Tag Archives: FCC

Media, Movies, Technology

Unlikely Bedfellows as Net Neutrality Sunsets

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Coupling Content Distribution (i.e. ISPs) with Content Producers

Verizon FiOS offers Netflix as another channel in their already expansive lineup of content. Is this a deal of convenience for the consumer, keeping consumers going through one medium, or is it something more?  Amazon Video iOS application offers HBO, STARZ, and others as long as Amazon Prime customers have a subscription to the Content Producers. Convenience or more?  The Netflix Content and Distribution via Set-top box (STB) channel should be mimicked by Google YouTube and Amazon Video despite their competing hardware offerings.  Consumers should be empowered to decide how they want to consume Amazon Video; e.g. through their Set-top box (STB).  However,  there may be more than just a convenience benefit.

Amazon Video iOS
Amazon Video iOS
Netflix on FiOS
Netflix on FiOS

As Net Neutrality fades into the sunset of congressional debates and lobbyists, the new FCC ruling indicates the prevailing winds of change.  We question how content providers, large and small, navigate the path to survival/sustainability.  Some business models from content distribution invoke Bandwidth Throttling, which may inhibit the consumers of some content, either by content types (e.g. Video formats) or content providers (e.g. Verizon FiOS providing priority bandwidth to Netflix).

Content Creators / Producers, without a deal with ISPs for “priority bandwidth” may find their customers flock to ‘larger content creators’ who may be able to get better deals for content throughput.

Akamai and Amazon CloudFront – Content Delivery Networks (CDNs)

Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) may find themselves on the better end of this deal, almost as a side-effect to the FCC decision of nixing Net Neutrality.

Amazon CloudFront a global content delivery network (CDN) service that securely delivers data, videos, applications, and APIs to viewers with low latency and high transfer speeds. CloudFront, like Akamai, may significantly benefit from the decision by the FCC to repeal Net Neutrality.

Akamai’s industry-leading scale and resiliency mean delivering critical content with consistency, quality, and security across every device, every time.  Great web and mobile experiences are key to engaging users, yet difficult to achieve. To drive engagement and online revenue, it’s critical to optimize performance for consumer audiences and employees alike to meet or exceed their expectations for consistent, fast, secure experiences.

Integrating into Content/Internet Service Provider’s Bundle of Channels

By elevating Content Producers into the ISP (distribution channel) Set-top box (STB), does this ‘packaging’ go beyond bundling of content for convenience?  For example, when Netflix uses Verizon FiOS’ CDN for content delivery to their clients, will the consumer benefit from this bundled partnership beyond convenience (i.e. performance)?  When Netflix is invoked by a Verizon FiOS customer from their laptop (direct from Netflix), is there a performance improvement if Netflix is invoked from the Verizon FiOS Set-top Box (STB) instead?  Would these two separate use cases for invoking Netflix movies utilize two alternate Content delivery network (CDN) paths, one more optimized than the other?

As of this post update (12/26), there has been no comment from Verizon.

Business, Politics, Technology

Silicon Valley is Pushing Back On Children’s Privacy. Should They? Here is a Brief Case Study

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I just read a piece from the New York Times,  A Trail of Clicks, Culminating in Conflict, and I must say I agree with advanced privacy protection for children.  I created a start-up a few years ago, mobile application, that allowed the sharing of image posts, and the woman at RIMM was on the cusp of rejecting the app, or wanted me to change the rating of the application.  I have to say that, at the time, I was on a shoe string budget, and time was money.  Annoyed, and a bit frustrated, I attempted to express that the program was designed to enable antique dealers to get on line appraisals, for example, on the go..  So if you liked garage sales, or flea markets, but didn’t know the estimated value, using the mobile application, you could look up a registered expert in that area of antiques, and send them a request for an instant appraisal.  If the appraiser had the app they would get a notification and/or a text message notifying them a request for an appraisal was sent to them, then could offer their services for a price, then respond with comments, and it could all be paid through mobile payments.  Sounds innocent enough; however, the RIMM representative insisted it could be used for pornographic use.  I slept on it that night, and as a father of two girls, it appeared to me she was absolutely right, the best of intentions, and all, so we changed the rating of the application in their store and published the application.  This is just an example, and may appear to be an apples and oranges comparison; however, it’s more alike than one thinks.  Alluring children on television during a programming session of their favorite T.V. show is targeting a demographic and is allowed, and although has a precedence, the demographic targeting of advertisements, for example, has never been able to be as fine tuned as it can be today, and the ramifications to a child relative to a conditioned adult has consequences to shape a child’s mind, or theoretically using a form of AI rules engine to fine tune their preferences seems benign enough.  However, the child may be influenced by trends that are imposed upon them, rather than the contrary.  I am not studying the affects that an AI rules engine with induction predictive capabilities may have on a child as a child psychologist, with a background in technology, but I think several studies are warranted, and I hear a few thesis papers inking pen to paper now.  These studies should be jointly done by the FCC and the CDC.  It sounds drastic, although, the consequences of a physiological epidemic are just as troubling.  I have news for you, most of these start-ups are by kids themselves, relatively, without their own children, and do not consider the ramifications, just the dollar signs.  We should ask, although I can do it, should I?

Advertising, Business, Technology

Freelance Streaming Video, Affiliate Advertising Innovation

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As described in a previous post, see Streaming Video Freelance: Video Affiliate Network channels like Google Plus / YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Viveo (everything from bar impromptu jams to concert events), I did not mention all the little bits to avoid issues such as all faces of the audience either need to have realtime face bluring technology similar to Facial recognition, or the people in the event must sign the waver, which might not be likely, so the solution will need a delayed streaming to allow blurring facial recognition software to work, and for some televised events, allow compliance to FCC regulations, edit introducing artificial intelligence (AI) word bleep insertion, and object recognition to blur the recognition of exposed body parts. 🙂 The ridiculously amazing advertising introduction: if a person signs up to allow to be seen, they could be picked if they are wearing a hat, sneakers, or certain brand of shirt, then if the AI object recognition picks up the object, a hue can accentuate the item, the viewer can pause the stream, click on the advertiser’s object on a video streaming tablet touch screen, and get a list of local and web distributors, prioritized by advertising, popularity, and rating.  Same goes for the red carpet events, and although not advertising dresses, suits, and accessories because of cost, it could enhance the event by again, pause, and get a blurb about the designer, the object and a link to the catalog or portfolio of the designer’s work. Introduces advertising revenue for on sight products. Even the videographers smartphone can have an addressable link to the product used to stream, as well as a small logo overlay which if clicked provides a profile of the videographer, and a brief portfolio of their work, all from a tablet application allowing the licensed distributor(s) a main channel in the center of the screen and small square boxes on the outer edge of the main window like PnP, and a person just taps on of the border boxed streams, and then that box becomes the stream that takes up the majority of the screen. The main window can have the absolute maximum fps for the device and the border windows may have half or a quarter of the allowed frames per second (fps), this way you still get to preview the alternate perspective streams, while watching the main stream. You can also auto hide the boarder preview streams to focus the user on the main stream and give them flexibility of alternate vantage points. The system may allow the videographer to bid for boarder alternate allowing placement of their streams in a particular corner, and frequency AS well as the user can have a ‘favorite’ freelancer videographer stream, and the system would allow for quicklinks to videographer streams the user knows will be at the event.

There is more in the predicted trends article for 2013.

Business, Technology

FCC Radiation Regulation for Mobile Devices & Form Factor to Shape Next Niche

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The writing is already on the wall folks with three articles, one by CNN, FCC asked to consider raising limit on cell phone radiation, the other article, or more pictorial view of the mobile devices, between Apple and Samsung, in an article picture by the New York Times, and the Nokia Flex Phone.

First, phone manufacturers, start your engines, its a whole new ball game with respect to design and form factor thanks to the boys and girls of Finland.

Second, all manufacturing of phone accessories may profit off of this regulation, if it will be passed in the U.S., Manufacturing accessories to compensate for the existing phones, as well as new technologies developed.  Lots of money for the Krill.

Thirdly, all the apps that go with Nokia’s start of ‘brilliance’, hedged by Apple’s Retina display technology.  Read between the lines boys…and girls.