[opendtv] Re: Apple in Talks with Comcast About Streaming-TV Service - WSJ.com
- From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 28 Mar 2014 01:41:47 +0000
Craig Birkmaier wrote:
> If they open up their network to third party STBs (or are forced to do so),
> can these boxes also use the streams delivered via the managed service?
Not sure what you mean by "can." Of course, any third party box in principle
can, if the cable company doesn't erect artificial barriers, as they've been
known to do in the past.
> If competing services such as the one Apple is proposing, must
> duplicate existing services,
I think you have misinterpreted what Apple is proposing to do. Show me where
Apple is proposing to set up a network of its own content servers in the
Comcast local networks. Everything I've read says that Apple wants to build the
boxes that will use Comcast's managed service, inside the walled garden,
exclusive of other box vendors. As the quote below, but many others too, have
stated.
"Delivering the service quality Apple envisions would require Comcast to make
significant investments in network equipment and other back-office technology,
according to people familiar with Comcast's thinking."
> Yup. An investment they would need to make anyway to offer the IP equivalent
> of existing MVPD services. An investment they may already be making.
Yes, either themselves, or with agreements with content owners who may provide
their own servers. Point being, it's not Apple doing this, as you seemed to
imply. Apple would be, they hope, the exclusive beneficiary.
> Netflix just entered into a peering agreement with Comcast. They are
> paying for better access to Comcast ISP subscribers. Apple seeks to
> go a step further with the managed service proposal. Is this the issue
> that Jobs finally "cracked?"
Talk about overstating. Netflix is a neutral web portal operating over the
Internet slice of MVPD/ISP networks. Apple instead seeks to be the exclusive
box that operates over a segregated slice of Comcast bandwidth. Nothing got
"cracked," nor is the comparison with Netflix really valid. Apple wants to play
where Scientific Atlanta plays. (You might argue that Apple can do a better
job, but that's immaterial for this discussion.)
> If we fast forward to the day when the cable company can turn off the
> analog tier and reclaim that spectrum, should they be allowed to offer
> this bandwidth for managed services to Netflix, Apple, Amazon,
> Microsoft, Google, et al?
"Should they be allowed"? The cable companies can do whatever they please,
Craig. And it's not just the analog bandwidth, it's all of their broadcast
bandwidth, including the MPEG-2 TS broadcast. With DOCSIS, what they would do
is assign, in principle, all of those 6 MHz channels to IP service, so each of
the houses passed by the local PONs and passive coax nets can be given more
downstream and upstream bandwith.
Bert
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