The company name, it might claim, says it all: Cablevision.
The cable giant is advancing on numerous business and technology fronts as part of a measured plan that its leaders believe will help it weather this economic storm.
That’s according to COO Tom Rutledge, who updated the company’s strategy, and made candid remarks about the impact the economy is having on his firm and how he expects consumers to respond.
Network DVR Service, Plus
Back in 2006, when TiVo Inc. (TIVO) was quickly expanding its DVR in-home device customer base, but well before telcos even announced plans for multiroom DVR features for their TV services, Cablevision Systems Corp. (CVC) was ready to launch a network-based DVR service.
And while its launch has been blocked by legal challenges ever since, Cablevision has stayed the course, met litigation with litigation, and still plans to launch the innovative offering sometime in 2009.
What does Cablevision see in network DVR? It sees an opportunity to marry network resources such as servers, storage and management with content to provide a DVR replacement offering that it claims is $100 cheaper per install. That’s because it’s done via software download — no expensive and time-consuming truck rolls for device delivery or swap-out.
Software delivery versus box replacement is a huge benefit for Cablevision, as Rutledge claims set-top boxes still represent the bulk of the company’s annual capital expenditures.
Rutledge noted that his firm can buy network storage in bulk for far less the cost of hard drives that handle storage for in-home DVRs, which have finite space for content, especially in HD.
But Cablevision sees much more to network DVR than a non-premises version of a TiVo box. Rutledge sees it as an offering that can beget additional revenue-generating opportunities.
Specifically, it can be used to offer features that allow subscribers to pause live or on-demand programming after seeing an on-screen caller ID. TiVo announced a feature that lets advertisers post ads when consumers with certain TiVo DVRs pause live or time-shifted programming. That announcement came just two days after Rutledge shared his view.
Content Control
Dovetailing with these new services and features is the fact that Cablevision has its own content assets.
Through its Rainbow Media Holdings subsidiary, Cablevision delivers standard and HD programming and original content to hundreds of millions of consumers. Rainbow Media's national program networks — AMC, IFC, Sundance Channel and WE tv — are among the country's most watched and recognized cable channels.
And that leads to another large Cablevision advantage: advertising.
