There has been a debate brewing for decades about the importance and the role of networks who provide content and that of those who transmit it to end-users.  Each side, of course, supports its own self-interest.  Over the past few days, several fairly heated discussions have occurred between companies on both sides.  Most notably, Viacom recently threatened to pull some programming from Time Warner Cable.  In light of these problems, the news of CBS and Time Warner Cable reaching a fresh broadcasting deal without major fireworks led to a large sigh of relief from the industry and all of us as consumers.  

Cable companies have also been increasing their rates, a move parallel and related to these discussions.  As we’ve mentioned, Comcast (Gallop Forum) is planning to raise rates in February, and today Time Warner Cable (Gallop Forum) announced a planned increase in fees as well.  A spokesperson for the company explained that the move is required in order to overcome higher fees from programmers: “The programmers, we are wholesaler distributors of them, we have to purchase their product, biggest expense”.

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©2008-2009, Gallop Services, Inc. All rights reserved.

Today, Apple, Inc announced that by March 2009, all 10 million songs sold through their iTunes (Gallop Forum) Music Store will be free from all Digital Rights Management (DRM) restrictions.  This will enable consumers to enjoy content they’ve purchased on all devices throughout their homes, vehicles, workplaces, and handheld devices without being limited by Apple or the supplying music studios.

As we’ve covered before, DRM can severely curtail consumers’ use of media throughout their lives.  In addition, it can hold consumers hostage to their media providers - when the provider goes out of business, or decides that maintaining DRM access is no longer a viable business service, the consumer is left without access to their music, movies, or other content.

UPDATE (9:05p EST): According to the Apple press release on these these changes, previously-purchased DRM-laden files can be “upgraded” to the newer non-DRM format for 30 cents per song, or 30% of the cost of an album file.  While that could add up for users with large music libraries, the value of removing Apple’s shackles on the content that was purchased could certainly outweigh the financial cost.

©2008-2009, Gallop Services, Inc. All rights reserved.

Gallop Services, Inc. is proud to bring you the Gallop DSV℠ Rating System.  This system has been designed to give you, as consumers, a quick and easy way to provide a granular rating of your experiences with personal technology services and products.  We’ve identified three criteria that cover the broadest spectrum of the consumer experience - Delivery, Support, and Value.  Each of these are described in detail below.  The DSV℠ System takes a rating of one to five stars for each, with specific rating criteria for each.  All user ratings are then combined to provide a community average.

This article will explain the ratings and how to use them within the forum environment.

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©2008-2009, Gallop Services, Inc. All rights reserved.

Alexandria, VA., January 5, 2009

Gallop Services, Inc. has launched a new service rating system, called the Gallop DSV℠ Rating System.  This system will allow consumers to quickly provide feedback on their experiences using a wide array of technology services and products.  The DSV℠ System uses three categories of ratings for each service: Delivery, Support, and Value, each of which consumers can rate on a scale of 1-5 stars.  All ratings for a given service or product are then combined to show the community average.  A complete description of the service is available on Gallop’s Industry News Blog.

Gallop’s Community Forums have already been enabled with DSV℠ Ratings, and their use will soon be expanded to include the full complement of Gallop’s web sites.  Thibaud Morel L’Horset, VP of Development for Gallop Services, Inc said, “While there are a number of web sites and systems that consumers can use to rate their personal technology providers, the Gallop DSV℠ System provides the fastest, easiest, and most complete way to give an overall indication of how satisfied they are with the services they receive.”

The development of this rating methodology will give Gallop’s users a clear, consistent view of the countless services available through numerous providers in the personal technology market of today and tomorrow.  Register in the community forums at http://community.gallopinc.com today, to log ratings for your technology service providers.

About Gallop Services, Inc.

Headquartered in Northern Virginia, Gallop Services Inc. is an independent, privately-owned company that aims to provide customers with the information needed to balance the cost and quality of technology services, based on their unique requirements. Gallop focuses on the analysis of the overall technology market space from the personal consumer and small business perspectives and offers provisioning and selection services across the technology services industry. As a consumer-focused business, Gallop leverages client input and actual data to sort through the inevitable “fine print” and find the true facts of what services cost. The Gallop research team continuously scans the market for new providers and updated offerings from existing suppliers, always focusing on the delivery of services to the end consumer.

Contact Gallop Services, Inc.

Gallop Press Relations
press@gallopinc.com
888-426-0458

©2008-2009, Gallop Services, Inc. All rights reserved.

A spokesperson from Comcast (Gallop Forum) has recently confirmed that the company’s television subscribers will see rate increases in February 2009. Although the average increase will only be 3.2%, compared to 4% in previous years, any bump at all will be felt more this year as the economic situation in the US tightens wallets nationwide.

We’ve included a brief summary of the announced increases below.  However, your actual cost may differ depending on local taxes, promotional values, and other factors.  As always, check with your local Comcast representative to confirm.

The rate increase, when combined with the slowed economy, could drive subscribers to seek out new alternatives, including Hulu (Gallop Forum), Joost (Gallop Forum), and even the venerable (and versatile) Netflix (Gallop Forum). While the rate change is not slated to affect Comcast’s Internet or phone plan rates, it could trigger bundle consumers to scale back monthly payments by considering VoIP phone services like Vonage (Gallop Forum).

©2008-2009, Gallop Services, Inc. All rights reserved.

Chances are that if you’re reading this, you might be like me…too tired to go out, unable to find a babysitter, saving money or just too cold to go out…and you’ll be ringing in the New Year from the comfort of your own couch.  Though I’d like to pretend that I’m a newbie at skipping the festivities, I’d be lying.  I’m certainly no grinch of New Year’s eve but for one reason or another, I’ve too often enjoyed a glass of champagne or something bubbly in front of the TV while my wife traditionally is asleep before they even start the countdown to the ball drop.

Sure, part of me is envious to those outside, reveling in the streets of Washington, DC, enjoying the blistering cold with lots of other generally drunk parents pretending they’re still in their twenties, but I can say I’ve been there and done it at least once (that I remember anyways.)  What’s still on my lifetime “to-do” list is going to go to New York City to see the ball drop without having the TV commentators give me their version of why the year was an important one to them or suffering through ridiculous commercials trying to get those last few dollars from me that I might not have spent over Christmas.

Though this isn’t the year I’ll spend in New York, Hulu (Gallop Forum) decided to bring me closer to my wish by offering a live stream straight into Times Square.  So if you’re one of those who will be on the couch as the ball drops and following it through Hulu - one of our top 10 technology services providers of 2008 - here’s a toast to technology bringing us closer together and helping us reach our dreams.  See you next Year!

©2008-2009, Gallop Services, Inc. All rights reserved.

Which technology services made a significant, positive impact on you as an individual in 2008? Which most impacted the market as you see it? We performed an in-depth evaluation of the services we covered this year and combined it with your feedback to compile a list of the cream of the crop.

Vonage: VoIP has taken the market by storm. Switching to Vonage (Gallop Forum) can result in amazing monthly cost savings, and the provider shines amidst the competition thanks its features, price and reliability.

Netflix: Implementing the first mainstream DVD-by-mail model was impressive enough, but Netflix (Gallop Forum) did not rest on its deserved laurels.  It is constantly working on new ways to deliver content to your TV set - as well as the other screens in your home.  It has formed an impressive number of partnerships this year to to improve their video-on-demand offerings.

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©2008-2009, Gallop Services, Inc. All rights reserved.