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Net's New "Utility" Status Will Boost This Company

By Dwight Cass, Money Morning - February 27, 2015

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) has been hamstrung by ISPs like Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), which have slowed its streaming service as a negotiating tactic, allegedly to make the company pony up money to retain the ability to serve its millions of clients. That's now over, since the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has now sided with net neutrality.

But more importantly, there is an opportunity to exploit this legal development.

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Net's New "Utility" Status Will Boost This Company

By Dwight Cass, Money Morning - February 27, 2015

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) has been hamstrung by ISPs like Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), which have slowed its streaming service as a negotiating tactic, allegedly to make the company pony up money to retain the ability to serve its millions of clients. That's now over, since the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has now sided with net neutrality.

But more importantly, there is an opportunity to exploit this legal development.

Net Neutrality Tested by Comcast-Level 3 Netflix Dispute

By Jason Simpkins, Managing Editor, Money Morning - December 1, 2010

Netflix Inc. (Nasdaq: NFLX) - the web-based DVD rental company - is locked in a row with Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA) that could have significant implications for the management of the Internet as a whole.

At the heart of the conflict is Level 3 Communications Inc. (Nasdaq: LVLT), a little-known network operator that handles Netflix content. Comcast has increased the fees it charges Level 3 to carry streaming Netflix videos over its cable network. That decision goes against conventional principles of so-called "network neutrality," under which network operators exchange traffic for free when similar amounts of information flow in each direction. Such exchanges are known as "peering."

Net neutrality also prohibits network owners like Comcast from discriminating against Internet companies by blocking or slowing access too their content.

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Investment News Briefs

By Investment News Staff, Money Morning - December 17, 2009

With our investment news briefs, Money Morning provides investors with a quick overview of the most important investing news stories from all around the world.

Sovereign Fund Attempts to End $7.5 Billion Citi Share Purchase; Credit Suisse to Pay U.S. $536 Million Penalty; Cohen: U.S. Economy to Slow in 2010; Roy Disney Dead at 79; Former TPG, Lazard Employees Sued by SEC for Insider Trading; Galleon Group Founder Indictment Alleges Fraud, Conspiracy; Comcast Launches Online TV Service

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) is trying to call off a deal it made to buy $7.5 billion of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) stock at eight times yesterday's (Wednesday) price, saying Citi misled it about the investment, Bloomberg News reported. The sovereign fund alleged "fraudulent misrepresentations" and seeks more than $4 billion in damages if the deal is upheld, ADIA said in an arbitration claim. Citi calls ADIA's claims "entirely without merit."
Switzerland's Credit Suisse Group AG (NYSE ADR: CS) will pay the U.S. government $536 million for conducting business with Iran and other sanctioned countries, prosecutors said yesterday (Wednesday). The bank moved more than $1.6 billion through the U.S. financial system on behalf of Iran, Sudan, Myanmar, Cuba and Libya, documents filed in federal court and obtained by Reuters showed.
U.S. housing starts rebounded sharply, rising 8.9% to a seasonally adjusted 574,000 units on an annualized basis in November, the Commerce Department said. Economists polled by MarketWatch.com were expecting a pace of 563,000. "We now expect both starts and permits to rally significantly further over the next few months, though the big test for the market will come in the spring," said Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics Ltd.

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With NBC Deal Done, Comcast Becomes the New Cable Juggernaut

By Bob Blandeburgo, Associate Editor, Money Morning - December 4, 2009

Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA) will acquire a 51% stake in General Electric Co.’s (NYSE: GE) NBC Universal Inc. for $13.75 billion in cash and assets, giving the cable giant lucrative cable channels including SyFy, Bravo and the USA Network, as well as Universal Pictures and its related theme parks in California, Florida and Japan.

But for GE, the deal is a precursor to and eventual exit from the media business.

"This isn’t just one of the biggest media deals, this is arguably one of the biggest M&A deals in years," Wunderlich Securities Inc. analyst Matthew Harrigan, who recommends buying Comcast shares, told Bloomberg News.

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GE Sets Up Comcast Venture With Buy of Vivendi's NBC Universal Stake

By Don Miller, Contributing Writer, Money Morning - December 2, 2009

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) cleared the way for Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA) to take control of its NBC Universal unit yesterday (Tuesday) when it reached agreement with Vivendi SA to buy the French company's 20% stake for $5.8 billion.

GE Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Immelt and Vivendi Chief Jean-Bernard Levy agreed on a price after they met in France last week, according to multiple sources cited by Reuters and Bloomberg News.

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Hot Stocks: Comcast Looks to Expand Its Brand with Potential NBC Universal Takeover

By Bob Blandeburgo, Associate Editor, Money Morning - November 20, 2009

With a possible buyout of General Electric Co.'s (NYSE: GE) NBC Universal Inc. in the works, Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is adapting to a changing technological landscape.

Comcast, the United States' largest cable television provider, is hoping to avoid becoming the next newspaper or record company by expanding its role from an entertainment medium to a content provider.

"The world of cable delivery is about to change," Forrester Research (Nasdaq: FORR) analyst James McQuivey told the Los Angeles Times. "Cable companies for years have made their living by selling consumers hundreds of television channels bundled together. But the future is going to be very different, and cable companies instead will be selling an 'entertainment experience.'"

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Investment News Briefs

By Investment News Staff, Money Morning - October 14, 2009

With our investment news briefs, Money Morning provides investors with a quick overview of the most important investing news stories from all around the world. AIG Selling Taiwan Life Insurance Unit; Source: Comcast Proposes NBC Universal JV; China Auto Sales up 78% in Sept.; Whitney Cuts Goldman to Neutral; Bank of America Turns over Merrill […]

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