
Head of Time Warner Cable Unfamiliar With Apple's AirPlay - iProject
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/14/time-warner-apple-tv-airplay/
======
mikeryan
_Today we want to be on every screen. Today it’s a little bit clunky to get
programming from the Internet onto the TV — not so hard to get it on your
iPad_

This is horrifying. Outside of Airplay virtually every HDTV you buy these days
is going to have an internet app platform built in. Something like a Roku is
dead simple and both Verizon and Comcast/Xfinity stream IP based content via
the Xbox. Getting Internet onto the big screen is painfully easy. Not
understanding the threat posed by these devices isn't acceptable for the head
of a major cable operator.

~~~
koko775
But it is clunky. It's a threat, but it's clunky.

Roku - weird platform, but improving. BrightScript has its issues, but it does
support HLS and VAST for ads.

Boxee - buggy.

SamsungTV - horrible platform, horrible (borderline abusive) approval process.
Already fragmented between 2010 and 2011 models, poor and/or outright wrong
documentation.

GoogleTV - possibly one of the best of the bunch, since Android is a
worthwhile base, but still has a few screws loose.

Others - often too small/difficult to invest heavily in making something truly
good.

~~~
AJ007
What about Apple TV? I agree, the TV based systems are "clunky", but Apple TV
works perfectly, and Roku only seems to have hickups with slower internet
connections.

I have an answer for Time Warner's CEO -- "there was no simple way to get
Internet-based video onto the television screen" -- Apple TV is easy. There is
nothing about modern cable that is that easy. Last time I moved I did not
reconnect my cable. I never plan on intentionally becoming a cable customer
again in my life.

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jbenz
I thought this was an Onion headline at first. Though if it were, it would
probably read: "Company CEO Unaware of Technology Sure to Make His Company
Obsolete".

Alas, it seems like Time Warner won't be obsolete very soon. We can only hope.

------
northbranch
While it's easy to make fun of the guy for this, it's also a good indicator of
how much work remains for products like AirPlay and Roku. The average consumer
just isn't aware of the technology, and it's still relatively difficult to
research and setup (compared to just calling your cable company). There's
still big opportunity in this space.

~~~
antoko
Granted I'm on HN so I'm probably not an "average consumer" in this regard.
However new computers have HDMI outs and new TVs have HDMI ins. What exactly
is the technical problem with getting internet content on a TV? It is
absolutely no different than plugging in an Xbox or other console, and
actually simpler than setting up a TiVo or a cable box!

NOTE: I don't actually know how common HDMI outs are on store bought PCs
(since I build my own) but surely it is becoming standard?

~~~
georgemcbay
Hooking a PC with HDMI-out to a TV isn't that hard, but now what do you do?
How do you control it remotely, are you going to get up and walk over to the
PC hooked up to the TV every time you want to change the "channel"? And what
exactly are the "channels"? A web browser open to YouTube?

Before anyone answers these rhetorical questions -- I know full well that
things like USB-irda devices, XBMC with plugins to automatically torrent your
favorite shows or more-likely-used-legally options like Windows Media Center
exist, but there is actually quite a lot of software complexity that you are
handwaving over here and you'd be surprised how close to technobabble
gibberish this currently existing stuff sounds to an "average consumer".

Internet as the primary means to deliver tv content is absolutely inevitable
and if I were a shareholder of a cable company and the CEO of that company was
completely oblivious to the move to this future, I would be concerned. OTOH we
are still at least a few years off from this being a really viable option for
the masses. The current solutions all have pretty serious gaps. This is a big
part of the reason the idea of a true Apple iTV is continually churned on the
rumor mill. For whatever you think about Apple (I'm not a huge fan), one would
expect them to deliver a true end-to-end solution, which hasn't really been
done yet.

~~~
antoko
Apparently I wasn't fully appreciating what "internet content" is. I was
assuming this referred to content that is already accessible through a browser
- so yes my daughter wants to show us all something funny she saw on YouTube -
we put it up on our TV rather than hunch around a monitor. I was also assuming
the discussion was about only accessing that content, not completely replacing
the current cable TV model. I agree it is inevitable but we aren't actually
there yet. I'm not a big consumer of TV content but I had thought services
like netflix and hulu were already taking huge steps in this arena. One (two)
of the only shows I do take any interest has been available online for a long
time already - Comedy Central's Daily Show and Colbert Report.

I think this situation is going to resolve itself when the generation shifts -
I don't think the next generation will ever subscribe to cable the way their
parents have, and the perceived tech barrier will be less with the next
generation.

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hrayr
What's immensely frustrating about this, is that they actively block internet
content on the TV via Google TV, and yet they claim it's difficult to deliver
content to the TV. I call this hypocritical.

------
ShabbyDoo
"I hate set-top boxes"

I hated his company's crappy set-top box, the lack of TWC support for 3rd
party boxes, and the efforts TWC made to kill the cablecard.

------
brown9-2
I connect an HDMI cable from my laptop to my HDTV. Would the average consumer
consider that "clunky"?

~~~
state_machine
Yes.

First, despite the simplification of the cables, physically connecting it can
still be a challenge, for example if there's no convenient place to put a
laptop within 6' of the TV. And power for the laptop there too.

Second, once its connected, it's no certainty that the external display will
be correctly detected or set to the correct resolution. Is the picture
streched? When you hit full-screen, does it only show on the laptop? Is sound
going over HDMI too? Tinkering with settings and troubleshooting a multi-
monitor setup can be intimidating for the "average consumer".

Even if you get everything setup, many laptops do no come with remote
controls, and long HDMI cables are uncommon.

I've owned or own a Roku, a TV which had USB and could play anything FFMPEG
could read, a PS3 with netflix and recently an AppleTV+iPad.

I'd consider myself reasonably technically inclined and have had an HDMI cable
which comfortably reached my couch for quite awhile but I still use that as a
last resort for content I can't play some other way.

------
BryanB55
Hopefully this means that all cable companies will die soon... Ok maybe that
is a bit too hopeful. But I've been looking for ways to drop my TV bill
recently (directv) I pay $90 a month to watch maybe 3 channels once or twice a
week. I can't think of any other consumer service I pay that much for.
Unfortunately new episodes of Dexter and BreakingBad aren't easily available
online yet. The Cable/Satellite TV industry is just so broken.

------
warmfuzzykitten
"AirPlay also makes it easy to push pirated video available on the Web onto
the television, which could lead some people to drop their cable
subscriptions."

Really? AirPlay only works with Apple-approved apps. E.g., it doesn't work
with HBO Go. Pirated videos, there's no app for that.

~~~
mistercow
> Pirated videos, there's no app for that.

Torrent -> HandBrake -> iTunes -> Apple TV

~~~
warmfuzzykitten
The subject was AirPlay, which is a specific technology that allows users to
play video on their iPhone/iPad on their TV through AppleTV. Can you rip off a
video into iTunes and make AppleTV play it over wi-fi, but it's not AirPlay.

~~~
mistercow
Sorry, you're just wrong. The feature in iTunes that lets you stream your
videos to an Apple TV is called AirPlay and uses the same protocol as iOS
devices.

AirPlay actually has its origins in AirTunes, which was originally _only_
accessible through iTunes. These days there are even third party senders and
receivers for AirPlay, so in principal you can use AirPlay without actually
using any first-party Apple software or hardware.

~~~
warmfuzzykitten
Well, darn, I guess I am. Sometimes I think I know something I don't. Thanks
for the clarification, all of the commenters. Sorry for the noise.

As i386 said, I don't think Torrent -> HandBrake -> iTunes -> Apple TV is a
path many Apple users will take. But I guess it's AirPlay. :)

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drcube
"Glenn A. Britt, the company’s chief executive, said in a group interview on
Friday that the challenge for digital video was that there was no simple way
to get Internet-based video onto the television screen."

The CEO has never heard of HDMI or VGA cables??

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dr_
There is a fine line between visionary and dunce. If he only had this insight
about 5 years ago...

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ktizo
Head of Time Warner unfamiliar with arse location process involving the use of
both hands.

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tonetheman
Meh this is not news. Unless you actively look for this you would not know it
was there. Who cares.

