| | #1 FCC Begins Net Neutrality Rollback | The Federal Communications Commission voted 2-1 today to start the process of eliminating the net neutrality rules introduced in 2015 by former FCC Chairman, Tom Wheeler. The FCC plans to take comments on its plan until Aug. 16, and then make a final decision sometime after that. | WHY THIS MATTERS: The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) proposes eliminating the Title II classification of ISPs and seeks comment on what, if anything, should replace the current net neutrality rules. The rules prevented ISPs from offering paid Internet fast lanes or from throttling competing web services. | 5 TAKES: MCN | Ars Technica | Business Insider | Deadline | The Wrap
| | #2 LRG: Top Pay TV Providers Lost 410,000 Subscribers in Q1 | According to a new report from the Leichtman Research Group, the largest U.S. pay TV providers, representing about 95% of the market, dropped about 410,000 net video subs in Q1 2017, versus a gain of about 10,000 subs in the year-ago quarter. Those service providers ended the quarter with 93.3 million subs 48.6 million for the top six cable operators, and 33.2 million for satellite TV, and 9.8 million subs among the top telco TV providers. | WHY THIS MATTERS: LRG said that this is the first time that those major providers have seen a net loss of video subscribers in a first quarter, and appears to factor into a small but accelerating cord-cutting trend. LRG attributed to the decline to multiple other factors, noting that some providers have dialed back their pursuit of lower value customers. | 3 TAKES: MCN | Fierce Cable | CED
| | #3 Facebook To Stream 20 Live MLB Games This Season | Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred announced today that the league has signed a deal with Facebook to stream games on MLBs Facebook page each Friday, beginning with tomorrows game between the Rockies at Reds. Other matchups will be announced at a later date. | WHY THIS MATTERS: The deal, which covers 20 live games this season, is part of the tech giant's big push into premium video. All games will be streamed nationally without blackouts. The streams will originate from participating teams local broadcast rightsholders. | 5 TAKES: Variety | THR | Tech Crunch | Forbes | Business Insider
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| | "I've never heard such a bunch of spurious arguments, distorted history, and just plain rubbish as Chairman Pai and his big industry allies have put forth to sustain their totally untenable argument against an open internet. A horrid idea at any time, this proposal is particularly destructive now that so much of our democratic discourse plays out via the internet. The Trump Administrations anything goes approach to its corporate benefactors will wreak havoc on citizens seeking truth, facts, diversity, and privacy. Former FCC Chairman Michael Copps |
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| | Not Such Strange Bedfellows By Greg Riker, MCN (Guest Blog) The primary value of a cable operator has always been its ability to be the customers content aggregator. It began back in the 70s, when operators started combining traditional linear TV channels with new, unheard-of cable networks, all wrapped up in a simple scrolling electronic program guide. Yet for some reason, today people are questioning why an operator would distribute an over-the-top (OTT) channel. More
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| VIDWeek June 12-16, 2017 Learn More The Programmatic Summit June 12-13 | The Stewart Hotel, NYC Learn More Social TV Conference June 12, 2017 | The Stewart Hotel, NYC Learn More Next TV Summit June 15, 2017 | Convene Conference Center, NYC Learn More Next Wave Of Leaders June 16, 2017 | The Stewart Hotel, NYC Learn More The Digital Media Tech Leadership Summit June 20-21, 2017 | Tampa Airport Marriott, FL Learn More
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