Netflix signs deals with 3 pay-TV firms
Netflix Inc. signed deals with three U.S. pay-TV operators, putting the video-streaming service on an equal footing with traditional cable networks like HBO for the first time in the domestic market.
The three small operators, RCN Telecom Services LLC, Atlantic Broadband and Grande Communications LLC, will offer Netflix on living-room TVs through set-top boxes made by TiVo Inc., according to statements from the companies Thursday.
While the three total fewer than 1 million customers, the deals mark a big step in efforts by Netflix Chief Executive Officer Reed Hastings to simplify access to his service.
With TiVo, consumers will be able to sign up for Netflix and search for shows without toggling between inputs on their TVs. Los Gatos, Calif.-based Netflix has similar deals in Europe.
“What we’re doing is really a watershed moment for the industry,” said David Isenberg, Atlantic Broadband’s chief marketing and strategy officer. “This partnership with Netflix really signals the beginning of the broadband TV era.”
Financial terms weren’t disclosed. In the past, Netflix has agreed to pay set-top box makers and others certain fees when subscribers sign up through their equipment.
Netflix has discussed partnerships with Comcast Corp., the biggest cable company, and other providers that don’t offer TiVo boxes to their customers. Hastings said this week those talks are continuing.
Cable companies are beginning to embrace Netflix as an adjunct to their live TV and on-demand services. The subscription service’s library of past seasons of television shows complements cable’s lineup, Isenberg said.
Until recently, Netflix couldn’t offer its service through cable set-top box providers because it hadn’t obtained rights from content owners. The three cable providers say that, with those now secure, they will promote Netflix by adding a dedicated channel on their program guides to access the service.
Customers of Atlantic Broadband, Grande or RCN who want Netflix under the new arrangement will pay separately for the service, in addition to their usual cable package. The companies provide TV services in the eastern U.S., Chicago and Texas.
Nokia, Microsoft close cellphone sale
Nokia Corp. says it has completed the $7.5 billion sale of its cellphone and services division to Microsoft Corp.
Friday’s closure of the deal, which includes a license to a portfolio of Nokia patents, follows delays in global regulatory approvals, including from China.
The sale ends the production of all Nokia mobile phones by the former world leader, which has lost in the lucrative smartphone race against Samsung, Apple’s iPhone and cheaper manufacturers in Asia.
The Finnish company will focus on networks, mapping services, and technology development and licenses. It is expected to unveil future plans when it releases firstquarter earnings April 29 - the last report to include the ailing devices and services division.
Fine said unlikely for Motorola Mobility
Motorola Mobility, which Google Inc. is selling to Lenovo Group Ltd., is likely to escape an antitrust fine when European Union regulators rule that it tried to use patents to block sales of Apple Inc. products, two people familiar with the case said.
The European Commission is expected to only order Motorola Mobility to drop legal injunctions over patents that relate to technology that is necessary for industry-standard products such as mobile phones, said the people, who asked not to be named because a final decision hasn’t been made. The EU could announce a decision as soon as next week.
Avoiding a fine would be “sensible,” allowing the EU to clarify the law around such patents “without punishing actions that took place against an unclear legal background,” said Alfonso Lamadrid, a lawyer at Garrigues in Brussels. The EU has previously shunned fines in cases where the law wasn’t clear.
The EU is cracking down on patent abuses as Motorola Mobility, Microsoft Corp., Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. trade victories in courts across the world on intellectual property. Joaquin Almunia, the EU’s antitrust chief, has said he’s targeting “rules of the game” to prevent companies from unfairly using their inventions to thwart rivals.
Almunia told reporters earlier this month that he would decide on the Motorola Mobility case and finalize a settlement with Samsung by the end of April. He said in February that he planned a “prohibition decision” for Motorola Mobility that would find the company violated antitrust rules.
- Bloomberg News
Business, Pages 22 on 04/28/2014