Sanjay Jha, CEO of Motorola Mobility Holdings (NYSE: MMI), made a somewhat surprising yet not all that surprising statement at this week's The Cable Show that the wireline network--in this case cable--will be the dominant vehicle to deliver wireless content.
Despite the ongoing excitement around mobile services, Jha pointed out that the reality is that there's a scarce amount of available wireless spectrum in the U.S., meaning that bandwidth hungry applications like video will be delivered over the wireline network for "a long time to come."
He was quick to add that subscriptions will be the user's gateway to content when they are outside of the home.
Cable MSO executives including Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) CEO Brian Roberts and Cablevision (NYSE: CVC) Chief Operating Officer Tom Rutledge echoed Jha's thesis that the wireline-based broadband network will be the entry point to deliver content into the home.
Roberts said that Comcast plans give its Xfinity TV service a makeover with new features that lets users access social media platforms like Facebook and other over the top services.
Their comments illustrated that while it's true more and more consumers and businesses are going mobile, their wireline network still has plenty of utility left in it.
While the discussion here centered on the cable industry, the same thesis could be applied to the telcos who are transforming themselves into broadband-based companies to offset their ongoing dwindling voice revenue trends.
For more:
- Total Telecom via Dow Jones has this article
Special Report: Read all The Cable Show 2011 coverage at FierceCable
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