October 27th, 2014
The FCC has suspended its detailing into the mega media mergers with both Comcast/Time Warner Cable, and DirecTV/AT&T as the Justice Department and FCC look into how pay-tv subscriptions and direct-to-consumer streaming could affect the TV and media landscape.
As reported in Reuters, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission on Wednesday paused its informal “shot clock” deadline on the reviews of the proposed mergers of AT&T Inc  and DirecTV and of Comcast Corp  and Time Warner Cable Inc over the issue of confidential programming agreements. Read more
Categories: DISH & TV news
October 23rd, 2014
Just when the Cable News Network had actually gained ground in its ratings by picking up 555,000 viewers — a rise of two percent — in the third quarter of 2014, CNN has become one of the seven victims of a contract dispute between its parent company, Atlanta-based Turner Broadcasting, and the Dish Network, which has 14 million subscribers.
Another news-related casualty of the dispute is HLN, which lost 352,000 viewers from July through September. Formerly known as Headline News, the network’s viewership fell four percent during that period.
In an interesting twist, the CNN and HLN programs have been replaced with MSNBC content. That change might boost the low-rated liberal channel’s standing while diminishing the audience of the two other networks. Read more
Categories: DISH & TV news
October 16th, 2014
It seems like only yesterday Jon Stewart surprised everyone on CNN’s Crossfire by taking an ultra-serious tone with the hosts, Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala, and famously putting the show in its place for all the world to see.
Categories: DISH & TV news
October 16th, 2014
17.3 million viewers and households checked into AMC’s The Walking Dead premiere of Season 5 this week, making it easily the most watched show on television. It is, for all intents and purposes, the highest rated show on TV right now.
Of course, that isn’t what is so necessarily interesting about the Nielsen numbers, because what really has people talking is how the show smashed the NFL’s Sunday Night Football ratings over the weekend…something that was certainly possible but that none expected with such a swing. Read more
Categories: DISH & TV news
October 11th, 2014
As reported in Business Wire, DISH Network and DishLATINO will become the first US-based provider to sign an endorsement backing deal ith Mexican actor, director and all around star Eugenio Derbez. Read more
Categories: DISH & TV news
October 8th, 2014
AT&T and Verizon Communications are opening their wallets and T-Mobile could be the beneficiary, says a recent report from Fool.com, the communications tech blog run by The Motley Fool. T-Mobile’s big bet was investing in nationwide wireless towers to carry their high speed 4G connections. Read more
Categories: DISH & TV news
October 2nd, 2014
The Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday voted to kill off its four-decade-old sports blackout rules over the fierce objections of the NFL. In a decision that will likely make more headlines than actually fix issues on the field, the FCC’s decision to end blackout rules has certainly ended a long-hated rule by fans nationwide that allowed sports leagues to blackout games if a particular event was not sold out — essentially forcing local fans to purchase tickets. Read more
Categories: DISH & TV news