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Telecommunications equipment industry

Time Warner Cable and Wink Communications Launch Enhanced Broadcasting in Manhattan

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

Time Warner Cable, the largest cable operator in New York City, has partnered with Wink Communications to bring enhanced broadcasting to its customers in Manhattan. This is the first nationwide pact between Time Warner Cable and a Silicon Valley software company, allowing for the delivery of program-related data enhancements to Manhattan customers. The agreement marks a significant milestone for Wink Enhanced Broadcasting, which enables viewers to interact with television commercials by clicking their remotes, ordering brochures, or accessing coupons and product information.

Key Takeaways:

  • Time Warner Cable has selected New York City as the test site for Wink Enhanced Broadcasting, marking the first local-level implementation of the technology in a Time Warner cable system.
  • The agreement allows Time Warner Cable to increase customer loyalty and offer an enhanced cable viewing experience without deploying new subscriber equipment.
  • Wink Enhanced Broadcasting enables viewers to interact with television commercials by clicking their remotes, ordering brochures, or accessing coupons and product information.
  • Current providers of Wink E-Commercials include AT&T, Levi Strauss & Co., and General Electric.
  • The technology has been deployed in Japan since October 1996 and was first introduced in the United States in June 1998 on an InterMedia Partners cable system.
  • Time Warner Cable has the right, but not the obligation, to deploy Wink Enhanced Broadcasting in other markets.
  • The partnership is a significant achievement for Wink, marking the deployment of advanced interactive technology in the nation's number one media market.

Statistics:

  • Time Warner Cable owns and manages the world's most advanced and clustered cable television operations, with 80% of its 12 million customers in systems of 100,000 subscribers or more.
  • Wink Enhanced Broadcasting has been deployed in Japan since October 1996, and in the United States since June 1998.
  • Wink Communications provides an end-to-end system for enhanced television services, and e-commerce transaction capture and routing services.
  • Wink has formed strategic relationships with a number of cable operators, including Century Communications, Charter Communications, InterMedia, and Jones InterCable.

Sources:

  • Wink Communications
  • Time Warner Cable
  • General Instrument Corporation
  • AT&T
  • Levi Strauss & Co.
  • General Electric
  • Wink Communications press release, dated December 1, 1999.

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