Time Warner Cable recently announced that it would subsidize some purchases of set-top box, Slingbox. Time Warner Cable said it would give its subscribers, who pay $99-a-month for Wideband Internet service, a rebate for the total cost of the $300 device.This rebate offer reflects the fact that Internet connectivity is becoming the core part of the business for companies like Time Warner Cable. This movement is creating problems with programmers who think that distributors should pay them more for the right to place-shift.

Time Warner Cable has been struggling with programmers for months over this issue. In the spring, the company released an app that allowed its paying subscribers to watch multiple cable channels on the iPad, but only from the home. The app was challenged by some programmers. Time Warner Cable soon found themselves in a lawsuit with Viacom, and argued that its existing carriage contracts with companies cover all the screens in a subscriber’s home. Currently, Viacom and Time Warner Cable are at a stalemate, and for now, Viacom’s channels are not being streamed via the app.