U.S. viewership decreased 3.3% at the company’s cable channels, with the largest drops at MTV and Nick at Nite. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=awFB8kn5bdsI 11/2)
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia is reporting a narrower third-quarter loss, benefiting from sales of household products at Macy’s and a new collection of pillows, duvets and other bedroom goods at Kmart stores. The company is planning to sell food with Costco and wine with E. & J. Gallo. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=apfiYuH23cn0 11/2)
Verizon’s FiOS TV service is stepping up to DirecTV’s 100 channel HD challenge promising to offer 150 HD channels by the end of 2008. The company will begin expanding its line-up, currently offering just 21 national HD feeds, sometime next spring.
Comcast is suing the FCC in federal court over the agency’s refusal to grant the company a waiver of its set-top-box rule. Without an exception, cable operators are required to deploy new cable card enabled set-tops to their customers across the nation. Comcast is arguing the rule is “arbitrary and capricious,” after it waited 503 days for the FCC to rule on its wavier request.
A new study from Canalys reports that worldwide Internet protocol television subscriptions will hit 39.6 million by the close of 2010. Europe, the Middle East and Africa will remain the biggest IPTV markets, the study said, and North America will have 12.1 million subscribers by 2010. (eMarketer 11/2)
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