Nearly two-thirds of Netflix subscribers have tried out the company’s 'Watch Instantly' streaming service, and more than half use it at least once a month, according to a survey released by research firm One Touch Intelligence. The survey findings suggest that usage of the streaming service has moved beyond the early adopter stage and into […]

Comcast Corp’s quarterly profit rose 22 percent, beating expectations, as it sold more phone and Internet subscriptions, helping the top U.S. cable operator fight competition from phone and satellite companies for video subscribers. It reported 361,000 new high-speed Internet customers and 375,000 new digital phone subscribers in the third quarter, offsetting the loss of 132,000 […]

Time Warner raised its profit outlook for 2009 boosted by better than expected results at its cable channels and films division, even as it reported a 40 per cent lower net income for the third quarter. The owner of CNN and the Warner Bros movie studio said it will take a $100 million charge for […]

The European Parliament and Council will include in its Telecoms Reform Package an entitlement for all broadband customers in all 27 EU states to be put through a “fair and impartial procedure” before being disconnected. The outcome is a compromise agreed after intense lobbying from ISPs in one side and rights holders on the others. […]

Liberty Global's third-quarter loss – its fifth in a row – narrowed on higher sales and smaller effects of foreign-currency exchange. Chief Executive Mike Fries said the company demonstrated consistent growth in operating cash flow in the first three quarters of the year and expects to be at the high end of its forecast for […]

Australian ISP IINET chief Michael Malone has told the NSW Federal Court that the ISP’s service agreements did not provide it with sufficient contractual rights to take action against customers who infringe copyright online. Malone made the comments during cross-examination by lawyers representing a loose coalition of 34 entertainment companies – represented by the Australian […]

BBC executives have told the BBC Trust, which is examining the Canvas project, that its total cost over its first four years will exceed £115m (E128m) including £48m+ of marketing costs. To help attract new shareholders and spread that cost executives have proposed the stipulation that the company must be controlled by PSBs should be […]

The BBC has confirmed that it will start beta testing its popular iPlayer service on Freesat from the end of this month. BBC's iPlayer debuted on Virgin Media's cable service last year, but this will be the first subscription-free platform to get the fully-fledged version of iPlayer. ….

By 2014, 50 per cent of households in France will subscribe to a triple-play offer as operators invest in FTTH to stay competitive, according to a report from Pyramid Research, the telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network. “Pyramid forecasts that 30 per cent of households in France will subscribe to a triple-play […]

The UK government is pressing ahead with plans to introduce its controversial £6 (E6.6) a year broadband tax before the election. Stephen Timms, the treasury minister in charge of implementing the Digital Britain plan, said today that a 50p a month levy on all UK phone lines will be contained in this year’s finance bill.