It’s been a difficult time for ink-stained wretches, not least because most of our journalistic output these days uses hardly any ink at all. It can sometimes feel a tad insubstantial, especially the paycheck part. 

But the moment is mixing schadenfreude and existential dread in a toxic brew as we witness the humbling of previously untouchable hegemons and the rise of new capabilities/threats to financial viability on a near-daily basis. 

Where it goes matters plenty for those of us in the thumb-sucking/navel-gazing class, of course. We’re always in danger of extinction. But it matters for other forms of news provision, too. From the 24-hour cable channels (where a massive, libel law-shifting suit against Fox News over rampant post-election lying settled this past week for a mere $787.5 million, with more suits to come) to the local fish wrappers getting stripped for parts by private equity. 

How does journalism pay for itself in the future? 

Fueling the schadenfreude (that delightfully precise and unique German term for taking pleasure in the misery of others), we have the spectacle of Google’s flailing first months in the suddenly high-profile revolution in artificial-intelligence tools.

Put simply, Google’s Bard AI tool is getting its butt kicked by Microsoft’s Bing, which now incorporates OpenAI’s ChatGPT and DALLE-2. 

Google has dominated the search-engine business for two decades, claiming well over 90% market share. Bing, by contrast, has claimed well under 4% market share. 

Suddenly, though, Google looks vulnerable to what I would dub Bing’s Conversation Engine, which can return a fully formed passage, paper or image with just a few text prompts. Could that conversation capability finally end Google’s problematic stranglehold on news? 

The schadenfreude tumbles out because journalism’s relationship with Google has been … fraught. Actually, it’s mostly been about feeling exploited and used, with virtually no alternatives to acceding to that exploitation. 

News outlets have depended on Google to drive a huge percentage of their readership/viewership. Rather than directly compensate the content creators, Google basically promised that increased site traffic would make up for direct payments to the journalism outlets. Social-media giants Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter made much the same promise.

News organizations piled in on that promise, as did new kinds of journalism companies, such as Vice, Politico, Vox and Buzzfeed.

But the increasingly obvious reality is that Google’s search engine mostly just generates hundreds of billions of dollars in ad revenue for Google, while delivering considerably less to the sources of their content. 

It’s the same promise, and problem, with social media platforms. 

Facebook, after thousands of layoffs and other cuts, has moved to full revenue-extraction mode. What used to be called the Newsfeed now features fewer posts from news outlets or people you know, and much more branded content, sponsored posts and plain ol’ ads. 

The situation is even worse at Elon Musk’s chaotic iteration of Twitter. This week, among much else, the confused little bird stripped verification checkmarks from most famous people, companies and journalists. 

Musk instituted a pay-to-play replacement checkmark that seems destined mostly to destroy the verification process. The New York Times, NPR and a growing number of journalists are pulling back from the site, likely to be joined by others as the site devolves from useful amplifier of notable news and views to one man’s personal echo chamber.  

As a result, the aging revenue models for journalism for the past couple of decades are ending, in some cases taking their leading practitioners with them. 

Just this week, Buzzfeed said it would shut down its Pulitzer Prize-winning news division and eliminate 160 jobs. Huffington Post, another pioneering online site that became part of Buzzfeed when Verizon dumped AOL in 2020, will continue, as will Buzzfeed’s viral quizzes and listicles but remain on crisis watch. In March, Vox sold a $100 million stake to Penske Media Corp., which dominates Hollywood’s awards advertising business. 

Many other sites, led by the redoubtable New York Times, are relying increasingly on subscriptions to pay most of their bills. But questions abound across journalism, especially in this new AI-driven era.

I’ve already written about the uncertain future facing CNN in Warner Bros. Discovery’s debt-strangled hands (will Gayle King and Charles Barkley really fix everything?). NBCUniversal just lost CEO Jeff Shell over the weekend to an inappropriate romantic entanglement. 

And NextGen TV continues its excruciatingly slow, muddled rollout. At least with NextGen TV, the putative future of local broadcast news and information, we now have the FCC and NAB collaborating to make it all work better and faster. That should fix things. 

Fox News is still cranking along at the top of the cable ratings, but that massive Dominion lawsuit settlement this week is only the first of several looming legal headaches, which may whack other, less financially sturdy right-wing news outlets too. 

All of which brings us back to that heady brew of schadenfreude and existential angst.

Yes, it’s kinda fun to see Google’s high-handed approach to copyright getting some paradigm-shifting competition. But the issues don’t necessarily improve in an AI-dominated future.

Possibly a problem: sometimes those AI responses are wildly wrong or just plain awful, thanks to the crud tucked into those vast sets of training materials. The crud tends to resurface just when you need a fast and fluent take on, say, vaccinations or election security or, heck, the Illuminati.  

Even worse for journalism, even the good responses are unlikely to disclose, never mind compensate, the humans and companies who did the actual work of journalism.

I talked this week with several lawyers, CEOs and other entertainment and tech executives grappling with AI’s burgeoning copyright headache in journalism, art, music, and video. In many, though not all, cases (Adobe’s Firefly is a notable exception), those AI systems are trained on billions of pieces of content that belongs to someone else. 

Someone’s going to have to figure out how to compensate all those copyright holders for the use of their material to make billions of dollars for someone else. Or not, as happened in the search era. 

We’re starting to realize that, aside from the limited joys of schadenfreude, the Conversation Engine era may be no better, and potentially far worse, for journalism. Figuring it out will be the existential fight of the next few years. 

As The Who’s Pete Townshend once presciently wrote, meet the new boss, same as the old boss. What a week. 

Just months after signing a two-year deal to have Microsoft supply it with advertising technology needed to launch its commercial-supported tier, Netflix is said to be looking to build or buy its own ad tech. 

As was first reported by Digiday, Netflix has hired Jon Whitticom, formerly a product manager for Comcast's ad tech unit, FreeWheel, as an advisor to help it examine its options in terms of building or buying its own technology when the Microsoft deal expires in 2024. 

Microsoft officially became a player in ad tech when it completed its purchase of Xandr from AT&T in June of last year. A month later, Microsoft emerged as the surprise winner in the bid for Netflix’s technology services contract, with the leading subscription streaming company trying to quickly launch a discounted service tier that was partially subsidized by advertising, 

The $6.99-a-month “Netflix with Ads” tier launched in November. 

Microsoft beat out Comcast and Google to get the business. Those familiar with the dealings told Digiday that Microsoft’s advantage centered on not having a streaming platform that directly competed with Netflix, as Comcast’s Peacock and Google’s YouTube do. 

Netflix with Ads had a slow first month in the marketplace, with only 9% of Netflix signups being for that tier. Netflix reported increased traction for the new service to its advertising partners in January, but public comments from top-level Netflix executives indicate some of the blame for the sluggish start relate to the technology.

For example, during Netflix’s Q4 earnings call in January, newly promoted Co-CEO Greg Peters seemed to deliver a back-handed compliment to his company's ad-tech partner. (Seeking Alpha transcript available here.)

On one hand, he noted: “We were able to launch this very, very quickly. And the tech is all working. The product experience is good. And that’s really a testament to lots of hard work for both Microsoft and Netflix teams who worked very hard to make that happen, and it’s really rewarding to that to see.”

But Peters also noted that Netflix's ad delivery acumen was still “crawling” and needs to enter the “walking” phase soon.

“We’ve got a lot to do to get there,” he added. “So there is a bunch of technical improvements in terms of ad delivery validation, measurement. We’ve got progress already on that, more to do in the next quarter or two.” ▪️

With the 2022-23 NBA season in full swing, the league is looking to drive a deeper connection with its fans through its newly redesigned NBA App. The free, integrated digital platform — built in partnership with Microsoft — for the first time provides fans direct access to its NBA League Pass out-of-market game package as well as its NBA TV linear cable channel.

Through the app’s free NBA ID membership program, fans can access benefits and rewards from the league as well as its teams and partners, league officials said. Fans can watch live games as well as all pregame and postgame NBA press conferences and media days from every major event.  

With a nod to social media, the App’s new ‘For You’ offering will offer fan preferences and personalization, as well as a vertical video scrolling of content that features real-time highlights of all NBA games in progress.  

On the content side, the App will offer 500 of the best classic games in NBA history as well as every NBA Finals game since 2000. Also, documentary series such as Dream Team, The Doctor, Wilt 100 and NBA Inside Stuff will be available. 

Already the app has scored with viewers: Video views on the app were up nearly 300% globally during the first week of the NBA season in mid-October compared to last year, the league said.

NBA senior VP of media operations and technology Ken DeGennaro spoke with Multichannel News about the revamped NBA App and its appeal to viewers. Here’s an edited transcript of that conversation. 

Also: Digital Sportsplay: YES Network Keeps Taking Big Tech Swings

MCN: What initially prompted the league to revamp its digital app? 

Ken DeGennaro: With the shift from linear viewing habits to a little bit more digital viewing habits, we felt as though this was the right time to bring the technology staff up on resourcing to be able to build the app to deliver and innovate with a very fan- first mindset. Throughout the pandemic, as things slowed, we continued to invest in the new platform all the way through our launch of the app this past September. All of the technology has been replaced and is now fully cloud-delivered. We have a new partner, Microsoft and its Azure cloud, to help power the application. Now we’re able to get both implicit and explicit responses back from our fans and tailor our experience to that of the individual fan. A good example of that is our ‘For You’ feed, which is a personalized feed featuring content, games and other information tailored to that particular fan based on some of the signals of data that they’ve explicitly told us around their favorite teams and players, as well as some of the behaviors that we recognize just through the usage of the NBA App. 

MCN: Have you seen an uptick in usage among fans since you’ve rolled out the new app? 

KD: We’ve had a wonderful response from our fans. The engagement and usage of the application services and features throughout have been significantly more than we’ve seen historically.

MCN: How important has the integration of League Pass and NBA TV into the app been in terms of that increased response from fans?

KD: It certainly makes it easier to be an NBA fan, right? If you want NBA content, you now know where to go and where to get it. We are learning more and more about the fan and what content we should service, and also drive some discovery of things that fans might not have necessarily considered in the first instance. The other things we’ve really been focusing on are the quality of the experience, that the application works well and that our video gives a premium experience to our fans. 

MCN: How important is it for a league such as the NBA to have a quality, interactive digital app as part of its outreach to fans?

KD: It’s critical to us for us to be able to learn more about how our fans want to interact with our content. Most fans are interested in the game content, but there are a lot of fans that are interested in the content around the game, from the lifestyles and wardrobes of the players all the way to the players’ interests on and off the court. We’re learning more and more about what the fans are interested in, and we’re going to continue to serve all of them at the right levels with the right amount of content for their set of interests. It’s about driving engagement on a personalized level. ■ 

The Communications Workers of America and Microsoft are teaming up to launch a “Get Connected” program to boost uptake of the Federal Communications Commission’s Affordable Connectivity Program.

The partnership stems from a labor agreement hammered out between the two in June that included collaborating on technology skills education and adoption.

The Biden administration has made clear it has a nuanced definition of broadband availability that includes price, service quality, competition and the skills to use the technology.

The CWA and Microsoft have definite interests in universal broadband since it means jobs for union members and more users for Microsoft's suite of technologies and applications.

The campaign kicks off at a Labor Day festival in Atlanta and will continue in cities in Detroit, Memphis, New York City and rural North Carolina. ▪️

Netflix said that its ad-supported product will launch in early 2023 and it confirmed that its tech partner, Microsoft, will be the exclusive sales channel and ad server for Netflix commercial inventory.

On the streamer’s second-quarter earnings video, Netflix COO and Chief Product Officer Greg Peters, declined to say whether there was a commitment to guarantee a significant level of revenue for Microsoft.

Analyst Doug Anmuth of J.P. Morgan also asked if the arrangement with Microsoft would grow into a more strategic relationship beyond advertising. There has been speculation that Microsoft could eventually buy Netflix. And Anmuth specifically asked about cloud services and gaming.

“First of all, we picked Microsoft as our ad partner because we think they're going to be great as an ad partner,” Peters said. 

Peters said that Amazon Web Service continues to provide Netflix’ cloud infrastructure. 

“We haven’t changed that relationship,” he said, adding  “we've done other stuff with Microsoft. We continue to do work with them on sort of go-to-market partnerships, things like that. We'll look for those opportunities as they exist with Microsoft and with other companies as well. So I would say this doesn't foreclose on anything like that. But you should think about this as a great ads partnership deal at the end of the day.”

Also: Netflix's Decision To Work with Microsoft a Mostly Positive Surprise

Netflix talked to Google and Comcast about its ad business. It picked Microsoft because it possessed certain “fundamentals,” Peter said. 

“They've got technical capacity, which is complementary to ours, a go-to-market capacity, which we need to leverage, and it will be very important for us,” he said. “We saw a high degree of strategic alignment in their interest in innovating in the space and really working with us over the next several years to basically try and create a new ads ecosystem around premium TV, connected TV ads.”

Peters endeavored  to lower initial expectations about the ad product. 

“We’re  going to take an iterative approach, this is what we call the Crawl, Walk, Run model,” he said. “At the beginning it will look like what you're familiar with, but over time, we think there's a tremendous opportunity to leverage that innovation DNA that we have,  as well as a bunch of enabling characteristics around addressability and measurability and things like that to provide an incredible experience for consumers, those who choose to take the ad-supported offering, but also provide an incredible experience for brands and advertisers who want to work with us to make sure that we're doing a good job of elevating what that looks like for them.”

Early discussions with potential advertisers and media buyers have been encouraging, Peters said. 

“We've seen a lot of excitement,’ he said. “They've wanted to connect with the titles, incredible content that [co-CEO and content head Ted Sarandos’] team is putting out there. And I think we also share a perspective on what is a great experience for consumers and for advertisers” including frequency caps.

“I think it's going to be a win-win-win for all parties involved,” he said.

Peters added that the economics of an ad-supported tier should also work. Even at a lower subscription price, Netflix’s models show that subscribers that opt for the ad-supported product will generate revenue equal to or greater than those on the current ad-free service.

“We're launching first in the countries that have sort of the more mature ad markets and we feel more confident in the ad monetization, then we'll sort of explore next tiers of countries over time. So that's a dimension of growth, he said.

In order to put ads in its acquired programming, Netflix has to renegotiate some of its deals with the studios that sold shows to Netflix. But Sarandos said that’s not a big issue.

“Today, the vast majority of what people watch on Netflix, we can include in the ad-supported tier today,” Sarandos said. “There are some things that don't that we're in conversation with the studios on. But if we launch the product today, the members in the ad tier would have a great experience. And we will clear some additional content, but certainly not all of it. But I don't think it's a material holdback to the business.”

Spencer Neumann, Netflix’s CEO, called renegotiating to get ads on licensed programming nice to have, but not a must have. 

“As Ted says, we can launch today without any additional content clearance rights. And hopefully, we can supplement that, but we'll be disciplined in what we do,” Neumann said.  ■

Amid a flurry of breathless speculation put forth this week by analysts, the possibility that Netflix is partnering with Microsoft for ulterior reasons of M&A has certainly come up. 

But Needham senior analyst Laura Martin stands out as being particularly bullish on this possibility.

“Netflix is trying to get closer to Microsoft in hopes that, after Microsoft digests its Activision acquisition, it turns and buys Netflix next,” Martin told Yahoo Finance Live. 

Netflix announced earlier this week that it will work with Microsoft as its global advertising technology partner as the streaming service rolls out an advertising-supported tier.

Martin believes there were better options available to Netflix. The other companies it spoken with — which include Google, Roku and Comcast’s FreeWheel — all have fully developed supply-side platforms (SSPs). For its part, however, Microsoft is still in the process of integrating Xandr, the SSP it purchased from AT&T late last year. 

Netflix, which said it would launch a partially ad-supported tier by the end of 2022 in order to spur its flagging subscriber and revenue growth, has also yet to announce any senior advertising executive hires. The key vendor decision should have come after those personnel additions, Martin said. 

For his part, former Netflix technology architect David Ronca, who now heads video tech at Facebook, noted that Netflix's streaming backbone was originally built on Microsoft software, including Windows Media and ActiveX. 

Regardless of its Wall Street struggles and lowered market capitalization, Netflix turning to a trusted tech partner isn't necessarily a direct link to a $100 billion M&A deal. 

However, given the business factors cited, Needham predicts that Netflix won't be able to arrive to market with an ad-subsidized iteration until at least mid-2023. 

“It looks like Netflix doesn’t have time to market as a priority with this choice,” Martin said. ▪️

Netflix’s choice of Microsoft to help it get into the advertising business came as a bit of a surprise, but Wall Street analysts and ad-tech industry insiders had mostly positive reactions to the choice.

Microsoft isn’t in the TV industry in a big way now, and that might be one of the reasons why it was attractive to Netflix: no point in getting in bed with a competitor. And Microsoft’s decision to take advanced advertising company Xandr off AT&T’s hands suddenly looks like a pretty good deal.

Of course the devil is in the details and it remains to be seen just how the Netflix-Microsoft relationship plays out. It could be short term until Netflix buys or builds its own capabilities. Or the two could be in it for the long term. Could there be a marriage in the future? Some observers raised the possibility of Microsoft acquiring Netflix down the line.

Matthew Swanson, analyst at RBC Capital Markets, noted that surprise was the initial feedback he was getting from investors and ad industry insiders.

“While Microsoft has a history in advertising with Bing and LinkedIn, they do not have an established presence within CTV and additionally are missing an established salesforce and ad-server for the market,” Swanson noted.

“The reasons this announcement was a surprise may be the same reasons that Microsoft was selected, notably compared to Google, Amazon or NBCUniversal, Microsoft does not have conflicting inventory that competes directly with Netflix. Additionally, the recent acquisition of Xandr has strengthened the company's SSP positioning with Microsoft emphasizing the privacy focus of the acquisition, which appears to also appeal to Netflix from the press release," Swanson said.

Swanson added that the addition of premium inventory to the market from Netflix “should be a positive for the broader CTV market, increasing competition and accentuating the value added services of these providers as demand shifts from direct sales towards reserved and open auctions as the supply/demand curves find a new equilibrium.”

Daniel Salmon, BMO Capital Markets also expected Xandr to “play a key role” as Microsoft works to sell Netflix AVOD inventory. He said Netflix could initially take advantage of Xandr’s Monetize platform.

Netflix will be reporting its second-quarter earnings next week, following up on the bomb it dropped on Wall Street last quarter when it disclosed a drop in subscribers. Netflix’s stock plunged, taking other media companies in the streaming business with it. The subscription shock also prompted Netflix’s about-face on advertising.

Salmon said he'd like to see Netflix answer some questions about advertising as part of its earning report. Among them: What is your short and long-term strategy for the ad-supported subscription plan? What is the timeline for introducing the ad experience? What does the partnership with Microsoft entail? Where do you plan to launch the ad-support first? Is it important for Netflix to launch in the U.S. before the 2023 Newfronts/Upfronts? 

Some execs in the ad-supported streaming business continue to see plans for Netflix and Disney Plus to air commercials as a boon for the industry. They saw the selection of Microsoft as a way for those benefits to be realized quickly.

"Netflix's entry into the advertising game is a huge win for consumers, advertisers, and its own opportunity for growth. Selecting Microsoft as its partner is a smart strategic decision that provides Netflix with the proven advertising technology and a turnkey advertising solution that already has substantial scale without building a dependency on a platform owned by a streaming competitor,” said Ashwin Navin, CEO and co-founder of Samba TV.

“At its roots Netflix is a technology company -- so it's no surprise that they lead with that experience in solving for the future,” said Scott Schiller, global chief commercial officer at EMX. “For Microsoft, it's the next big move in continuing to unite its gaming, and Xandr technology divisions with cloud-based advertising solutions. And who knows what's next for the two companies?”

Nicole Scaglione, VP, OTT and CTV Business at PubMatic, said the deal highlighted the opportunity in AVOD.

“For Netflix to fully realize their monetization potential, they will need to engage with a lot of technology and buying partners across the ecosystem. Microsoft has relationships and scale across channels and platforms, along with experienced sales teams and great tech infrastructure that can help Netflix grow their ad business quickly. Microsoft and Xandr want what is best for brands, publishers and consumers and this aligns with PubMatic’s vision for ecosystem harmony," Scaglione said.

“Netflix has to focus on entering the ad business on strong footing,” said Matt Spiegel, executive VP, media & entertainment vertical, at TransUnion. “It is really important to show marketers right away that it is easy to work with them. That reality makes their ad-tech and ad sales partner a critical decision. While choosing Microsoft is at first look a surprising choice, it actually makes a lot of sense. By choosing Microsoft and Xandr it won’t have concerns of sharing business strategy with a partner that is also a competitor. Secondly, Netflix has a large global following and Microsoft has done a good job of serving as an advertising partner for media companies with significant inventory outside the U.S.”

James G. Brooks, CEO and founder of GlassView, said Netflix still faces challenges as it aims to incorporate ads into its product.

“Like its contemporaries, Netflix will have to balance keeping viewers tuned in while monetizing the platform,” Brooks said. “The best way to accomplish this is through rigorous attention to frequency management as well as serving contextually and demographically relevant ads. Netflix knows its audience -- after all, they did create one of the most sophisticated recommendation platforms based on audience interest -- so this should be a real opportunity for them rather than a challenge. I would also imagine that advertisers will be lining up to serve ads on Netflix, so there could be a dent in streaming revenues to competitors.” ■

Netflix said it will work with Microsoft as its global advertising technology partner as the company rolls out an advertising-supported version of its industry-leading streaming service.

“Microsoft has the proven ability to support all our advertising needs as we work together to build a new ad-supported offering,“ Netflix chief operating officer and chief product officer Greg Peters said. “More importantly, Microsoft offered the flexibility to innovate over time on both the technology and sales side, as well as strong privacy protections for our members.”

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“At launch, consumers will have more options to access Netflix’s award-winning content,“ Microsoft president, web experiences Mikhail Parakhin said. “Marketers looking to Microsoft for their advertising needs will have access to the Netflix audience and premium connected TV inventory.

”All ads served on Netflix will be exclusively available through the Microsoft platform,“ Parakhin said. “Today’s announcement also endorses Microsoft’s approach to privacy, which is built on protecting customers’ information.“

After announcing it had lost 200,000 subscribers in the first quarter, sending its stock — and shares in other media companies turning to streaming — tumbling, Netflix looked to assuage Wall Street and reignite its growth with plans to cut down on password-sharing and explore an ad-supported version of its service.

Netflix later indicated it was aiming to start the ad tier by the end of the year.

While it is a leader in streaming technology, building an ad-tech stack from scratch would be an expensive, time-consuming enterprise for Netflix, which instead reached out to partner with companies in the industry. Reports circulated that Netflix was talking to companies including Comcast and Google. 

Not known as a TV ad-industry player, Microsoft recently acquired Xandr, which was AT&T's advanced advertising company when it owned WarnerMedia.

Part of Netflix’s popularity comes from not having ads. But its subscription price has climbed and, as viewers subscribe to more services, they're looking for cheaper alternatives, including ad-supported VOD. 

“It’s very early days and we have much to work through, but our long-term goal is clear: More choice for consumers and a premium, better-than-linear TV brand experience for advertisers,“ Netflix’s Peters said. “We’re excited to work with Microsoft as we bring this new service to life.” 

 Analyst Steven Cahall estimated that Netflix could generate ad revenues of $889 million in 2023, $1.975 billion in 2024 and $2.9 billion in 2025. 

“Netflix  has scale and power: Netflix will eventually deliver more ads than any other company, maybe except for Google and Amazon (and possibly Meta combining Instagram and Facebook),” he said in a report in June.

Creating a lower-priced ad supported tier will also help Netflix rekindle subscriber growth.will be able to increase its subscriber count to 272 million by 2025. Cahall calculates that AVOD will account for 30% of Netflix subscribers at that point. 

Cahall thought Netflix could charge $9.99 a month for the AVOD service, compared to $14.49 for its current ad-free standard tier.

In addition to tech issues, Netflix is reportedly in the process of renegotiating the deals it made for acquired content, giving it rights to sell advertising in the series it dosn’t own. It will also have an issue finding appropriate place to put ads in its originals because they weren’t formatted for commercials.

Tim Vanderhook, CEO of Viant Technology, one of the ad tech companies that had discussions with Netflix, said  Putting its own ad stack would have been difficult for Netflix to do quickly.

Vanderhook, who also co-founded Xumo, one of the first ad supported streaming service (now owned by Comcast) said Netflix needs to ad insertion technology to make sure ads run in the proper place without disruption the program stream and, more importantly, reportng on the back end that tells advertisers where and when their ads ran, who the ads reached and what impact it had. 

“They first need to decide what is the ad format? Are they going to offer 30-second spots or 15-second spots? What are the rules going to be on ad loads,” he said. “They’ree going to be so good at that because they're a product lead consumer-driven company and they're going to be focused on the consumer experience.”

Vanderhook is also bullish that the ad supported version of Netflix will generate substantial subscriber growth, as well as strong levels of revenue per subscriber.

Netflix will be jumping into an ad market showing signs of slowing down. The market will also be getting more crowded with Disney also planning to launch an ad supported version of Disney Plus.

But demand for streaming advertising to connected TVs has been the strongest sector of the market, commanding strong pricing because of the superior addressability offered by streaming ads

“I don't think it's a heavy lift that all marketers want to reach the consumer audience that Netflix has,” Vanderhook said. Especially if its able to put the right ad in front of the right viewer.

Vikrant Mathur, Co-Founder of AVOD publisher Future Today, reacted to the news that Netflix was working with Microsoft by wondering if MIcrosoft would buy Netflix.

“I think it is a huge win for Microsoft. They already have a $10 billion-plusadvertising business and most recently with the acquisition of Xandr they now have a significant presence in the CTV space. Netflix inventory will be the icing on that cake,” Mathur said.

“Assuming this is exclusive, ownership of the Netflix inventory puts Microsoft clearly above any other competitor in the space and very well in control of the $60 billion television advertising market. It would be interesting to see if, over the long term, Netflix builds its own ad stack and capabilities in parallel or simply outsources the job to Microsoft. Is this the first step towards a Microsoft acquisition of Netflix?" ■

The number of media and telecom deals rose about 28% this year, with 1,014 transactions valued at $469 billion, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers. The figures come as Elon Musk’s pending $44 billion takeover of social media giant Twitter and Microsoft’s upcoming purchase of video game maker Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion dominated the landscape.

Media deals were more on the internet and software side, according to PwC, although Amazon agreed to purchase movie studio MGM in March for $8.5 billion. In its Mid-Year Deals Outlook report, PwC Deals Partner Bart Spiegel and Technology, Media and Telecommunications Deals Leader Alan Stephen Jones wrote that M&A “activity has recently slowed among some of the major media companies, after a peak driven by content and technology acquisitions to fuel expansion of streaming services.”

But PwC was optimistic that deal growth will continue in the media and telecom sectors, adding that the volume of activity hasn’t slowed despite inflation and rising interest rates. The research giant added that while the pace of deals may slow, a significant amount of cash remains in the system to get deals done. And as always, “businesses are under pressure to transform; the fastest way to do that is through M&A,” PwC said.

According to PwC, private equity players accounted for a big chunk of transactions — increasing to 42% of deals in the past 12 months from 24% in 2018. All in all, private equity deals represented $194 billion of announced deal value, of which 75% were concentrated in the internet and software sectors, PwC said in the report.

Other key drivers include the demand for sports content, as the combination of streaming, ad sales opportunities, sports gambling and other tailwinds have boosted team and league values. PwC also pointed to huge streaming music content deals for legendary musicians like Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen, as well as the shift to digital advertising and an emphasis on audience targeting and engagement tracking, as catalysts for deals. ■

In a terse announcement, AT&T said it completed the sale of its Xandr ad unit to Microsoft, further removing itself from its failed and costly foray into the media business.

Financial terms were not disclosed, but reports indicated that the price was about $1 billion.

The transaction does not include the advertising sales business of DirecTV, which was spun off by AT&T last year.

AT&T assembled Xandr to be an advanced advertising powerhouse designed to use data about the company‘s huge mobile phone and broadband customer base to sell targeted ads on DirecTV and digital platforms. 

When AT&T subsequently acquired Time Warner, that was supposed to give Xandr more inventory to work with. AT&T wound up spinning off what became WarnerMedia earlier this year to Discovery. 

AT&T paid about $1.5 billion for digital ad-buying platform AppNexus in 2016 and hired Brian Lesser from GroupM, who turned AT&T Advertising into Xandr, with a goal of becoming an advanced-TV powerhouse.

Lesser suddenly left Xandr in 2020 amid management changes at AT&T and WarnerMedia. Other top Xandr executives have also left the company.

When it announced the deal, Microsoft was expected to Xandr to help sell digital ads on several platforms, including its Xbox video game platform.

“With Xandr’s talent and technology, Microsoft can accelerate the delivery of its digital advertising and retail media solutions, shaping tomorrow’s digital ad marketplace into one that respects consumer privacy preferences, understands publishers’ relationships with consumers and helps advertisers meet their goals,“ Mikhail Parakhin, president of web experiences at Microsoft, said last year. ■

At a star-studded NewFront presentation Tuesday, Roku rolled out fresh lifestyle shows being cooked up by Martha Stewart and promised more data for marketers through a partnership with Microsoft.

Roku announced co-production deals with Marquee Brands and Milk Street Studios to develop seven original series starring Stewart, Emeril Lagasse and Christopher Kimball for The Roku Channel. 

Stewart has three shows: Martha Cooks, Martha Gardens and Martha Holidays (working title)   Lagasse has two shows, Emeril Cooks and Emeril Tailgates, in which he’ll travel to NFL cities to find the best pre-game grub.

Kimball is whipping up Milk Street’s Cooking School and MIlk Street’s My Family Recipe.

In addition to the original shows, the deal also brings The Roku Channel library content with shows including Martha Bakes (seasons 1-11), Martha Stewart’s Cooking School (seasons 1-5), Martha Stewart Living (seasons (1-11), Essence of Emeril (seasons 1-11), Emeril Live (season 1-19) and Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Television (seasons 1-5). 

Roku will also be cooking up some fresh data for advertisers with Microsoft. 

“We're excited to announce an industry-first partnership with Microsoft for the first time, you'll see how tv ads, both linear and streaming influence search and online browsing behaviors,” said Dan Robbins VP of Marketing & Partner Solutions at Roku,

He said Roku will be matching data from its streaming platform with Microsoft Audience Intelligence, which is fed by more than 7 billion searches per month via Bing.

“We're shining a light on search  so you can see around marketing corners like never before. And it's all powered by our ad tech stack built for streaming,” Robbins said. 

“We see so many synergies between the two companies and the two of us together. We feel that we can really bring value to the whole ad measurement conundrum,” added Lynne Kjolso, VP of Microsoft’s global advertising business team, speaking via video.

“We know that the lack of ability to consistently measure across channels is a barrier for marketers in really doing cross-channel planning and execution,” Kelso said. “And so we think through our partnership we can help marketers solve that problem and we're going to bring the data and bring a lot of great Insights so that we're no longer acting on assumptions. We really see it in the cold hard facts.”■

The holiday-shortened work week got off to a bang with news that one of the world’s biggest tech companies, Microsoft, wants to buy one of the world’s biggest video-game companies, Activision-Blizzard, in the biggest acquisition by anyone in quite a while.

That Microsoft wants to double down on gaming with a $69 billion deal isn’t surprising. It already has Windows (the dominant operating system for computer games), the Xbox game console, two-dozen development studios, a raft of huge franchises like Halo, and a hugely popular game subscription and streaming service. Adding in the company behind Call of Duty, Overwatch, and Candy Crush makes plenty of business, if not regulatory, sense. 

But what happens if Microsoft also decides to move beyond games and do a Reverse Netflix, which announced a gaming division last summer to extend engagement in its many video offerings? That could create a formidable new player in entertainment with extremely deep pockets, just as it and many other companies edge toward the immersive future of the Metaverse. 

Microsoft has tried to get into traditional entertainment before, a few tech generations ago, hiring notable Hollywood executives and carting them up to Lake Washington to build relationships with the industry. But it’s also had second thoughts about those ventures. 

In fact, one of the first things Satya Nadella did after taking over as Microsoft CEO in 2014 was get out of entertainment, closing the entire Xbox Entertainment Studios team led by former CBS TV Studios President Nancy Tellem as part of thousands of broader layoffs. Nadella’s reasoning then: he wanted to focus on its future in cloud computing (his own area of expertise), and move away from non-core initiatives like video entertainment at a time when Microsoft was struggling. 

That made a lot of sense in 2014, when the streaming industry consisted mostly of early adopters watching Netflix and Hulu running other companies’ old TV series and movies, and the early days of multi-channel networks and the influencer ecosystem at YouTube. 

And Microsoft certainly needed focus after years of lost direction in the latter days of Steve Ballmer’s regime. Nadella’s renewed focus paid off; cloud services is now a huge part of Microsoft’s business (it even provides streaming services to rival Sony), as are enterprise software, immersive technology, and gaming. 

It’s a different moment now, for both Microsoft and for online entertainment of all kinds. 

Streaming is also a huge business, and Microsoft products already entertain hundreds of millions of connected customers and businesses. It may be time for Nadella to reconsider how to further flesh out his company’s many entertainment holdings to keep people using Microsoft products at work and at home. 

Like Apple, Microsoft certainly has the resources to think bigger. 

It’s the world’s second-most valuable company by market capitalization behind Apple, valued at around $2.3 trillion, and has a similarly mammoth pile of cash, as much as $130 billion. Usefully, its Game Pass family of subscription services already have 25 million customers. 

The most expensive version, the Ultimate Game Pass, provides unlimited access to a rotating selection of more than100 games, including AAA new releases, indie titles and all of Electronic Arts’ separate EA Play service, which brings sports titles and more. 

For $15 a month, subscribers can play those games on either Xbox or PC, play them on nearly any connected device through the cloud, and buy them at discounts. Microsoft has even taken to debuting its biggest in-house titles, like the newest version of Halo, on Game Pass the same day they’re available for purchase in stores. 

Game Pass offerings were further bolstered late last year by a previous blockbuster, the $7.5 billion acquisition of ZeniMax, parent of the studio behind franchises such as Doom, Fallout, Wolfenstein, and Elder Scrolls. Game Pass is, by a long way, the best deal in games, and possibly in subscription anything. 

With the Activision-Blizzard acquisition, Microsoft not only would get a passel of big franchises, but access to one of live entertainment’s hottest sectors, esports. 

Activision’s pro leagues for Call of Duty and Overwatch, for instance, provided a blueprint for big, corporate-backed leagues with franchises in cities on three continents and a vast global fan base. If nothing else, adding live and scripted esports programming to Game Pass seems like an obvious opportunity.

One thing is clear: the deal already has put console archrival Sony on its heels. The industry leader had been sitting quite comfortably atop the console world, with demand for the PlayStation 5 still outstripping supply 14 months after its debut. Company coffers have been further plumped by the globe-girdling success of its latest Marvel movie, Spider-Man: No Way Home, with $1.6 billion in box-office gross, eighth all-time. 

Sony shares dropped nearly 13% Tuesday, while most other big gaming stocks went up amid speculation of further deals to come in a sector already seeing record levels of mergers & acquisitions. 

“The bigger worry for Sony investors is how the gigantic deal could shake up the videogame industry writ large. Sony had been leading Microsoft in the console war,” the Wall Street Journal suggested, speculating on what might happen to the PS5 if Activision titles become Xbox exclusives. “A better content library might push more gamers toward Xbox.”

Sony issued a rather tepid response to the deal, saying it expected Microsoft to honor Activision distribution deals on PlayStation, something Microsoft game chief Phil Spencer had already said the company would do. 

But if you really want to ruin the day for Sony execs Kenichiro Yoshida and Tony Vinciquerra, tell ‘em Microsoft is getting into video. 

Technically, it’s already partway there. That Xbox connected to your living room TV already has access to apps from just about all the major and mid-major streaming services, with the technical chops to show everyone’s programming at its best, plus access to all those games. 

For all the splash of the Activision deal, though, its approval isn’t certain by any means, nor is a move into video entertainment. 

Microsoft’s announcement came within hours of one from antitrust hawks in the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice. The two regulatory bodies jointly launched a public review of ways to clamp down on big mergers, especially in digital markets (this means you too, Warner Bros. Discovery and Amazon-MGM). 

“Illegal mergers can inflict a host of harms, from higher prices and lower wages to diminished opportunity, reduced innovation, and less resiliency,” said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan. “This inquiry launched by the FTC and DOJ is designed to ensure that our merger guidelines accurately reflect modern market realities and equip us to forcefully enforce the law against unlawful deals.” 

And not every tech giant is persuaded of the value of original video shows, either. 

Alphabet’s YouTube may be the world’s biggest ad-supported video service, but this week backed off its six-year experiment in original programming, to focus on live shopping and Shorts, its clone of short-form video king TikTok. 

Susanne Daniels, who headed original programming for YouTube, is departing the company, though YouTube will continue to honor funding commitments for children’s and Black creators and programming, for now. 

Is Alphabet ’s original-programming pullback an object lesson for Microsoft about the limits of expensive original programming? Possibly.  

The question is whether Microsoft and Nadella will follow the path of Apple and Netflix, diving into other forms of subscription entertainment. Or will they note the lessons of their own past and that of YouTube, and stay out? 

On this, much nervousness at Sony and across Hollywood may depend.

In the wake of a report in The New York Times on a website that provides instrucctions and support for people contemplating suicide, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) wants the major search engines to remove the site from their search results.

“We are in the midst of a mental health crisis, particularly among young people,” Blumenthal wrote in letters to Google and Microsoft’s Bing. “By providing instructions and social pressure, the site is helping to fuel this crisis and is directly culpable for the deaths of many young people.”

Blumenthal has been one of the big critics of Big Tech companies for how they moderate content on their site. He’s among the lawmakers threatening to remove or weaken social media sites’ exemption from civil liability under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act for most third-party content on their platforms, particularly if they don't use power to pre-empt dangerous content.

Also: House E&C Leaders Seek Meetings About Suicide Website

Blumenthal cited the Times story’s assertion that while both platforms had been asked to “steer people away from the website” — which is actually a step further than just not showing it among the results — they have declined to do so. The senator said the companies have not only the ability but the legal authority to do so given the “Good Samaritan” provision of Section 230, which allows companies to take actions to limit protected speech.

“Congress made clear its intent for companies like Google to act as Good Samaritan managers of their platforms, not to shield it from its obligations to protect vulnerable communities," the senator said.

AT&T said Tuesday that it had found a buyer for its programmatic advertising unit Xandr in the form of software giant Microsoft, for an undisclosed sum.

Xandr was created after AT&T bought ad company AppNexus for $1.6 billion in 2018 and combined it with existing ad-tech operations. AT&T renamed the advertising unit  Xandr after its founder Alexander Graham Bell. 

Although AT&T said it would keep Xandr after the merger of its WarnerMedia Group with Discovery, speculation has been high that the ad business was on the block.  The unit had been on the block even before AT&T's surprise decision in May to spin off its WarnerMedia unit and merge it with Discovery Inc., a transaction that is still on the way to closing. Last year, Xandr CEO Brian Lesser and other senior executives left the company, and the unit's platform and media assets were split up, with the media assets merged into WarnerMedia. 

AT&T in February also sold a minority stake in its satellite-TV business, DirecTV, to TPG, pivoting toward streaming and further away from traditional pay TV. 

“Microsoft’s shared vision of empowering a free and open web and championing an open industry alternative via a global advertising marketplace makes it a great fit for Xandr. We look forward to using our innovative platform to help accelerate Microsoft’s digital advertising and retail media capabilities,” said Xandr’s EVP and GM Mike Welch in a press release.

The transaction is subject to closing conditions and regulatory reviews. Microsoft is expected to use Xandr’s technology to complement its current advertising offerings.

“With Xandr’s talent and technology, Microsoft can accelerate the delivery of its digital advertising and retail media solutions, shaping tomorrow’s digital ad marketplace into one that respects consumer privacy preferences, understands publishers’ relationships with consumers and helps advertisers meet their goals,“ said Microsoft president of Web Experiences Mikhail Parakhin in a press release. ■

Cable broadband operators represented by NCTA-the Internet & Television Association, are no fans of the Biden Administration's new broadband mapping tool, which was unveiled by the National Telecommunications & Information Administration last week.

NTIA billed it as the first interactive map showing "key indicators of broadband needs across the country," combining data from different public and private sources aggregated at the county, census track and census block levels.

The goal said NTIA is to "illustrate the reality that communities experience when going online, with many parts of the country reporting speeds that fall below the FCC’s current benchmark for fixed broadband service of 25 Mbps download, 3 Mbps upload."

But NCTA said the picture is far from reality.

Also Read: FCC, NTIA Team on Spectrum Research

“NCTA has long supported federal efforts to create a reliable, accurate broadband map and we have been working with the FCC on its implementation of the Broadband Data Act," the NCTA said. "Unfortunately NTIA has obscured, rather than clarified, the true state of broadband with this mashup of disparate, and often inaccurate, data sources. In particular, any suggestion that data from M-Lab or Microsoft accurately represents the speeds delivered by cable operators is demonstrably false.”

Richard Bennett, founder of High Tech Forum, said that while the map has some value for digital inclusion activists, it tried "to do too many things," and agrees with NCTA that the M-Lab and Microsoft data are unhelpful.

"Overall, I suspect the Indicators of Broadband Needs tool will further confuse the digital divide debate by introducing bad data to a wider audience," said Bennett.

He said the data doesn't answer questions of how to reach communities with limited interest or ability to use broadband, not because it is a bad map but because the data is already out of date.

Bennett said the digital divide is actually two divides. In unserved areas, nobody can buy high quality at any price, which is a civil engineering problem that Congress loves because the answer is to throw money at it. The other divide, and the bigger problem, is that "for every one person who can’t buy broadband there are two unconnected people who could get it today if they had the means and the interest to do so," he said.

That is a social problem, said Bennett, which Congress hates because it is "messy and complicated."

Microsoft had not responded to a request for comment at press time. M-Lab was not reachable for comment.

Broadcasters joining the call for the FCC to start assessing its regulatory fees on Big Tech — computer companies, streamers, and other edge providers — saying they should not have to pay for computer company efforts — Microsoft in particular — to "degrade" their service.

In comments to the FCC on its proposed fees for fiscal year 2021, the National Association of Broadcasters said that the base of payors should be expanded to include unlicensed spectrum users that also take up a "substantial" amount of FCC resources but don't have to pay for the privilege.

The FCC supports itself through annual user fees levied on broadcasters and cable operators and satellite operators and their use of licensed spectrum. The fee is calculated according to how many full time employees (FTEs) are employed to regulate the various services.

Also Read: NAB Brands Airband Initiative Failed Science Project

NAB has been arguing that the FCC has boosted their fees to "unsustainable levels," in part thanks to its decision to require broadcasters to pay for some of the added funding Congress has said the FCC needs to use to create better broadband maps. Yet Big Tech companies that will benefit from those maps pay nothing.

NAB told the FCC this week it should be reaching into the deep pockets of computer companies for money. It pointed to broadcasters' long-standing battle with Microsoft over the latter's use of the broadcast band's so-called white spaces to deliver wireless broadband, but said others should be paying their own way as well. Microsoft this week expanded that primarily rural broadband effort to large cities.

Microsoft wants the FCC to allow it to use spectrum closer to broadcasters, while broadcasters say that runs a risk of interfering with its signals just as it is rolling out NextGen TV.

"Microsoft is using significant resources of the Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) to urge the Commission to adopt further rule changes that will increase the risk of interference to television broadcasters to support its 'Airband Initiative,'" NAB told the FCC, and "only months after the FCC adopted earlier rule changes that benefit this technology. Microsoft is also seeking to overturn rules the Commission recently adopted to further the deployment of Next Generation TV services that will enhance service to television viewers. Yet despite the substantial Commission resources Microsoft and other unlicensed users utilize in these and other proceedings for their benefit, they pay absolutely nothing in regulatory fees to support the work of OET or the Commission generally, while Media Bureau regulatees pay for over 36% of the Commission’s costs."

NAB was focused on Microsoft, but said that Google, Apple, Facebook reap the benefits of commission activities as well. 

FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr recently called for the FCC to start making Big Tech contribute some money to the universal broadband effort the government is subsidizing with billions of dollars in tax money. "NAB agrees with Commissioner Carr’s recent call for the Commission to finally stop allowing Big Tech companies, many of which generated over $1 trillion in revenue in 2020 alone, to free ride on the Commission’s activities," the association said.

Even as Microsoft is trying to convince the FCC to expand the broadcast band channels it wants to use for broadband, it has announced an expansion of its Airband initiative, which has been targeted to closing the rural digital divide to eight of the largest U.S. cities.

The computer giant said they are among those facing the largest digital divides for Black, African American, Latinx, and Hispanic communities, essentially tying the Airband initiative to closing the racial inequity divide as part of its Racial Equity Initiative.

The cities are Atlanta, Detroit, Cleveland, El Paso, Los Angeles, Memphis, Milwaukee, and New York.

For example, Microsoft is working with Starry Inc. in Los Angeles to provide "affordable broadband" to four affordable housing communities.

It is providing free and low-cost refurbished devices to racial and ethnic minorities in all those cities.

And if the link to its FCC efforts were not clear, Microsoft tied the announcement to what it said is updated research showing that 120 million-plus people still don't use the internet at "broadband speeds,"* almost 10 times the 14.5 million figure the FCC said don't have access to broadband.

The company is also pushing for better broadband mapping for the billions in subsidy funds already allocated by Congress and as much as $100 billion more in President Biden's American Jobs Plan package, as well as a technology neutral approach that could include subsidizing fiber, satellite and a number of fixed wireless approaches. It also wants any of those to have to meet an updated high-speed definition from the FCC.  It also suggests that preference be given to wireless solutions--like Airband. "History has taught us that technologies are deployed at different speeds, with wireless technologies like mobile phones seeing faster deployment than wireline technologies," said Vickie Robinson, GM of the Airband initiative.

Microsoft said these city pilot programs won't solve the problem by themselves. "We need systemic change to solve a systemic problem and that requires the federal and state governments to act to permanently address the digital divide," Robinson said in a blog post Tuesday (June 2). "That’s why we’re using our voice and resources to push for policy change and funding at the federal, state and local levels. Only by working with stakeholders at all levels –  federal, state and local agencies; corporate, philanthropic and nonprofit partners; and community leaders –  will we be able to close the digital divide.

Microsoft's Airband initiative launched in 2017, but broadcasters pushing back against the computer company's efforts to expand service closer to the channels broadcasters use call it failed science fair project.

*The FCC's high-speed definition of 25 Mbps download, 3 Mbps upload.

National Association of Broadcasters deputy general counsel Patrick McFadden has fired back at computer giant Microsoft after the latter petitioned the FCC to change a ruling allowing broadcasters to expand the reach of their new ATSC 3.0 Next Gen TV transmission standard. 

In a blog post Tuesday (May 25), McFadden took aim at Microsoft's Airband initiative, the tech company’s effort to use the unlicensed so-called white spaces between TV channels. Microsoft argued that allowing broadcasters to expand their reach via distributed transmission systems (DTS) would hurt Airband by reducing the available broadcast spectrum for unlicensed use.

Also Read: NAB Tells FCC No More Handouts for Failing Experiment 

In its running battle with Microsoft over use of the airwaves, NAB has already argued that using white spaces for broadband is already something of a history of a campaign that failed and McFadden tried to put an exclamation point on that argument after Microsoft's petition. 

He pointed out that Microsoft has already been urging the FCC to change the white spaces rules to allow for use of channels closer to those of TV stations, which NAB argues will increase potential interference. "Even more remarkably," he wrote, "they are also seeking to overturn rules the Commission recently adopted to further the deployment of Next Generation TV services and improve service to television viewers, effectively constraining broadcasters from offering services broadcasters are actually currently deploying [in order] to protect Microsoft’s ability to offer theoretical services. (At some point. Maybe.)" 

Also Read: Tech Groups Say Signal Spill-Over Should Be Deemed Unlicensed 

The number of FCC filings from Microsoft and its allies will soon top the number of functioning white spaces devices (about 800, NAB said), McFadden quipped, then added: "At some point, preferably before we dedicate more regulatory time and energy to this particular science fair project (and let’s not forget that companies like Microsoft pay zero regulatory fees to the FCC), it would be nice to see something — anything really — come of the Commission’s previous efforts."

Microsoft has asked the FCC to reverse its decision, made under then chairman Ajit Pai, to allow broadcaster signals from distributed transmission systems to go "significantly" beyond a station's current authorized service area as those broadcasters roll out their Next Gen TV broadcast transmission standard.

Microsoft told the FCC in its petition that the commission should change course from its "unfortunate misstep" and, instead, adopt an "expedited" waiver policy for stations that want to exceed current signal spillover by more than a small amount.

Broadcasters have been squaring off at the FCC with powerful computer companies over the issue of DTS, arrays of smaller antennas that broadcasters want to deploy to expand their coverage. Computer companies led by Microsoft are opposed because that could reduce the amount of broadcast “white spaces” spectrum they use to deliver wireless broadband to rural areas.

Also Read: NAB Says No More Handouts for Failing White Spaces Experiment

But in its official petition for reconsideration, Microsoft also said that the FCC essentially messed up, basing its decision on "incorrect and inconsistent" assertions.

Broadcasters argued that extending their reach through DTS is a public interest use of the licensed spectrum, and that unlicensed white spaces users must always give the right of way to licensed use, a point they made to the FCC. They said viewers will benefit from better coverage at the edges of their service areas and that the spillover beyond a station’s current service area is the unavoidable result of that public-interest benefit.

Also Read: FCC Gets Pushback on DTS Item

In meetings with FCC staffers, Microsoft executives suggested expanding DTS was a way to expand into broadband using licenses not granted for that purpose. 

They argued against DTS rule changes, saying that broadcasters could try to get individual waivers to extend DTS, but that allowing broad expansion would create a more seamless broadcast internet coverage footprint into an adjacent community “without commission assignment of spectrum for that purpose, as is required.”  

Also Read: Tech Groups Say Signal Spill-Over Should Be Deemed Unlicensed

Bottom line, said the computer giant, the FCC order "worsens an already-unfavorable environment for TVWS deployment, is internally inconsistent, and fails to address significant issues."

The National Association of Broadcasters took the gloves off in a recent meeting with FCC engineering staffers over TV white spaces (TVWS) -- the use of broadcast spectrum for unlicensed uses like wireless broadband -- calling it a failing experiment.

Microsoft has been pushing the FCC to allow unlicensed devices operating in the TV band to do so closer to existing TV channels, but NAB told the engineering staffers in a meeting last week that the computer company's proposal on how to determine if a channel is available for unlicensed use is disingenuous and in service of white spaces deployments whose success has been "grossly exaggerated."

The FCC voted last year on a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking freeing up more "white spaces" spectrum between TV channels for wireless broadband by allowing for taller towers and higher powers for mobile and fixed wireless so signals can reach farther and over more difficult terrain. But it sought further comment on changing the interference calculation as Microsoft had wanted.

Also Read: NAB, Microsoft Spar Over TVWS

While NAB and Microsoft struck a compromise on some updates to TVWS pushed by the latter, NAB has balked at changing how the FCC calculates sufficient interference protections, particularly if it means allowing use on the first channel adjacent to broadcasters, saying that Microsoft's proposal is too close for comfort and a recipe for interference just as broadcasters are trying to roll out the new ATSC 3.0 transmission standard that could make them a broadband player as well as delivering ultra high-definition pictures and interactive content.

Microsoft has been telling the FCC that it can use a "terrain-based" approach to determining if unlicensed use is going to interfere with a TV channel rather than the "current overly-conservative distance-based protection" approach. 

But in the May 5 meeting, NAB execs said that Microsoft has failed to demonstrate that its proposal will not create potentially harmful interference, referencing a limited test with a professional grade receiver, limited testing NAB calls Microsoft's reliance on "disingenuous."

Microsoft's reference to the success of TV white spaces devices to date -- the computer company has billed TVWS as a route to closing the rural broadband divide  -- as "grossly exaggerated," with backers of TVWS (it does not call out Microsoft by name in the FCC document describing the meeting)--referencing expanded deployments "that do not appear to exist."

Also Read: Pai Says Broadcasters Need to Accept TV Study Software

"There are just over 300 TVWS devices operating nationwide, more than a dozen years after the Commission authorized unlicensed operations in the television bands and despite multiple attempts to boost deployment of this technology. It is unclear how ongoing rulemakings dedicated to a failing experiment that has never achieved measurable success represent a sound use of Commission resources," NAB execs told the commission.

Pointing out its compromise with Microsoft on other TVWS issues, NAB signaled it was about done.

"It it is long past time for the Commission to stop tinkering with its rules to boost a technology that has no demonstrated track record of success," says NAB deputy general counsel Patrick McFadden in the ex parte document describing the meeting. "At some point, white spaces proponents should be asked to actually accomplish something before asking for further handouts." 

Broadcasters are telling the FCC that using a popular method of determining signal reach could undo the good work the commission has done to help them better serve the public.

It is the latest volley in the battle between broadcasters and computer companies--specifically Microsoft--over opening up the TV band for more unlicensed (so-called TV white spaces, or TVWS) broadband use. 

That volley came in comments by the National Association of Broadcasters to the FCC this week on a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) approved last October.

The FCC voted in October to open TV white spaces to higher powered wireless devices, saying it could do so while protecting those TV signals from potential interference. That item, which was approved unanimously, was based on a petition by Microsoft for more spectrum and an agreement between the computer company and NAB on how to do that while protecting incumbent broadcasters.

But the FCC also approved the FNPRM, which sought input on how to determine where Microsoft and others could use the spectrum without interfering with broadcasters. Microsoft suggests using the familiar Longley-Rice terrain-based model. NAB said definitely not. 

That is the model the FCC used to determine coverage areas in repacking TV stations after the broadcast incentive auction. Broadcasters weren't so happy with its use in updated form there, either.

The FCC currently defines white spaces in reference to a station’s protected contour. Microsoft said Longley-Rice will provide a more accurate picture of where available channels are. NAB said it definitely won't. It argues the model has an unacceptably high error rate.

In comments filed this week, the association said using that terrain-based propagation model, with its high error rate, would lead to "harmful interference to television service in pursuit of marginal, and likely illusory, gains in spectrum efficiency.

It suggests the Longley-Rice predictive model is not nimble enough to account for differences in seasonal foliage or atmospheric conditions, or individual antennal performance characteristics, and so will wind up allowing TVWS operations that cause interference. Plus, it said, getting that more precise information on which to predict channel availability is a nonstarter because "there is no remotely accurate way of determining the precise location of individual television receivers that might allow for more granular determinations of coverage."

NAB also argues that the commission doesn't want to reverse the gains it has made toward a more robust broadcast service, including allowing for greater flexibility in the use of distributed transmission systems and authorizing deployment of ATSC 3.0, so-called Next Gen TV. Combined with the changes the FCC has already made, per that Microsoft/NAB agreement, to authorize higher power TV white spaces devices, greater antenna heights and more, NAB said this is exactly the wrong time to change the way the FCC determines channel availability, "risk[ing] more interference in the very areas where television coverage is already challenging at the very moment when broadcasters are trying to improve it."

Dish Network chairman Charlie Ergen told analysts Monday that its much awaited wireless service is expected to launch in its first major market in Q3, adding that the satellite giant doesn’t necessarily need a strategic partner to help it build what he said is going to be a state-of-the-art 5G network.

Dish has been accumulating spectrum and finalizing plans to build out its wireless system -- it forged a deal with T-Mobile in 2019 where it will pay $3.6 billion over three years for 800MHz spectrum -- and Ergen said its first major market should go live in the third quarter. He didn’t name the city, only to say it will be an NFL market. 

Also Read: Ergen: We Stumbled with Sling TV 

Ergen also put the kibosh on speculation as to who Dish’s strategic partner in the wireless venture will be. Early on, the Dish chairman speculated that he would need a deep-pocketed partner -- some had speculated it would be Amazon -- to help him build out the service. Now, fresh off a convertible notes offering in December that raised $2 billion, and with about $4 billion in cash on its balance sheet, Ergen said Dish has the funding he needs. He likened the company’s current situation to the early days of the satellite TV business. 

“I think we always thought we might need a strategic partner when we didn’t have any capital,” Ergen said, referring to the early days of Dish’s satellite business. But just like that time, he said once the company’s vision became clear, and it began to hit execution milestones, that partner was no longer needed.

Also Read: Dish Loses 133,000 Subs But 4Q Earnings Increase 

“Ultimately, we got confident enough and good enough in what we were doing, that it just made sense to keep the equity,” Ergen continued. “And it didn’t make sense to give up the equity. I think we’re probably in a similar situation today, in the sense that we do have enough capital on our balance sheet today to build our network.”

In the past, Ergen had estimated that its wireless network would cost about $10 billion to build, although some analysts have said that figure may be dangerously low. 

Although Dish may not need a partner to get its wireless service off the ground, it will likely need one after its launches have passed the test phase. Ergen said that already Dish has enlisted tower companies as partners and has other companies in the pipeline. The company has said earlier that one of its next steps would be in seeking out an agreement with a cloud provider like Oracle, Microsoft or Amazon.  While that decision hasn’t been made yet, Ergen said the network’s cloud provider has to be “best in class technically” and there are several vendors that can live up to that criteria. Later, EVP of corporate development Tom Cullen, said “We clearly expect our cloud partner will have to bring a go-to-market component to the relationship.” 

Dish’s wireless network will utilize Open Radio Access Network (ORAN) architecture, which Ergen said allows for more flexibility, lower costs and the network slicing capabilities of its cloud-native technology should be attractive to enterprise business customers.

“So they can have what looks like their own network, and they get access to the data in the cloud where they can actually use that data to make a better product,  a less expensive product and a safer product,” Ergen said. 

Ergen said he isn’t expecting the first market launch for the wireless product to go without a hitch. Like most new rollouts, he expects some glitches, but added Dish will work quickly to iron out any bugs by the time the next market goes live. Dish is up against federal deadlines to have about 20% of the country covered by June 2022, and 70% by June of 2023. 

“We’re not going to be running on our first city, we’ll be crawling,” Ergen said. “And hopefully we’ll be walking by the end of the year.”

At the same time, Dish will be facing a big shakeup in its Boost prepaid wireless business. In its 10-K annual report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Dish noted that it has been informed by T-Mobile that it will discontinue its CDMA network on Jan. 1, 2022. Dish said the majority of Boost customers ride on the T-Mobile CDMA network, meaning that once the network is shutdown, Dish will have to provide a huge number of customers with new devices. On the call, Ergen doubted that could be done.

Ergen said that most Boost customers are “economically challenged” and having to upgrade from one phone that works on the CDMA network to another phone that works on a different network, could be a burden. In addition, that new phone wouldn’t work on Dish’s new network, because it is 5G. 

“If you run the numbers on that, and there would be significant fallout in my opinion,” Ergen said. “The second thing is, I don't even think we could get the supply of the phones we would need. You can’t order phones and not know that you could move the phones, and the supply is somewhat limited of the phones we would need for that.”

On the positive side, he said the Boost team  has shown that they can turn around things in a short period of time. Later, he hinted that there may be a regulatory solution. 

Asked later if he had contacted the Federal Communications Commission about T-Mobile’s CDMA shutdown, Ergen said he hadn’t spoken to the agency personally, but it is possible one of his staff may have. He added he believed T-Mobile’s decision to discontinue the CDMA service is anti-competitive.

“I can’t speak to the motivations,” Ergen said. “But what we can say is that one of the beneficiaries of a premature turn off of the CDMA network would be T-Mobile.” 

With an appropriate emphasis on broadband – especially 5G wireless technology – along with a timely focus on cybersecurity, streaming media and an expanded examination of content, the first-ever all-virtual CES 2021 is ready to roll next month. 

The Consumer Technology Association, producer of the electronic extravaganza, which is usually held in Las Vegas in early January, is still cobbling together details for the Jan. 11-14 online convention. It has not yet revealed details, for example, of its public policy program, which usually features top FCC, FTC, Transportation Department and Congressional officials and staff members.

However, in keeping with the current developments in cybersecurity – such as the alleged foreign hacking of U.S. government and corporate networks – CTA just announced a keynote presentation by Microsoft President Brad Smith, who has been a highly visible spokesman during recent weeks discussing the digital intrusion; Smith has also been Microsoft’s face for its push to convince the FCC to allocate broadcast white spaces for a “Rural Broadband Initiative.” 

Other cybersecurity speakers will include Damien Kieran, Twitter’s chief privacy officer, Keith Enright, Google’s chief privacy officer and Anne Toth, director-Alexa Trust at Amazon.

Verizon Chairman and CEO Hans Vestberg will deliver the CES 2021 kickoff keynote address, discussing 5G as the framework of the 21st century. Other sessions include “Broadband for All,” “Connected Cities” (examining smart cities, a favorite CTA objective) plus detailed sessions about 5G and mobile communications.

 Karen Chupka, CTA’s Executive VP, CES, calls “CES the hub for 5G” and characterizes 5G as “driving innovation.”

On the content front, Ann Sarnoff, chair/CEO of WarnerMedia Studios and Networks Group has just joined the CES line-up. On a separate program, iHeartMedia will run a conference session on how technology is enabling talent to continue to create and introduce music and immersive experiences during the pandemic. Ryan Seacrest (producer and on-air host) will run the session, which will include a “fireside chat” with singer/songwriter Dua Lipa and a special performance by Billie Eilish.

The “C Space” track of conference sessions will examine content development from both the advertiser/marketer viewpoint as well as “next-gen” consumers.

Also Read: CES 2021, a Work in Progress, Explores How Tech Is Reshaping Post-Pandemic World

Chupka along with CTA President/CEO Gary Shapiro and Jean Foster, senior VP of marketing and communications, explained the design of CES 2021, at an online news conference in mid-December. Microsoft has created the platform which will enable virtual booth visits, private meetings and a simulation of random corridor encounters. The “live” on-demand conference sessions and booth visits will be available from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET daily. Recorded versions will remain available through Feb. 15.  Both time frames give global visitors more time to check out the array of CES “digital activations,” according to Foster.

Instead of bumping into friends in the convention center or hotel corridors and aisles, CTA and Microsoft said they have set up an attendee directory which will enable random encounters in hallways that are comparable to the live environment. In addition, the entire platform will be searchable by keywords.

The CES program will be produced as a combination of live and pre-recorded presentations, many of them to be produced during the coming week to make them as timely as possible before “show dates.” Using automated and real-time translation systems, the presentations will be available in 16 languages, including American Sign Language.

The CTA leadership team continually encouraged “early registration” (until Jan. 3).  The flat fee to attend all CES 2021 programs (including about 100 conference sessions plus access to exhibits and private meeting rooms) is $149, which will go up to $499.

No Sore Feet, But Scaled-Back Event

Reflecting the online environment, most CES sessions will be much shorter than at in-person events – often about 20 to 30 minutes long, even for panel discussions. 

CTA seems to be adjusting the expected turnout for the scaled-down virtual event.  Shortly after announcing initial plans, the association indicated that the online programs would attract about 150,000 attendees and 1,500 exhibitors (both numbers significantly smaller than the 180,000 and 4,500 comparables last January).

Recent announcements suggest about 100,000 virtual visitors and “more than 1,000” exhibitors.

The agenda calls for Monday Jan. 11 as a Media Day for reporters to receive new product briefings from about two dozen exhibitors. Virtual exhibits and conference sessions will be spread out over Tuesday through Thursday (Jan. 12-14) and most videos will remain available on-demand through Feb. 15.

The CES package will feature a live anchor desk with four tech journalists operating a “central command” to help attendees navigate the digital experience, hear the latest news and watch interviews.  The featured anchors are Justine Ezarik (iJustine), host and tech content creator; Rich DeMuro, tech reporter for KTLA-TV/Los Angeles; Naomi Kyle, actress, producer and host of Star Trek’s The Ready Room on CBS; and Brian Tong, tech host and content creator.

CTA said it made a “seven-figure investment” to develop the platform, which includes artificial/mixed reality components.   

“We wanted to invest in the value of the connections,” Chupka explained.  “You will see artificial intelligence enabling the platform, including streaming videos. We really wanted this to be an easy user experience, so we didn’t go into the technology that would be interesting to see” but may have been confusing.

Looking toward 2022, Shapiro predicted that “We’ll go back to Las Vegas,” but he also expects CES will continue as a hybrid digital event.

“The pandemic has demonstrated value of tech, especially broadband – not just for home office but for everything in your home that has to do with technology,” Shapiro said. During the video briefing session, he made several references to the need to develop public policies to support broadband, citing the nature of smart cities.

Shapiro acknowledged that this first effort “won’t be the best possible [but] we’ll learn from it. 

Exhibitors for CES 2021 include tech giants such as Canon, Hisense, Intel, Lenovo, LG Electronics, Panasonic, Philips, Sony, Samsung Electronics, TCL and Voxx, as well as non-traditional tech companies including Bridgestone, Caterpillar, Indy Autonomous Challenge, John Deere, L’Oréal and Procter & Gamble.

Disclosure:  I have been a paid consultant, managing CES programs for several years; I have no involvement in the CES 2021 agenda.

Microsoft, which just deployed the next generation of its Xbox gaming console, is looking to virtualize the Xbox platform on smart TVs.

Speaking to The Verge, Phil Spencer, executive VP of gaming for Microsoft, said an Xbox app for smart TVs should become available within the next year. 

Microsoft already has an Xbox app for PCs and mobile devices, which lets users play cloud-based games via the company’s xCloud streaming service. 

In addition to an app, Spencer has also recently mentioned the possibility of Microsoft deploying an Xbox HDMI dongle as a means of making the living-room set a device for cloud-based gaming. 

With the release of its latest Xbox iteration earlier this month, Microsoft is segmenting between serious and casual gamers, delivering the high-horsepower Series X console to the former and the lighter, cheaper Series S to the latter. A gaming app that runs on the limited computer power of smart TVs would probably compete for the Series S market. 

Migration of a significant portion of the casual gaming audience away from consoles would impact the competitive connected-TV market. According to Q3 data compiled by Conviva, gaming consoles account for around 10% of connected TV viewing, with the Xbox and Sony PlayStation consoles somewhat evenly split in terms of consumption. 

Given that many of these console owners are also using their device to stream Netflix, Hulu, Disney Plus and other OTT services, replacing consoles with gaming apps would drive these users to other connected-TV platforms. 

Microsoft, which just deployed the next generation of its Xbox gaming console, is also looking to virtualize the Xbox platform on smart TVs.

Speaking to The Verge, Phil Spencer, executive VP of gaming for Microsoft, said an Xbox app for smart TVs should become available within the next year. 

“I don’t think anything is going to stop us from doing that," Spencer said.

Also read: Sony and Microsoft Launch the Future of Gaming Consoles This Week

Microsoft already has an Xbox app for PCs and mobile devices, which lets users play cloud-based games via the company’s XCloud streaming service. Microsoft would be simply extending xCloud to another device category. 

But Microsoft might not use an app to do this with smart TVs. Spencer has also recently mentioned the possibility of Microsoft deploying an Xbox HDMI dongle as a means of making the living-room set a device for cloud-based gaming. 

With the release of its latest Xbox iteration earlier this month, Microsoft is segmenting between serious and casual gamers, delivering the high horsepower Series X version for the former, and the lighter, cheaper Series S to the latter. A gaming app that runs on the limited computer power of smart TVs would probably compete for the Series S market. 

Migration of a significant portion of the casual gaming audience away from consoles would impact the competitive connected TV market. According to Q3 data compiled by research company Conviva, gaming consoles account for around 10% of connected TV viewing time, with the Xbox and Sony PlayStation consoles somewhat evenly split in terms of consumption. 

Given that many of these console owners are also using their device to stream Netflix, Hulu, Disney Plus and other OTT services, replacing consoles with apps would drive these users to other connected TV hardware platforms. 

This week, Sony and Microsoft are both launching their first completely new game consoles in seven years. Though the consoles promise to transform gaming for a new generation, that likely won’t happen for a while, given the relative dearth of hot new launch titles available this week. 

But the consoles do promise to also sell a lot of high-end monitors and solid-state storage drives, give streaming services potentially huge new distribution opportunities, and provide perhaps the first substantial reason for households to buy an even better 4K TV, capable of the kind of high-frame-rate smoothness that could tickle Peter Jackson’s most ambitious technical fancy. 

Those changes began Tuesday, with Xbox releasing its flagship Xbox Series X and low-cost Series S consoles, to be followed Thursday by two flavors of the PlayStation 5, with and without a disc drive. 

Also read: Microsoft to Debut Next-Gen Xbox Consoles Nov. 10

In some key ways, the consoles will be relatively similar: To deliver multiplayer games, online commerce, streaming video and internet connectivity, both will rely on Microsoft’s Azure cloud backbone (in a landmark deal between bitter rivals second perhaps only to Richard Nixon going to China). 

Both companies’ machines will offer app-based access to high-quality streams from big video and audio services such as Apple’s TV Plus, ViacomCBS’ Pluto, Fox’s Tubi, and Disney’s Hulu.

Both companies’ consoles will deliver much better video quality, up to 4K resolution with six times the refresh rate of a standard HD screen. The $300 Xbox Series S is something of an outlier: it costs less, has no hard drive, is far smaller physically, and maxes out at 1440K resolution, still good enough for tens of millions of TV screens in use today. 

But that refresh rate on the flagship consoles can look awesome, should you have the monitor or TV screen to actually showcase it. The problem: 4K screens designed to run games at up to 144 Hz, like LG's $1,400 CX TV, aren’t cheap, nor are they common. 

The same can be said of smaller desk-top monitors capable of those kinds of specs. A 27-inch, 4K monitor capable of up 144-Hz refresh rates typically runs around $1,000, which is hard to justify for all but the hardest-core PC gamers. With the new consoles, however, a number of manufacturers are jumping in with lower-cost, high-refresh-rate entries, and with 32-inch screens to boot, PC Gamer notes. 

Expect the new consoles, and games that push their specs, to help drive broader interest in high-end monitors that could affect all of entertainment.

Microsoft and Sony also tout their console’s use of expandable SSD storage to dramatically speed up the traditionally interminable process of starting up and changing scenes in huge games. Faster storage is not sexy, in any imaginable way, but for frequent gamers, it represents a substantial improvement in quality of life. 

The real differentiator between the two sides this time around, however, has less to do with specs and far more with sensibility. 

Sony is, perhaps understandably, sticking with the hit-driven exclusives that have made PlayStation the dominant game platform of the last quarter century.  Even where it’s sharing a title with PCs, Xboxes and other platforms, Sony often will secure an exclusive window or content to make the game a bit more its own. 

By contrast, Microsoft is finally embracing one area where it has competitive advantage: being the maker not just of the Xbox platform but also the software that runs thousands of PC-based games, including most of those used in esports competitions around the planet. 

The company’s Game Pass service—which provides cross-platform, free access to a huge library of good games for $15 a month—moves Xbox away from a hit-driven focus and more into the camp of games-as-a-service. Game Pass is a bargain for most gamers, and faces no equal (for now) on the PlayStation 5 side. 

More importantly, it updates Xbox for a cloud-gaming era where customers want to play a favored title on whatever device they have, wherever they may be, with friends who may be using different devices. 

For those less enamored with the cloud-service approach, several big game franchises are arriving this week, including Ubisoft’s next Assassin’s Creed (Valhalla), Activision Blizzard’s next Call of Duty (Black Ops Cold War), and a significant revamp of Bungie’s Destiny 2. 

But lots of other titles aren’t yet ready to launch. Microsoft won’t have the next version of Halo, which almost single-handedly made the original Xbox relevant to gamers two decades ago. It won’t arrive until next year, presumably in time to notably goose sales of this Xbox. 

And CD Projekt Red’s hotly awaited Cyberpunk 2077 has been pushed back to December, a victim of the challenges of creating a game for nine platforms, including the new and old consoles.  

More generally, it’s clear Microsoft has learned a few lessons since its disastrous launch of the predecessor Xbox One in 2013. 

For one thing, this time Microsoft has stripped away whiz-bang peripherals like the Kinect camera that could detect a player’s movements, mood and level of excitement. The tech was cool on the one hand, but also deeply creepy, and boosted the systems’ cost $100, making it uncompetitive with the PS4 in the decisive first months of that generation’s availability. Xbox One never recovered, selling about half as many units as the PlayStation 4 over the time since.

Microsoft has also updated a notoriously clunky interface, which should make it more useful for those trying to find their games, channels and other entertainment. 

The bigger challenge for would-be buyers may be finding PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X/S. Pre-sales quickly wiped available stocks, and now comes time to hunt for outlets that may have a few in store, though limited quantities will make that difficult. But even here, things are different from seven years ago. 

Rather than camp out in front of a Best Buy or Game Stop like in days of yore, you’ll be asked to order online, and pick it up when the retailer tells you to, under their pandemic safety protocols. So, maybe it’s a new generation of gaming in ways we never had to imagine before. 

Microsoft today announced that its major video game console upgrade, the Xbox X and S Series, will have support for the Apple TV app when it debuts Nov. 10.

It’s the first time Apple’s streaming app, which houses the Apple TV Plus SVOD service, is available on the Xbox console. (The Apple TV app is also now supported by Microsoft's legacy Xbox One console.)

“The Apple TV app gives you access to thousands of shows and movies from one convenient location, allowing you to enjoy Apple TV Plus, Apple TV channels, brand-new and popular movies, and personalized entertainment recommendations,” wrote Will Tuttle, editor-in-chief of the Microsoft company blog Xbox Wire on Monday. 

Also read: Microsoft to Debut Next-Gen Xbox Consoles Nov. 10

The news follows a report Monday from Next TV sibling publication Broadcasting & Cable that Comcast-owned transactional service Vudu will also be supported by Xbox Series X/S.

Other streaming apps that have been supported by Xbox One that will also be available on the console upgrade at launch include Netflix, Disney Plus, HBO Max, Spotify, YouTube and YouTube TV, Amazon Prime Video and Twitter, Hulu, and Comcast/NBCUniversal’s Peacock and FandangoNow. Sky’s Sky Go, Now TV and Sky Ticket are also supported. 

Microsoft is bowing its first major console upgrade since 2014, with it launched Xbox One. The new iteration will be available in two flavors: 

Priced at $499, the Xbox Series X is a full-featured gaming console, including high-level gaming computer hardware (an eight-core AMD Zen 2 processor and an RDNA 2-class graphics processor), advanced cooling technology and a 4K Blu-ray player.

The $299 Series S, meanwhile, offers a more compact, affordable solution for more casual gamers without features such as the Blu-ray player. 

The FCC has voted to approve a rulemaking opening up more TV white spaces spectrum between channels in the TV band and for higher powered wireless broadband devices, saying it is doing so while still protecting those TV station signals from potential interference.

The item, which was approved unanimously, is based on a petition by Microsoft for more spectrum and an agreement between the computer company and the National Association of Broadcasters on how to do that while protecting incumbent broadcasters.

Related: FCC to Vote on White Spaces Rural Broadband Item

The FCC also approved a further notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) asking how to determine if/where more TV channel spectrum white spaces can be freed up for wireless broadband.

Broadcasters scored a victory in the debate with Microsoft over how the FCC should allow for more unlicensed broadband in the so-called white spaces between TV channels. The FCC had signaled it wanted to allow more flexible use of the TV band by broadband providers, pushed by Microsoft--which petitioned for the changes Airband initiative to use white spaces spectrum to extend rural broadband access. Advancing rural broadband is an avowed priority for FCC chairman Ajit Pai.

Related: Microsoft Says Airband is On Track

Given that the FCC was likely to have the votes to expand unlicensed use, the National Association of Broadcasters worked with Microsoft on the compromise, but allowing higher-powered unlicensed device use on channels adjacent to TV channels, had been the sticking point. NAB opposed it while Microsoft backed that use.

The FCC eventually decided not to allow that higher powered use "at this time." It also said it would not change the methodology it used to protect authorized services--licensed TV broadcasters--from unlicensed signal interference, though the FNPRM asks whether and how it might do that in the future. 

Pai said the FCC had to use every tool in the toolkit to expand wireless broadband, including TV white spaces, which it first opened up in 2008. He said that by "threading the needle"--the item, among other things, creates new classes of devices that can operate at higher powers, without hurting the primary users of the band--TV stations. "Not bad for a day's work...after a dozen years," he joked. 

“NAB thanks the FCC for approving an order that would provide greater flexibility for white spaces operations without undermining the fundamental principle that these operations must not cause interference to licensed services, such as radio and TV stations," said NAB EVP Ann Marie Cumming. "We commend the Commission staff for their hard work on this item and their commitment to a consensus-based approach.”

“Today’s vote by the FCC is a victory for those across the country whose lives have been made more difficult from lack of access to a reliable internet connection," said the Consumer Technology Association, a longtime supporter of opening up more white spaces. "Leveraging TV White Spaces for broadband use is an innovative solution that will help families across the United States live better lives—from better access to remote work and education to life saving digital health services and more."

"WISPA commends the FCC’s action today to promote more efficient use of spectrum in TV White Spaces," said the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association. "This action will help wireless consumers see more innovation and competition, while also decreasing the digital divide by making spectrum “infrastructure” more useful and plentiful.

"With the TV White Space Order, the FCC increased the maximum radiated power from 10 to 16 watts EIRP and boosted height above average terrain from 250 meters to 500 meters.  These changes will expand TVWS service use, helping the ecosystem create more solutions for the band which will greatly improve the band’s commercial development and deployment." 

“We applaud Chairman Ajit Pai and the members of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for taking this important step to clear regulatory barriers to innovation to help bridge the digital divide,” said Connect Americans Now executive director Richard Cullen. CAN is a big proponent of the white spaces expansion. “We commend the FCC for demonstrating a bipartisan commitment to maximizing spectrum resources to expand broadband connectivity, a critical need for millions of Americans made more urgent by the pandemic.”

The FCC will vote at its October meeting to expand the use of the "white spaces" between TV channels for rural broadband, something Microsoft has been pushing and broadcasters have some issues with.

Related: Microsoft Pushes FCC on White Spaces Expansion

According to FCC chairman Ajit Pai, the "targeted changes" will protect TV broadcasters while allowing for greater broadband coverage in rural and unserved areas.

He said it will also allow for the development of "new and innovative narrowband Internet of Things devices in TV white spaces."

It has been more than a year since the FCC put its white spaces agenda on hold while encouraging Microsoft and broadcasters to hash out a spectrum-sharing agreement for wireless broadband. At that time, Pai (during Congressional testimony) cited the “tricky” technical and policy matters the agency needs to address even as Microsoft and TV stations try to find a middle ground on the band’s use.

Microsoft and NAB ultimately agreed on four of the computer company's five proposals, the holdout being the use of high-power on adjacent-channel issue, which Microsoft continues to push for and the NAB to push against.

Microsoft set a Nov. 10 launch date for the next generation of its Xbox gaming console, which will debut in two iterations, the full-featured Xbox Series X and the streamlined, budget-minded Xbox Series S.

Preorders start Sept. 22.

Priced at $499, the Xbox Series X is a full-featured gaming console, including high-level gaming computer hardware (an eight-core AMD Zen 2 processor and an RDNA 2-class graphics processor), advanced cooling technology and a 4K Blu-ray player.

“While the Xbox Series X will deliver a massive increase in GPU performance and continue to redefine and advance the state of art in graphics with new capabilities such as hardware-accelerated ray tracing, we don’t believe this generation will be defined by graphics or resolution alone,” Jason Ronald, director of product management on Xbox Series X, said in a statement.

“The team knew they needed to build a next-generation console that could run games in 4K at 60 [frames per second] with no compromises for developers,” he added. “They also challenged themselves to deliver a level of performance once thought impossible on console, including support for up to 120 fps for the most demanding and competitive games.”

The $299 Series S, meanwhile, offers a more compact, affordable solution for more casual gamers without features such as the Blu-ray player. 

Both models are powered by the Xbox Velocity Architecture, which will deliver faster load times and Quick Resume. Both feature HDMI 2.1, frame rates of up to 120 frames per second, DirectX Raytracing and Variable Rate Shading. Series X and S also support Spatial Sound, including Dolby Atmos, and Dolby Vision via streaming media apps like Disney Plus, Vudu and Netflix.

Notably, Microsoft is trying to up the affordability factor for its two consoles by creating a 24-month payment plan that bundles in the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Service. That bundle is priced at $24.99 a month for 24 months for the Series S and $34.99 for the Series X.

Microsoft has announced a November 10 launch date for the next generation of its Xbox gaming console, which will debut in two iterations, the full-featured Xbox Series X and the streamlined, budget-minded Xbox Series S.

Pre-orders start September 22.

Priced at $499, the Xbox Series X is a full-featured gaming console, including high-level gaming computer hardware (an 8 core AMD Zen 2 CPU and an RDNA 2-class GPU), advanced cooling tech and a 4K Blu-ray player.

“While the Xbox Series X will deliver a massive increase in GPU performance and continue to redefine and advance the state of art in graphics with new capabilities such as hardware accelerated raytracing, we don’t believe this generation will be defined by graphics or resolution alone.” said Jason Ronald, director of product management on Xbox Series X, in a statement.

“The team knew they needed to build a next-generation console that could run games in 4K at 60 fps with no compromises for developers,” he added. “They also challenged themselves to deliver a level of performance once thought impossible on console, including support for up to 120 fps for the most demanding and competitive games.”

The $299 Series S, meanwhile, offers a more compact, affordable solution for more casual gamers, without features such as the Blu-ray player. 

Both models are powered by the Xbox Velocity Architecture, which will deliver faster load times and Quick Resume. Both feature HDMI 2.1, frame rates up to 120fps, DirectX Raytracing and Variable Rate Shading. Series X and S also support Spatial Sound, including Dolby Atmos, and Dolby Vision via streaming media apps like Disney Plus, Vudu and Netflix.

Notably, Microsoft is trying to up the affordability factor for its two consoles by creating a 24-month payment plan that bundles in the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Service. That bundle is priced at $24.99 a month for 24 months for the Series S, and $34.99 for the Series X. 

TikTok’s Beijing-based parent company, ByteDance, is reportedly close to selling the short-form video company’s Western operations to a U.S. company, with Oracle bidding against a joint effort from Walmart and Microsoft to pay a sales price said to range from $20 billion to $30 billion. 

The news comes as TikTok’s recently appointed CEO, former Disney DTC chief Kevin Mayer, abruptly stepped down late Wednesday.

TikTok: Everything You Need to Know About the Hottest Video App in America

“The way TikTok has integrated e-commerce and advertising capabilities in other markets is a clear benefit to creators and users in those markets,” Walmart said in a statement sent to CNBC. “We believe a potential relationship with TikTok U.S. in partnership with Microsoft could add this key functionality and provide Walmart with an important way for us to reach and serve omnichannel customers as well as grow our third-party marketplace and advertising businesses. We are confident that a Walmart and Microsoft partnership would meet both the expectations of U.S. TikTok users while satisfying the concerns of U.S. government regulators.”

Oracle, meanwhile, is reportedly also in the running to acquire TikTok’s U.S., Canadian, Australian and New Zealand operations from Chinese parent company ByteDance. The Trump Administration is said to be favoring Oracle’s bid. Notably, Oracle founder Larry Ellison is a Trump supporter, even conducting a fundraiser for him at his home.

According to the Wall Street Journal, ByteDance’s U.S. investors, which include Sequoia Capital and General Atlantic, also favor Oracle, as they see the Silicon Valley company as their best bet to get a “piece of the action” from TikTok’s ongoing operations. 

All of this activity has occurred after Trump declared TikTok, which has more than 100 million monthly active users, a domestic security threat. His executive order earlier this month mandates that the platform be sold to a U.S. company by Sept. 15 or be shut down. 

This week, for example, ByteDance filed suit against the Trump Administration, pushing back on one of the executive orders banning transactions by U.S. companies with ByteDance by U.S. companies.

As companies wishing to buy TikTok face a deadline to submit bids, it’s still unclear if ByteDance actually plans to sell the company.

For his part, however, Mayer is out, just over two months after departing Disney to lead TikTok. Vanessa Pappas, the head of TikTok’s U.S. business, will run TikTok, the company said in an internal memo to employees.

Also read: Ex-Disney Exec Mayer Leaving TikTok

“Since joining, I have been incredibly impressed with the team and the company. In recent weeks, as the political environment has sharply changed, I have done significant reflection on what the corporate structural changes will require, and what it means for the global role I signed up for,” Mayer said in a memo to staff Thursday. 

“Against this backdrop, and as we expect to reach a resolution very soon, it is with a heavy heart that I wanted to let you all know that I have decided to leave the company,” Mayer said. “I want to be clear that this decision has nothing to do with the company, what I see in our future, or the believe I have in what we are building,” Mayer added. 

New America's Open Technology Institute, joined by Public Knowledge, has told the FCC that broadcasters invocation of their licenses to defend allowing them to extend their broadcast signals to the edges, and perhaps beyond, of their markets is off base. 

OTI and company are big backers of using the "white spaces" spectrum between TV stations for wireless broadband, with OTI funder Microsoft heavily engaged in that effort. The more of that spectrum broadcasters get to use for TV, the less is available for wireless broadband, and there's the rub.

Related: NAB, APTS Say Unlicensed Have No Use Rights

Broadcasters argue that extending their reach through distributed transmission systems (DTS) is a public interest use of the licensed spectrum, and that unlicensed white spaces users must always give the right of way to licensed use, a point they made to the FCC this week in their own comments.

They have petitioned the FCC to allow them to use the smaller, on-channel DTS systems to improve viewers' reception of their licensed service, with any spillover beyond the edge of a market also in the public interest as broadcasters transition to the ATSC 3.0 transmission system that will allow for more targeted emergency alerts, interactivity, better pictures and sound, and potential broadcast internet offerings.

But OTI and Public Knowledge are pushing back hard, asking the FCC to deny the petition and saying it would be premature to relax limits on DTS spillover beyond a station's authorized service area. 

As to protecting broadcast spillover signals, they say the FCC rules already overprotect spillover and it should not compound the problem by giving them primary or even secondary rights. They agreed with Microsoft that the FCC should treat spillover signals as unlicensed, and thus not being able to assert interference protections over unlicensed white spaces transmissions.

Broadcasters are telling the FCC that Microsoft and Microsoft-funded groups have no leg to stand on when they oppose those broadcasters' request to use distributed transmission systems (DTS) to improve viewers' reception of their licensed service. 

The National Association of Broadcasters joined by America's Public Television Stations made that point clear in reply comments on their request to the FCC.  

Related: Broadcasters, Big Tech Battle Over DTS 

Taking a page from cellular buildouts, broadcasters want to be able to “densify” their broadcast networks with smaller transmitters distributed throughout their service areas. Tech firms argue that would be a “giveaway” that would take away from their ability to use TV “white spaces” (TVWS), the unused spectrum between channels, for wireless broadband. 

But NAB and APTS said that Microsoft "along with two organizations it funds, New America’s Open Technology Institute (OTI) and Public Knowledge have no claim to the spectrum that broadcasters want to use to service the public with new ATSC 3.0 broadcast transmissions that promise a wealth of new services and tech upgrades.  

The bottom line, they told the FCC, is that unlicensed users of the band "have no recognizable right to continue to operate on any particular frequency, must not cause harmful interference to any authorized service, and must accept harmful interference caused by any authorized service." 

They said the FCC itself made clear that unlicensed use "were not intended to limit future licensed use," including the expanded reach DTS configurations would allow for. 

Besides, they told the FCC, "widespread deployment of DTS operations is likely to create more opportunities for TVWS use – particularly in the rural areas OTI and Public Knowledge and their benefactor Microsoft claim to be of primary concern – because it can help reduce dependence on TV translators operating on different channels to reach difficult to serve areas."

With broadcasters seeking greater flexibility to deploy Next Gen TV (ATSC 3.0), broadcasters and computer companies are squaring off over the issue of distributed transmission systems (DTS). And one powerful tech player argues it may be about broadcasters trying to create a national footprint for competitive broadband services.

Cable operators represented by NCTA-The Internet & Television Association (meaning all the large companies) generally don’t oppose expanding broadcasters’ DTS, and the Federal Communications Commission also seems generally amenable to the change. But there is definitely pushback from some major players — notably technology firms that want the spectrum for their own broadband buildouts.

While FCC commissioner Brendan Carr has been talking about broadcasting as the next broadband competitor (see sidebar), some big tech players are talking it down, at least where it runs into their plans to close the rural digital divide.

Taking a page from cellular buildouts, broadcasters want to be able to “densify” their broadcast networks with smaller transmitters distributed throughout their service areas. Tech firms argue that would be a “giveaway” that will take away from their ability to use broadcast “white spaces,” the unused spectrum between channels, for wireless broadband.

Stations Press FCC for Use

Back in March, the FCC voted to seek comment on amending its rules to allow DTS signals, which use multiple transmission sites in a market to boost a station’s signal, to extend beyond a station’s authorized service area by more than a minimal amount. The National Association of Broadcasters and America’s Public Television Stations petitioned the FCC for the change.

Broadcasters also want protections for DTS signals that spill over their maximum coverage areas. They argue that viewers will benefit from better coverage at the edges of their service areas and that the spillover beyond a station’s current service area is the unavoidable result of that public-interest benefit.

RELATED: Stations Launch ATSC 3.0 Broadcasts in Las Vegas

Stations want the FCC to weigh in soon, they said, because their plans for the new ATSC 3.0 broadcast standard will depend on whether they can densify through on-channel DTS systems.

That is as opposed to the FCC taking time “examining the hypothetical concerns” of secondary and unlicensed “white spaces” services, broadcasters said.

In that “hypothetical concerns” corner, though they see it quite differently, are computer companies and some broadband providers.

New America’s Open Technology Institute (OTI), whose funders include major tech companies, said the FCC’s regime for allowing use of the white spaces between channels already overprotects broadcasters by calculating “exclusion” zones far beyond the real-world interference potential, as well as by excluding use of the first channel adjacent to a broadcast channel for unlicensed devices.

Microsoft Weighs In

Microsoft filed individually to argue against the DTS expansion, saying it would threaten its Air Band rural broadband initiative.

In meetings with FCC staffers, Microsoft talked up the progress on that initiative, saying it has agreements with broadband partners in 25 states and Puerto Rico that would get broadband to more than 4 million people in rural areas, 3 million by 2022.

Microsoft told the FCC that broadcasters can try for individual waivers of the DTS rules if they want to. But the company has concerns that rather than just being an issue of getting better broadcasting to viewers on the edges, DTS would instead create a more seamless broadcast Internet coverage footprint into an adjacent community “without commission assignment of spectrum for that purpose, as is required.”

RELATED: FCC Provides Push to Internet Broadcasting

Given that some of those services might compete with mobile and fixed broadband operators, "it may raise some issues of fairness," Microsoft said.

If the FCC does allow “spillover” of DTS signals beyond a station’s maximum service area, OTI said, it should consider those signals unlicensed and no more entitled to interference protections than unlicensed signals.

The FCC will have to sort it out, applying its “highest, best use” spectrum equation as it balances the public’s interest in broadcasting remaining vital and relevant in an increasingly broadband world and its interest in getting rural broadband Microsoft is delivering within broadcast “white spaces.” 

Computer giants including Facebook, Apple, Google and Microsoft have joined to tell the FCC to reject a petition to stay the implementation of its decision to authorize unlicensed operations in the entire 6 GHz band, which is also used by licensed operators including broadcasters, utility companies and others.  

Related: Broadcast, Cable Square Off Over 6 GHz

Back in April, the FCC voted unanimously to allow the entire 1,200 MHz of the 6 GHz band to be shared with unlicensed Wi-Fi, the FCC's latest move in freeing up more spectrum for connecting 5G in-home devices--video streaming, video calls--and connecting IoT devices to the internet. 

The Edison Electric Institute, whose regional electric utility members serve 220 million customers, had sought a preliminary stay of that decision--specifically to let unlicensed indoor devices operate in the band--while it challenged it in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, which has principle jurisdiction over FCC decisions. 

EEI argues that allowing indoor unlicensed use is a threat to public safety and critical infrastructure.

EEI says the FCC did not do its due diligence when it came to concerns raised and studies submitted. EEI said it was a rushed decision that ignored evidence that allowing "unfettered and untraceable" operation was a threat to the electric grid, specifically the "existing 6 GHz wireless stations and networks are key components protecting the integrity of our members’ electric distribution and transmission facilities." 

The computer companies say that far from not doing its due diligence, the FCC "carefully engaged with these issues over the course of a lengthy and detailed proceeding." Given that, EEI is unlikely to meet even the first prong of the four-pronged stay test--likelihood of winning in court. 

The other tests are irreparable harm to itself or others if the stay is not granted and that the public interest would favor a stay.  

The companies say the FCC decision is not irreversible, that the FCC could remove unlicensed devices that might cause interference through enforcement action, and "overlooks" the harms a stay would cause to other parties and to the public interest. 

Also joining in the opposition to the EEI petition were Qualcomm, Cisco, Broadcom, Hewlett Packard, Mi NXP, Ruckus Networks (CommScope). 

Cable ops generally support the FCC decision to share the 6 GHz spectrum since it frees up more spectrum for unlicensed Wi-Fi, still their primary mobile broadband play.  

Broadcasters oppose the decision because they use the spectrum for field-to-studio transmissions and electronic newsgathering and, like EEI, are concerned about harmful interference from widespread use of the band without automatic frequency coordination.

Broadcasters are telling the Federal Communications Commission it should confine its white spaces item to the narrow changes agreed to by the National Association of Broadcasters and Microsoft and not range into other, murkier areas where Loch Ness monsters and Sasquatches lurk to muck up the compromise.

That came in reply comments to the regulator's proposal to make those changes. Other commenters wanted it to make some more adjustments.

White spaces are the vacant spectrum between TV channels that Microsoft has been using to deploy rural broadband.

It has been more than a year since the FCC put its white spaces agenda on hold while encouraging Microsoft and broadcasters to hash out a spectrum-sharing agreement for wireless broadband. At that time, FCC chairman Ajit Pai (during Congressional testimony) cited the “tricky” technical and policy matters the agency needs to address even as Microsoft and TV stations try to find a middle ground on the band’s use.

Microsoft and NAB ultimately agreed on four of the computer company's five proposals, the holdout being the use of high-power on adjacent-channel issue, which Microsoft continues to push for and the NAB to push against.

RELATED: Microsoft Pushed for First Adjacent Channels

The NAB told the FCC this week that going beyond the limits of the compromise would dramatically expand or rewrite it so that there would be no guarantee of avoiding the harmful interference that is a nonstarter given that broadcasters are the primary, licensed users of the spectrum the FCC wants to share with unlicensed ones.

The trade group said “alternative propagation models, power increases and reduced coordination requirements” were some of the extraneous proposals offered up by commenters, proposals that could increase harmful interference.

For example, wireless internet providers want the FCC to allow ”professional installation“ to serve as establishing that directional antennas will avoid harmful interference to TV signals. The NAB calls that term ”an undefined and unreliable concept, as elusive as the Loch Ness Monster or Sasquatch.”

The NAB’s comments pointed to the checkered history of “professional installation” of white spaces devices translating to hundreds of incorrect, and perhaps fraudulent, entries in the white spaces database that is used to determine where unlicensed devices can operate without interfering with nearby TV signals.

The NAB said the FCC needs to proceed to adoption of the compromise proposals rather than delving into “novel, unsupported proposals [that] will only mire the proceeding in uncertainty and delay.”

Microsoft president Brad Smith called on Congress to take a holistic approach to funding that could close the digital divide.  

"The COVID-19 virus has created a national crisis," he blogged, "but it has also created an important opportunity. It’s time to galvanize the nation and recognize the obvious. Broadband has become the electricity of the 21st century."  

Smith pointed to the COVID-19 spotlight on lack of rural broadband to call on Congress to do three things to speed that rollout: 

First is funding for broadband in the next stimulus bill, he wrote, "so that students and teachers have access to remote learning, people have access to their doctors and other telehealth options, and to help people work from home, file and maintain their unemployment benefits, and apply for jobs online." 

Related: COVID-19 Crisis Hits Industry

Those three are the chief spurs to Congress and the FCC to close the digital divide ASAP since it is unclear how long some degree of shelter-at-home and social distancing will last. Likely until at least a vaccine is available, which looks like the end of the year at the absolute earliest. 

Second is getting funds to the FCC so it can fund a congressional mandate to come up with better mapping of where broadband is and isn't. FCC chair Ajit Pai told Congress this week that the FCC needs that money ASAP. 

Third is to permanently close the broadband gap via funds that are targeted, technologically neutral, tied to baseline definitions of high-speed no less than the FCC's definition (currently 25 mbps downstream), distributed via competitive bidding, distributed so as not to distort the market, deployed quickly, and with minimum red tape.  

Smith said those are the keys to closing the gap. 

But Smith did not leave all the work to Congress. It has an ongoing Airband Initiative using TV white spaces to deliver broadband to hard-to-reach rural areas. He says as of March 31, Microsoft has provided 1.2 million people with access in rural, previously unserved, areas, almost twice the number at the end of December. In addition, he said Microsoft was donating hotspots and wireless connectivity as well as "expanding our digital skills offerings by developing COVID-19-specific digital skills offerings for rural communities." 

Microsoft and the National Association of Broadcasters continue to be poles apart on how much "white space" between TV channels the FCC should open up for unlicensed uses like portable internet access devices.

Microsoft told the FCC in comments that while it is not now, nor does it plan ever, to be a broadband provider itself, it said the FCC should not hold back its many ISP partners with "overly conservative" technical rules.

NAB and Microsoft agreed on a number of changes to the FCC's white spaces regime, which the FCC has proposed adopting. But the commission also sought comment on the one issue on which they still strongly disagree, which is how close together on the broadcast spectrum the FCC should allow TV stations and those devices should operate.

In its comments earlier this month, NAB remained firm in its opposition to allowing the devices to operate on channels right next door: "[T]he Commission should not allow higher power operations on first-adjacent channels to TV operations," it told the commission. "There has not been a single development in white spaces deployments or technology that would warrant revisiting the relevant rules at this time."

Microsoft saw it 180 degrees differently: [T]he Commission should enable network operators to use fixed white spaces devices at higher power levels on first-adjacent channels to broadcasters," it said, citing numerous tests it conducted on both ATSC 1.0 and ATSC 3.0 signals.

Microsoft suggested that in the "real world," the adjacent channels can be used without harmful interference to broadcasters.

New Comcast/NBCUniversal streaming service Peacock will be playable on Xbox One devices when the OTT platform deploys nationally July 15.

The announcement of a deal with Microsoft for inclusion of Peacock on its gaming console comes after NBCU announced an agreement with Apple to include the Peacock app on iPhones, iPads, Apple TV, MacBook Pro and other Apple devices.

Related: Peacock to Launch on Apple Gadgets

Expect more of these device app announcements from NBCU in the coming days—Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Google/Android TV and the major device compatibility is still pending.

Visit Next TV to read more stories like this one. 

“We are pleased to make Peacock available to the millions of customers who access content across Xbox platforms,” said Maggie McLean Suniewick, president of business development and partnerships for Peacock, in a statement. “With streaming entertainment and gaming reaching all-time highs, Xbox will be a great ongoing partner for Peacock.”

Peacock has already been soft launched on Comcast’s X1 and Flex pay TV services. Subscription and free-to-consumer iterations of Peacock will roll out nationally on the open internet starting on July 15.

The International Commission on Information and Democracy is calling on Big Tech to commit to promote reliable news and information sources in search and to combat rumors and disinformation across their platforms as they have done specifically in the fight against COVID-19. 

Related:Big Data 'Virtual' Hearing Raises Big Questions 

If not, the commission argues, those companies threaten the survival of news media.  

That came in an open letter signed by commission members, led by co-chairs Christophe Deloire, secretary general of Reporters without Borders (RSF), and Shirin Ebadi, Nobel Peace Prize laureate. 

It also came on the even of World Press Freedom Day (May 3). 

"You are sometimes rendered dizzy by your power and the phenomena you cause. The digital platforms have had very positive effects on horizontal communication," they wrote. "But the information chaos – attributable to the absence of obligations – threatens democratic life, civil harmony, the survival of news media and everyone’s basic ability to distinguish true from false or to withdraw from the echo chambers surrounding them."  

The letter was directed at Big Tech in general, but to a half dozen of the biggest--Google, Facebook, Apple, Twitter, Microsoft, Amazon--by name. 

Related: COVID-19 Virus Hits TV Industry

The commission members argue that the those companies have the size and power of parliaments and governments, but without the accountability. 

"You define the framework and rules of the public debate, a role formerly (and normally) assigned to our legislators," they wrote, "but you are not subject to the procedures, checks and balances, and transparency obligations that are imposed on the laws and machinery of democratic states." 

"We are calling on you to take a huge step, in order to contribute to the implementation of a global framework that will enable public debate that is open, tolerant and as honest as possible," they wrote.

Marking the halfway point in its Airband rural broadband initiative, Microsoft said it is now in 25 states and one territory and is on track to meet its goal of three million more rural Americans with broadband access. 

Airband is Microsoft's promotion of unlicensed wireless in the TV white spaces to extend broadband access. 

Related: Microsoft Brands Rural Divide National Crisis 

In a blog post from Shelley McKinley, VP of Microsoft Technology and Corporate Responsibility Group, talked about a team of Amish-owned horses dragging a load up a ridge in rural New York state, pointing out that the only thing that distinguished the scene from a Norman Rockwell painting was that it was a load of telecom equipment. 

She gave the FCC credit for its effort to improve broadband data and mapping, saying that it remains problematic when the FCC data show access where none exists. 

But saying the country can't wait on perfect data, McKinley reeled of some numbers to indicate Microsoft's progress. That included reaching 633,000 previously unserved people.  

She also said the price of TV white spaces devices continues to drop, including by 50% in the last year. 

She also applauded the FCC's vote last week to increase tower heights and boost power levels--things Microsoft had proposed--to expand the use of TV white spaces for unlicensed broadband, as well as its $20 billion-plus rural broadband subsidy fund. 

The long-simmering proposal to use broadcast "white spaces" for rural broadband delivery using TV channels 2 through 35 will be on the Federal Communications Commission's next meeting agenda, opening a new way to supply a "critical role in providing broadband services to rural and underserved areas,” according to FCC chairman Ajit Pai, who unveiled the plan Wednesday (Feb. 5).

"The FCC has taken steps to enable the use of white spaces over the years, and this new proposal would further help bridge the digital divide while protecting TV stations," Pai said in a statement that unveiled his plan to introduce a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking at the FCC's Feb. 28 meeting.

The National Association of Broadcasters, which has been skeptical of white spaces plans since they were first proposed, quickly offered a conciliatory response.

“NAB appreciates the consensus-based approach the FCC is taking in this proceeding," said NAB executive VP of communications Dennis Wharton. "We look forward to working with the Commission and other stakeholders to develop final rules that will allow more flexibility for rural white spaces operations while protecting broadcasters.”

Pai's new proposal comes almost one year after the FCC put its white spaces agenda on hold while it encouraged Microsoft and broadcasters to hash out a spectrum sharing agreement for wireless broadband. At that time, Pai (during Congressional testimony) cited the “tricky” technical and policy matters the agency needs to address even as Microsoft and TV stations try to find a middle ground on the band’s use.

Microsoft, which originally proposed the rural broadband white spaces plan in 2017 had no immediate comment. When it first revealed its white spaces concept, the company cited a July 4, 2022, goal for the Microsoft plan to "close the rural broadband gap." At that time, Microsoft contended that a nationwide plan "could cost less than $12 billion" and be rolled out within five years. It cited analyses indicating that 80% of people who live in sparsely populated U.S. areas would benefit from such white spaces service via broadcast airwaves.

Pai's Plan Envisions Greater Reach in Rural Regions

Pai said his proposal will "increase the minimum required separation distances for white space devices operating at higher power" to protect other authorized services from interference. His plan calls for permitting higher transmit power and higher antennas for fixed white space devices in rural areas.

Such changes would allow white space devices to reach users at greater distances, enabling improved broadband coverage. Higher power would also enable signals to better penetrate foliage, buildings, and other obstacles. Pai's plan would also permit higher power mobile operations within geo-fenced areas.

The chairman pointed out that the NPRM envisions introduction of broadband technology that would facilitate the development of "innovative narrowband Internet of Things-based services."

Last month Microsoft told the FCC that wireless internet providers have been able to boost their throughput tenfold using TV white spaces. At a meeting between FCC and Microsoft executives, the company urged the Commission to move ahead with plans for a rulemaking that had been lingering since May 2019.

Related: Microsoft Pushes FCC To Act on White Spaces Petition 

Microsoft and NAB have reportedly come to an agreement on four of the five proposals in Microsoft's plan, but broadcasters still oppose a plan to authorize higher power operations on the first-adjacent channel to broadcasters licensed service.

In 2018 at congressional reauthorization hearings, Pai vowed that the FCC would be aggressive about freeing up TV band white spaces for rural broadband "if the facts warrant and the law allows it."

Most commissioners concurred at that time, although commissioner Michael O'Rielly said he would continue his support of unlicensed white spaces "but not at the expense of full-power broadcast channels."

AT&T has entered into a $2 billion agreement with Microsoft, in which the telecom company will use the enterprise technology company’s Azure cloud infrastructure to, among other things, shift most of its 250,000 employees to the Microsoft Office 365 suite of productivity and security tools.

Beyond providing internal software tools, the pact with Microsoft includes the joint development of artificial intelligence tools and applications for 5G wireless.

The non-exclusive deal still allows AT&T to see other clouds—AT&T for example, just announced yesterday a separate multi-billion deal with IBM for cloud-based services.

“AT&T and Microsoft are among the most committed companies to fostering technology that serves people,” said John Donovan, CEO, AT&T Communications, in a statement. “By working together on common efforts around 5G, the cloud, and AI, we will accelerate the speed of innovation and impact for our customers and our communities.”

According to research firm Canalys, Amazon Web Services remained the dominant cloud services provider in the fourth quarter, controlling 32% of a global cloud business worth $23 billion during the period. Azure controlled just 16% of the market, vs. 14% in the fourth quarter of 2017.

Microsoft has recently pulled off big deals for Azure with retailers including Gap, Kroger, Albertsons and Walmart, companies who have no interest in seeing competitor Amazon enjoy any further prosperity.

Added Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella: “AT&T is at the forefront of defining how advances in technology, including 5G and edge computing, will transform every aspect of work and life. The world’s leading companies run on our cloud, and we are delighted that AT&T chose Microsoft to accelerate its innovation. Together, we will apply the power of Azure and Microsoft 365 to transform the way AT&T’s workforce collaborates and to shape the future of media and communications for people everywhere.”

Microsoft has asked the FCC to launch a notice of proposed rulemaking (an NPRM) on its proposed changes to the 2014 rules for allowing unlicensed use of the so-called white spaces between channels in TV's licensed spectrum. 

The computer company has filed a petition for rulemaking in hopes of getting action, pointing out that the National Association of Broadcasters, which has had lots of issues with potential white space device interference in the past, has said it can support some of those changes and signaled it was time for the FCC to get moving on proposing them and collecting comment. 

An NPRM will allow the FCC to get stakeholder input before making a final decision, but it gets that final decisionmaking process going. 

Microsoft has pitched the "white spaces" spectrum as crucial to closing the rural digital divide (Microsoft's Airband initiative) and handling and connecting more people to anTh increasingly connected world. "These changes will support the expansion and affordability of broadband service in rural communities and enable innovative use of White Space channels for narrowband Internet of ings (“IoT”) devices," it told the commission. 

"The 2014 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking [on white spaces] focused primarily on changes needed to ensure a smooth incentive auction," it told the FCC. The auction closed in April 2017, two years ago. The time is now right to address a limited number of refinements to the rules to promote further rural deployment." 

Specifically, Microsoft is officially asking the FCC to: 

1. "Permit fixed WSDs in the second-adjacent channel to broadcasters in less congested areas to operate at a higher radiated power limit, consistent with the methodology used in Section 15.712(a)(2)(iv); 

2. "Permit fixed WSDs to operate at greater than 40 mW on the first-adjacent channel at locations within the protected contour where the potential for harmful interference islow;

3. "Permit fixed WSDs to operate at heights above average terrain of up to 500 meters,consistent with the methodology used in Section 15.712(a)(2)(iv) and subject to aspecial set of coordination procedures modeled on the Commission’s Part 101 rules;

4. "Foster the development of narrowband WSDs that can support IoT applications by modifying existing technical and operational rules and providing licensees the samelevel of protection from harmful interference as the rules for broadband WSDs; and

5. "Permit geofenced operation of fixed WSDs on mobile platforms. "

While NAB and Microsoft disagree on a number of issues, including how effective remote sensing technology is in preventing interference to broadcast signals and the use of adjacent channels, in a letter to the FCC in March, NAB said that after discussions with the computer giant, it agrees the FCC should at least seek comment on some of Microsoft's suggestions for boosting operations in rural areas while protecting licensed operations and also asked the FCC to launch a new rulemaking to do that. 

Given that the FCC is laser focused on closing the rural divide, including using white spaces, NAB did not hurt itself by at least agreeing to run the proposal's up the digital antenna.

Related: NAB Considers White Spaces Proposal for Rural's Sake

Specifically, NAB says that, as Microsoft proposes, it 1) may be possible to allow for higher power limits in less congested (rural) areas; 2) may be possible to permit device operations at higher points above average terrain (up to 500 meters) in rural areas without materially increasing the chances of harmful interference; 3) may be possible to allow fixed TV white spaces (TVWS) operations on movable platforms--school buses and farm equipment, for example, but not aircrafts, ships or satellites--so long as there is a location check every 60 seconds; and 4) to support the use of TVWS for narrowband IoT. 

But, NAB also told the FCC back in March that it strongly opposes authorizing higher power operations on the first-adjacent channel to broadcasters licensed service. That is one proposal NAB does not want the FCC considering yet, much less adopting, at least not until there is a new generation of receivers, which is years down the line. 

“NAB and Microsoft have discussed the issues in Microsoft’s petition," said NAB spokesman Dennis Wharton. "While we don’t agree on every issue, we believe the Commission can move forward with several of Microsoft’s proposals. We look forward to working with the FCC and Microsoft to develop rules that allow greater flexibility for white spaces operation in rural areas while continuing to protect broadcasters.”

“Simply put, increasing power and height and relaxing out-of-band emission limits will create more opportunities for rural broadband access,” said Claude Aiken, president and CEO of the Wireless Internet Service Provicers Association (WISPA), in a statement. “Microsoft’s proposal would improve the service range and capacity of networks operating in the White Space spectrum. This proposal would provide WISPs a formidable tool to invest in, develop and deploy innovative broadband solutions for unserved and underserved areas in rural America, helping these communities truly compete in the global, digital economy.”

Microsoft has joined in the chorus of those calling for better data from the FCC on where broadband has been deployed, including suggesting Congress may need to step in to force the FCC to up its game. 

That data is used both to determine whether the FCC needs to regulate to boost deployment, and also on where to allocate billions in broadband subsidies.

Microsoft's input came in a blog post by chief data officer John Kahan in advance of a Senate Commerce Committee hearing Wednesday (April 10) on broadband mapping.

There is virtual unanimity--which is a "hen's tooth" on the scarcity scale in Washington these days--that the FCC needs to collect better data.

Microsoft wants broadband deployed to everyone however that can be achieved--government subsidies, municipal buildouts, repurposed and 'fallow' spectrum--but Kahan does not see much progress.

He attributes the two main problems with the FCC data that leads to over-reporting to: 1) if any single customer in a census block can get broadband, the entire block is considered covered, and 2) if an ISP says it is "providing or could…without an extraordinary commitment of resources provide broadband service to an area," it is considered covered even if it isn't and even if an ISP has no plans to cover it anytime soon.

He recommends the Commerce Committee do the following:

1. "Remove 'could provide' from the question in Form 477 [the broadband data collection form]. We should measure actual progress, not hypothetical progress, and make funding decisions on real access data.

2. "Use both availability and actual usage (and/or subscription data) to guide investments and communicate progress moving forward. Both access and usage data sets are critically important in building a full and accurate broadband map, as access data shows the current and near-future plans and usage data helps us understand how access translates into service and verification of the availability of broadband.

3. "Fix the availability data collection and reporting challenges prior to releasing a new report on broadband mapping. Our data science team has reviewed the draft report from the FCC and compared it to our latest usage data. We found that the increase in access reported in that draft document has not translated into broadband usage growth, especially in rural areas. This demonstrates the need to make significant adjustments to methodology prior to release."

The report Microsoft is referencing is the Sec. 706 report on whether advanced communications is being deployed in a reasonable and timely fashion, based on who can currently get broadband, which the FCC says is about 92% of the country and Microsoft maintains isn't even close to that.

Related: FCC Broadband Gains Overstated

The FCC has already had issues with the report, issuing a draft with some inflated carrier-provided coverage data.

Arguably one of the strengths of FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's decision to make public such draft items is that they can be vetted and such errors discovered, though that did not assuage the concerns that error raised that there could be more, given that it is based on ISP self-reporting, and came only after FCC Chairman Ajit Pai had touted the data.

The FCC has sent the signal that allowing the so-called white spaces between TV channels to be used for fixed and mobile wireless devices are ready for prime time.

That came in a report and order adopted Wednesday, March 20. The FCC also resolved a number of petitions to reconsider (recon) the TV White Spaces Order that initially opened up the spectrum to broadband. 

Specifically, the FCC finalized its reconsideration proceeding and its database accuracy proceeding so that broadband providers can invest in rural connectivity. 

The FCC is permitting the use of white space devices (notably computers), both fixed and mobile, in unused channels, ch. 37, guard bands between broadcast and wireless spectrum and between uplink and downlink spectrum in the 600 MHz band--which they are sharing after the incentive auction. 

 Related: Senators Press FCC for White Spaces Action 

It is part of the FCC's focus on freeing up more spectrum for advanced wireless and closing the rural digital divide, which computer companies argue "white spaces" play a key role. 

Microsoft, Google and other computer companies on one side and the National Association of Broadcasters on the other have been at loggerheads over the issue. Microsoft has been pushing for as much spectrum as possible, saying that remote sensing technology can seek out and avoid TV channels in real time, preventing the sort of interference NAB said current remote sensing technology has not been proven to provide.  

NAB wanted the FCC to vet the sensing technology before opening the floodgates, as it were. 

The FCC order does require that white spaces devices include internal geo-location capability, both for outdoor and indoor use, and that the devices automatically provide coordinates to the database that is meant to map out the TV frequencies to avoid. 

That is a victory for NAB, which sought the geo-location, and a defeat for Microsoft, which suggested the automatic capability was not necessary. The FCC took a little off it by denying NAB's request that it tighten geo-location accuracy requirements. 

“NAB appreciates the FCC’s decision to strengthen its white spaces rules. Requiring automatic geo-location in white spaces devices will help increase accuracy and protect television viewers from harmful interference.” 

NAB wanted the FCC to require a wired connection between a remote geo-location source and a fixed white space device, rather than a wireless connection, but the FCC sided with Microsoft on that point, and also said it would not limit the distance between that remote location and the device, something else NAB wanted.

NAB had asked that the FCC require the devices to identify their height above ground, but the FCC declined to do so.

White space device makers have until six months after the rules are adopted to bring their technology in line with the new rules, but the FCC said adding geo-location will require recertification. It was initially going to allow the change without recertification, but concluded that "incorporating an internal geo-location capability into a fixed white space device would necessitate hardware modifications, resulting in a device that is not electrically identical to the originally approved device." 

NAB challenged the FCC's decision to allow use of low-power fixed devices within a TV station's contour because the potential for interference is greater than the FCC suggests. The FCC was "not persuaded that permitting such operation poses a significant threat of harmful interference to adjacent channel television reception." 

And while NAB wanted the FCC to limit antenna heights to 30 meters, the FCC will allow taller antennas in areas of less congestion.  

“We are excited to see the Commission using its authority to remove regulatory barriers so that every American can participate in the digital economy," said ACT-The App Association president Morgan Reed. "Today’s action furthers the FCC’s unfettered commitment to bridging the digital divide and will better position the United States as a leader in the networked economy. Our membership represents small to medium-sized app developers across all 435 congressional districts. In particular, many of our members are located in rural areas that traditional networks cannot reach. TVWS-enabled wireless connectivity, along with all the Commission’s work related to wireless infrastructure deployment, will allow these small businesses to grow and contribute to local economies.” 

“This action shows that the Commission has been listening to the concerns of rural Americans, and we appreciate their continued commitment to bridging the rural broadband gap," said Connect Americans Now executive director Richard Cullen. "While this vote is a step in the right direction for internet service providers and equipment manufacturers eager to use TV white spaces technology to bring broadband to rural areas, there are still a number of outstanding regulatory barriers.

“We encourage the Commission to build on this momentum by immediately issuing a Further Notice of Rulemaking to address the outstanding regulatory issues hindering TV white space technology’s deployment." 

While Big Tech has taken it on the chin from Washington lately, First Lady Melania Trump had some encouraging words for Microsoft.

She was was in Seattle promoting her Be Best kids online safety campaign.

Related: FTC Exacts Record Fine for Kids Privacy Violation

She met with Microsoft President Brad Smith and CFO Amy Hood and toured kiosks demonstrating Microsoft's effort to meet the campaigns goals
of parental control, tech accessibility (the XBOX adaptive controller), and improving safety.

The First Lady appeared to like what she saw.

First Lady Joins E-Mail Attacks on News Media

“I am impressed with Microsoft’s dedication to protecting children online and promoting digital civility,” she said, according to the White House. “The technology being designed not only includes safety features but also accessibility for all – a very exciting and new opportunity for many with limited mobility. I am looking forward to using Be Best to promote any digital programs that make online safety and digital civility a priority in today’s technology-driven world.”

C Spire announced the formation of a consortium including Microsoft, Nokia, Airspan Networks and Siklu, intended to better deliver broadband services to rural areas.

Ridgeland, Miss.-based C Spire said that “real-world testbeds” will be established in Mississippi and Alabama, regions in which a third of residents don’t have broadband access, to test and deploy a variety of broadband technologies and service models.

The consortium will advance blueprints for new broadband adoption models that will be shared with regional fixed and wireless internet service providers, utilizes and other operators.

C Spire will kick off the its rural broadband initiative by hosting an International Wireless Industry Consortium’s event, “Enhancing Rural Connectivity: New Wireless Opportunities and Deployment Scenarios” at a New Orleans workshop Jan. 29-31.

"Access to and adoption of broadband technology is critically important to economically move rural communities forward and ensure they are not left behind in today's new digital economy," said C Spire president Stephen Bye, in a statement.

"Our nation's broadband adoption gap is a solvable problem that will not be limited in the next few years by the coming breath of new technologies themselves, but rather how well we facilitate them to scale at the edge," added C Spire Chief innovation officer Craig Sparks. "Hyperlocal collaboration and highly automated tools combined with these easy-to-deploy network technologies are going to be key enablers," he added. "C Spire's intent is to bring the thought leaders in this consortium together to disrupt our own thinking in these areas." 

TechNet has named Peter Chandler director of federal policy and government relations, tapping a veteran House Democratic staffer as that body prepares to shift from Republican to Democratic control in January.

He will head up the group's advocacy with Democratic policymakers beginning Dec. 5.

Chandler has been chief of staff to Rep. Debbie Dingell, who succeeded her iconic husband, Rep. John Dingell, as a Democratic rep from Michigan and joined the House Energy & Commerce Committee in her second term.

TechNet members are an eclectic group that includes Oracle, Comcast-NBCU, AT&T, Google, Paypal, Microsoft, GM and WGBH TV Boston. The group promotes pro-tech innovation policies in Washington.

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The group has pushed back on President Trump's tech-related tariffs on Chinese goods, for example, and a return to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, but backed the corporate tax cut and R&D tax credit and other parts of the President's tax reform bill.

It also supports using vacant broadcast spectrum between TV channels for unlicensed use, a big priority for member Microsoft.

"With over two decades of experience in public policy and campaigns, Peter Chandler has cemented himself as a strong leader who knows how to build coalitions and advance policies that improve peoples' lives," said TechNet president Linda Moore. "Peter will be a great asset to TechNet as we work to preserve the tech industry's indispensable role as an engine for job creation, economic growth, and innovative solutions to the world's biggest challenges."