Time Warner Cable Video-On-Demand coming to HDTVs
At CES 2011, Sony announced that their new Bravia HDTVs will have access to Time Warner Cable Video-On-Demand without a cable receiver. This is a most unusual development for a cable operator to provide their content over IP services, but it makes sense considering they make a lot of money renting movies, and they have secured rental windows for their service making new releases available 28 days before rental kiosks.
There isn’t a lot of detail about this partnership yet, but I am assuming this will only be provided to Time Warner Cable subscribers – at least initially. They don’t want to give away their strong VOD leverage to satellite subscribers. It also makes sense that they would want to gain VOD sales from subscribers without cable receivers. Certainly they understand a lot of people are giving up their DVRs in favor of IP services like Hulu and Netflix.
Following Sony’s announcement, Samsung also announced partnerships with both Time Warner Cable and Comcast to bring VOD to their HDTVs and Galaxy Tab. The Galaxy Tab features sound similar to the Xfinity Remote for iPad, and should include seamless sharing of video back and forth between the TV and tablet.
There is more information from Samsung than from Sony concerning their partnership. It is confirmed the cable VOD will be available to cable subscribers. They also announced a cool feature that allows content recorded on a DVR (presumably the Samsung DVR) to be played on a Samsung HDTV in the home connected to the local network.
These are very exciting announcements. The converged home is closer and more affordable than we know.
Samsung press releases below
SAMSUNG AND TIME WARNER CABLE ANNOUNCE COLLABORATION FOR SMART TV SERVICE AND MULTI-ROOM SOLUTIONS
Time Warner Cable App to be Available to the Company’s Subscribers on Samsung Smart TV and Samsung Galaxy Tab
LAS VEGAS, Jan. 6, 2011-Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. and Time Warner Cable shared the stage today at the International Consumer Electronics Show to announce a collaboration that will allow Time Warner Cable customers to access their cable subscriptions on the Samsung Smart TV and Samsung Galaxy Tab in their homes. Time Warner Cable Chairman and CEO Glenn Britt joined Samsung Visual Display President Boo-Keun Yoon on stage during Mr. Yoon’s keynote speech, where the two companies jointly announced the collaboration and demonstrated the services.
Available as an app within Samsung’s application storefront, the Time Warner Cable service ultimately will give Time Warner Cable’s subscribers access to all of their cable channels directly on Samsung smart TVs and Galaxy Tab in the home. All of the content can be consumed through Samsung’s award-winning LED, LCD and Plasma smart TV line-up, which delivers a high-quality, visual enhanced and connected entertainment experience to the home.
In addition to watching live TV on the Smart TV and Tab, Mr. Britt demonstrated the capability for Time Warner Cable customers to access recorded content from a DVR elsewhere in the home directly on the Samsung Smart TV, without the need for a connected set-top box. This creates a multi-room viewing experience that doesn’t require multiple set-top boxes in homes that have more than one connected TV.
“We are very excited to announce Time Warner Cable as our newest partner in delivering new smart TV experiences,” said Boo-Keun Yoon, president of Samsung’ Visual Display Business. “The era of smart TV is here, and innovative partners like Time Warner Cable, that can utilize this ground-breaking technology to deliver new entertainment solutions to their consumers, will be the first to succeed.”
“We’re excited to bring together Time Warner Cable’s high-value content and high-quality delivery with Samsung’s innovative products,” said Mr. Britt. “Time Warner Cable is committed to making it easier for our customers to watch what they want, when they want, on multiple devices. We’re giving customers more control than ever in ways that are simple and easy for them. Samsung’s leading technology and large base of consumers make the company the perfect partner as we deliver services that will change the way people watch TV.”
The Time Warner Cable applications will be demonstrated at the Samsung booth in the Central Hall at the International Consumer Electronics Show, Jan. 6-9, 2011.
Time Warner Cable anticipates beginning to offer the apps commercially on Samsung devices later this year.
More information on Samsung’s smart TV strategy and its partnership with Time Warner Cable was shared during Mr. Boo-Keun Yoon’s keynote address, which can now be viewed at http://www.samsungces2011.com
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2009 consolidated sales of US$116.8 billion. Employing approximately 174,000 people in 193 offices across 66 countries, the company consists of eight independently operated business units: Visual Display, Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, Digital Appliances, IT Solutions, Digital Imaging, Semiconductor and LCD. Recognized as one of the fastest growing global brands, Samsung Electronics is a leading producer of digital TVs, memory chips, mobile phones and TFT-LCDs. Samsung is also the HDTV market leader in the U.S. Please visit http://www.samsung.com for more information.
About Time Warner Cable
Time Warner Cable is the second-largest cable operator in the U.S., with technologically advanced, well-clustered systems located mainly in five geographic areas – New York State (including New York City), the Carolinas, Ohio, southern California (including Los Angeles) and Texas. Time Warner Cable serves more than 14 million customers who subscribe to one or more of its video, high-speed data and voice services. Time Warner Cable Business Class offers a suite of phone, Internet, Ethernet and cable television services to businesses of all sizes. Time Warner Cable Media Sales, the advertising arm of Time Warner Cable, offers national, regional and local companies innovative advertising solutions that are targeted and affordable. More information about the services of Time Warner Cable is available at www.timewarnercable.com, www.twcbc.com and www.twcmediasales.com.
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SAMSUNG AND COMCAST PARTNER TO TRANSFORM TV VIEWING ON SMART TELEVISIONS AND TABLETS
New Comcast Xfinity TV Experience to Launch on Samsung Smart TVs and Tablets This Year
LAS VEGAS – January 6, 2011 – Today at the International Consumer Electronics (CES) Show, Samsung Electronics Co, Ltd., and Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) jointly announced the companies’ partnership to continue to revolutionize the way consumers access content and watch television with Xfinity TV. For the first time on a connected TV, the new Xfinity TV service will offer a rich, Web-like interface, enabling simpler navigation and the ability to seamlessly search across TV, DVR recordings, and video on demand among tens of thousands of content choices. A sleek graphics-rich display will guide the viewer to their favorite programming.
The partnership will also deliver a customized and integrated multi-platform viewing experience on Samsung Smart TVs and the Androidâ„¢ powered Samsung Galaxy Tab. On the tablet, the Xfinity TV experience is a virtual television guide and a mobile video player all in one. Xfinity TV digital customers will be able to browse, discover and sort video content, search for their favorite programs, change the channel on a Samsung Smart TV in real time, and program DVRs. In addition, they will be able to watch streaming TV shows and movies On Demand directly on the tablet, and access that content across multiple devices. The service’s roadmap includes the ability to begin watching a favorite movie on the Samsung Galaxy Tab, then pause the movie and resume watching it on a Samsung Smart TV from the exact moment it was paused, and vice versa.
The Xfinity TV service was unveiled today at the International Consumer Electronics Show by Comcast Chairman and CEO Brian L. Roberts during a keynote speech by Boo-Keun Yoon, President of Samsung’s Visual Display Business, and will also be demonstrated at the Samsung booth in the Central Hall.
“As we begin this exciting new decade, Samsung is also launching a new era of TV technologies that will delight and amaze consumers unlike ever before,” said Boo-Keun Yoon, President of Samsung’s Visual Display Business. “To partner with the renowned Comcast brand enables us to deliver on our promise of giving consumers greater variety, easy access and control of the content they discover and deliver a more immersive and entertaining experience to Comcast customers.”
Brian L. Roberts, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Comcast Corporation, said, “Our partnership with an industry leader like Samsung is another important step in Comcast’s plan to totally reinvent how consumers watch television wherever and whenever they want. We have the technology framework in place to deliver new features to Comcast customers faster than ever, including on connected TVs, tablets and multiple devices, which is core to our strategy and a key facet of the future of television.”
The Xfinity TV experience will be distributed later this year on the Samsung Smart TVs and on the application store for the Galaxy products interacting through the Comcast set top box, giving consumers yet another access point for discovering and connecting to Comcast Xfinity TV services. Content can be watched through Samsung’s award-winning LED, LCD and PDP TV products that reflect the company’s commitment to delivering consumers high-quality, visually enhanced and connected entertainment experiences in their home.
Xfinity is a great website, lots of content, but that is just what it is.. content. TV Everywhere needs to be everywhere you are and needs to be what you pay for, not just the VOD side, but LIVE TV. Understandable they are still working on it and it will be end of the year. When I started working at DISH Network I purchased a sling adapter to go with my 722k receiver. Now that is true TV Everyhere, the monthly TV I pay for and my DVR’s, if I want content I can go to the sites as well, xfinity, hulu, Dish Online, there are more. But they are just content.