Road Runner Turbo is getting a makeover in Indianapolis.  Faster speeds are forthcoming, but at a higher price.

Bright House Networks currently provides Road Runner Standard customers with 7Mbps/512kbps.  Getting better speed requires the purchase of Road Runner Turbo at a new price of $15 per month.  In return, Bright House is boosting Turbo speed customers to 20/2Mbps service, with PowerBoost temporarily accelerating downstream speeds up to 30Mbps.

In most markets, Road Runner Turbo is priced at $9.95 per month, but it’s five dollars more in Indianapolis.

Bright House headquarters in Indianapolis

Will the increased price for Turbo become a trend in return for faster speeds in other markets?

Ironically, the associated public relations campaign sells customers on signing up for Turbo to enjoy a better online video experience.

“Building the excitement toward the opening games of the Olympics, we’re able to add to the enjoyment of and access to entertainment and information with these exclusive new products and features,” said Wayde Klein, vice president of marketing and customer operations for Bright House Networks Indiana. “With our speed boost to Road Runner Turbo, customers will be able to take advantage of some of the highest Internet speeds available, making video viewing over the Internet an even better, real-time experience.”

The upgrade in broadband service is part of Bright House’s effort to improve service in central Indiana.  The cable operator is also adding several new high definition networks and introducing the “Start Over” feature allowing viewers to return to the start of a program in progress.

Bright House is licensed to provide Road Runner service, a brand more commonly associated with Time Warner Cable.

Liberally borrowing from ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, and those home improvement shows on HGTV, Verizon has been producing their own “home technology makeovers” for infomercials airing in different Verizon service areas, designed to pitch their fiber to the home FiOS product line. It’s a non-threatening introduction for those not so technology-inclined, but love the premise of home makeovers.

The Reyes family of Clearwater, Florida is the latest to receive a Verizon-inspired makeover this March, which will air later as an infomercial in the Tampa Bay area.

The family was chosen from those who auditioned for the role during the past two months.

Verizon traditionally sets up each show by illustrating the challenges busy families face when trying to work with outdated electronics.  It’s also a great chance to bash the competition, suggesting their cable reception isn’t so great, their calls to 911 are broken up and unclear, and their Internet is slow and generally lousy.  At this point, Bright House Networks, Tampa’s predominate cable company, is supposed to be squirming, because you can bet these families aren’t complaining about Verizon phone service or Verizon DSL.

After the family leaves the home, a bandwagon of Verizon workers and self-described “Design,” “Tech,” and “FiOS”-Gurus show up and replace their obsolete equipment with Verizon’s family of products, ranging from FiOS for their television, phone, and broadband needs, and some extra goodies thrown in from Verizon Wireless for mobility.  Add some new electronics and some room makeovers and the job is complete.

When the family returns, they are suitably impressed with Verizon’s products (which they presumably obtain for free, at least for awhile), the company throws a block party for the entire neighborhood, and everyone goes away with a positive feeling about the company.

“I like the concept of the show, how one company can bring so much happiness to a family just by changing their home technology,” said Jessica Reyes. “It may seem simple to some people, but I know this will have a huge impact on our family.”

See?

Actually, it’s a brilliant execution of marketing to those who don’t suddenly start drooling at the mere mention of FiOS in their neighborhood.  For plenty of Americans, a decidedly non-technical demonstration of the technology products Verizon sells is a much better way to sell service to those who think fiber is a matter of diet, not home entertainment.

[flv width=”640″ height=”380″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/Verizon MyHome 2.0.mp4[/flv]

Verizon’s promotional reel for My Home 2.0 shows home technology makeovers, and can’t resist taking a few pokes at the competition’s service. (1 minute)

Americans can look forward to additional rate increases in their monthly cable bills on top of the usual annual rate increases already underway as broadcast stations demand, and get, cash in return for cable carriage.

Just a few days after Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks concluded their precedent-setting agreement in principle with News Corporation’s Fox network, other networks and television stations owners are lining up to get their piece of the action.

The cable operators’ agreement to pay an estimated 50-60 cents per month per subscriber for the right to put Fox-owned local broadcast stations on the cable dial will likely be used as the starting point for negotiations between other cable operators like Comcast, Cox, Cablevision, and Charter when their agreements with stations and broadcast networks come up for renewal.  If every major broadcast network and station owner gets the same 50-60 cents per month, or more, those costs will certainly be passed on to subscribers.  That’s just the beginning says David Joyce, media analyst for Miller Tabak , a Wall Street trading firm.  Joyce believes annual increases demanded by networks could easily be in the 7-8 percent range.  Bloomberg News predicts that could add up to more than $5 billion dollars a year.

[flv width=”640″ height=”500″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/Bloomberg Retransmission Consent Will Force Cable Bills Higher 1-4-10.flv[/flv]

Bloomberg News interviews David Joyce, a media analyst who predicts annual 7-8% increases for retransmission consent. (3 minutes)

Sinclair owns stations in these communities

There is nothing new about these kinds of disputes — just the sums involved.

Sinclair Broadcast Group owns television stations serving nearly 22% of the United States (mostly Fox affiliates), and has contentious negotiations for retransmission consent agreements with Mediacom, a cable operator serving mostly smaller cities in the midwest and south.

The two companies just agreed to an eight day extension of their negotiations over a new agreement to replace the one that expired December 31st.

“We just decided we wanted to avoid, with such important events coming up, the disruption that it would cause customers,” Sinclair General Counsel Barry Faber said. “I don’t expect there will be a further extension. We recognize we’re giving up, perhaps, a small amount of (negotiating) leverage, but we don’t think it’s very much. Our channels are worth so much more than we are asking for.”

Sinclair has been willing to force its stations off Mediacom cable systems in the past to prove its point.  But another experience with angry sports fans upset over the interruption of Fox programming was apparently sufficient to give negotiations another week.

[flv width=”640″ height=”500″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/Bloomberg Murdoch Bullies His Way to Agreement 1-4-10.flv[/flv]

Bloomberg News explains how Rupert Murdoch bullied his way into an agreement with Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks that could change the landscape of broadcast television forever.  (4 minutes)

[flv width=”640″ height=”500″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/Bloomberg Sports a Major Factor of Cable Dispute 1-4-10.flv[/flv]

The ‘Holy Grail’ of cable programming essentially boils down to silly ball games.  Sports programming is one of cable’s biggest expenses, yet few would dare to alienate sports fans, as this Bloomberg report explores.  (2 minutes)

Time Warner Cable and Fox are now into their final day of negotiations before the agreement expires governing Fox-owned affiliate stations and cable networks.

One thing that the dispute has accomplished is increasing media attention on both companies and a spotlight on the business models of television programming and distribution.  It used to be so simple – television programming would air on broadcast television, enjoy massive audiences and the lucrative ad revenue that comes from having top-rated programming.  Cable networks couldn’t survive on the much smaller ad revenue they earn from their smaller audiences, so they charged cable operators a small fee for every subscriber who could watch their channels.

With the advent of TiVo and other digital video recorders, online viewing, and the audience erosion that comes from both, what worked for more than 50 years didn’t work so well anymore.  Time-shifting viewers no longer felt committed to watching live television, satisfied with being able to watch when they want and fast forward past the increasing amount of advertising television stations crammed into programming.  With broadband, viewers could download or stream their favorite programs online, often for free and with limited (if any) commercials.  Cable networks that used to be content running older syndicated programming, movies, and low budget documentaries and specials began creating their own original programming, often just as good as anything the networks produced.  Subscription fees charged programmers increased accordingly to help finance these shows.

Today, some cable networks are coming close to rivaling the viewership of broadcast networks’ lesser-watched programming.  If the economic downturn didn’t challenge the advertising industry, the ongoing loss of network television viewers would have accomplished the same thing – lower ad rates for ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox.

At the heart of the debate is a new discussion about whether “free over the air television” is a sustainable business model.  Networks like Fox evidently don’t think so, which is why they seek payment from the pay television industry, be it cable, FiOS, U-verse, or satellite.  Since the majority of Americans now watch television through one of these services or through their broadband connection, there is plenty to be made from such payments.  Of course, those costs are passed on to you.

The result?  You are now paying for “free television.”

The hardball game between Fox and Time Warner Cable will be replayed often between the other networks and programmers and pay television companies.

Today’s video reports include another update from the business side of the story, several additional reports from impacted Fox stations, and basic education about what television antennas are all about.

[flv width=”640″ height=”500″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/Bloomberg Reporter Stelter on News Corp Time Warner Cable Talks 12-31-09.flv[/flv]

New York Times reporter Brian Stelter reports the two parties remain “pretty far apart” from an agreement in this report from Bloomberg News. (2 minutes)

[flv]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/CNBC Time Warner Fox Dispute 12-31-09.flv[/flv]

CNBC discusses the business side of the Time Warner Cable-Fox dispute, and now Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) has put himself in the middle of the dispute as well. (1 minute)

[flv width=”480″ height=”380″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/KXAN Austin Cable dispute could turn off bowl games 12-31-09.flv[/flv]

In Austin, KXAN-TV reports Time Warner Cable has been telling Texas viewers they can watch most of the Fox Network programming on Hulu for free.  Some Austin residents are sick of hearing about the dispute and are abandoning Time Warner Cable for DirecTV.  “Football is everything in Texas,” say some who are watching the dispute with concern. (3 minutes)

[flv width=”640″ height=”500″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/KDFW Dallas Watch FOX 4 without Time Warner 12-31-09.flv[/flv]

Some local Fox stations are teaching their viewers how to receive their stations if Time Warner Cable no longer carries them on their lineup.  KDFW-TV in Dallas went to Best Buy where they’re only too happy to sell antennas and digital converter boxes to Metroplex residents. (2 minutes)

[flv width=”640″ height=”500″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/WOFL Orlando Fox Orlando Affiliate Teaches Viewers About Antennas 12-30-09.flv[/flv]

WOFL-TV in Orlando spent part of the newscast teaching people what a TV antenna is.  For many under 30, television viewing has always been through cable or satellite, never over-the-air, so the concept of rabbit ears is a new one for some. (1 minute)

Lots more to watch below the page break.  Click the link below to continue!

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A creative attempt by two Floridians to keep local Fox affiliates from being dropped on Bright House Networks by asking a judge for a temporary restraining order failed late Wednesday when the judge effectively tossed the case on jurisdictional grounds.

Circuit Judge Maura Smith in Orlando initially said she was referring the matter to federal court to determine which court had jurisdiction to issue a temporary restraining order.

“I wish I could make everybody happy,” said the Orange County Circuit Judge.

Orlando attorney John Morgan requested the court order Fox to keep WOFL-TV, Orlando’s Fox affiliate, on the Bright House Networks cable lineup, at least until after the Sugar Bowl.  Morgan filed the case on behalf of two local sports fans Thomas Moore, a fellow attorney and Richard Anderson, the city manager for Apopka, outside of Orlando.

Fox’s own counsel requested Smith send the case to federal court instead, and she agreed.  Later Wednesday, U.S. District Court Judge Gregory Presnell sent the case back to circuit court, where it was effectively tossed out.

The legal arguments were hardly a Perry Mason moment.  Morgan argued football fans would be harmed if the game wasn’t televised on Bright House Networks.  Fox’s attorney argued they could watch with an antenna or drive to a local bar or restaurant televising the game.  That brought a response from Morgan questioning where exactly someone would purchase rabbit ears, and that driving to a local establishment to watch the games could be risky because of increased drunk driving on New Year’s Day.

[flv width=”640″ height=”380″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/WESH Orlando Judge Denies Motion In Bright House Fox Dispute 12-31-09.flv[/flv]

WESH-TV in Orlando reports the judge tossed the case because it would have required her to rule over a private business matter.  (2 minutes)

[flv width=”640″ height=”500″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/WOFL Orlando Lawsuits Against Bright House and Fox 12-30-09.flv[/flv]

WOFL-TV in Orlando interviews the plaintiffs outside of court today about their case and goes over the dispute one more time with central Florida viewers. (5 minutes)