FCC nominee's 2nd hearing; INCOMPAS' conference; BT-Discovery streaming deal

The Daily Digest highlights top news and exclusive insights on the technology, media and telecommunications sectors.

TOP NEWS

Gigi Sohn gets another hearing; INCOMPAS kicks off policy conference

A busy week in the telecom world kicks off with a high-profile industry event and a Capitol Hill hearing that is leaving many public interest advocates frustrated.

UK joint venture talks underscore sports' appeal to BT, Discovery

A proposed streaming joint venture between British Telecom's BT Sport and Discovery Inc. would reduce BT's rights costs while boosting Discovery's sports footprint in the U.K.

➤ Economics of Internet: 2022 European subscription OTT video 5-year outlook

The European subscription over-the-top video industry is expected to keep growing over the next five years as U.S.-based media and tech groups expand their direct-to-consumer services in the region and local players shift their strategies from linear to streaming.

➤ Technology: Apple device revenues set new record, even as shipments fall 2.2% YOY in Q4'21

Estimated fourth-quarter 2021 shipments for Apple Inc.'s HomePods and Macs grew 38% and 15% year over year, respectively, while iPhone and iPad shipments decreased as access to some components continued to be a challenge.

SECTOR HIGHLIGHTS

Technology

* UK strengthens proposed online safety bill

* Shopify can monetize large addressable market despite near-term turbulence

* Nielsen launches program to boost visibility of diverse-owned media

Internet and OTT

* Digital-advertising firm Aleph unveils US IPO filing

* CNN anchors press WarnerMedia CEO for details on Jeff Zucker's resignation – WSJ

Telecommunications

* Bharti Airtel to spend $15.68B on contracts with subsidiaries until 2026-27

Film and TV

* Gray to acquire WKTB-CD from Telemundo Atlanta

Global internet outages dipped 3% to 266 in the week of Jan. 29, ending a three-week upward trend that started in the second week of January, according to data from ThousandEyes, a network-monitoring service owned by Cisco Systems Inc.