Comcast Launches Skype Via Xfinity Set Top – $10 Extra, Available Only to Triple Play Users

Written by adminargon on May 16th, 2012. Posted in Internet Service

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Since last year Comcast has been testing an implementation of Skype to be embedded in the company’s Xfinity set top boxes using a high-definition camera. Comcast today announced that the company has finally started the nationwide deployment of the service beginning today in Boston and Seattle, with Atlanta, Augusta, Ga., Chicago, Detroit, Harrisburg, Pa., Indianapolis, Miami and Pittsburgh slated for launch before the end of the week.

According to Comcast’s new website for the service, Skype for Xfinity will cost users $10 extra a month — but only if you subscribe to the Comcast triple play of Digital Starter TV (or above) with HD service, Performance Internet (or above) and Unlimited Voice service. The service comes as a self-installation kit, pictured below: att=2003156
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Verizon to Kill Grandfathered Unlimited Plans – As Carrier Prepares to Launch LTE ‘Shared Data’ Plans

Written by adminargon on May 16th, 2012. Posted in Internet Service

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Back in 2010, following in lock step on the heels of AT&T, Verizon imposed cap and overage pricing on wireless data, eliminated their unlimited data plans for smartphones but “grandfathered” existing unlimited users. Speaking on a recent investor webcast, Verizon Wireless CFO Fran Shammo unsurprisingly stated that as those customers switch to LTE, they’re going to be forced to give up their unlimited data plans.

Those customers will be pushed toward the company’s upcoming “data share” wireless data plan (aka family plans, or pooled data plans) that will allows users to connect multiple household users or devices under one plan. It’s an idea that’s absurdly overdue, but it may arrive with quite a pricing punch.

As we’ve <a href="http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/ATT-Family-Data-Plans-Coming-Soon-119449″>discussed, you can expect that these new shared data plans will come with some significant caveats and fees, as the company looks to avoid the revenues gleaned from forcing each user and tablet to have its own data plan. On that same conference call, Shammo stated that he believes they’ll make up most of the losses because more people will connect more devices to the network:

Verizon Chief Financial Officer Fran Shammo said he expects the new offering to encourage more customers to connect more devices to its network. As a result, he expects them to sign up for higher-tier data services that come with higher prices. “We’re fairly confident we’ll start to see people uptick in the tiers, which is where we’ll see the revenue accretion.” Shammo said in a webcast of an investor conference.

The more people and more devices eating away at your monthly usage allotment, the more quickly users will start to head into overage territory where they’ll be forced to pay $10 per gigabyte. Progress? Sort of. Just not for your wallet.
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Google Shakes Up Android OEM Strategy – Expands Direct to Consumer Phone Sales Options

Written by adminargon on May 16th, 2012. Posted in Internet Service

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While Google’s Nexus One phone was supposed to <a href="http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/106243″>rattle the wireless status quo by offering users unsubsidized phones via a Google store, the promised revolution never arrived. That was due to a number of factors, including the fact that the phone came with <a href="http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/106867″>3G bugs and annoying fees — but not with phone support (Google fixed the latter two eventually). But the idea of buying your phone first then shopping for your carrier (more common in Europe) never took off because, well, the phone only worked on T-Mobile.

In a reversal last April, the company started selling unlocked HSPA+ Galaxy Nexus phones direct to consumers again via the company’s website. Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal today reported that Google plans to give multiple mobile-device makers early access to new releases of Android so they can sell those devices directly to consumers. That’s a shift from the previous system, where Google would work with only one OEM at a time to on “lead devices,” before releasing the software to other OEMs. Says the Journal of Google’s reasons :

The expansion of direct sales marks a bid to exert more control over key features and apps that run on Android-powered phones and tablets, thus reducing the influence of wireless carriers over such devices, these people said. Wireless carriers typically handle marketing and sales of devices and thus can exert some control over the services that run on them. The plan also aims to assuage concerns of smartphone and tablet makers that build devices using Android, many of whom are wary of Google because of its pending acquisition of device-maker Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc., MMI +0.15% these people said.

The source tells the Journal Google will work with as many as five manufacturers at a time to create a portfolio of “Nexus” lead devices, including smartphones and tablets, all directly available to consumers without having to buy it from a carrier.
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Comcast Denies Own Traffic Prioritization – Insists They’re Fully Adhering to NBC Universal Conditions

Written by adminargon on May 16th, 2012. Posted in Internet Service

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Just when the network neutrality debate appeared to have resigned itself to a dark corner, the revelation that Comcast was <a href="http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Comcast-360-Video-Wont-Count-Against-Your-Cap-118975″>exempting Comcast TV content over Xbox 360 traffic from its bandwidth cap rekindled the entire debate. Comcast claims they’re simply treating the Xbox 360 as other set top, while competitors like Netflix claim it gives them an <a href="http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Netflix-CEO-Complains-About-Comcast-Xbox-360-and-Caps-119243″>unfair advantage in streaming video offerings. “The same device, the same IP address, the same wifi, the same internet connection, but totally different cap treatment — in what way is this neutral?” recently asked Netflix CEO Reed Hastings.

Complicating the situation was recent “proof” by several different individuals claiming that Comcast was <a href="http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Comcast-Breaking-Neutrality-Conditions-of-NBC-Merger-119420″>specifically prioritizing their own streaming services over that of their competitors. You can find the broadest technical exploration of the claim here by MixMedia CTO Bryan Berg, who says he has proven that Comcast is busily playing favorites:

What I ve concluded is that Comcast is using separate DOCSIS service flows to prioritize the traffic to the Xfinity Xbox app (so that I m using consistent terminology, I m going to call this traffic Xfinity traffic in the rest of the post). This separation allows them to exempt that traffic from both bandwidth cap accounting and download speed limits. It s still plain-old HTTP delivering MP4-encoded video files, just like the other streaming services use, but additional priority is granted to the Xfinity traffic at the DOCSIS level.

I still believe that DSCP values I observed in the packet headers of Xfinity traffic is the method by which Comcast signals that traffic is to be prioritized, both in their backbone and regional networks and their DOCSIS network. In addition, contrary to what has been widely speculated, the Xfinity traffic is not delivered via separate, dedicated downstream channel(s) it uses the same downstream channels as regular Internet traffic.

However, as we <a href="http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Comcast-Breaking-Neutrality-Conditions-of-NBC-Merger-119420″>noted in our original post (and was pointed out by several readers by e-mail), QoS over a cable network is complicated, and it’s very difficult to prove prioritization using DSCP (& IP PREC) tags. A week or so later and Comcast CTO Tony Werner has responded to the claims at the company’s blog, stating they in no way are giving their own content a leg up:

There’s also been some chatter that we might be prioritizing our Xfinity TV content on the Xbox. It’s really important to us that we make crystal clear that, in contrast to some other providers, we are not prioritizing our transmission of Xfinity TV content to the Xbox (as some have speculated). While DSCP markings can be used to assign traffic different priority levels, that is not their only application and that is not what they are being used for here.

As for the Xbox 360, Comcast continues to insist that they’re using the device as just another set top box, just utilizing IP. Your thoughts? Is Comcast playing favorites or not?
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Avira Security Update Crippled PCs – Identified Legitimate Windows Processes as Malware

Written by adminargon on May 16th, 2012. Posted in Internet Service

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Users in our security forums direct our attention to the fact that users of any of the paid versions of Avira‘s various antivirus and security programs are now dealing with crippled PCs after an update went terribly awry yesterday. The latest update to the software’s AntiVirProActiv component — not included in the free version — identified critical Windows processes as malware and automatically terminated them. The update also resulted in many legitimate Microsoft and third party applications being blocked, and in some cases updated PCs wouldn’t boot at all.

Avira couldn’t say how many PCs were impacted, but issued a statement saying the problem has been fixed:

If you had problems with the ProActiv module after updating to the latest Service Pack, then please initiate a product update which will automatically fix the issue, an Avira spokesperson said in a statement. All new users will not experience any issues and are not required to take any action. We deeply regret any difficulties that this may have caused you. Thank you for your patience and understanding!

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The Top Paid CEOs in Telecom – Brian Roberts Tops the List With $26.9 Million

Written by adminargon on May 16th, 2012. Posted in Internet Service

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Fierce Telecom has provided a break down of the highest paid executives in the cable and satellite, telco landline, and wireless markets. Apple’s Tim Cook and his $377,996,537 in 2011 compensation aside, the usual folks are about where you’d expect them to be, with Comcast CEO Brian Roberts taking the top spot with $26.9 million in 2011 annual compensation. He’s followed by the other usual names in telecom including Verizon’s Lowell McAdam ($23.1 million), AT&T’s Randall Stephenson ($22.01 million), Charter’s Michael Lovett ($20.54 million) and Time Warner Cable’s Glenn Britt ($16.43 million).
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Verizon, Cox Co-Market Services in Oklahoma – Cable Industry Quadruple Play Offers Expand

Written by adminargon on May 16th, 2012. Posted in Internet Service

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Not too concerned with the <a href="http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Coalition-Forms-to-Block-VerizonCable-deal-119505″>growing consumer advocate opposition to these deals or the fact that they haven’t been approved by regulators yet, Verizon and the cable industry continue to expand their co-marketing relationship. Comcast and Verizon now co-market their products in a half a dozen markets, and in early April Time Warner Cable started bundling Verizon services in <a href="http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Time-Warner-Cable-Bundles-Verizon-Wireless-119219″>Kansas City, Raleigh, Cincinnati, and Columbus. Now Cox is getting into the action, joining forces with Verizon in Oklahoma to joint-market and bundle their services in competition against AT&T U-Verse. As it stands, these bundles simply involve unified billing and a gift card, but the companies say it will expand to involve unified video and other services across both landline and wireless networks.

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