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K.C. Neel
While corporate giants such as Microsoft and America Online work to make the television set more like a personal computer, Schaumburg, Ill.-based Clearband is determined to make the PC more like a TV.
Clearband has developed an open-standards based platform that uses existing broadband cable networks to deliver TV-quality programming to cable modem-connected PCs. The company has been testing its technology with European broadband provider chello and the National Football League, and a commercial rollout of the service is expected by year's-end.
More than 50 smaller and more controlled trials also are under way in both the United States and abroad.
People are spending more time in front of their PC and less time in front of the tube, says Clearband VP-marketing Jeff Huppertz.
"What we want to do is give operators another way of enticing customers and secure as many eyeballs as possible for programmers," he says. "We don't expect people to flock away from their TV sets. This technology is designed to be an added value for them."
Although the Clearband technology is platform transparent, he doesn't expect many DSL providers to buy the systems.
"Other than Qwest, which is offering some streaming video as a special service," he says, "there really aren't many DSL providers even offering content as part of their packages."
There will be hurdles. Some programmers are a little leery of the concept, and some believe there may be some regulatory hoops to jump through.
"I'm happy to let operators sell my product if consumers want it in that form," says one programming executive. "But if it's going to existing customers over the cable line, isn't it going to be just like another cable hookup? If that's the case, they'd be regulated as to how much they could charge, and it might not be much a business for them."
Moreover, the content producer says, it may not be a good idea in the long run to repackage TV content for the Web.
"We think we can create a whole new business, and we're not really convinced it would be a good idea to just put our existing programming on the Web," he says. "We have so much content we don't use. We could repackage it in a way that would drive people back and forth in a bundled form which would be attractive to customers and advertisers alike."
Other programmers and MSOs are more enthusiastic, Huppertz says, noting that Clearband is talking to several networks. CNBC is using Clearband's technology internally, delivering its signal to every PC in the company's headquarters. The network is also considering forming a unit that would deliver its signal to business customers much the same way Bloomberg does, he says.
"PCs have become ubiquitous," Huppertz says. "Everyone in the office has a computer, but not everyone has a TV set. This could be a great way for networks to expand their business models."
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