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Google Trends Illustrates Searches on AT&T's U-verse vs. Verizon's FiOS

Note search trends on U-verse vs. FiOS....

Alan & Betty Pontificate AT&T's 100,000th U-verse Installation. Don't Forget: The Free Milk Shake Offer Still Holds....

So here's Alan (that's me) and Betty (who runs the Olmos Soda Fountain) talking it up about the free milk shake offering I am making to the first 10 AT&T employees who come by and see Betty in celebration of the 100,000th installation of U-verse.

Review of U-verse U-guide Entertainment Magazine: AT&T Features Weeds on Back Outside Cover

Looks like the phone company as we no longer know it is loosening up a bit by featuring Showtime's Weeds which has its season premier on Monday. Here is my review of the month U-guide Entertainment Magazine from AT&T.  Gee....I wonder if FCC Commissioner, Kevin Martin watches Weeds...

Mainstream Media Continues to Review U-verse - Too Much Focus on "Just TV"

The L.A. Times' Jim Granelli has a fair and balanced review on AT&T's U-verse service.

My only real critique of Jim's review (and others that I see) is that they are too focused on the TV experience - and not on the whole enchilada: the notion of getting your TV / PC / Wireless service from one provider - and yes for those of you who think I am a pro-AT&T bigot, you can do likewise with Verizon.

Maybe I am getting ahead of myself, but if you are going to compare spec to spec and feature to feature on Cable vs. Satellite vs. IPTV, there will never be a best choice. 

One will always have something the other does not have. 

And as for price, I have found that you can drive yourself crazy on comparing pricing because much of it depends on your local market.

To me, this is not about TV, but rather having several things:

    1.  An alternative to cable and satellite.
    2.  The notion that you are disrupting the traditional way of getting TV
    3.  Getting HD over IP (way too cool)
    4.  Saving money on bundled service offerings
    5.  More competition

Internet TV May Pose Threat To Cable Companies By Decade's End

Found over at Jeff Pulver's blog:  Internet TV pay post threat to cable companies by decade's end.

Jeff brings up a compelling point: much like traditional phone companies (like AT&T / Verizon) are losing wireline cusomters, and shifting to net and cell based services, cable stands to lose out in the same way.

Read Jeff's post here.

Disclosure: in my day job of running a PR firm, one of Jeff's company, Network2 is one of clients.

My 3rd Screen. Delivered. Sometimes via MobiTV and at Other Times, via Cingular Video

At Verizon's PolicyBlog, I see they've highlighted the lesson from Telephony magazine’s Kevin Fitchard who wrote about AT&T’s three-screen event promoting Tim McGraw’s Swampstock event.

Fitchard points out that AT&T is broadcasting the performance — along with loads of bonus multimedia — and video on its TV and broadband channels.  “But a wireless contribution to the effort will be a streamed channel over MobiTV, an application used by a small number of AT&T subscribers. AT&T's main video portal, Cingular Video, won't carry the content,” states the article.

Fitchard may be right, but he left off two small, but critical details in his story:

    1.  AT&T did manage to snag Chase Card Services, the credit card division of JPMorgan Chase & Co. as its sole advertiser, marking it the first major content and advertising deal through AT&T Entertainment Services.

    2. AT&T has indeed deployed off a real live three-screen event with video on Cingular during a much larger and more significant event, The Masters.

The fact that the Swampstock event's third screen offering may be on MobiTV and not Cingular Video is too quick of a rush to judgment.

Swampstock Aint the SuperBowl (Oh...that's Tim McGraw on the right...)

In the grand scheme of things, Swampstock is not the SuperBowl nor American Idol.

To me, Swampstock is a niche market- or community that AT&T is trying to reach out to, provide content and sell ads to a targeted audience.

As a consumer, what I see here is that AT&T is being cautious and methodical in prototyping three screen events, getting it right, and then scaling them up to much larger and grander sized events.

While I commend Kevin on stating the obvious, it’s more important to see a small event like Swampstock not for what it is today, but what the potential for three screen events could be.

Om Does A Post About AT&T - Hint: This Ain't Just About TV over IP

Read Om's post about his take on AT&T and Verizon.

Also, please note my comment on his blog. 

This is not a cable replacement.

As the name of this blog implies, it's about delivering entertainment and communications and soon, advertising on all three screens.

New Mobile Lifestyle Mash Up Applications Company, Mobio, Turns Your Cingular / AT&T Cell Phone Into A Powerful Platform for Web Apps and Widgets

Mobio Networks today announced the release of GetMobio, the first mobile lifestyle portal that offers over 50 free applications and widgets on the mobile phone.

In a telephone briefing held yesterday, I learned that Cingular / AT&T customers can download the GetMobio lifestyle portal and get instant access to favorite Web content and services right on your mobile phone. 

To see if GetMobio will work on your phone click here for the list of supported devices.  MobileCrunch as a good news story about it.

I find the concept Mobio to be interesting for two reasons:

1.  It works on Cingular / AT&T and Sprint, but not initially on Verizon.  Cingular / AT&T and Sprint offer open networks that let the consumer decide what type of content and applications they want to have on their 3rd Screen. 

2. In my mind, Mobio could essentially turn your everyday mobile device and offer similar applications to what Apple's iPhone might be coming with. 

Would it be as slick and integrated as some of the iPhone applications I've seen? 

No. 

But if you already have a cell phone, and are not ready to spend $499 for the upcoming iPhone, Mobio could wind up doing the job.

Here's a video featuring Ramneek Bhasin, CEO of Mobio demonstrating how GetMobio works.

 

GetMobio ships with 10 collections, which are sets of mash-up   applications, widgets and content feeds (RSS) tailored to your  location and preferences.

They include:
- Panic Kit - In case of emergency
- After Midnight - Places to go after midnight
- Pamper Me - Spas, beauty treatments, health/fitness
- Gadgetphilia - Stuff for the gadget lover inside all of us
- Indulge Me - Satisfy what you've been craving
- Outwitting the Kids - Stuff for parents at their wits end
- Date Night - Everything you need to make your night special
- Stepping Out - High energy places to see and be seen
- Urban Trekker - Treat any city like a destination in its own right
- Sports Center - For sports loverss.

Send Alan Your Review of GetMobio And Get A Free Starbucks Giftcard

It will be interesting to watch the roll-out of GetMobio.  Download it and let me know what you think.  The first 10 reviews that come my way, will be sent a $10 Starbucks Gift card in the mail. Just send me an email to: alan at weinkrantz dot com and I'll be in touch.

DSL Reports Has The Best U-verse Forum

There are two U-verse forums that I know of, U-verse Users and Broadband Reports' AT&T U-verse Discussion Forum.

I personally prefer the U-verse Discussion Forum.  Just a matter of personal taste....

I find the technical questions -- and answers to be of greater substance and is a better barometer on potential impact that not ony AT&T or Verizon could have on broadcast media but the global impact of IPTV as a whole.

MeeVee Combines Online and Traditional TV Program Listings; Falls Short Without Listing AT&T U-verse Channel Guide

MeeVee marries online and traditional TV program listings.

The idea here is build and easy to use, powerful and comprehensive television search and personalization service for multiple platforms (e.g., PC, TV, DVR, Set-Top Boxes and mobile devices).

MeeVee can help you find programming and original content, from new sources such as IPTV and other Internet-based broadcasts

Alan Asks: "Why No Listings for U-verse...?"

As much as I like the idea for MeeVee, there is one small problem:  they don't list the channel guide for AT&T's U-verse as of yet.

Read more MeeVee about it over at TechCrunch.