SOPA and PIPA’s prominence in the headlines meant that government policy and politics played an unusually prominent role in the consumer technology sector in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, another battle in the living room attracted attention in the last few months as a record-shattering new nine-year deal for NFL broadcast rights suggested epic showdowns between the broadcasters and cable operators in the future. Apple and Google kept busy launching their consumer media cloud services, and Microsoft expanded its presence in the living room with major updates to its Xbox Live platform. These events and others are examined in this quarterly wrap-up, which also includes trends, companies and events to watch for over the next 12 months. Additional companies mentioned in this report include Amazon, Facebook, PayPal and Zynga. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial.