NBC promises Super Bowl, Olympics will stay on network TV; U.S. homes average 550 feet of cable connecting devices

> All 15 or so people who still get their television over-the-air will be relieved to know that NBC, despite being acquired by cable behemoth Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA), has no plans to put the Olympics or the Super Bowl on cable television. Of course, one must wonder about priorities since it seems more important to the viewing public that sporting events, not news coverage, remain open and free for all. Story.

> Here's a bit of trivia that ranks right up there with the notion of a "paperless" office. It seems the average U.S. home has more than 550 feet of cable connecting electrical products such as televisions, computers, alarms and (this is a real kicker) "wireless" modems. Hell, you've even got wires to your cell phone as you charge it up. News release.

> Gray Television has become the latest broadcast group to report better second quarter earnings--or in the case of Gray, narrower losses--thanks to an uptick in advertising and, of course, the revenue from cable retransmission fees. Story.

> We've heard of fiber-to-the-home (FTTH), fiber-to-the-node (FTTN) and even fiber-to-the-curb (FTTC). Now BT (NYSE: BT) is adding fiber-to-the-cabinet (FTTC) in Dalgety Bay (and we'll assume this is on dry ground) in Fife, Scotland, where it's delivering download speeds of 40 Mbps and uploads of 10 Mbps. Story.

And finally... BSI Cable had planned to install fiber optic networks in rural Mississippi counties. Still does, in fact, if it can just get the federal funding it's counting on to do so. The company's first application was denied last year but CEO Gerry Locke is confident that a second round of applications will be approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and BSI can get started building a faster Internet connection for Natchez, Miss., among other locations. Story.