Interviews with Digital Media Thought Leaders
The Wireless ISP Industry & Cellular Offloading |
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This little-understood industry is at the threshold of moving into urban markets and transforming Internet access much like CATV changed television thirty years ago. Additionally, smartphones and tablet computers offer gigantic opportunities for Wireless ISPs to operate large area Wi-Fi networks enabling users to avoid the bandwidth limits and congestion of cellular systems. (August, 2011) Get a free prospectus or buy the entire report now for $2,495.00 |
Why Hollywood Really Will Shrink
Podcast Audio | Posted by Phil Leigh on May 9, 2012
Although it’s been predicted before, the stars in their courses are finally lining-up against the studios.
First, most Hollywood motion pictures aren’t very good. As moviegoers we generally only learn about the good and successful ones. But the catalogues licensed to Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, and other websites reveal just how big the inventory of bad films really is. It’s the principal reason Netflix subscriber growth is weakening a second time.
Download four minute audio narration to iPad, iPhone, or iPod here.
Second, Hollywood films cost way too much. There’s a century of legacy expenses within the industry, ranging from unions to opulent lifestyles. Consider the venerable hit Forrest Gump based on a novel by Winston Groom. The author agreed to take a share of net profits as compensation. Despite box office receipts of almost $700 million, Groom was told the film failed to earn a profit. Read more…
Categories: Podcast Audio
Tags: Amazon.com, Future of TV, Future-of-Hollywood, Future-of-scripted-video, Hollywood-Studios, netflix, scripted-video, YouTube
Subsidies for Internet Service
Podcast Audio | Posted by Phil Leigh on May 1, 2012
Since IP telephony is merely one of many applications available on Internet networks, it’s increasingly evident that broadband Internet access shall become more important to rural residents than traditional telephone service. While the FCC is recommending subsidy changes, the situation warrants a more radical course of action. There’s a lot of money at stake and those with the inside track don’t seem to merit the rewards.
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First, some background.
Categories: Podcast Audio
Tags: Broadband-Internet, FCC-subsidy, Future-of-Internet, Rural-Internet, Universal-Service-Fund, Wireless-ISP, WISP, WISPA
The Great Locomotive Chase
Podcast Audio | Posted by Phil Leigh on April 13, 2012
Today the Disunion series of The New York Times published my third article. The story corresponds to a Civil War incident known as The Great Locomotive Chase which occurred one-hundred-and-fifty years ago yesterday.
For Confederates the quickest connection between eastern and western theaters was a railroad from Richmond to Chattanooga. Consequently, the Mountain City’s strategic significance was far greater than its modest population. Union forces would not gain undisputed control of the town until November, 1863.
To download two minute audio narration to iPhone, iPad, or iPod click here.
But one general authorized a plan that could have led to Federal occupation more than a year-and-a-half earlier in April, 1862. If successful, the scheme would have avoided such battles as Stones River, Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain, and Missionary Ridge. Today, only the seed of the scheme is popularly remembered as The Great Locomotive Chase.
Although all Union raiders were captured, eight broke-out of prison, and six were exchanged. A year later, the survivors were the first to receive a new military medal authorized by Congress; one that has since become the most respected of all — The Congressional Medal of Honor
Categories: Podcast Audio
Tags: Civil War, Congressional-medal-of-honor, Great-Locomotive-Chase, Sesquicentennial-Civil-War
Why I am Buying More Books
Podcast Audio | Posted by Phil Leigh on April 11, 2012
The four reasons I’m buying more books than five years ago are (1) Internet interactivity, (2) second-hand markets online, (3) Amazon.com rewards points and (4) iPad.
Internet Interaction
The ability to interact over the Internet stimulates my book buying in two ways.
Download seven minute audio narration to iPad, iPhone, or iPod here.
First, I can buy books with a mere mouse-click which is more convenient than driving to a store where the desired title may not even be in-stock. But there’s more to it than that.
Almost unconsciously I’ve become increasingly skilled at using Amazon’s tools for browsing. For example, Amazon routinely provides suggestions of alternate titles, similar to the one being considered for purchase. Another is the ability search for key words (e.g. topics) within many books remotely over the Net. It’s a more powerful way to learn how much of a topic-of-interest might be covered in a given book than examining the index of a physical book. Read more…
Categories: Podcast Audio
Tags: Amazon.com, Apple, blog-commenting, Blogging, e-books, Internet-commenting, iPad
Big News in Wireless Internet
Podcast Audio | Posted by Phil Leigh on April 3, 2012
Wireless Internet Service Providers held their semi-annual conference in Orlando last week. A number of important industry-specific developments were announced and one was coincident.
1. Last Friday Towerstream (Ticker:TWER) filed a Form 8-K with the Securities & Exchange Commission disclosing it “signed a Wi-Fi agreement with a national wireless carrier (for) utilizing our current and future rooftop assets.” During the past two weeks the stock moved from $2.75 a share to $5.15 this morning (April 3rd).
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Presently the company has an extensive WiFi network in Manhattan designed to help cellular carriers and other potential clients offload wireless Internet traffic. The purpose is to avoid customer frustration with congestion on cellular networks. Towerstream’s Manhattan footprint has about 1,500 access points. Based upon the 8-K language, the company evidently will be building similar networks in other cities, or at least making its antenna locations available to others for a fee. Read more…
Categories: Podcast Audio
Tags: Add new tag, Air-Fiber, Carlson Wireless, Cellular-Offloading, Future-of-Internet, Spectrum-Bridge, Towerstream, Ubiquiti-Networks, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi-Offloading, wireless-internet, Wireless-ISP
New Wireless Competitors
Podcast Audio | Posted by Phil Leigh on March 26, 2012
A little under a year ago, we posted four reasons why Apple may decide to become a Wireless Internet Service Provider. Presently, we conclude that if Apple doesn’t do it, one or more of the other Internet-dependent giants shall, by the year 2020. Companies like Apple, Amazon, Google (YouTube), FaceBook, and Microsoft cannot permit their futures to be controlled by today’s dominant wireless carriers. Increasingly, their growth will be throttled as cellular carriers expand bandwidth-metered pricing.
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The new competitors shall use (1) licensed and licensed-exempt frequencies in combination with (2) cognitive white space manipulation as a new incremental paradigm for efficient bandwidth allocation. Licensed channels may be purchased from current holders of lightly-used spectrum. One example could be Clearwire. Assuming government approval is denied, the channels Verizon is trying to buy from the Cable TV industry might be a second example. Read more…
Categories: Podcast Audio
Tags: Amazon, Apple, Future-of-Internet, Future-of-Wireless, Google, Microsoft, wireless-internet
Titanic Media Frontiers
Podcast Audio | Posted by Phil Leigh on March 20, 2012
Dorothy Gibson
The night before many Americans file income tax returns this year marks the Centennial of the Titanic disaster. Consider how media frontiers correspond to the end-points of the one hundred year span.
First, the shipwreck underscored the value of incipient wireless communications. Marconi operators on Titanic were among the first to use S.O.S. A New York Times editorial proclaimed, “…every Titanic survivor owed life itself to (Guglielmo Marconi’s)…genius as an inventor.” In three days of trading on the American (Curb) Stock Exchange, shares of American Marconi rose twenty-five percent.
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Since Marconi was half-Italian and half-English, domestic industrialists, overwhelmed with public interest altruism, convinced our Government it was necessary that the technology to be controlled by an American corporation. Consequently, American Marconi was ordered to sell its patents to Radio Corporation of America (RCA) whose owners were General Electric, AT&T, United Fruit, and Westinghouse. Today the descendent components of RCA are held by Comcast and Technicolor. Read more…
Categories: Podcast Audio
Tags: Archibald Gracie, Dorothy Gibson, e-books, Jack Thayer, Kindle, Kindle-Direct-Publishing, Lawrence Beesley, Media, New Media, new-media-fraud, Titanic
The President and His General
Podcast Audio | Posted by Phil Leigh on March 14, 2012
As The New York Times continues its Sesquicentennial recognition of the Civil War, I’m honored to have a second article, The President and His General, selected.
In addition to clicking on the hyperlinks above, readers may also locate the article by searching for “The President and His General” at the New York Times website.
Download one minute audio narration to iPhone, iPad, or iPod here.
Categories: Podcast Audio
Tags: Civil War, Confederacy, Jefferson-Davis, Robert-E-Lee, Stonewall-Jackson
