Cable Companies to Use Blockchain?

CableLabs, the organization formed by cable and Internet providers to spearhead the industries' technological developments was formed almost thirty years ago. It has just recently posted a blog about adapting the cutting edge tech of the blockchain to the cable industry.

The blog really just spoke in general terms about how the distributed ledger that is the blockchain could help Internet of Things (IoT) security, record keeping, privacy rights and much more. They called 2018, the year of the Blockchain! Steve Goeringer even said that cable companies should probably create their own blockchain.

Cable and Internet provider, Comcast Cable has formed a blockchain crew and are looking at using blockchain for automation.

Phone, Internet and video provider, AT&T is also partnering with Amino Payments for better digital payment transparency.

Charter Cable Workers On Strike For More Than a Year

Charter Cable and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 3 members in the city of New York have been fighting for more than a year now. The number two cable company’s disagreement with the almost 2000 New York City Union tech workers doesn’t look to be settled any time soon.

IBEW Local 3 says Charter Communications (Cable and Internet provider) is trying to take back the benefits they already enjoy. Benefits like overtime and holiday pay are in limbo for the workers that were acquired when Charter purchased Time Warner Cable a few years back. The union workers want to keep the same benefits they have had since before the purchase. For their part, Charter Communications says the New York employees should be happy with the pay increase Charter is offering.

It seems that Cable, Internet and telephone companies are often in negotiations with their workers. AT&T, Frontier and other companies have recently been in strikes, negotiations or just settled them.

At the same time, Charter Cable and Internet wants to renew the New York City cable franchise it got from the Time Warner Cable acquisition. Charter’s CEO Tom Rutledge got almost $100 million in pay and other benefits from the company in 2016.