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Could Social TV Really Become a Multi-Billion Dollar Business?

Megan O'Neill — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 09:45:59 +0000

As social TV apps continue springing up, social TV guides become more and more popular recommendation sources for television viewers, and TV commercials start utilizing the second screen to add interactivity to advertising, it’s becoming more and more clear that social TV really is the next big thing. But how big will Social TV become?
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Google Buys SageTV to Enhance Google TV

Bilal Hameed — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 09:51:43 +0000

Google has acquired SageTV for an undisclosed amount. The tech giant has plans to take SageTV’s media management software and technology to next level, according Google’s spokeswoman. SageTV is an Inglewood-based company that provide DVR technology and streaming-video software for systems running Microsoft Windows, Linux and Apple Mac OS X.

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Samsung Launches “Hunch”: A Social Movie Experience

Kenna McHugh — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 08:00:14 +0000

Samsung and Digitas launched a social technology program called Hunch that enables movie fans to interact on a microsite as a social movie experience. The catch is that you have to have a Samsung television with the program called The Smart Living Room. The program invites movie viewers to learn more about their friends’ movie interest as well as own, and ultimately create a customized, social movie watching event. The Hunch program is equipped with search, web browser and over 400 apps. That’s a lot of apps for movie watching.
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Sony Expands Crackle with Ad-Supported Movies and Television

Kenna McHugh — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 10:30:23 +0000

Sony Pictures Entertainment is keeping with the trend of movie-on-demand by bringing expansion to Crackle, a multi-platform video entertainment network. The expansion includes ad-supported full-length movies and television series to all users of different players, consoles and Wi-Fi.
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Netflix CEO Understood "mailing people DVDs was a mere way station on the road to streaming video.”

Kenna McHugh — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 15:40:24 +0000

Chunka Mui, who co-authored “Billion-Dollar” Lessons with Paul B.Carroll, wrote an interesting piece for Forbes.com on the success of Netflix CEO Reed Hastings’ vision to stream movies over the Internet directly into people’s homes.
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Google About To Launch Google TV App Market

Bilal Hameed — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 13:24:45 +0000

Google will soon be launching Google TV Market, a market place for apps targeting Google TV, according to Ashish Arora, Vice President and General Manager at Logitech. In this present role at Logitech, Arora’s job is to oversee Google’s TV products for Logitech and ensure that Logitech hardware is compatible with Google’s TV platform.

Arora was speaking at the OTTCon, when he made these observations. While answering a question regarding whether Google TV owners would be able to take advantage of other Android apps, Arora responded:

It will happen shortly. It’s a given that it will happen this year, 100 percent.

Google’s TV offering unlike Apple is merely a software platform. Similar to its mobile strategy, Google is relying on hardware vendors to build the hardware that would run the Google TV platform.

Google selected Logitech, along with Sony, as the key launch partners for Google’s TV platform. Logitech released, Logitech Revue, a set top box that runs the Google TV platform back in October.

Similar to Apple TV, Google TV can stream video, music, and photos and offers integrated Netflix and Youtube streaming. However, this is where the similarities between the two products end. Google TV users can surf the Web (via Chrome), stream content from their computer and Internet, and can even video chat.

Google’s idea with TV apps is to really enhance the broadcast experience of users. Speaking about the apps that will be available on the Google TV Market, Arora commented that:

It won’t just be weather apps. What will be really interesting will be to tie the content to what you’re watching.

In order to get a glimpse of the kind of apps that will be available on Google TV, do check out the Top 5 TV apps that were unveiled at the 2011 CES.

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Sony's Qriocity Attempts to Put Pressure on Netflix

Anthony Marcusa — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 15:40:37 +0000

The race to catch Netflix is heating up, and now it’s Sony that is trying to put on some pressure. They have recently launched a streaming on-demand movie service with a few added quirks, and some setbacks, that hope to put a dent in the continued success of Netflix.Other companies are trying steal users from Netflix as well, HBO among the most notable. While some are gearing up to take down Netflix, this looks to be Sony’s last shot. continued…

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Study: After PCs and Mobiles, TVs Will Also Be Completely Web Enabled by 2015

Bilal Hameed — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 10:00:27 +0000

After PCs and mobile devices, TV will be the next consumer appliance to be connected to the web. According to research firm Park Associates, around 76 percent of all HDTVs will be connected to the internet by 2015, up from 25 percent HDTVs that are currently wired to the net.

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Joost Aims To Become World’s Top Video Ad Platform

Bilal Hameed — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 09:00:47 +0000

Joost is about to have yet another birth, this time as an independent video ad platform. Joost’s parent company Adconion Media Group, an independent global audience network, has decided to spin off Joost Video Network as a separate standalone video ad business, in an attempt to capture larger share of the ever growing online video ad sector. Adconion has appointed Nick Higgins as executive vice-president to lead the new venture. Higgins was previously the head of global video at Adconion Media Group and held several senior positions at MSN before joining Adconion.

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Is Facebook the World's Biggest Rockstar?

Richard Howard — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 10:25:25 +0000

Since the release of ‘The Social Network’, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has given the world a name to attach to the social networking phenomenon(since the face attached belongs to Jesse Eisenberg – let’s be honest). But in watching where the public’s obsession, idolatry and all out fanaticism lies, it’s not at all out of line to suggest that we’re seeing something without precedent: it’s Facebook itself that’s the real celebrity.

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Two Versions of Netflix Moving in Opposite Directions

Anthony Marcusa — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 18:56:13 +0000

While the name is the same, don’t be fooled; Netflix Canada and Netflix America are moving along at different paces, and this month they are in the news for very different reasons. Canadians are finding a growing list of content from their provider, while in the U.S. companies are gearing up to make it harder for Netflix to succeed.

Netflix Canada may not have the newest titles, but the database is vast with plenty of popular TV shows and movies. And the first season of 'Til Death.

In Canada, Netflix began in September 2010 exclusively offering movies and TV shows online, streaming to any computer, Nintendo WII, Playstation 3, or Ipad, among other systems. In the U.S., DVDs are sent in my mail, with some titles available on demand through streaming. Due to copyright laws, Netflix Canada is limited in terms of content in comparison to their U.S. counterpart, but what they lacked in availability they made up for with immediacy. The Canada database does not have the latest new movie releases, but does features a wide range of foreign films, documentaries, and popular shows such as Mad Men, HeroesÂ¸ and Rescue Me.

This week however, Netflix signed some new deals which will further increase the amount of content they are offering. The Canadian Broadcast Corporation (CBC) agreed to a contract, offering among other shows The Tudors, the Golden Globe nominated series about the life of English King Henry VIII.

Netflix will also now offer the past two seasons of Saturday Night Live, as well as the first five seasons of Kids in the Hall through a deal with Global TV. Meanwhile FreemantleMedia is offering the online provider two seasons of BBC shows Merlin and Pulling. Most notably perhaps, is the acquisition from All3Media of two seasons of the Emmy award winning series Weeds.

All this is to say that Netflix in Canada is doing exceedingly well in such a short time, and those subscribers who joined this fall are seeing increased membership lead to increased availability of movies and TV shows. As more people sign up and more companies sign on, the available content will rise as well.

Lost is a hit TV show now available on Netflix in the U.S. It is also where the cable companies have been since Netflix crept onto the scene.

In the United States, Netflix is finding early smooth sailing to become somewhat arduous. When it began in 2008, media companies did not think much of the concept, and Netflix was able to get access to a wide database of movies for a very small price. As it continues to grow in popularity, companies are fighting back, fearing that people will simply stop getting cable and use Netflix exclusively.

Where once Netflix was sneaking up on companies, it is now the target of attack. New deals will be more much expensive, something that will be difficult to achieve considering the low monthly subscription of $8 – $10. On top of that, new competition is to arise in the form of HBO GO, an online service from Time Warner available for HBO subscribers. The chief executive of Time Warner, Jeffrey L. Bewkes, is also in works to create what he is calling TV Everywhere, with the idea that anyone who pays for cable can stream their shows at any time.

Still, Netflix moves on. While the Canada provider has signed new shows, so has the U.S. counterpart. A deal with ABC last week means the hit shows Lost and Desperate HousewivesÂ are coming soon to a computer near you.

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Jinni Founder Reveals The Power of Emotion Based TV Recommendations [Interview]

anatresnick — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 10:30:53 +0000

How would you like to search your TV Guide according to your mood? Users in Belgium now have this option with the latest investment by Belgacom, the largest telecommunications company in Belgium, with Jinni.com, a movie and TV search engine and recommendation site. This addition to Belgacom will enable viewers to search for Web TV content based on their mood and emotions. Jinni is an online search engine that calls itself ‘the Taste Engine’ and likens itself to ‘Pandora for Movies’ because users search for content according to mood, plots, titles, or whatever meets their fancy. Jinni has made some milestones this year such as becoming Google’s partner for Google TV and winning the award for “best product idea” at the CableLabs Winter Conference. I had a chance to talk with Jinni Founder and President, Yosi Glick, about the recent investment and what users love about Jinni. continued…

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Weekly Blog Highlights: Hulu and Boxee Part Ways

arnoldzafra — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 22:48:58 +0000

First the hard facts. Boxee is a powerful software package that converts computers, Apple TVs and other popular products into media centers. It has been making it possible for users to watch Hulu video content on their TV since October last year. And Boxee users have loved this feature and was even gearing up to improved it some more. But that inevitable happened. Hulu asked Boxee to stop making its content on Boxee TV. This according to Hulu was requested by their content partners.

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Brace Yourself Folks, MySpace Will Soon Be on your TV

arnoldzafra — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 08:37:53 +0000

Amidst the frenzy in the ongoing CES event at Las Vegas which are dominated primarily by consumer electronics companies, MySpace was able to get some mileage thanks to its partnership with Intel, Yahoo and Toshiba. The deal will bring the MySpace experience on your TV sets, thanks to Yahoo’s Connected TV service and Toshiba which will be the first to showcase the MySpace TV Widget on their new products. continued…

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Reality Wanted Could Land You on TV

andrewgr — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 01:35:12 +0000

It started again last night. My wife sat in front of the boob tube, mystified by reality TV. From the dorkiest ‘Bachelor’ to date, to the shlocky Momma’s Boys, can we please get our well-scripted shows back?

As if there isn’t enough on TV for reality shows, there is now a Website dedicated solely for news about the reality TV shows. Further, if you have always wanted to BE a reality TV star, this Website helps you get there. (May God help you.) continued…

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