Comcast’s new X1 platform (Image courtesy: BWOne)

Comcast is introducing a new upgrade fee ranging from $49.99 to $99.99 for existing customers seeking an upgrade to the company’s X1 cloud-based set-top box.

• “Commencing March 15, 2014, a one-time X1 Platform Upgrade fee of $49.99 may apply to existing XFINITY customers upgrading to the X1 services platform.” — Comcast bill in Pennsylvania
• “Beginning February 3, 2014, a one-time X1 Platform Upgrade fee of $99.99 may apply to existing XFINITY customers upgrading to the X1 services platform.” — Comcast bill in Chicago

Comcast’s website explains what the new fee is all about:

The X1 Platform Upgrade Fee is a one-time fee of up to $99 that is assessed, with limited exceptions that vary by market, when a customer signs up for the X1 Platform. This fee enables us to continue developing and enhancing the features of the X1 Platform, which today include:

• Enhanced search
• Last nine programs viewed
• Voice controls through your mobile device with the X1 Remote app
• Apps on your TV including Weather, Stocks, News, Facebook and Pandora
• Personalized recommendations

Comcast offers the X1 throughout its service area and is distributing Pace and Arris set-top boxes that include a DVR that can record six channels at once. Later on, Comcast will upgrade X1 customers to a cloud-based platform, dubbed internally as “X2.”

When the upgrades are complete, X1 owners will have a cloud-based DVR that stores recordings remotely and allows playback on a variety of portable devices. The platform will also enable customers to use a built-in app to watch live cable TV programming on mobile devices connected to the home network.

New customers are not likely to be charged the upgrade fee, and existing customers may be able to negotiate a waiver in return for a service upgrade. Some customers may also be able to get an X1 by swapping out equipment at a Comcast store. Ask a Comcast representative about your options.

Comcast usually requires a service call to install the X1 to make certain the new platform functions properly.

Bright House Networks is dropping analog service in April in favor of an all-digital lineup that will require customers in Central Florida to have set-top boxes or similar equipment to continue watching.

“Digital is here to stay,” said Bright House spokesman Don Forbes. “Analog is going the way of the dodo bird.”

In a letter being mailed to all affected customers, Bright House notes customers will need a cable box, digital adapter or CableCARD for every television connected to cable.

Bright House will supply each customer with two digital adapters and remote controls at no charge through 2014. But the cable company will bill customers for those devices starting next January.

Sets equipped with QAM tuners alone will not suffice for receiving the entire cable lineup.

Customers are urged to begin requesting any required equipment starting today — either at a Bright House retail store or call toll-free: 1-855-589-8582.

Two years after energy conservation groups revealed many television set-top boxes use almost as much electricity as a typical refrigerator, a voluntary agreement has been reached to cut the energy use of the devices 10-45 percent by 2017.

The Department of Energy, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, the Appliance Standards Awareness Project, the Consumer Electronics Association, and the National Cable & Telecommunications Association agreed to new energy efficiency standards for cable boxes expected to save more than $1 billion in electricity annually, once the new equipment is widely deployed in American homes. That represents enough energy to power 700,000 homes and cut five million tons of CO2 emissions each year.

“These energy efficiency standards reflect a collaborative approach among the Energy Department, the pay-TV industry and energy efficiency groups – building on more than three decades of common-sense efficiency standards that are saving American families and businesses hundreds of billions of dollars,” said Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz. “The set-top box efficiency standards will save families money by saving energy, while delivering high quality appliances for consumers that keep pace with technological innovation.”

DVR boxes are the biggest culprits. American DVRs typically use up to 50W regardless of whether someone is watching the TV or not. Most contain hard drives that are either powered on continuously or are shifted into an idle state that does more to protect the life of the drive than cut a consumer’s energy bill. A combination of a DVR and an extra HD set-top box together consume more electricity than an ENERGY STAR-qualified refrigerator-freezer, even when using the remote control to switch the boxes off.

Manufacturers were never pressed to produce more energy-efficient equipment by the cable and satellite television industry. Current generation boxes often require lengthy start-up cycles to configure channel lineups, load channel listings, receive authorization data and update software. As a result, any overnight power-down would inconvenience customers the following morning — waiting up to five or more minutes to begin watching television as equipment was switched back on. As a compromise, many cable operators instruct their DVR boxes to power down internal hard drives when not recording or playing back programming, minimizing subscriber inconvenience, but also the possible power savings.

In Europe, many set-top boxes are configured with three levels of power consumption — 22.5W while in use, 13.2W while in standby, and 0.65W when in “Deep Sleep” mode. More data is stored in non-volatile memory within the box, meaning channel data, program listings, and authorization information need not be re-downloaded each time the box is powered on, resulting in much faster recovery from power-saving modes.

The new agreement, which runs through 2017, covers all types of set-top boxes from pay-TV providers, including cable, satellite and telephone companies. The agreement also requires the pay-TV industry to publicly report model-specific set-top box energy use and requires an annual audit of service providers by an independent auditor to make sure boxes are performing at the efficiency levels specified in the agreement. The Energy Department also retains its authority to test set-top boxes under the ENERGY STAR verification program, which provides another verification tool to measure the efficiency of set-top boxes.

Comcast, DirecTV, DISH Network, Time Warner Cable, AT&T, Verizon, Cox Communications, Charter Communications, Cablevision, Bright House Networks and CenturyLink will begin deploying new energy-efficient equipment during service calls. Some customers may be able to eventually swap equipment earlier, depending on the company.

[flv]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/WCCO Minneapolis Check Your Cable Box 6-27-11.mp4[/flv]

WCCO in Minneapolis reported in 2011 cable operators like Comcast may make subscribers wait 30 minutes or more for set-top box features to become fully available for use after plugging the box in. (1:50)

Behind the 8 ball.

Intel’s plan to launch a competing virtual cable television operation delivering programming over existing broadband connections is dead and the cable industry has tentative plans to bury the technology overseas.

OnCue was to feature dozens of popular cable networks and a large library of on-demand content using hardware that combined live, on-demand, and streaming video. The service was supposed to be up and running this year, but despite months of talks, Intel was unable to announce any significant carriage agreements with major cable networks. Cable programmers were reportedly fearful of alienating their biggest customers — large incumbent cable, telco and satellite companies — potentially leaving networks exposed to retaliation during contract renewal talks.

The cable industry has repeatedly warned that reselling programming to streaming providers dilutes the value of those networks. The clear implication: sell to our competitors and we will demand significantly discounted rates when our contracts come up for renewal.

Intel has reportedly been shopping the remnants of the service to new buyers. A late October rumor that Verizon Communications was a likely buyer has gone unconfirmed. Today, Bloomberg News reports Dr. John Malone’s Liberty Media has shown an interest (since denied by Liberty) in acquiring the service. Other media accounts suggest Verizon and Liberty could jointly buy the service, but Malone is loyal to the cable industry and is reportedly uncomfortable doing business with a telephone company.

Should Liberty Media acquire the technology, cable companies in the United States can stop worrying about OnCue as an online competitor. Liberty Media would only deploy the technology as an advanced set-top box offered through its owned and operated European cable systems.

[flv width=”640″ height=”380″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/Bloomberg Is Intel Abandoning Web-TV Project 10-30-13.flv[/flv]

Bloomberg senior West Coast correspondent Jon Erlichman reports that Intel may be turning over its web-TV project to Verizon and looks at possible reasons why the company may be abandoning the project and what it could mean for Verizon. He speaks on Bloomberg Television’s “Bloomberg West.” (2:28)

Set-top box-less Time Warner Cable subscribers in parts of New York City will find more than 90 percent of the basic cable lineup missing from their QAM-equipped televisions as the cable company completes a transition away from analog cable television and begins encrypting almost all its digital channels.

The Federal Communications Commission changed the rules last year allowing large cable operators to begin encrypting basic cable, requiring customers to rent cable boxes or CableCARD units to keep watching.

Time Warner Cable began the all-digital, encrypted channel conversion earlier this year in Mount Vernon, Staten Island and Bergen County, N.J., and is now switching on encryption in the New York City region on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood basis.

The switch renders televisions useless for receiving cable channels without extra equipment supplied by Time Warner Cable. Encryption is deployed as an anti-theft measure, but it also inconveniences customers who have to rent equipment for each of their televisions. Encrypting basic channels also benefits Time Warner Cable by allowing service authorizations and disconnects to be handed from the office, reducing in-home appointments.

Customers will need a traditional set-top box, a Digital Transport Adapter (DTA), or a CableCARD to get the channels back. DTA boxes are being provided at no charge until 2015, after which they will cost $0.99 a month each.

Some customers also complain Time Warner is testing “copy protection” permissions, preventing some channels from being recorded. In Queens, one customer noted copy protection was active on C-SPAN, preventing recordings of the network. Some programmers may insist on copy protection technology being implemented as part of future cable carriage contracts. Most expect pay-per-view and on-demand events will be the first blocked from recording, potentially followed by premium movie channels.

At this time, Time Warner Cable says its encryption initiative is limited to the New York City area.