Comcast to Launch Portable Digital Video Player

Comcast, the largest U.S. cable operator, and consumer electronics maker Matsushita Electric Industrial's Panasonic unit will launch a co-branded portable digital video player that can show videos like Apple's iPod and record shows from any U.S. cable operator's system.

The AnyPlay device is the first of a range of new electronic devices based on technology developed jointly by the cable industry and consumer electronics makers intended to increase interoperability among cable operators -- and increase their threat to satellite TV rivals.

AnyPlay can record up to 60 hours of video and plays DVDs and CDs. It also features an 8.5-inch display screen. The device will be unveiled on Monday at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Comcast Chief Executive Brian Roberts told Reuters ahead of the show that the industry had been working on the technology standard for several years and now plans to roll it out across the United States this year.

"We knew we needed an open, national and interoperable structure between cable companies," said Roberts, who is also chair of industry technology trade body Cable Labs.

Cable companies have faced increasing competition for video subscribers from both satellite pay-TV companies such as DIRECTV Group DTV.O and EchoStar Communications Corp as well as nascent video services from phone companies such as AT&T and Verizon Communications.

"We also knew there would be more competition and we had to change," said Roberts. "The era of closed cable is over and the era of open cable is here." Reuters' Yinka Adegoke reports

Link to MediaWeek's Article

Comcast to Launch Portable Digital Video Player

Comcast, the largest U.S. cable operator, and consumer electronics maker Matsushita Electric Industrial's Panasonic unit will launch a co-branded portable digital video player that can show videos like Apple's iPod and record shows from any U.S. cable operator's system.

The AnyPlay device is the first of a range of new electronic devices based on technology developed jointly by the cable industry and consumer electronics makers intended to increase interoperability among cable operators -- and increase their threat to satellite TV rivals.

AnyPlay can record up to 60 hours of video and plays DVDs and CDs. It also features an 8.5-inch display screen. The device will be unveiled on Monday at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Comcast Chief Executive Brian Roberts told Reuters ahead of the show that the industry had been working on the technology standard for several years and now plans to roll it out across the United States this year.

"We knew we needed an open, national and interoperable structure between cable companies," said Roberts, who is also chair of industry technology trade body Cable Labs.

Cable companies have faced increasing competition for video subscribers from both satellite pay-TV companies such as DIRECTV Group DTV.O and EchoStar Communications Corp as well as nascent video services from phone companies such as AT&T and Verizon Communications.

"We also knew there would be more competition and we had to change," said Roberts. "The era of closed cable is over and the era of open cable is here." Reuters' Yinka Adegoke reports

Link to Media Week Article

Mobile Video Use Grows, Advertisers Miss Opportunities to Connect

Four in five consumers who watch mobile video say they are willing to view mobile advertising if the reward is free content, but less than 30 percent say that mobile ads are relevant to them, according to a new Knowledge Networks/SRI report, reports MarketingCharts.

"How People Use Mobile Video 2007" details mobile video usage and interest among those with video iPods, video-capable cell phones, and laptop computers.

Some findings from the Knowledge Networks/SRI report:

• The proportion of users paying for mobile video dropped notably in the past year among video iPod users (from 81 percent to 61 percent) and video cell phone users (from 64 percent to 50 percent).
• The average viewing session for video cell phones (46 percent of users report an average session of 5 minutes or less) is different from that of video iPods or laptops (53 percent report an average session of 30 minutes or more)
• Viewing of movies has risen dramatically among those use who use the video functions on iPods (from 1 percent to 54 percent) and laptops (2 percent to 34 percent).
• Less than 30 percent of users see mobile ads as relevant to their interests or needs: They see little or no difference between mobile video advertising and ads on regular television.
• Not surprisingly, then, most of these consumers say that mobile video ads are no more influential for them than those on traditional TV.

"Advertisers wisely have entered the mobile video space in a big way; but so far many seem to have missed the chance to leverage the unique qualities of mobile video, such as intimacy and immediacy," said David Tice, vice-president and managing director of Knowledge Networks/SRI.

"While mobile can indeed be part of larger campaigns, we need to recognize its differences, as well as the ways that different target groups use the medium."

Additional data from the Knowledge Networks study (via MediaPost):

• The percentage of those who view mobile video has doubled among those using cell phones- from 3 percent in 2006 to 6 percent in 2007.
• The proportion of those watching mobile video on iPods has increased from 3 percent in 2006 to 8 percent in 2007.
• The percentage of those watching video on laptops has increased to 26 percent, from 18 percent in 2006.

Link to Media Buyer Planner Article