Everyone wants HBO to offer a standalone version of their streaming service HBO Go (right now you need to subscribe to traditional cable and HBO), though HBO continues to fight the idea. As the product of a lumbering empire like Time Warner, HBO isn’t very good at adaptation or innovation, waiting way too long to introduce HBO Go in the first place. They’re also terrified of losing the fat subsidies received from cable operators. At [...]

A German Judge has ruled that broadband subscribers have the right to receive compensation from their ISP for outages because Internet connectivity is an “essential” part of life. As Reuters notes, under German law the loss of use of essential material items can be compensated, though one German DSL subscriber was struggling to get compensation for a two month outage. The ruling comes a few years after both France and Finland declared broadband to be [...]

One of the UK s biggest ISPs Sky has admitted that poor capacity planning is to blame for the severe speed degradation customers in some areas have suffered in the past few months. The Murdoch-owned communications giant acknowledged this week that the severe slowdowns plaguing the ISP have been the result of “a combination of an underlining increase in network traffic as well as an especially high rate of new customer additions. Sky, which has [...]

Washington, DC – At the U.S. Conference of Mayors Winter Meeting, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski called for at least one gigabit community in all 50 states by 2015. Challenging broadband providers and state and municipal community leaders to come together to meet this Gigabit City Challenge, Chairman Genachowski said that establishing gigabit communities nationwide will accelerate the creation of a critical mass of markets and innovation hubs with ultra-fast Internet speeds. “American economic history teaches [...]

The FCC still has around $185 million out of the $300 broadband funds available from phase one of their Connect America Fund. As we’ve been noting, Frontier signed up quickly for the funds, agreeing to take $71.9 million to wire some 92,000 homes. However, some companies (like Windstream) have balked at taking full funding, saying that getting $775 per install wasn’t enough for their liking. AT&T and Verizon have refused funding entirely, as both companies [...]

AT&T has historically focused on acquisitions and growth before all else, and is now unsurprisingly extending those ambitions into Europe. According to the Wall Street Journal, the phone giant is now studying potential acquisition targets in Europe, and a deal is expected to be announced before the end of the year. AT&T’s growth is constrained in the States, where the company has no interest in expanding its fixed line broadband services, and the stunning growth [...]

As we’ve noted, AT&T’s recently announced U-Verse upgrades are less significant than the company’s recent announcement made it appear, given the “expansion” involves simply pushing U-Verse out to an additional 3 million or so users they’d already intended to upgrade (the majority in San Francisco, where debates over VRAD cabinets stalled upgrades). Last week AT&T stated that some of their U-Verse expansion will also use LTE as a delivery mechanism, though the company’s just not [...]

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA — NBN Co, Australia’s national open access communications network that is being built to bring high speed broadband and telephone services within the reach of all Australian premises, slightly exceeded its target to have construction commenced or completed in areas covering 758,000 premises before the end of 2012. The total number of premises in areas where construction had commenced or completed was 784,592 by year end. The government’s objective is for NBN Co [...]

BOSTON, MA — Strategy Analytics’ Q 2012 survey of broadband households in France, Germany, Italy, the UK and US identifies surprising interest in and willingness to pay for remote monitoring and control in addition to professionally monitored interactive security services. Over 50 percent of broadband households without security are willing to pay for professionally monitored services if combined with monitoring and control capabilities according to Strategy Analytics’ Smart Home Strategies (SHS) advisory service report, “Smart [...]

While a few paid (by Microsoft and AT&T) pundits like Scott Cleland have insisted demand won’t be there for Google Fiber, a new survey unsurprisingly finds that Kansas City locals are thrilled about the possibility of symmetrical 1 Gbps for $70. According to a new survey by Ideas & Solutions! Inc., 60% of those who qualify are very interested in obtaining Google Fiber. The company’s studies showed that Google Fiber surpassed broadband incumbents on 11 [...]