This week was full of industry news as the Cable Show came to Washington, D.C. and E3 occurred simultaneously in Los Angeles to give the gaming industry a peek at new games and consoles to come later this year. I was on the Cable Show floor with Cox Communications to join them for a sponsored tweet chat with Sarah Evans and Len Barlik, EVP of Product Development in the Cisco booth where we talked trends and innovation.
{Headlines} According to Cox, 55% of their users watch video on mobile devices. According to Barlik, cable isn’t going away but there’s a trend to access and elevate content to provide content anywhere, anytime, and on multiple screens. We’ve seen content move beyond the television to streaming online to our laptops, tablets, and mobile phones, and these capabilities will only increase. For Barlik, these contextual elements and innovative trends were the most exciting news from the Cable Show as Cox looks to personalizing the video experience for each user. Disclosure: I was compensated by Cox Communications for my involvement in the tweet chat and time spent with them during the first day of the Cable Show.
{Newsworthy} On Tuesday I returned to the Cable Show to walk the floor and scope trends to take a more in-depth look at exciting innovations. What did I see? Besides big glitzy booths by the major networks, Al Jazeera is launching Al Jazeera America this August. I had a chance to meet host of The Stream, Lisa Fletcher, which sounds like an exciting new channel as they’re integrating social media into their channel much like HLN does with Kyra Phillip’s Raising America but with the ability to record your own video that AJ America may integrate into their shows.
With over 300 different kinds of products being showcased by exhibitors at the Cable Show, there was a lot of innovation but probably the most interesting was Samsung’s Smart Home showcase. Not only did they have an incredibly vivid high definition television playing a loop of endless eye candy, but the ability to control your home’s lights, air, television, washer and dryer, security system, sound system, vacuum, and more from your Samsung smartphone is amazing to see in action. Along the lines of what Cox’s Barlik named as one of the most interesting innovations, also got to see how a user can be watching content on a Samsung tablet and seamlessly transfer it to the home television. For a look at Samsung Smart Home, here’s a look at what they showcased at CES earlier this year.
{Recommended Reading}
Besides Cable Show and E3 news, there were other newsworthy headlines including Facebook incorporating hashtags as a way to search information. You probably see hashtags in your news feed already as friends push updates from HootSuite and Instagram and those hashtags are included but Kris Cain from Little Tech Girl asks Using Twitter & Facebook #Hashtags – Awesome or Annoying? What do you think?
Summer is here and as you plan vacations or staycations, Microsoft OneNote can help and if you’re not sure how to use it, take a look at Organized Travel Planning from Smarty Pants Mama and visit Michele over at Scraps of My Geek Life for a Office 365 giveaway.
This week’s post on Parents.com:
- Stay at Home Dad’s Perspective on Parenting: Interview with Dad or Alive’s Adrian Kulp
- 5 Internet and Mobile Safety Resources for Families
Finally….Happy Father’s Day to all those amazing father figures out there! May you have a wonderfully relaxing day with those you love!
