Crackle comes to Xbox360

The kinect voice and motion activated controls allows Crackle viewers a vocal way to find the content they want. The Crackle cwebsite content is all available which includes over 200 movies from studios including Columbia Pictures, TriStar Pictures, Screen Gems, Sony Pictures Classics and more, is now available to watch.

Movies include, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, The International, Donnie Brasco, European Gigolo,Jackie Chan Adventures,Groundhog Day, Year One, Defendor, The Messengers, The Mothman Prophecies, Bewitched, Samurai X, Blood +, Blue Exorcist, Why It Crackles, Urban Wolf, The Bannen Way

For TV show fans, the app also offers over 1,500 TV show episodes Download the Crackle app from the Xbox Live marketplace for free now in the US, UK, Canada and Australia.

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WalMart, the worlds second largest retailer, said it will fully integrate the online video service Vudu that it gained last year on to its website Walmart.com.

Vudu is a cloud based video and movie service that lets customers rent or buy movies over the Internet and stream them to their TV sets, Blu-Ray players and a variety of Vudu enabled devices such as the PS3 and HDTV’s from LG Electronics, Sharp and Panasonic.

WalMart purchased video streaming service Vudu 18 months ago and now offers 20,000 titles that can be viewed on almost any device with Internet access, from computers to televisions to Sony’s PlayStation 3 and other Blu-Ray disc players.

Movies are available at WalMart to rent for $1-$5.99 or to purchase for $4.99 and up. WalMart is not offering any subscriptions, making its service more similar to Apple’s iTunes store, which charges $3.99 to rent newly released movies and $14.99 to buy a movie.

As of March, Netflix had 22.8 million subscribers in the US. about 34 thousand more than the number of households subscribing to Comcast’s cable TV service.

WalMart who are based in Bentonville have tested the movie rental waters before. It previously offered a DVD by mail service that cost $12.97 per month for two titles and $17.36 per month for three titles.

That was not a success, but we all know that the streaming market is a totally different ball game.

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Shaw competing with Netflix?

The movie streaming service, called Movie Club costs existing subscribers $12 monthly for unlimited movie and TV show streaming on PC or TV. If users want to watch movies in HD then the price is $17.99 monthly.

But the clincher for some is that movies streamed will not count against a subscriber’s monthly Internet data caps. Netflix users do not have such a luxury included in their $7.99 monthly streaming charge.

Speaking for Shaw Communications, president Peter Bissonnette told the Calgary Herald, “There should be some advantage to you being a customer.”

He also said, “The Shaw Movie Club is the result of listening to our customers and delivering products that fit their needs and the way they use technology.”

More on this story:-

Shaw launches Netflix rival – Montreal Gazette

Shaw said that movies streamed using its own service will not count against a subscribers monthly Internet data caps unlike movies streamed from competing outlets like Netflix. …

Shaw Movie Club versus Netflix: A comparison – Vancouver Sun (blog)

Its a market Netflix introduced to Canada but Shaw has fired a devastating salvo at Netflix in its fight for movie subscribers. Netflix livestreams over the Internet which uses up bandwidth. Shaw has bandwidth caps but Shaw Movie Club subscribers …

Shaw roll outs out unlimited movie service to compete with Netflix – CanadianBusiness.com

B) has launched an all-you-can eat movie club to combat the popularity of online competitor Netflix an effort keep its cable subscribers from considering cutting the cord. The multimedia company announced Friday that its new Shaw Movie Club will …

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MoviePass seemed like a good idea, 2 days ago.

The concept sounded good, users would pay $50 per month for a Netflix style subscription, and go to any cinema using their phone as a pass to get in. However it has ended in tears as MoviePass president Stacy Spikes told TheWrap that “We’ve put it on temporary hold.”

The beta launch was halted after AMC Theatres said they would not honour tickets using the MoviePass system. That was followed by Landmark Theatres and others, who are also looking to refuse admission.

MoviePass were willing to pay the theater owners full price per entry and figured they would be happy with the additional seats sold and additional concession sales. But it looks like a discussion with the owners was not held before the service was launched.

More on this:-

MoviePass Test Suspended After Theater Complaints – TheWrap

The test run of the controversial Netflix-style subscription plan MoviePass has been suspended because of complaints from exhibitors MoviePass president Stacy Spikes confirmed to TheWrap on Thursday evening. Weve put it on temporary …

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Crackle free movie app on Android

Now, just like the Apple version of crackle, android viewers can watch movies totally free. Crackle which is owned by Sony is ad-supported and lets viewers watch tv, movies and video on demand all legally and above board.

Advertising will be shown at regular intervals, including before and after a stream, but they are over pretty quick. If you hate ads you can always pay for Netflix or Hulu Plus, but us online viewers love free stuff.

The new and improved app has a slick new user interface featuring menus for browsing by genre, collection, or other criteria. Although the content is not made up of ‘A’ list stuff, you can watch Ghostbusters or some Seinfeld episodes.

Android devices will need to run Flash to watch crackle, so users will need Android 2.2 or above. So what you waiting for? Get over to the Android Market and get watching free movies on your android mobile.

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Youtube for 6000 movie rentals

Film studios that are contributing movies include Warner Bros., Sony, Universal Pictures and Lionsgate, creating a catalog of around 6,000 movies to rent from $2-$4.00. The move is part of YouTube’s move away from shorts and into premium content in a bid to drive up advertising rates.

Once a viewer pays they have 30 days to watch the movie, and 24 hours to finish viewing once started. Youtube say that new movies will be added regulalry and many will have extra features, like reviews and behind the scenes footage. They are even throwing in some free movies as well.

YouTube have been moving into the movie rental market for over a year, starting with small independent movies. But now they are really ramping up the service in a bid not to get left behind, and recognised as a rental brand.

The bummer news for worldwide fans is that the service is US only at this time. But you can always browse the selection of free older movies.

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They are looking to sign official partnerships with major Hollywood film studios (such as Warner Bros., Universal and Sony) and release films around the time of DVD/Blu-ray release, with the intent to rival other online movie rental services such as Netflix and iTunes.

YouTube will also be the latest in a series of major websites to add movie streaming or alternative video in a bid to attract more users, following on from Facebook and Yahoo’s recent announcements.

The video website’s plan is reportedly to host the streaming of major full-length blockbusters, as of next month.  The price tag looks set to be fairly reasonable, with starting prices at just $2 or a day’s rental (currently planned to be US-only), but it is planned that prices would obviously raise according to the popularity of the film and the length of rental.

YouTube will be looking to launch their service by hitting the ground running to try and claim business away from Netflix, who currently dominate the US market with over 23.6m subscribers for the online rental service.

Former Netflix boss Robert Kyncl, who is now YouTube’s ‘vice-president of TV and film entertainment’ as part of YouTube’s efforts to make this expansion more professional, had originally suggested the planned launch of the service at an interview a few weeks ago. He said: “Imagine if you had a video store on YouTube, where you could rent or buy the movie without being sent elsewhere. Obviously, there are things coming, but we can’t talk about them yet.”

While Google-owned YouTube, which took in over $544m of revenue last year and recently became profitable, could be taking a risk by moving into uncharted territory, they will also see this as a chance to boost their profits by a big amount should the move be successful. Will the 100 million-strong YouTube public take as kindly to this update?

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Blinkbox streams video to over 2 million viewers each month and has a catalogue of 9,000 plus movies and TV shows available for rent or to buy, as well as a selection of free movies, TV shows and trailers. The service can be viewed on PC, Mac, PS3 console, tablet devices and internet enabled connected TV sets.

The entry into this market by Tesco will shake up the UK online TV space with competition from big players including Amazon, with their own VOD service and the LoveFilm service. They may also be looking to tap into the Sky and Virgin Media market. Not forgetting the expected Netflix UK launch.

As the worlds third largest retail store, Tesco will have seen the success of music and movie downloading services such as Apple’s iTunes. Selling books via the web have also changed the entertainment retail landscape.

Tesco acquisition shows that the company is very much aware of these changing consumer habits, and it comes one day after the group announced flat sales in the UK for 2010/11 financial year. They have aquired 80% of Blinkbox from Eden Ventures and Nordic Venture Partners.

Richard Brasher, Tesco UK CEO said that the deal will offer customers something different:- “The acquisition of Blinkbox, together with a range of other services currently in development, means we can link physical purchase of a product to the building of digital collections in a new and seamless way,” he said.

For Blinkbox, Michael Comish CEO said “it is an exciting time for such a partnership considering how accessible entertainment is becoming for consumers”.

It is an interesting move as it seems that when you now buy a DVD from Tesco, you will get the virtual film rights to watch anywhere and on any product you like. That will make other retail outlets look to offer a similar service.

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Crackle free TV and Movies

The app comes loaded with literally hundreds of TV shows and movies from Sony owned Tri-Star, Columbia Pictures, Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics. The app is ad funded of course, and lets owners of iPad, iPhone and iPod watch shows that include 10 Items or Less, Barney Miller, Charlie’s Angels and The Killing.

There are also some classic Seinfeld episodes and some older movies, but goodies such as Big Daddy, Ghostbusters, Easy Rider, Joe Dirt, Starman and A Few Good Men

The app is easy to use, smart enough to resume playback if you have to leave in the middle, and able to stream over 3G and Wi-Fi alike.

The only downside is that many shows are just teaser clips rather than the whole thing, which kinda stinks, but it’s free. Viewers are able to create a user account that gives the option of creating viewing queue, on both the app and the Crackle website.

Crackle can be downloaded from the App Store.

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But it begins with the relase of Just Go With It on Tuesday, allowing DirectTV subscribers (who owns an official HD-DVR recorder), to have purchase a 48-hour download rental (before removal from the hard drive) of a movie (in 1080p and Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound) all for the meager fee of $29.99.

The films are also being limited to one new feature each fortnight, with recent theatrical releases The Adjustment Bureau, Cedar Rapids, and Hall Pass all in line for DirecTV release.

This may seem like a pretty bad deal for the customer in terms of price and service, and it probably is, but the satellite TV provider seems to have worked its way through a number of legal loopholes just to get this far, and in the process infuriating a nation of cinema owners in the process, as theatres across America plan to protest against the studios for their future potential loss of business, with the traditional 90/120-day gap between cinema and home release of a film (the ‘theatrical window’) being cut to 60 in the case of this deal.

DirecTV spokesman Robert G. Mercer said of the controversial deal for his company: “In terms of how all of us consume TV, video and film products, the world continues to change and we constantly have to ask ourselves how we as a company are going to innovate to find new ways to engage our customers. Home Premiere is one way we are capturing that engagement. This is [for] the type of customer who is willing to pay more to see a new movie in an earlier window.”

Theatres across America are planning to retaliate what they feel to be a ‘betrayal’ by the studios by limiting their movie’s trailers and in-building signage.

While VOD is an emerging market for new movies (with the income from this source recorded at $1.8B last year), it is the first time that a VOD release will come so far before the DVD/Blu-ray release, as opposed to the same time or later. Although the ‘first opportunity’ service is a one-time only for subscribers (after a film is rented, it is no longer available until after the theatrical window (at a much shorter price)), it is believed that it is against the ideals of the relationship with studios for the service for any extra release during this ‘limbo period’ for movies.

Patrick Corcoran, a director of the National Association of Theater Owners, lead the complaints of his furied group: “NATO has repeatedly, publicly and privately, raised concerns and questions about the wisdom of shortening the theatrical release window. We would expect cinema owners to respond to such a fundamental change and to re-evaluate all aspects of their relationships with these four studios.”

Amy Miles, CEO of Regal Entertainment Group (one of the largest cinema chains in America), added her frustration at the issue: “Regal believes that a healthy theatrical window is important to the entire movie industry and we have expressed our concerns to the studios. It is simply not in Regal’s best interest to utilize our resources to provide a marketing platform for the release of Premium Video on Demand movies.”

Studio executives argue that Premium VOD is no bigger a thread to theater revenues than regular airings at home release, with studios likely to be selective over their VOD releases on business purposes (popular titles will be saved for a full DVD/Blu-ray release to heighten anticipation), while it is believed that the high initial prices for Premium VOD will ‘counteract the product devaluation’.

DirectTV spokesman Mercer summarised: “As the studios have said, it certainly builds value for the title in the eyes of the consumer. Also, we see it as beneficial for the theaters because it does create more buzz around the title. There’s an additional promotion for that feature via this service, and that’s a good thing for all parties.”

Could DirecTV have found a perfect go-between for the release schedules of feature films, or will it just prove to be an annoying disturbance to a well-run system?

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This deal will add around 50 Disney titles for LoveFilm’s UK subscribers, who are going to be able to stream content via their PC’s, PlayStation 3 or other connected devices, such as compatible internet enabled TV sets.

These films are going to be available to stream at no extra charge to subscribers who pay £5.99 (US$9.75) per month or more, and include catalogue content such as Armageddon, Cocktail and Bedknobs & Broomsticks. New releases, such as Tron: Legacy, will be available to stream through LoveFilm’s pay per view VOD service.

“We’re working with partners such as LoveFilm to offer our programming to viewers in ever more flexible, easy-to-access ways, and this agreement builds on our existing DVD rental partnership to further extend the availability of our films amongst UK audiences,” Catherine Powell, Disney’s senior VP for media distribution in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said.

Amazon who acquired LoveFilm in January and launched their own streaming service in January, claims that arround 80% of its users have streamed a video online and Amazon recently appointed a new digital technical development director, Nick James.

This Disney deal puts LoveFilm ahead of international rivals such as Netflix, which does not have a comparable, direct streaming deal in place with the Mouse House in the US. However, Netflix are still going to stream Disney content as part of their deal with pay net Starz, which has online streaming rights for content from Sony Pictures and The Walt Disney.

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Google is asking users to migrate their video material to YouTube, its video site. Google’s move is not unexpected, with YouTube’s place in the market. The Google Video service began in 2005, the year before Google bought YouTube for a bank busting $1.65 billion. Google said: ”We would instead focus its efforts on video search technologies.”

Here’s the email that went out:-

Dear Google Video User,

Later this month, hosted video content on Google Video will no longer be available for playback. Google Video stopped taking uploads in May 2009 and now we’re removing the remaining hosted content. We’ve always maintained that the strength of Google Video is its ability to let people search videos from across the web, regardless of where those videos are hosted. And this move will enable us to focus on developing these technologies further to the benefit of searchers worldwide.

On April 29, 2011, videos that have been uploaded to Google Video will no longer be available for playback. We’ve added a Download button to the video status page, so you can download any video content you want to save. If you don’t want to download your content, you don’t need to do anything. (The Download feature will be disabled after May 13, 2011.)

We encourage you to move to your content to YouTube if you haven’t done so already. YouTube offers many video hosting options including the ability to share your videos privately or in an unlisted manner. To learn more go here.

Here’s how to download your videos:
Go to the Video Status page.To download a video to your computer, click the Download Video link located on the right side of each of your videos in the Actions column.

Once a video has been downloaded, “Already Downloaded” will appear next to the Download Video link.
If you have many videos on Google Video, you may need to use the paging controls located on the bottom right of the page to access them all.

Please note: This download option will be available through May 13, 2011.

Thank you for being a Google Video user.

It was an obvious move as Google video has become increasingly irrelevant.

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Popcorn and Youtube

To suit the internet audience, the movie is broken down into 10 stories that can be watched as a feature or individual episodes. It was filmed over the course of a 10 day period and features a number of well known names including  Danny Devito, Zachary Quinto, Carla Gugino and Rosario Dawson.

Because the movie was shot to be seen on the web complete with several ad breaks, it was designed to keep the attention of internet video viewers, and can be seen in full or as a video playlist allowing individual vignette viewing.

Said Gutierrez:- “I would much rather people watch it as a movie than as a playlist, but the Internet community is so used to seeing things in small chunks, so each part is a mini-one act on its own.

Interestingly, the full feature has had more views than the episodes and had over 100,000 views within the first 24 hours. The movie has got some good and bad comments on Youtube that include:- “I loved the film!”, “i thought it was captivating.” to “I started to watch this, but it just died.” and “Ridiculous, acting and plot wise.”

There is also an indepth review of Girl Walks Into a Bar in the Hollywood Reporter where they claim “the bar has been raised for web content.” So it sounds like an internet streaming movie worth watching, and not just for the novelty factor.

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Facebook no real threat...Yet!

Facebook have teamed up with Warner Bros to supply movie rentals at $3 from the social network website. Speaking at a film finance conference in LA, Ted said:- “Nobody goes to Facebook to watch movies.”

He went on to say that Netflix will be getting shows from HBO (the sister company of Warner) when they negotiate the “right amount,” of money. The news backs up other analysts who see Netflix as still in a very dominant position in the pay streaming tv market.

Netflix have also been rocked by Amazon entering the streaming market and Hollywood looking to circumnavigate the company in a bid for higher streaming revenue and control.

So the threat may be small right now, but Facebook have a lot of connections with movie studios and tv networks. And with every new connected tv set having a Facebook app, could the threat be getting bigger as internet tv goes mainstream?

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movie rental from Facebook

They have signed their first ever Hollywood deal with Warner Bros. and are now offering The Dark Knight for rental. The cost will be $3 or 30 Facebook Credits to rent the film for 2 days and you watch while doing the all important social networking.

The service is a test say Warner Bros, and is part of a campaign by the Hollywood studios to get a foothold in the digital streaming market as they take on Netflix and co. As revenue from DVD sales continues to fall, they are looking at other ways to monetize their product.

President of Warner Bros. Digital Distribution, Thomas Gewecke said:- “Facebook has become a daily destination for hundreds of millions of people. Making our films available through Facebook is a natural extension of our digital-distribution efforts. It gives consumers a simple, convenient way to access and enjoy our films through the world’s largest social network.” He continued saying that Facebook is a “daily destination” for millions and that the deal “is a natural extension of our digital distribution efforts.”

Facebook say that the deal is being pushed by Warner Bros. as a developer and that the social networking group were “open to developers and partners that want to experiment using Credits in new and interesting ways.” However it goes, Facebook will be smiling making 30% of revenue.

They enter a lively market currently dominated by Netflix and Apple with a new entry coming from Amazon. One thingh is for certain, if Facebook get serious about digital movie hire/subscription then we will have a fight on our hands.

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Netflix in the firing line

At the Deutsche Bank Securities Media & Telecom conference in Palm Beach, Fla., the cable networks have been playing down the Netflix threat. Comcast Cable President Neil Smit said that the company can compete with Netflix as a digital movie provider, and has said they will compete by offering new content rather than the older catalog of streams that Netflix supply.

He said that although Netflix have a great setup with cheap subs and a slick user interface, the cable operators are rapidly expanding on-demand content, with the big bonus of having newer content. He also said that Comcast are in negotiations with its programmers to be able to offer more library content, to at least offset some of the advantage Netflix has in that arena.

Over at Time Warner Cable (TWC), the CEO Glenn Britt came out fighting and vowing to cut subscriber losses. He said that it is “not acceptable” for their subscriber base to decline each year. He said:- “We can more than match that functionality,” Britt said about Netflix and its interface, adding that adding VOD content is key. “We just got to build up the library.”

Over at Hollywood there are also jitters amongst the ranks and behind the scenes Hollywood are biding their time and making plans to beat Netflix and distribute using their own platform.

Although Netflix are a great concept, they are in a very fragile position, almost a house built of sand. They are trying to convince everyone that streaming doesnt harm traditional sales and audience share. but Running off new streaming rival Amazon’s servers and dependent on the content providers who are seeing them as more and more of a threat.

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Channelsurfing.net shut down

The website was shut down by the feds back on February 1st, and a man from Texas has now been arrested on allegations of illegal streaming of sporting events across the web. The accused, Bryan McCarthy aged 32 was arrested on Thursday am, and has been charged with criminal infringement of a copyright.

The immigration and Customs Enforcement (also known as ICE) have been seizing website domain names from around the world and replacing the websites with a statement for visitors that the US government have seized it.

Channelsurfing.net was said to have made McCarthy over $90,000 from advertising on the site, and ICE have said the site has had over 1.3 million hits since seizure. The website was accused of linking via an iframe to live sporting including the NFL, NBA and NHL. There were also streams from UFC and WWE.

Although the website did not host any streaming itself, the fact that they linked direct to the streams puts them (it seems) in an illegal position.

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DVD rental king

In the past Redbox has always had to play second fiddle to Netflix or Blockbuster. Now that one has gone bust and the other is concentrating on digital rentals, the Redbox kiosks have finally hit the big time.

The news comes from NPD Group, a market research comapany. They say that Redbox got 35% of DVD rentals during January with Netflix coming in at 30%. DVD stores accounted for 30% of rentals.

Russ Crupnick of NPD said:- “Redbox has done an outstanding job of meeting consumer needs for a ‘blended’ shopping experience. It saves an extra trip when I’m at Walmart or McDonalds, and the research shows that they are perceived as delivering a high value experience price wise.”

So number one, but at the wrong time. Might explain why Redbox are now looking at launching a streaming tv service.

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Google’s been in talks with the Hollywood studios for quite a few months, and are wanting to launch the streaming service first in Europe UK, before expanding to America, said executives who have been filled in on the plan.

If Google does move ahead with their plan, it is going to put YouTube in competition with Amazon, who have just acquired UK streaming video service LoveFilm in January. Then we have Netflix which is still looking for a launch across the pond. Google has estimated $100 million for getting content deals with studios and other premium content providers in its ambition to expand its content beyond the homemade videos that dominate the YouTube website.

“Google is going to be launching channels in Europe and will launch a subscription VOD service,” one Hollywood executive said. “They are going to spend $100 million on content.”

The plan is being pushed ahead by Robert Kyncl, Google’s entertainment executive who jumped ship from Netflix to help YouTube get ahead in Hollywood. And, not all studios are on board. Viacom, which houses Paramount, is still pursuing legal appeals against a court ruling in favor of Google over a lawsuit centered on copyright.

Another Hollywood executive has said that until Google make some bolder statements on fighting the piracy concerns, they’ll continue to have a tough time gaining significant content rights.

In Dec 2010, Google acquired WideVine, a Seattle-based company specializing in digital rights management and secure services for Internet streaming video across several platforms. WideVine’s clients include Netflix, Blockbuster and Vudu among others.

Google has been trying to find ways to turn YouTube into an entertainment hub which allow users to watch movies and TV shows online and has pursued deals with the major players for months now. Google has some limited deals to show movies to users free of charge.

With all the happenings by major players, the streaming market is going to start getting really interesting.

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Streamings great, but wheres the new stuff?

In the last couple of months Netflix have signed content deals with CBS, added content from ABC Disney and generally been busy buying any content they can get their mitts on.

You see the problem with Netflix is they currently have a pretty limited streaming range. Their DVD by mail service currently has around 90,000 titles to choose from. Now compare that to the streaming service which has around 12,000 titles. You will not find any latest movies and no older tv show seasons. In fact a lot of the content is kind of old and tired.

Although current customers are still working their way through the content and are happy to watch on a number of devices and phones etc. What will the $7.99 per month subscribers think when the good stuff has been streamed? Will they continue paying?

The current issue is that getting hold of that premium movie and tv content is too expensive, or it’s just not available yet as studios and networks weigh up the costs and rewards of streaming their titles. Competition is hotting up from all angles. Not only do they have the new problem of Amazon entering the streaming market, but Apple and Hulu Plus as well. Red Box are also looking to start instant streaming as well.

The thing is that many of the older titles that can be streamed are not on exclusive deals, so any streaming supplier can buy the rights. The Amazon Prime service not only includes unlimited free streaming of 5000 titles, but many of the titles are the same ones that Netflix supply.

They still have DVD by mail though, right? Well wrong actually because that market is declining, DVD is on the way out. That’s the reason Netflix have rebranded as a streaming digital tv service and not a physical one.

As so many players are coming into the streaming market, will Netflix be able to get (or afford) the new premium content? It will presumably be offered around to the highest bidder, and that bidder may not be Netflix. The move from physical DVD to digital looked a pretty straightforward move, but maybe Netflix have not been quick enough to secure deals. Only time will tell of course, and for the customer more competition should (hopefully) create a better deal.

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LoveFilm streaming app comes to Samsung

Samsung have added an app to all future connected Blu-ray players sold in the UK. The app allows viewers to stream the latest Hollywood movies straight to the big screen tv. The service will be available on  Blu-Ray’s running the Samsung Internet@TV service.

The LoveFilm streaming service costs £5.99 per month paid on a subscription basis. Lovefilm are a kind of Netflix for the UK and operate in the dvd rental market, boasting a library of more than 67,000 titles. They are heading more into the streaming on demand arena.

The LoveFilm service is already running on Sony hardware and selected Samsung televisions and Blu-Ray but is now coming to all connected Blu-ray systems. Commenting, Andy Griffiths, VP of Samsung UK said:- “Adding the LOVEFiLM streaming service to all Samsung Blu-ray players and Blu-ray Home Theatre Systems is great news for us at Samsung as we’re dedicated to providing our customers with relevant and exciting content, all from the comfort of their own home.”

He continued:- “The Internet@TV service offers viewers a gateway to access great content in an exciting new way, unlocking the full potential of our connected devices. Services like LOVEFiLM will offer our customers more variety, choice and entertainment from our innovative products.”

After astonishing app downloading success, Samsung say that more new apps are coming to connected shardware this year.

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Network TV on iPad

FilmOn, the web based tv on pc service has sprung up on the iPad. allowing users to stream a selection of TV channels. The tv website which streams on the Safari browser (meaning you can watch on iPad or iphone), is controversial because because the tv networks are trying to shut it down.

The channel selection is pretty small (around a dozen channels) and consists of news, entertainment, adult etc. from networks like ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox along with more international flavors such as Dubai Spports!. Quality is pretty decent, and they also offer a pay option for watching movies. However, the selection was pretty laughable – Abbot and Costello in Jack and the Beanstalk anyone??

The website is the brainchild of finance billionaire Alki David. The question is though, is it a legal enterprise? The networks are banning anyone from streaming their content, so dont be surprised if the website suddenly goes down. The owner does have the money to defend himself.

If you are not a lucky iPad owner, you still can watch FilmOn with a more limited stream selections of the four main broadcast networks. There is a software download for watching in a custom player if viewers wish as well.

Dont expect the streams to last for long though, the tv networks are suing both FilmOn and similar outfit ivi TV, an IPTV service that offers viewers access to top US TV content via a downloadable app.

The networks including CBS , Disney/ABC, NBC and Fox issued a joint statement saying:- “It’s against the law to steal a broadcast signal and stream it to wireless devices and over the Internet, without the copyright owner’s permission. FilmOn.com is the latest in a short line of companies that has robbed our broadcast signals and distributed them illegally for their own commercial gain.”

And you would not bet against the networks winning, although it will be an interesting fight.

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Avatar 3D, but movies will not push 3DTV

When it comes to 3D movies, then you listen to the guy who introduced it into modern cinema. James Cameron took 10 years to get 3D hit Avatar filmed and in the cinema’s, he says it will take that long to get the 3D glasses off as well.

Speaking at the Blu-Con 2010, he said:- “3D is here, and it’s here to stay. That’s been pretty resoundingly demonstrated over the last couple of years. This is not a flirtation”. The ever present problem of having to wear 3D glasses was a barrier though, he also stressed that we will not have a full 3D experience at home until manufacturers move over to glasses free autostereoscopic displays.

Considering he has the top selling 3D and Blu-Ray movies in Avatar, James Cameron believes that it will not be movies that push 3DTV forward:- “The amount of content that we have as 3D movies is not going to drive home video as much as the conversion to live broadcasts and episodic [3D TV], and things like that”.

He see’s 3D as heading down the same path as HD, which is now firmly established in most homes. However, he thinks that sports and music will fill the 3D void:- “We can’t make the Avatar movies fast enough to do more than we’ve already done to drive 3D, so I think it’s going to come from sports. It’s going to come from music. It’s going to come from comedy. I haven’t seen anything yet that didn’t benefit from 3D. I mean, I watched the Masters tournament – golf in 3D. And I hate golf. I’d never watch golf in a million years, but I was, like, watching that because it was in 3D. It was really cool”.

He believes that 3D will increase in popularity, quickly during the next few years:- “All of a sudden, we’ve got these great sets, we can watch [3D] in the home, but we don’t have the content. One of the biggest limitations is that we don’t have enough cameras and we don’t have enough people to do it. Once we get past that start-up torque, then I think the curve is going to go practically vertical. And over the next 5 years, we’re going to see it go rolling into the home in a really resounding way”.

The big move for 3D though, will be losing the specs, already being developed by Toshiba, Sony and others, he said:- “And once we get past the last threshold, which will be autostereoscopic display – meaning without glasses – then it is going to be the way we watch all of our media, both in the movie theatre and in the home. But that’s probably 8 to 10 years out”.

Lets hope Cameron is right, as he has already committed to filming two new Avatar movies in 3D.

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Virgin launching new internet tv box

Virgin Media have been working away on their next generation set-top box, and have now given more details of the TiVo powered box which is HD and 3D enabled with a whopping 1TB of recording space for TV shows and movies.

The new service will not only give users a lot of recording space, but also Virgin’s 4,600 hours catalogue of tv-on-demand content. The new service will launch later this year say Virgin.

The on demand service will include plenty of HD and 3D programming and also most Catch-up TV services from the big networks. The high def and 3D hardware will make use of Virgin’s fibre optic network. But the demand will not impact on customers existing Broadband.

They (Virgin) say that there competition have to rely on a single broadband connection which lowers the speed/quality of watching Online TV and surfing at the same time. But Virgin say they can bring internet HD streams to users ‘without having to sacrifice other online activities when in use’.

Said Virgin director of digital entertainment, Cindy Rose:- “Virgin Media’s next generation connected TV service – powered by TiVo – and combined with our superior broadband will blow other ‘connected TV’ products out of the water. We’re really proud of our new next-generation TV service which will appeal to anyone and everyone looking for the best of live broadcast TV, catch up, on demand and internet apps and services.”

Virgin will be using the TiVo technology in it’s set-top box, even though TiVo did not make an impact in the UK when originally launched. More information including pricing details will be released soon, say the company.

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The move is part of the UK broadcaster’s new strategy to broaden its VOD service and experiment with different payment models on the new online era.

Sarah Milton, The head of Channel 4’s VOD content, said, “It represents a different business model to our current ad-funded structure, and film lends itself well to payments.”

“Channel 4 will experiment with a variety of payment models in the coming months”, said Milton, adding, “Film4oD will provide us with good insight into the willingness of people to pay for content, and their viewing habits.”

This will help us in determining whether to launch Film4oD on other devices, such as the PlayStation3, for which it’s soon to launch 4oD.

“Initially it’ll be an online proposition, but once we understand the level of demand for the service we’ll look at other platforms and devices,” said Milton.

The broadcaster is also keeping a close eye on the social networks. “We’re definitely focused on expanding our presence on social networks, and will be looking at all options in the coming months,” she added.

Andrew Keyte, CEO of FilmFlex, said, “We believe streamed movie rental is becoming a much more satisfying choice for many movie fans. The industry has been waiting for a mainstream, mass-market and legitimate online movie service. We’ve built one that has the widest choice of new titles and is as easy to use as 4oD.”

FilmFlex carried out two years of development and consumer research to deliver the service, which allows users not only to browse by genre, title and new releases, but also watch trailers and view box office details.

To celebrate the premiere of In Bruges on the Film4 channel in November, Film4oD will host a season of crime movies under the banner ‘Partners in Crime’, featuring Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Down Terrace and Seven.

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