DirecTV

Report: DirecTV in Talks to Offer 'TV Everywhere' Web Service

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 7, 2009 - 10:18am.
New York - Satellite TV operator DirecTV (NYSE: DTV) is in talks with cable networks to launch a 'TV Everywhere' service that would give DirecTV subscribers free online access to programming from cable TV networks, AdAge.com reported. Comcast (NASD: CMCSA) and other pay-TV service providers are exploring offering their subscribers free online access to content from various networks. "We've been in active discussions with an array of programmers for some time now," DirecTV spokesman Robert Mercer told AdAge," adding that the company "will be prepared to launch a similar product around the same time, if not before, others in the industry."

News Corp. Hires DirecTV CEO Carey as New President, COO

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 4, 2009 - 7:47am.
New York - News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) announced on Thursday that it has hired Chase Carey, CEO of the DirecTV Group (NASD: DTV), to be its new deputy chairman, president and chief operating officer.

DirecTV to Merge With Liberty Media's Entertainment Unit

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on May 4, 2009 - 7:30am.
El Segundo, Calif. - Satellite TV operator DirecTV (NASD: DTV) announced on Monday that it plans to mere with the entertainment unit of Liberty Media (NASD: LINTA), which will be spun off into a separate, publicly-traded company. The deal will give John Malone's Liberty Media a 54% controlling stake in DirecTV, up from 48% prior to the transaction.

N.Y. Times: DirecTV Owner in Talks with Sirius XM

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 12, 2009 - 8:47am.
Washington - Just five days before the company's $175 million debt payment comes due, Sirius XM (NASD: SIRI) has entered talks with Liberty Media (NASD: LCAPB) that the satellite radio provider hopes could keep it out of bankruptcy, The New York Times reported. The talks could set up a situation in which Liberty, the majority owner of DirecTV, wages battle with fellow satellite TV firm EchoStar (NASD: SATS), the owner of Dish Network, for control of Sirius XM.

Liberty Media to Spin-Off Entertainment Group

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 15, 2008 - 11:25am.

Englewood, Colo. - John Malone's Liberty Media Corp. (NASD: LINTA) on Monday announced that its board has authorized a plan to spin-off its Liberty Entertainment group, which holds a majority stake in DirecTV, GSN, Fun Technologies and Liberty Sports Holdings. "We believe a new asset-backed security will reduce the discount from fair value in our stock, thereby making it a more attractive currency, and will permit us to better pursue our strategic objectives," said Liberty Media president and CEO Greg Maffei.

Championship Gaming Series Shuts Down

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 19, 2008 - 1:14pm.

Los Angeles - The Championship Gaming Series (CGS), a professional video gamers' league backed by international broadcasters DirecTV, BSkyB and Star, announced in a note on its website that it has shut down.

CEA Inducts 12 into Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 23, 2008 - 9:45am.

Las Vegas - Martin Cooper and Donald Linder, developers of the world's first cell phone, were among 12 prominent industry leaders who have been inducted into the Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) announced.

DirecTV, TiVo Team on New HD DVR

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 3, 2008 - 11:32am.
El Segundo, Calif. - Satellite TV provider DirecTV (NYSE: DTV) announced on Wednesday that it has expanded its relationship with TiVo (NASD: TIVO), and will jointly develop and distribute a new HD DirecTV DVR with TiVo to its 17.1 million subscribers.
tags: Video | TV | HD | TiVo | DirecTV | DVR |

Mark Cuban: My Olympics 2016 Business and Technology Predictions

Authored by Mark Cuban on August 26, 2008 - 8:00am.

If you havent read, ESPN has come out and said that they will be aggressively bidding for the retransmission rights for the next available Olympics, which will be in 2016. Notice I didnt say TV rights. The battle for the Olympics rights will be in spreadsheet projections done by ESPN, NBC and probably DirecTV (my guess, not based on any info), that will have to take in to account what revenues can be generated on TV advertising (traditional and interactive), through cable/satellite subscription revenues, an ever increasing market size for mobile video and advertising, and of course audio/video and text advertising of all types.

FCC Weighs MPAA Proposal to Restrict Digital Video Recorders

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 23, 2008 - 11:26am.

Washington - The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has closed public comments on a proposal from the Hollywood studios that would give content owners control over the recording capabilities of devices like digital video recorders, with service providers like AT&T (NYSE: T) and DirecTV (NYSE: DTV) weighing in in favor of the proposal, while groups including the Consumer Electronics Association, Public Knowledge and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) opposed it.

Report: DirecTV to Start On-Demand Service

Authored by Jay Baage on March 14, 2008 - 10:36am.

New York - DirecTV (NYSE: DTV), the No. 1 satellite-TV provider in terms of subscribers, is testing its own version of an on-demand movies and television service that it plans to launch in the second quarter with some 3000 titles, according to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ). The new services will potentially put DirecTV’s satellite service in direct competition with on-demand services that so far only have been available on cable or newer phone-company TV services.

tags: Video | TV | DirecTV | Satellite TV | Cable |

DirecTV, TNS to Launch Largest U.S. TV Ratings Panel

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 31, 2008 - 9:07am.

New York - DirecTV (NYSE: DTV), the nation's largest satellite TV service with over 16.6 million customers, announced on Thursday that it has partnered with audience measurement firm TNS Media Research, to develop what they say will be the largest U.S. national TV audience measurement panel ever created.

D&M Holdings Sells ReplayTV DVR Unit to DirecTV

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 13, 2007 - 9:30am.

Tokyo - D&M Holdings, the Japan-based consumer electronics firm whose brands include Denon, Marantz and Boston Acoustics, announced on Thursday that it has sold most of the assets of its ReplayTV digital video recorder business to DirecTV Group (NASD: DTV). Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Championship Gaming Series Details Inaugural $1 Million World Final

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 13, 2007 - 1:48pm.

Los Angeles - The Championship Gaming Series announced on Tuesday that its inaugural World Final, which will feature a prize purse of $1 million, will be held Dec. 6-14 at Sony Studios in Los Angeles. The 12 top CS teams from around the world will compete for a top prize of $500,000 at the event, which will be broadcast by DirecTV in the U.S.; BSkyB and others in the U.K.; ESPN STAR Sports in Asia; Sky in Mexico and Brazil; and DirecTV throughout the rest of Latin America. Other broadcast partners for mainland Europe are also being secured.

WSJ: AT&T Close to Bid for EchoStar or DirecTV

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 24, 2007 - 10:06am.
New York - AT&T, which has been pondering an acquisition in the satellite TV sector, is now closing in on a deal, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing "people familiar with the matter."

Sling Media, DirecTV to Enable Place-Shifting of NFL Games

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 21, 2007 - 9:57am.

Los Angeles - Sling Media, a provider of TV place-shifting technology that lets consumers access their premium home TV channels while on the go from Internet-connected devices, has partnered with DirecTV to make NFL game telecasts available to its users, PaidContent.org reported. The deal will allow streaming of NFL games each Sunday from DirecTV boxes through a Slingbox device to computers or other Internet-ready devices. DirecTV parent company Liberty Media's chairman John Malone is an investor in Sling Media. Sling also signed a deal to allow its users to stream NHL games in June.

MGM to Launch HD Channel on DirecTV

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 18, 2007 - 11:57am.

Los Angeles - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios (MGM) announced on Tuesday that it will launch its first high-definition channel this fall on the DirecTV satellite service. MGM HD will be the studio's first wholly-owned channel in the U.S.; the company did not detail additional deployments with other satellite or cable providers. MGM already offers some 20 different feeds of MGM channels outside the U.S., in nearly 120 countries.

tags: HD | Movies | DirecTV | MGM | MGM HD |

DirecTV Offers Free "World of Warcraft" Trial to New Subscribers

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 28, 2007 - 2:26pm.

El Segundo, Calif. - Satellite TV provider DirecTV on Tuesday announced a promotional partnership with Vivendi's Blizzard Entertainment, publisher of the popular "World of Warcraft" massively multiplayer online roleplaying game. Through Nov. 30, new DirecTV subscribers will be offered 11 free months of access to World of Warcraft. DirecTV also recently courted game-playing consumers with its deal to broadcast the Championship Gaming Series.

DirecTV, Current Group Team on Powerline Broadband, Voice Services

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 15, 2007 - 1:14pm.

El Segundo, Calif. - Satellite TV provider DirecTV on Wednesday announced a partnership with Current Group to offer high-speed Internet and voice services over existing electric power lines to DirecTV subscribers.

Intelsat Reportedly on Auction Block; EchoStar, Liberty Among Bidders

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 15, 2007 - 11:47am.

Washington - Intelsat, a provider of satellite communications services, has put itself on the auction block, with major bidders including the team of EchoStar Communications and Liberty Media, according to various media reports.