Contentinople - Erin Barker - News Bits: Cable Customers May OK Web TV Charges

Written by Erin Barker

Thursday, February 26. 2009 at 11:00 AM EST Post a comment

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When The Wall Street Journal reported that Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) and Time Warner Cable Inc. (NYSE: TWC) were considering adding online services for subscribers, we were skeptical about how much enthusiasm consumers would have for these services -- especially when sites like Hulu already offered shows for free. But according to new research from TDG Research , consumers are interested -- so much so that they might even pay extra for it.

TDG reports that 43 percent of consumers are interested in the ability to watch cable shows online, and 48 percent of those interested would spend as much as $10 per month extra for the service. Twelve percent would spend as much as $15, and 7 percent would spend $20.

Comcast is currently planning for its online services, which will be powered by thePlatform, to be free to subscribers. But according to TDG, if they tied a $10 charge to the service, they could stand to make an extra $522 million in revenue each year. At times like these, $522 million could be hard to pass up.

In other news:

A new study by Integrated Media Measurement Inc. (IMMI) found that DVR users are more likely to watch online prime-time TV content than those who watch live TV. The study suggests that because these tech-savvy viewers cannot skip commercials on the shows they watch online, advertisers can better reach them through this medium than through traditional TV.

"Rather than simply cannibalizing audiences, as has been feared, offering content online presents a huge opportunity for television content providers and advertisers to reach elusive ad-avoiding audiences and to achieve higher engagement with them," said Amanda Welsh, head of research for IMMI.

After laying off 1,400 employees in January, with plans to lay off 3,600 more, Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) has cut salaries for its temporary workers by 10 percent, effective on March 2, and will eventually cut them further, according to an internal memo dated Feb. 20. "In response to the realities of a deteriorating economy, Microsoft is sharpening and deepening its focus on cost savings," it reads.

Tags: Comcast, DVR, Microsoft, Technology, Time Warner

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