Fox won't bid on any of the regional sports networks Disney might sell as required in the DOJ consent decree (see 1806270016), the 21st Century Fox subsidiary said Friday in a SEC filing. Fox live news and sports assets are being spun off into a separate company as part of Disney's purchase of Fox's entertainment assets (see 1712140038).
Roku invented a method for enabling subscribers to log in using motion-detection fingerprints embedded in the TV’s remote control, said a U.S. patent application (20190012452) published Thursday at the Patent and Trademark Office. In entertainment systems, “a standard user login process using a remote control usually requires the user to type user identification information on a small remote control keyboard or use the remote control to direct an onscreen keyboard to enter the proper login information,” it said. “In either scenario, logging in to the system, particularly when using a remote control, can be a cumbersome process.” Roku’s solution includes at least one processor “coupled” to a “memory,” and “configured” to detect the motion of a remote control and compare that with one or more stored motions that grant access to the account if a match is found, said the application, based on a Sept. 14 filing. It names Ilya Asnis, senior vice president-Roku OS, as the sole inventor. The company didn’t comment Thursday on commercial implications.
Comcast launched a $5.99 monthly digital security service to protect home devices connected to its Xfinity Advanced Gateway. XFi Advanced Security uses artificial intelligence and machine learning technology to monitor and analyze a home’s Wi-Fi traffic and will automatically block identified suspicious activity in real time, said Comcast Wednesday. Customers can monitor activity on the digital dashboard in the Xfinity app. It cited Cisco figures saying by 2022 North American consumers will have an average 13 connected devices and Symantec data saying the number of IoT attacks jumped 600 percent 2016-17.
AT&T unveiled new advertising offerings it said were the result of collaboration between its ad business Xandr and Time Warner's Turner. Those include Turner's data-centric AudienceNow using Xandr's viewership insights, for quicker understanding of ad campaign results, it said Tuesday. AT&T bought TW in 2018.
When Comcast and Viamedia have oral argument Feb. 7 in Viamedia's appeal before the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, DOJ wants five minutes to address the proper standard for refusal-to-deal claims under the Sherman Act's Section 2, the agency said Friday in a docket 18-2852 unopposed motion (in Pacer). In an amicus brief (in Pacer) filed Nov. 8 in support of neither side, Justice said the 7th Circuit and Supreme Court have been clear that a monopolist's refusal to deal with a competitor violates Section 2 only in limited circumstances. It said the 7th Circuit should make clear a refusal to deal isn't actionable under Section 2 unless that refusal makes no economic sense except as a way to eliminate to lessen competition. Viamedia is appealing a U.S. District Court's rejection of antitrust claims involving Comcast's refusal to deal with the ad rep services competitor over Comcast-owned interconnects (see 1812270041).
Universal Electronics is starting a connected home platform for its customers, which include pay-TV players, so their subscribers can quickly deploy smart-home services. It includes a safety and security platform using Ecolink Zigbee, Zigbee connected thermostat and a voice-controllable solution, and energy management and entertainment control, said the vendor Thursday.
The Zigbee Alliance and Thread Group started Dotdot over Thread smart-home certification, the groups said. Dotdot lets universal device language work over Thread’s low-power IP network, they said Friday.
TV providers are “fast-tracking” new search and discovery products on intense competition and to “maximize viewer engagement,” said Chief Product Officer Simon Adams of Gracenote, which launched such a new product. Recommendation offerings rely on traditional genre descriptors such as action, comedy and drama that lack personalization, Gracenote said Thursday and Adams noted to us: TV content providers are bolstering catalogs of original and licensed TV shows and movies and developing voice-driven capabilities to meet changing technology. Genres have been expanded to include mood, theme, scenario and characters, and structured keyword sets for individual shows and movies describe content in progressively more granular terms.
Roku is adding a “premium subscriptions” option to watch either free advertising-supported content or paid premium programs through one interface, said the company Wednesday: Subscriptions will be available from a “wide variety” of content providers, including Epix, Showtime and Starz. An updated mobile app for iOS and Android will soon let users watch the Roku Channel on smartphones or tablets.
If the FCC axes only the requirement that cable operators maintain channel lineups in their local offices, it needs to not put a new regulatory obligation on small cable systems to post their channel lineups in their online public inspection files or other government-run databases, the American Cable Association told Media Bureau staffers, according to a docket 17-105 ex parte posting Thursday. Small systems -- not required to maintain online public inspection files -- provide the channel lineup information on their websites and other publicly available platforms, and shouldn't need to face additional record-keeping requirements, it said.