CES 2019 Keynotes Reflect Priorities of Industry and Leaders

CES 2019 keynotes will reflect the priorities of industry leaders and the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) with corporate presentations by IBM, LG, Verizon, AMD, a keynote policy talk and panel featuring Secretary of Transportation Elaine Choa and president and CEO of the National Safety Council Deborah Hersman, and a mobile and marketing focused keynote panel with AT&T, Adobe, National Geographic and Magic Leap. Topics range from artificial intelligence, display technology, smart products, telecom and transmission to core technology, the future of transportation, 5G, hyper-connectivity and consumer engagement. Continue reading CES 2019 Keynotes Reflect Priorities of Industry and Leaders

CES 2019: 5G to Make Debut as a Multi-Faceted Technology

At CES 2019 next week, 5G is expected to make a strong showing, not simply as a means to improve mobile phones, but as a game changer for everything from robots and drones to video games, sports and shopping. Although Samsung has already shown prototype 5G phones for Verizon and AT&T, ETC consultant George Gerba noted that, “the need to upgrade phones will not occur till 2020 when most metropolitan areas should be closing in on the first wave of 5G.” “This is one of those evolutions that will happen in waves and with some bumps,” he said. Continue reading CES 2019: 5G to Make Debut as a Multi-Faceted Technology

T-Mobile Delays Debut of its Streaming TV Service Until 2019

T-Mobile US is pushing back the introduction of its video service until 2019, although those plans might also change, said sources. The reason is that the project became more complex than anticipated; chief executive John Legere had said the carrier would create a “disruptive TV service” that would transform the television industry, setting a high bar that was difficult to meet given the time constraint. Sources said the delay is intended to provide the time for T-Mobile to deliver on Legere’s initial promise. Continue reading T-Mobile Delays Debut of its Streaming TV Service Until 2019

RCS Standard Will Bring Multimedia Capabilities to Messaging

SMS messaging is popular, be it Apple’s iMessage, Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp. But these messaging services aren’t interoperable: a Facebook user can’t use Messenger to reach someone on iMessage, for example. A solution is on the horizon with RCS — Rich Communication Services — an online protocol adopted by the GSM Association to replace SMS, and one that adds significant multimedia capabilities. The GSMA, a trade group that represents 750+ mobile operators and others in the mobile ecosystem, came up with Universal Profile, a standard that underlies RCS. Continue reading RCS Standard Will Bring Multimedia Capabilities to Messaging

AT&T Chief Outlines Future WarnerMedia Streaming Platform

At the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference, AT&T chief executive Randall Stephenson revealed that investing in more HBO programs is a target for the coming year, as WarnerMedia readies its direct-to-consumer subscription platform due to launch by end of 2019. HBO will anchor the as-of-yet unnamed service, which will also offer original programming and other WarnerMedia content year-round. Stephenson did stress, however, that AT&T won’t spend the $11 billion that is Netflix’s current annual budget for content. Continue reading AT&T Chief Outlines Future WarnerMedia Streaming Platform

Sprint Plans 2019 5G Hotspot Launch with HTC, Qualcomm

Sprint, the fourth largest wireless carrier in the U.S., plans to deploy a 5G mobile smart hub in the first half of 2019 developed with HTC and Qualcomm Technologies. Sprint says the “device will deliver multimedia and connected data capabilities in a compact and portable design,” featuring Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X50 modem for 5G in addition to Gigabit LTE capabilities. The Kansas-based telecom will introduce its mobile 5G network in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, New York City, Phoenix and Washington, D.C. Additional markets, the device name and feature specs will be announced at a later date. Continue reading Sprint Plans 2019 5G Hotspot Launch with HTC, Qualcomm

CES: Understanding the 5G Ecosystem in 2019 and Beyond

CES 2019 in January will highlight discussions about what we can expect with 5G next year and beyond. Fifth-generation mobile communications brings faster speeds, lower latency and the ability to connect more devices, meaning it will not simply speed up mobile phones but power nascent digital technologies from VR and IoT to autonomous vehicles and smart cities. CES 2019 offers a Wednesday 5G summit, and the first 5G products will be sprinkled across the show floor. The ETCentric team will be in Las Vegas reporting on a number of companies in this space. Continue reading CES: Understanding the 5G Ecosystem in 2019 and Beyond

Samsung to Introduce 5G Phone Next Year Ahead of Apple

Apple is not expected to produce a 5G-capable iPhone until at least 2020, according to sources, although Samsung Electronics has already stated that it plans to release a 5G smartphone next year. A 5G network will offer significantly increased mobile data speed, but Apple will hold off — as it did with new 3G and 4G mobile networks — to wait until new network problems are ironed out. The move will put Apple behind its competition, and, with 5G, some experts say the big speed upgrade makes that wait riskier. Continue reading Samsung to Introduce 5G Phone Next Year Ahead of Apple

Reliance and Facebook Join Forces to Find New Indian Users

In India, Facebook and Reliance Industries Limited, the latter headed by India’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani, have teamed to encourage citizens to go online and join messaging service WhatsApp. India is already the world’s fastest growing Internet market, and the two companies have sent out marketing teams that use entertainment to educate and entice people to upgrade or sign up for the first time, offering cheap phones and rates with the Reliance Jio network as well as Facebook’s popular messaging service. Continue reading Reliance and Facebook Join Forces to Find New Indian Users

AT&T to Roll Out Three Tiers of Streaming Service Next Year

AT&T announced it plans to introduce three tiers of a new streaming video service to launch in beta by the fourth quarter of 2019, although pricing and details have yet to be revealed. The WarnerMedia service, intended to take on Netflix and other streaming competitors, will offer movies and TV shows from Warner Bros., Turner and HBO. In the future, the unnamed service is expected to feature licensed content from additional media companies. The venture is part of AT&T’s larger plans to pursue areas outside of its core businesses following the company’s acquisition of Time Warner. Continue reading AT&T to Roll Out Three Tiers of Streaming Service Next Year

FCC Readies Two Auctions for Ultra High Frequency Spectrum

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will begin the first of two auctions for extremely high-frequency spectrum licenses, testing out how valuable these radio waves are considered. Up until now, wireless carriers have judged these high-frequency ranges to be useless, but the advent of 5G wireless services has changed that assessment. Signal frequencies above 1 gigahertz can carry more data for current 4G networks, often positioned above low-frequency bandwidth, and also help launch 5G networks. Continue reading FCC Readies Two Auctions for Ultra High Frequency Spectrum

AT&T Announces Profits, Plans to Roll Out 5G Mobile Network

AT&T’s Q3 profit was boosted by its holdings in entertainment, including growth in HBO subscribers and revenue from its Turner TV channels. AT&T also saw 13,000 new U-verse video subscribers and 49,000 new DirecTV Now customers. That, along with a bump in smartphone customers led to $4.72 billion in profits, and also helped to offset its loss of 359,000 DirecTV satellite customers in the same quarter. AT&T stated its plans to launch mobile 5G in “parts of 12 cities” in the next few weeks. Continue reading AT&T Announces Profits, Plans to Roll Out 5G Mobile Network

Netflix Reports Solid Global Growth, Spends Big on Content

Netflix reported stronger growth in international markets than expected, which is key to its ability to keep pace with increasing content production costs. In Q3, it added 6.96 million subscribers worldwide, beating its forecast of five million in July and 5.18 million predicted by analysts contacted by FactSet. The company expects to spend as much as $8 billion on shows and movies this year, with analysts forecasting that Netflix will actually spend as much as $4 billion more on content to be released in the future, for a total of $12 billion. Continue reading Netflix Reports Solid Global Growth, Spends Big on Content

Hulu Floats Idea of Skinny Bundle Minus Linear TV Networks

According to Hulu chief executive Randy Freer, the company is considering a skinnier bundle aimed at pay-TV cord shavers watching their wallets. The bundle would not include linear TV networks, which have pricey carriage fees, but would continue to offer sports, news and on-demand content licensed from cable networks. Hulu is in talks with programmers about the possibility of such a bundle. Few additional details are available, but that the price would be less than the current $40 per month plan. Continue reading Hulu Floats Idea of Skinny Bundle Minus Linear TV Networks

AT&T to Launch WarnerMedia Streaming Service Next Year

By the end of 2019, AT&T is slated to introduce a digital video service featuring WarnerMedia films and TV shows. That will include such blockbusters as “Wonder Woman” and the Harry Potter franchise as well as HBO’s “Game of Thrones.” The deal comes on the heels of AT&T’s purchase of Time Warner in June for $85.4 billion. The company made it clear then that the main motivation for the acquisition was to launch a streaming video service. So far, no details have been revealed on the service’s name, price or date that it will be launched. Continue reading AT&T to Launch WarnerMedia Streaming Service Next Year