FCC

NBC officially announced that Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien will return to the air on January 2nd without their writing staffs. Conan expressed his support for the writers and said his show “may be terrible” without them. Ratings have dropped off considerably during reruns, with both shows losing over 30% of their audience. THE FCC Continue Reading →

THE GAO released a study yesterday finding that the FCC has “no comprehensive plan” in place for the upcoming transition to all-digital television. The report claims there is a risk of inadequate funding for converter boxes and potential failure to properly inform citizens of the end of analog. In related news, the NTIA announced that Continue Reading →

NIELSEN has partnered with DIGIMARC to create a service that both watermarks and fingerprints digital content, allowing it to be tracked across the web. Fingerprinting will be done by matching the audio track of a video to known content in the Nielsen database while watermarking will embed content information (such as when a show first Continue Reading →

SPECTRUM AUCTION bidders are believed to include Google, Cox Communications, Frontline Wireless and AT&T. Time Warner, Comcast and Sprint will not participate in the auction. Details of the proceedings will remain shrouded in secrecy — bidders that submitted applications for yesterday’s 6 PM deadline are now barred from discussing the auction. THE FCC is under Continue Reading →

APPLE has removed all NBC content from iTunes. The contract between the two parties has expired and no new agreement is in place. NBC content accounted for 30% of iTunes TV show sales. AOL has canceled its paid download service and partnered with AMAZON Unbox for digital download sales. Unbox content has been given its Continue Reading →

FACEBOOK has been forced to change Beacon’s default behavior due to mounting criticism and user unrest. Previously a transaction would broadcast to a user’s network automatically if he did not choose to prevent it. Under Beacon 2.0 transactions will not be published until a user actually agrees to it. Ignored requests will greet a user Continue Reading →

YAHOO and ADOBE will begin paying publishers to run ads inside PDF files. Publishers can upload a PDF to Adobe to have dynamic text advertising inserted. Advertisers will purchase the ads through Yahoo’s online system and have them contextually placed in relation to the contents of a PDF. Adobe and Yahoo have settled on a Continue Reading →

KEVIN MARTIN conceded defeat yesterday for his suggestion that the 70/70 rule is in effect. He withdrew a report that contained the 70/70 claim as justification for further cable regulation and will re-submit his proposal without it in the coming months. Martin’s plan to lower channel lease fees for independent networks was passed and will Continue Reading →

NBC UNIVERSAL will use TIVO‘s second-by-second viewer data and sell interactive ads on behalf of the DVR-maker. The ads will come in the form of clickable “tags” that reveal a company’s name even if a user is fast-forwarding through a commercial. A similar feature will allow users to easily record NBC Universal shows that are Continue Reading →

THE WGA and AMPTP will resume talks this morning. Negotiations will occur in an undisclosed location and a press blackout is in effect. The WGA reminded writers to return to picket lines even as the new round of talks begins. FIREBRAND will launch tonight on ION Television, offering users TV ads as entertainment. The show Continue Reading →