June 2014

A new mobility report from Ericsson projects that the number of net-connected devices will increase by three or four times by 2019.

There were some 200 million machine-to-machine devices online by the end of 2013 -- a broad term that describes any device that exchanges information across a network without need for human intervention. These form the foundation of the “Internet of Things” phenomenon, and encompass everything from Internet-connected “smart meters” that keep track of energy consumption to cameras with built-in SIM cards to jump onto mobile networks.

Patrik Cerwall, Ericsson’s head of strategic marketing, said these devices communicate information across slower mobile networks today, but that will change by 2016, when the majority of such devices use higher-speed 3G or 4G networks. Smartphones accounted for 65 percent of all phones sold worldwide in the first quarter, Ericsson found.

Within two years’ time, the number of smartphone subscriptions will surpass basic mobile phones. Consumer adoption of the smartphone has accelerated since Apple introduced the iPhone in 2007.

News of Internet security breaches at eBay, Target and other large companies appears to be having an effect on online habits.

A USA TODAY survey finds that almost a quarter of Americans have at least temporarily stopped buying online because of security concerns. A full 24% of those surveyed said they had stopped buying anything online in recent weeks because they were concerned about the safety of information they might put online. Most surprisingly, 56% said they had cut back on the number of Internet site they used and were only going to large, well-known companies they were confident were safe.

"It's pretty amazing to me that people were willing to pull the plug on their habits," said Cameron Camp, a security expert with ESET, a San Diego-based security and antivirus company.

Users are also keeping a closer eye on their accounts, with 55% saying they had started checking banking, investment and credit card sites more often for signs that someone had hacked into their accounts. Camp counseled that any survey asking about things people feel they should be doing has to be taken with a grain of salt.

"Some of the answers people give are aspirational rather than factual," he said.

The poll found that people with less education and lower-incomes were more likely to stop buying anything online. Those with more education and higher incomes were more likely to have changed passwords and cut back on the sites they use. Sixty-four percent of those surveyed said they had changed a password in response to security breaches.

There are some of the key takeaways of Amateur Footage: A Global Study of User-Generated Content in TV and Online News Output published by the Tow Center of Digital Journalism.

The aim of this research project was to provide the first comprehensive report about the use of user-generated content (UGC) among broadcast news channels. UGC for the purposes of this report consists of photographs and videos captured by people unrelated to the newsroom, who would not describe themselves as professional journalists.

The research was designed to answer two key questions. First, when and how is UGC used by broadcast news organizations, on air as well as online? Second, does the integration of UGC into output cause any particular issues for news organizations?

Some of the Principle Findings are:

• UGC is used by news organizations daily and can produce stories that otherwise would not, or could not, be told. However, it is often used only when other imagery is not available.
• There is a significant reliance on news agencies in terms of discovering and verifying UGC. The news agencies have different practices and standards in terms of how they work with UGC.
• News organizations are poor at acknowledging when they are using UGC and worse at crediting the individuals responsible for capturing it.
• News managers are often unaware of the complexities involved in the everyday work of discovering, verifying, and clearing rights for UGC. Consequently, staff in many newsrooms do not receive the training and support required to develop these skills.
• Vicarious trauma is a real issue for journalists working with UGC every day -- and it’s different from traditional newsroom trauma.
• There is a fear amongst rights managers in newsrooms that a legal case could seriously impact the use of UGC by news organizations in the future

TV broadcasters’ retransmission consent revenue will come in at $4.3 billion in 2014 and continue to grow at a brisk pace, hitting $5.1 billion in 2015 and $7.6 billion in 2019, according to the latest analysis from SNL Kagan.

According to the research, retransmission revenue is also becoming a rapidly growing share of station group’s total revenue. Among the 18 groups covered in the research, the share ranged from 24% (Meredith) to 10% (Scripps) in 2013. Others getting more than 20% of their revenue from retransmission include Sinclair (24%), CBS (23%), Fox (22%), Nexstar (20%), Allbritton (20%) and LIN (20%).

The research also found a broad range of retransmission revenue on a per-subscriber, per month basis. In the fourth quarter of 2013, Sinclair was at the top, earning $1.07. Right behind were LIN ($1.06), Fox (96 cents) and Meredith (96 cents).

Despite the growth, what broadcasters receive from multichannel video program providers will continue to be dwarfed by what basic cable networks and regional sports channels receive, the research says. Retransmission will amount to only 10.5% of the cable programming fees in 2014 and 11.4% in 2015.