NewsBlu-Ray and Digital Distribution Likely to Co-Exist
Posted 09/26/08 at 10:57:00 AM by Paul Lilly
A year ago most of us were bracing for a long, drawn out battle between Blu-ray and HD-DVD, but we all know how that turned out. What we don't know, at least not yet, is what impact digital distribution will have as the nation's broadband continues to improve. Michael Bay, the man who directed Transformers and then voiced his outrage over Paramount's decision to abandon Blu-ray, claimed in late 2007 that Microsoft wanted both formats to fail, and was even actively trying to sabotage the high definition format war, all so it could reap the rewards when digital downloads take over.
Hit the jump to see why some think Blu-ray and digital downloads are both here to stay.
NewsAmazon Arms IMDB with 6,000 Free Movies and TV Episodes
Posted 09/18/08 at 02:33:33 PM by Pulkit Chandna
Amazon has armed its subsidiary Internet Movie Database (IMDB) with 6,000 full-length movies and TV episodes. Users can watch the video content without spending even a single penny. Video on IMDB had been long overdue and its absence was perplexing.
Sadly enough, though, only a glimpse of the video feature is enough to tell you that it will take quite a long time for video to be the site’s USP. The list of featured videos is too short to be any good.
Therefore, to make the most of the wide gamut of video content provided by the likes of Sony Pictures Television, HULU, CBS and roughly 500 indie filmmakers, you will have to mainly depend on the website’s search capabilities.
NewsConsortium Wants Consumers to 'Buy Once, Play Anywhere'
Posted 09/17/08 at 01:34:16 AM by Pulkit Chandna
The incongruity between disparate media formats has denied us a truly universal media experience till now. This is simply not acceptable in this epoch of technology convergence. A consortium called the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystems (DECE) is working on improving interoperability between different media and consumer electronic devices. The group includes HP, Intel, Microsoft, Paramount, Sony and Toshiba, besides other prominent CE heavyweights and film studios.
The group will shed more light on its plan, to have greater interoperability between devices, during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). DECE will develop an industry standard, which will allow users to enjoy digital content across various devices without having to worry about compatibility issues.
If most people find merit in the notion that digital downloads are going to replace the need for optical storage formats, they will also agree that digital content will have to offer a universal media experience like the hugely successful DVD. “We see this vision of 'buy once, play anywhere,” Mark Coblitz, senior VP of strategic planning at Comcast – a member of DECE, gave the gist of the plan.
DECE President Mitch Singer even welcomed Apple, which runs a popular digital distribution service iTunes, tied to its products, to join the consortium. Do you think that services like iTunes are doomed?
NewsParamount Plays Scene It?
Posted 09/04/08 at 04:21:12 PM by Pulkit Chandna
Paramount Digital Entertainment bought DVD games developer Screenlife. The move will allow Paramount to strengthen the reach of it cinematic offerings. Screenlife has to its credit the well known “Scene It?” game brand. Screenlife will continue to operate autonomously even after this deal. Thomas Lesinski, Paramount Digital Entertainment’s president, said that the acquisition will advance the company’s multiplatform strategy. Paramount didn’t elaborate upon the financial details of the transaction.
NewsSamsung the Cynic: Blu-Ray Only Has Five Years Left, Suckers!
Posted 09/04/08 at 01:15:24 PM by Paul Lilly
If Samsung is to be belieived, the future for Blu-ray doesn't look so bright. Despite burying its rival, HD-DVD, and gaining market penetration thanks to Sony's Playstation 3 console, Samsung sees the high definition format as being on life support.
"I think it has 5 years left, I certainly wouldn't give it 10," said Andy Griffiths, director of consumer electronics at Samsung UK.
With such a pessimistic outlook, Samsung must be looking towards digital downloads as the next big thing, right? Surprisingly, no. According to Samung, the successor to Blu-ray will be OLED displays. Huh? Odd as it sounds, the company is touting high definition displays while downplaying a media format that could show off the new displays.
"We will launch the OLED technology when it's at a price that will be appealing to the consumer, unfortunately that's not yet," explained Griffiths.
Griffiths went on to say that OLED could be become a mainstream technology by as early as 2010.
NewsGhostbusters is the First Film to Be Released on a USB Stick
Posted 09/04/08 at 12:21:15 PM by Paul Lilly
If nothing else, give PNY points for creativity. In an attempt to differentiate its USB keys from other companies, the memory maker will attempt to sell a 2GB USB flash drive with the movie Ghostbusters pre-installed.
"As a market leader in the USB market, PNY's focus is to offer consumers added value by providing enjoyable blockbuster content on their USB," said Stefanie Summerfield, UK and Nordic sales and marketing director for PNY Technologies.
It remains to be seen exactly how many people will be interested in receiving a free 20-year-old movie with their USB key, but if it proves popular enough, it's conceivable that the partnership between PNY and Sony could lead to more flicks on more flash drives. That's assuming consumers won't be put off by the DRM scheme. According to a PNY spokesperson, customers will be able to download Ghostbusters to their laptop or PC, but they'll have to have the USB key plugged in if they want to watch the movie.
Is PNY on to something here, or are pre-loaded movies ultimately just a marketing gimmick? Hit the jump and post your toughts.
NewsPhilips Leads the Charge for 3D on Blu-Ray
Posted 08/26/08 at 02:54:34 PM by Paul Lilly
Blu-ray may have won the high-definition format war, but the spoils haven't exactly been anything to brag about. Saddled with high prices, consumers have been turning the other cheek in favor of upscaled DVDs and an increasing emphasis on movie downloads, which looks to get even more popular this fall. But that could all change if 3D movies prove popular for home setups.
Leading the charge is Philips, who will demonstrate 3D on Blu-ray later this month at IFA 2008.The demo is expected to show how Philips' 2D-plus-Depth content format can be applied to Blu-ray, which would open the door for 3D movies to be shown on a variety of displays. Whether or not that matters to home theater buffs remains to be seen, but with a growing amount of 3D movies released on the big screen, those that missed the theater debut would still be able to relieve the experience at home, minus the ginormous screen.
Does this give Blu-ray the edge it needs to gain popularity points?
NewsIntel, DreamWorks Reveal InTru 3D Tech for Future Movies
Posted 08/22/08 at 09:51:03 AM by Pulkit Chandna
DreamWorks Animation and Intel announced at IDF that, beginning next year, films under the DreamWorks banner will all be in next-gen 3D. Last month, the studio had announced that it was going to replace its AMD hardware with Intel’s future chips with multi-processing cores. Now it has been confirmed that Intel’s upcoming Larrabee (codename) graphics chip will form the crux of the partnership. The two partners even unveiled a 3-D movie image brand called InTru 3D. The technology is also targeted at the video games industry and the internet. AMD has also been touting its Cinema 2.0 tech that it claims will pulverize the wall between movies and games.
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