So, it's a dreary, rainy mid-October day...what better day to stay inside and update the Mighty Blog of Fun(tm)?NEW TWC HD: As expected, as earlier announced and as confirmed by OMW, Time Warner Cable's Northeast Ohio system has added 10 new HD channels for its subscribers.The list, courtesy of a TWC press release:Biography HD – 469Cartoon Network HD – 459Disney XD HD – 457Outdoor HD – 481Turner Classic Movies HD – 465Fox Business News HD – 488Style HD – 468Headline News HD – 484E! HD – … [Read more...]
Returning With A Full Basket
Posted on October 13, 2009 · Leave a Comment
As we officially exit from our latest hiatus (is there a ceremony we have to do or something?), news from every corner of our media world is breaking out. And if there's breaking media news, we're here to fix it...RATINGS CURRENCY: We've heard for a few weeks now that Arbitron's Portable People Meters, the electronic future of radio audience measurement, were filtering into the Cleveland market.And we've heard for months that the PPMs will basically "change everything" when it comes to radio … [Read more...]
The Weekend Cleanup Post
Posted on October 11, 2009 · Leave a Comment
As usually happens when we go "on hiatus" here at your Mighty Blog of Fun(tm), media news happens. It's an indisputable Law of OMW...if we push away the keyboard, the flood comes in, and that's already the case this time around.So, though we're still trying to "stay away", let's briefly expand on the two items that we've popped onto our Twitter feed.And again, you don't even have to access our page directly...they show up over there to the left of the main scroll here. Just keep watching that … [Read more...]
Monday Followup
Posted on October 5, 2009 · Leave a Comment
We're back, and there's not really any earth-shattering news about media in our coverage area...Yet.While we throw that out there, let's pick up the pieces on this Monday...MORE ON THE HD SIDE: We sifted through Time Warner Cable Northeast Ohio's "Programming Notices" page last month, informing you of new additions the company has to publicize as part of legal notices it runs in area newspapers.There's another wave there now, listed for next month:The following changes are planned on or after … [Read more...]
Time Warner Northeast Ohio “Starts Over”
Posted on October 1, 2009 · Leave a Comment
No, our subject header isn't meant to imply that Northeast Ohio's cable TV giant is tearing out the cable and rewiring.The local Time Warner systems are getting ready to mount "Start Over", a new feature for digital cable users that lets them join already started programs "in progress", returning to the beginning of the show they caught in the middle.From a TWC press release:Start Over is enabled by a software upgrade to the existing video on demand (VOD) platform and to the installed base of … [Read more...]
Grab A Snack, It’s A Big Stack
Posted on September 23, 2009 · Leave a Comment
When we "come back" from a hiatus, even if it's only a brief one lasting just a couple of days, we find out what anyone coming back from vacation learns. The work continues to pile up, and doesn't go away because you're not minding the inbox.So, with that in mind...here we go...."THE BSK" RECOVERING: Our sincere, best wishes for a speedy recovery for a long-time Cleveland sports media personality.OMW hears that Kendall Lewis, the former WKNR sports talker also known as "The Big Sports Kahuna" … [Read more...]
Quick Midweek Notes
Posted on September 9, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Just a couple of things...SDV/HD?: One of our regular readers brings word that Time Warner Cable subscribers in the Mentor area could be getting some of the company's newer HD offerings that have been missing in the former Comcast areas.We're told that at least one subscriber in the Mentor area reports getting the channels that would require TWC's Switched Digital Video (SDV) technology, which has enabled a broader HD channel expansion in both the "legacy" TWC areas … [Read more...]
Local And Connected
Posted on September 4, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Some of these items are local to our Northeast Ohio base, and others are only marginally connected...FRY STEPS DOWN: The long-time leader of Time Warner Cable's Northeast Ohio division is calling it a career.Beacon Journal business writer Betty Lin-Fisher reports that Steve Fry, who's been guiding the local arm of the cable company for as long as anyone can remember - the last 19 years as TWC's Northeast Ohio division president - is retiring.Fry's been working for Time Warner Cable and its … [Read more...]
All Over The Map
Posted on August 31, 2009 · Leave a Comment
It's a typical Monday, as we let items free that need their freedom...GOING DOWN: It's no surprise to anyone who follows population figures, but the folks at Nielsen Media Research have announced that the Cleveland TV market continues to lose position in its market rankings.From the TV ratings giant's release:The Top 10 local markets, known in the industry as Designated Market Areas or DMAs, will remain the same this season, with a few rank changes in the Top 20. Moving up are Seattle, from 14 … [Read more...]
Those Cable Boxes Have To Go
Posted on August 21, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Many Time Warner Cable customers in the company's areas formerly serviced by Comcast have been E-mailing us over the past two months or so...with one question. "When are we going to get the same HDTV offerings now available elsewhere on Time Warner?"Some have speculated that the cable boxes Comcast used - manufactured by Motorola and General Instrument - have been an obstacle that slowed down the HDTV rollout in the areas that used to be served by that company.Those boxes...are being shoved out … [Read more...]
