Direct broadcast satellite's ongoing subscriber losses, as well as virtual MVPDs having to raise their rates after apparently selling below cost, bode well for Charter Communications' video subscriber trends, CEO Tom Rutledge said on an earnings call Friday. AT&T reported a Q3 loss of 346,000 DirecTV subscribers (see 1810240049) while Dish Network hasn't yet reported results. Rutledge said many content companies are going direct to consumer, but their lack of experience in being video distributors means they're often not effectively securing their content, the result being widespread password sharing. Rutledge said Charter's Spectrum Mobile service, launched after Labor Day, ended the quarter with about 21,000 subscriber lines, and that in coming months the company will introduce allowing subscribers to transfer their existing handsets and means for making it easier to switch an entire household's mobile service. For the quarter, Charter said it had revenue of $10.9 billion, up 4.2 percent year over year; 23.3 million residential internet subscribers, up 4.9 percent; 16.1 million residential video subscribers, down 1.6 percent; and 10.2 million residential voice subscribers, down 1.8 percent. Charter shares closed Friday down 6.29 percent to $295.01.
Perception of poor value is consumers' top trigger for changing, downgrading or canceling pay TV, Parks Associates blogged Thursday. Among households that made pay-TV changes in past 12 months, a third were cord cutters, and 10 percent of switchers or cord shavers said they plan to use paid OTT services as a substitute or alternative. “The primary driver for pay-TV cancellation and downgrades continues to revolve around pricing and perceived value,” said analyst Brett Sappington. “When video services with good quality are available for under $15, it forces operators to justify an $80 [per month] pay-TV bill.”
The FCC replaced paper filing requirements for open video system applications and notices with electronic filing procedures, under a commissioner-approved order released Thursday. OVS paper filing rules "have outlived their usefulness," the agency said, saying the OVS application process requires immediate receipt by some staff, and that can be better assured if done electronically.
The Cable Act lets Charter Communications' Insight cable company use the perpetual easement across Indiana resident Stephen West's property to install and maintain a fiber line because a cable operator's use of the easement is inherently compatible with utility purposes, Charter said in a docket 18-1906 appellee brief (in Pacer) filed Tuesday with the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. That easement "is the very kind of public utility easement that Congress had in mind" when enacting Section 621 to help deployment of cable services, Charter said. It said West is being used by plaintiff's counsel from different law firms as a test case "for sweeping class action litigation" on behalf of property owners seeking damages from communications providers for making cable networks that use easements. West's counsel didn't comment Wednesday. West originally sued Louisville Gas & Electric in 2016, claiming the utility's easement didn't authorize a fiber wire on the electric transmission tower straddling the easement, and later amended the complaint to add Charter. He's appealing Distinct Court dismissal of those Charter claims, while litigation against LG&E is ongoing.
The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals extended to Nov. 13 the deadline for Charter Communications to respond to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission’s petition for en banc rehearing of a court panel's ruling that the company's interconnected VoIP is an information service not subject to state regulation (see 1810170010), said a Wednesday order (in Pacer) on Charter's Tuesday unopposed motion (in Pacer). Responding requires much internal coordination and Charter attorneys have other cases, the company said.
Charter Communications and striking New York union workers agreed to negotiation and mediation, said Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) and the company. “As a matter of good faith I have asked [International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers] Local 3 to stop the picket line for 72 hours, at which point we can assess the progress,” Cuomo said Monday. The governor last week urged politicians to boycott one of Charter’s cable networks in solidarity with union workers who have been on strike for more than a year (see 1810170056 and 1806250038). Charter has “been at the negotiating table with Local 3 and a mediator many times since the strike began ... and welcome[s] further discussions,” a spokesperson emailed Tuesday. “We have consistently offered wage increases averaging 22 percent, as well as a generously matched retirement savings plan and comprehensive health and welfare benefits.”
Altice USA is no longer part of NCTA, as of Oct. 1, it confirmed Monday. "We will focus on direct advocacy relating to issues that impact our businesses and our customers, working with industry peers and other associations when our interests are aligned.” NCTA said it "regret[s] their decision, [but] NCTA will continue our forceful representation of the entire industry to advance policies that promote job growth, innovation, and continued investment by America’s internet and television providers.”
NCTA and Comcast officials met aides to all FCC commissioners except for Chairman Ajit Pai to explain why the agency should take a fresh look at Wi-Fi in the 5.9 GHz band, said a letter posted Friday in docket 13-49. The officials also met with Office of Engineering and Technology staff, including Chief Julius Knapp. NCTA and others asked the FCC to reconsider the band, in a letter last week (see 1810160061).
DOJ's continuing to oppose AT&T's buy of Time Warner "is rather unusual" because there's no clear antitrust principle and the department must show the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit that lower court approval was clearly erroneous, Free State Foundation academic adviser Ted Bolema wrote Thursday. He noted U.S. District Judge Richard Leon took the odd step of explicitly discouraging Justice from appealing.
If the FCC lets broadcasters satisfy their broadcast election notice requirements by taking steps other than the traditional certified letters to cable operators, it should make similar changes to rules requiring cable operators send notices to broadcasters via certified mail, the American Cable Association said in a docket 17-317 posting Wednesday. It said with the agency "steadily moving toward a regime" that lets parties use electronic communications with subscribers and other interested parties, its proposal "simply extends the benefits of electronic delivery even further."