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Netflix Bidding on Another Original Series and More[teaser]Rumor has it Netflix is looking to pick up the latest show by 'Weeds' creator Jenji Kohan. [/teaser] Showtime has a lot going for it with shows like 'Californication,' 'Dexter' and the show that put the channel back into the public mind, 'Weeds.' Netflix has been doing well with the shows too, and the streaming versions of Showtime's series has been a highlight of the service for many subscribers. 'Weeds' creator Jenji Kohan has a new show in the works and though it seems natural for Showtime to pick this one up as well, the folks at Netflix have something else in mind. They've got their eyes on original content to add to their lineup and the rumor mill says they'll be putting in a bid on the new Kohan show, based on a book about life in a women's prison. Netflix is also in talks with DreamWorks Animation. DreamWorks will reportedly offer Netflix exclusive streaming rights to its animated features - a deal that could be finished by the end of this week. Source: Hacking NetflixPosted Tue Jul 26, 2011 at 07:00 AM PDT by: -
Sharp and Foxconn Team Up to Beat Korean LCD Makers[teaser]Samsung and LG are strong rivals to have, but the two companies have high hopes for a new partnership. [/teaser] Sharp has big plans and it's not about to let anyone get in the way if it can help it. One of those plans includes beating out Korean manufacturers Samsung and LG. To do that they've enlisted the help of Taiwanese manufacturer Hon Hai, better known as Foxconn. The way it's going to work going forward is that Foxconn is going to produce smaller LCD panels - anything between 20 and 40 inches. They're set up to do it better, cheaper and more efficiently according to Sharp. Sharp in turn will provide Foxconn with panels 60 inches and larger - a specialty of Sharp's. A new joint venture company will make other things like components, glass and the other essentials for LCD televisions. Source: TWICEPosted Mon Jul 25, 2011 at 11:00 AM PDT by: -
Apple Expected to Bid on Hulu - Yahoo Demands More From the Service[teaser]There's a lot going on in the impending Hulu sale with two big bidders emerging. [/teaser] There are a few companies out there that are suspect for every purchase opportunity that comes along. Analysts have been expecting Google and Amazon to snap something up in recent years, but they've been quiet in the bidding war for Hulu. Instead, somewhat surprisingly, Apple is considering placing a bid. The company is focusing on video in the future according to analyst Scott Sutherland of Wedbush Securities and Hulu would be a strong way to expand the company's own video offerings. Of course, it seems like that might cut down on sales of TV episodes through iTunes. Yahoo put in the offer that spurred the Hulu sale, but they're not ready to bite at the $2 billion price that Hulu is expected to sell for. The reason they give is a lack of exclusivity to content. The current offer from Hulu's owners guarantees two years of exclusivity to the content, but Yahoo wants five. Source: BloombergPosted Mon Jul 25, 2011 at 09:00 AM PDT by: -
Blockbuster is Keeping 1,500 Stores Open[teaser]Apparently the last few months have been pretty good for them. [/teaser] When Blockbuster finally announced that it was over and the company was being sold, it seemed likely that retail locations would all be closed up. After all, if the company isn't making a profit then the model isn't working. Dish Network seems to have things figured out though. They've shut a few hundred stores, sure, but they're going to be keeping 1,500 open with around 15,000 employees working at them. Blockbuster president Michael Kelly even says that the stores that did close were more due to issues with landlords than the market. "By lowering pricing and offering competitive summer promotions, we’ve brought millions of customers back into Blockbuster stores in the last three months," says Kelly. If that's the case then Blockbuster may start to stabilize and even stand a chance to make a comeback. Source: Home Media MagazinePosted Mon Jul 25, 2011 at 07:00 AM PDT by: -
Bonus View Digest - July 22, 2011[teaser]July is almost over. That means quite a few things in this neck of the woods. You may have noticed that our writer Aaron Peck hasn't been contributing a lot of posts to The Bonus View the past few days. That's because he's readying himself for a baby. Running around from doctors appointments, to car seat specialists, to diaper warehouses. It's been pretty crazy, but once everything settles back down he'll join the rest of our crack team to continue bringing you the best and latest in Blu-ray news, TV Recaps, and what's happening at a box office near you.[/teaser] Blu-ray News Josh gave us the weekly rundown for Blu-rays hitting store shelves. Even though it was a slow week – with the only big day-and-date release being 'Limitless – there were still a few well known catalogue titles to get released namely 'Amelie' and 'Chocolat'. Aaron Uncovered some more cover art for upcoming releases. See what the cover art will be like for the brand-spanking-new 'Jurassic Park' trilogy! Home Theater News On the home theater front Josh showed us an easy region coding mod for the Oppo BDP-93 Blu-ray player that could make your machine ready for region-free blu-ray playing bliss. In other Oppo news, Oppo Digital unveiled its newest firmware update that allows Oppo players to become equipped with Vudu movie streaming. It's been an Oppo party all around. Theatrical News Luke reviewed a few movies this week that are going to try and take on the box office juggernaut that is 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'. Marvel released, 'Captain America', its final superhero origins movie before 'The Avengers' which comes out next summer. He also reviewed a strangely familiar movie called 'Friends With Benefits' that pretty much mirrors the very same plot as 'No Strings Attached' which came out only a few months ago. Our intrepid movie trailer specialist, E, discusses a few new trailers in this week's Trailer Park. Take a look at Steven Soderbergh's new movie 'Contagion', gander at a brand new 'The Thing', laugh at the fact that they made a movie based on Rock'em Sock'em Robots when you see the trailer for 'Real Steel', and snicker all you want at the sparkly vampires in the brand new 'Breaking Dawn' trailer. TV Recaps We watch a lot of TV on The Bonus View, mostly so you know what shows to watch and what ones not to bother with. We have recaps for 'Covert Affairs', 'Rescue Me', 'Burn Notice', 'Necessary Roughness', 'Haven', 'Wilfred', 'Suits', 'Curb Your Enthusiasm', 'Alphas' , and 'True Blood' . Special Features This week's Mid-Week Poll we asked if you saw the new 'Potter' film in 2D, 3D, or both, and your thoughts on the technology as a whole. The Weekend Roundtable focused on summer blockbusters. Our writers picked their favorites and explained their picks. It prompted a large discussion that's still going on right now, head on over to voice your opinion. As always thanks for your continued support of High-Def Digest and The Bonus View. We really appreciate it. Have a great weekend filled with movies, popcorn, and surround sound systems that threaten to burst your eardrums.Posted Fri Jul 22, 2011 at 12:50 PM PDT by: -
Netflix Comes to 24 More Android Devices[teaser]It's been a long wait, but now more Android users will be able to get their Netflix on. [/teaser] The thing about Android devices - the important thing for the sake of this story anyway - is that they're not all the same. They're made by different companies and have different hardware running them. It's an advantage in some ways and a significant disadvantage in others, such as making a program that will run on every Android device out there. When Netflix launched initially on Android it was only available for a few devices due to the wide spectrum of specs. Now it's been made available for more phones and tablets, which should make plenty of people very happy. Check out the full list of new available devices below. Casio G'zOne Commando C771 with Android 2.2 HTC Droid Incredible HTC Droid Incredible 2 HTC EVO HTC EVO 3D HTC G2 HTC Thunderbolt Lenovo IdeaPad Tablet LG Revolution Motorola Atrix Motorola Droid Motorola Droid X Motorola Droid X2 Motorola Droid 2 Motorola Droid 3 Samsung Droid Charge Samsung Epic 4G Samsung Galaxy S Samsung Galaxy S 4G Samsung Fascinate Samsung Nexus S Samsung Nexus S 4G Source: EngadgetPosted Fri Jul 22, 2011 at 09:00 AM PDT by: -
Sonos Releases the Play:3 Wireless Speaker[teaser]It's a nice cheap way to get on board with wireless music systems. [/teaser] Wireless music systems have traditionally been the stuff of luxury. Not for the super-rich of course, but shelling out a grand or so just to enjoy your music in other rooms isn't exactly high on most priority lists. Sonos has been moving the prices down on their wireless music systems and has reached a new level of affordability with the Play:3. It's a compact speaker that boasts three drivers, three Class-D amplifiers and a passive rear-firing bass radiator and it comes in at $299. Using the Play:3 and the $49 Bridge, you can enjoy your music collection from anywhere in the house. Of course, you're not limited to music stored on your PC - you can grab tracks from Spotify, stream music from Pandora or listen to one of the seemingly limitless internet radio stations. In addition to launching the Play:3, Sonos has updated their software with some improvements to the interface and compatibility with Android phones. Source: eCousticsPosted Fri Jul 22, 2011 at 07:00 AM PDT by: -
Kaleidescape Launches the M700 Disc Vault[teaser]It stores and copies up to 320 discs at once to a compatible server. [/teaser] Sure, it's not something everyone can afford, but Blu-ray servers are just plain cool. Being able to store your entire collection digitally and recall it at any time without having to go switch discs and whatnotis just incredible. Of course, there's still the issue of getting all those discs onto your server. For Kaleidescape users, the solution has arrived. The M700 Disc Vault holds 320 discs at a time and copies them onto your system without requiring any work on your end. CDs import at 15 an hour, and DVDs at three an hour. You'll only be able to copy two Blu-rays an hour, so if you've got the full complement of 320 discs you can expect to be waiting a week or so for everything to be imported. "The M700 Disc Vault is an elegant addition to our product family that makes it easy to import your content, provides a safe place to store your discs, and makes it quick and easy to retrieve any disc when you need it," says Kaleidescape founder Michael Malcom. The M700 is available now at a price of $5,995. Source: eCousticsPosted Thu Jul 21, 2011 at 11:00 AM PDT by: -
Custom Installers Revenues Up in 2010[teaser]Revenue from home theater categories specifically though, is down. [/teaser] The folks at the Consumer Electronics Association are happy to report that custom installers had a strong 2010. In all, installers ended up with 13 percent more revenue than they did the year before - not a bad setup. What's interesting though is that less of that revenue came from home theater installs. Significantly less. Revenues fell seven percent in that category with lighting and security picking up the slack. The CEA posits that the wide range of new install projects is the reason for the decreased revenue in home theater categories. Of course, with 3D content finally making its way to the market, that's expected to change. Around three quarters of installers expect to be focusing on 3D offerings in the next two years. Source: TWICEPosted Thu Jul 21, 2011 at 09:00 AM PDT by: -
MCV Will Launch Dyle Mobile DTVs in 2012[teaser]The company is expecting to have around half the US covered at launch. [/teaser] Mobile televisions have always been a niche product and they've never quite enjoyed the success that it seems they should. After all, watching the shows you want while you're on the go is a very cool prospect. MCV is hoping that its new brand of mobile television services will change that up a bit. The brand, Dyle, and its logo will be showing up on boxes and on technology that boasts MCV's content services. Those services will include partners like NBC, Fox and many others and will be up and running in enough cities to cover half of the country's population. "When a consumer sees the Dyle logo on a box, they will know that the device has the technology required for live mobile TV, on-the-go, wherever they are," says MCV in a statement. Whether it succeeds or simply fails like Flo TV, you can expect a lot of puns in the near future. It's tempting to hope for the worst simply so we can feature the headline "Don't Touch That Dyle!" Source: Broadcasting & CablePosted Thu Jul 21, 2011 at 07:00 AM PDT by:
