Sony and Viacom Reach Tentative Deal to Stream Cable Channels
With the next-gen console Sony Playstation 4 on the horizon, Sony decided to take a step in what they feel is another positive direction. In a deal that may signal the start of a new era of competition for entrenched cable and satellite providers, Viacom has tentatively agreed to let its popular cable channels—like Nickelodeon and MTV—be carried by an Internet TV service that Sony is creating. The deal will stream cable channels straight to your Playstation 4 and may ultimately change the television landscape.
Most households today have only a few choices for television service: whatever cable company serves their local area, be it Comcast, Time Warner Cable or others, and two satellite providers, DirecTV and Dish Network. In some parts of the country, television through Verizon or AT&T is also available. Analysts say cable delivered through the Internet could give households many more choices—if the new services give customers more for their money and if cable incumbents don't smother the services.
Having the news spread was advantageous for Sony, though, because having Viacom on board—even just on a preliminary basis—will most likely help the company complete other carriage deals. The company has also contacted other top programmers, like the Walt Disney Company and Time Warner. Sony is well-positioned to reach younger Americans because its PlayStation video game console is already hooked up to TV sets in tens of millions of homes. The company has said almost nothing about its intentions, but it has been interested in selling a bundle of channels at least since 2011. Its TV service could also be made available in the future via smartphones, tablet computers and other devices.Sony hopes to start selling the service in the fourth quarter of 2013 or the first quarter of 2014, said a media company executive briefed on the plans for it.
Sony has also turned in $35 Million profit, which was officially announced on Thursday, August 15th. Sony posted net income of $35 million in the quarter that ended June 30, after a loss of $17 million in the period a year earlier. The results were helped by a weaker yen and increased sales of smartphones. Revenue increased 13 percent.
Having the news spread was advantageous for Sony, though, because having Viacom on board—even just on a preliminary basis—will most likely help the company complete other carriage deals. The company has also contacted other top programmers, like the Walt Disney Company and Time Warner. Sony is well-positioned to reach younger Americans because its PlayStation video game console is already hooked up to TV sets in tens of millions of homes. The company has said almost nothing about its intentions, but it has been interested in selling a bundle of channels at least since 2011. Its TV service could also be made available in the future via smartphones, tablet computers and other devices.Sony hopes to start selling the service in the fourth quarter of 2013 or the first quarter of 2014, said a media company executive briefed on the plans for it.
Sony has also turned in $35 Million profit, which was officially announced on Thursday, August 15th. Sony posted net income of $35 million in the quarter that ended June 30, after a loss of $17 million in the period a year earlier. The results were helped by a weaker yen and increased sales of smartphones. Revenue increased 13 percent.
SOURCE: CNBC, NEW YORK TIMES
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