Tag Archives: dish

Apple Rival Xiaomi Coming To U.S. With Android Set-Top TV Box

Xiaomi, Apple ’s ( AAPL ) Chinese smartphone rival, this year plans to launch a 4K TV streaming device in the U.S. featuring Google’s Android software. Xiaomi made the announcement at Alphabet ‘s ( GOOGL ) Google I/O developer’s conference on Wednesday. The item will compete with Roku, Amazon.com ’s ( AMZN ) Fire TV devices, Apple’s set-top box and Google’s own Chromecast streaming sticks, as well as Web-connected TV sets featuring Google’s Android software. Xiaomi’s Android-based TV system will be its first hardware product sold in the U.S. Xiaomi’s online store so far has sold only accessories in the U.S. However, Xiaomi has sold set-top TV boxes in Asia that stream HD-quality video. Hugo Barra, vice president for global at Xiaomi, joined the company in 2013 after leaving Google, where he had worked on mobile products and the Android mobile operating system. “This is a significant milestone for Xiaomi,” Barra said in a statement released at Google I/O . Xiaomi’s 4K streaming device will provide apps such as Netflix ( NFLX ) and YouTube, as well as Dish Network ’s ( DISH ) Sling Web TV service. In China, Xiaomi will be one of the first smartphone makers to feature virtual-reality technology that Google has put into Android N, the new version of its mobile operating system. Samsung and HTC also plan to sell Android-based mobile phones with the VR mode. Xiaomi was the top smartphone seller in China in Q4, followed closely by China’s Huawei, with Apple down at No. 3.

John Malone Avoids FCC Conditions With Charter, Unlike Comcast-NBCU

Federal regulators opted to place no conditions related to John Malone’s sprawling media and telecom holdings in approving Charter Communication ’s ( CHTR ) acquisitions of Time Warner Cable ( TWC ) ( IBD ) and Bright House Networks. California regulators are expected to approve Charter’s deals as soon as Thursday, the final hurdle to Charter’s makeover. Charter will leap to No. 2 in the cable TV industry, behind Comcast ( CMCSA ). Comcast owns NBCUniversal and NBCU-related conditions that the FCC imposed on Comcast in 2011, which are set to expire in 2018. NBCU’s assets include the broadcast TV network, cable channels and a movie studio. Consumer group Public Knowledge, the American Cable Association and others asked the FCC to look into Malone’s holdings as part of the Charter review. Dish Network ( DISH ) waged the biggest fight against the TWC deal, while Netflix ( NFLX ) stayed on the sidelines. Malone controls Liberty Broadband ( LBDRA ), which will own about 18% of the new Charter and has rights to name three board members. Privately held media firm Advance/Newhouse will own about 13.5% of Charter. Liberty Broadband stock touched a record high for the second straight day on Wednesday. Malone holds a 28.7% voting interest in Discovery ( DISCA ); a 31.8% voting interest in Starz ( STRZA ); a 37.7% voting interest in the QVC Group, and a 3.3% voting interest in Lions Gate Entertainment ( LGF ), which holds a stake in Epix, according to the FCC. While much of Malone’s media holdings will now constitute Charter’s “affiliated programming,” the FCC says it already has rules in place to govern those companies’ relationships with other pay-TV providers. “Because New Charter will lack the incentive or ability to withhold or raise prices of affiliated programming, we further find it unnecessary to extend or modify our program access rules or impose other conditions on the licensing of New Charter’s affiliated content,” the FCC said in its May 6 order approving Charter’s acquisitions. The FCC’s conditions on Charter’s acquisitions aim to protect competition from Internet video providers such as Netflix, Hulu and Amazon.com ( AMZN ). Charter will not be allowed to charge data usage-based prices or impose data caps on broadband customers for seven years. Those conditions could impact Comcast if it makes more acquisitions. Some analysts have speculated that Malone could consolidate some of his media assets and/or acquire more. Malone also controls Liberty Global, a Europe-based telecom company. “Malone’s ownership of distribution and content assets globally implicitly has a scale larger than even Comcast, but with a much more fragmented ownership structure and working relationships,” said a Barclays report in January.

Dish Stock Pressured By Hedge Fund Amid Spectrum Auction

Dish Network ( DISH ) stock rose Friday after the company responded to reports that hedge fund Kerrisdale Capital Management has taken a short position in the satellite TV broadcaster and views its spectrum assets as overvalued. Bloomberg had reported Thursday that Kerrisdale had raised $100 million in a new fund aimed at shorting a large company that it didn’t identify, but that Bloomberg said was Dish. Dish Network, meanwhile, in an emailed statement to IBD Friday, said: “We understand Kerrisdale is shopping a negative report on DISH and has shorted our stock in an attempt to make a short-term gain while DISH is in an FCC-mandated quiet period. We will continue to manage the business for the long-term benefit of our shareholders as we have done over the last 35 years.” Dish Network has amassed some 77 MHz of radio spectrum, spending some $15 billion in the process, according to Citigroup. Dish, however, lacks a wireless partner to deliver mobile video services. Verizon Communications ( VZ ) has stated it’s not interested in acquiring Dish Network’s spectrum but might be open to a wholesale network deal , analysts say. Dish — along with AT&T ( T ), Verizon and T-Mobile US ( TMUS ) — have filed as bidders in a federal auction of airwaves now owned by local TV broadcasters. The auction, begun in late March, might drag on until Q4. Depending on the auction’s outcome, wireless firms may be more or less interested in partnering with Dish Network or buying its spectrum. According to Bloomberg, Kerrisdale said on Twitter that it is betting against a more-than-$10-billion company that it thinks is worth 60% to 80% less than its current price. Kerrisdale also reportedly tweeted “we’re still weeks — perhaps many weeks — away from actual publication.” Growth has slowed in Dish Network’s core pay-TV business. Dish last year launched its Sling Web-TV service, which has been gaining subscribers. Dish Network stock was up 5% in early trading in the stock market today , above 46. As of Thursday’s close, Dish Network’s stock was down 23% in 2016 and has slumped 33% in the past 12 months. Dish stock has a poor IBD Composite Rating of 23 out of a possible 99, meanings it’s performed among the bottom 23% of all companies on key metrics such as earnings and sales growth.