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ArchivesReport: 2006 U.S. Consumer Electronics Sales to Hit Record $135.4 BillionAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:48am.
Arlington, Va. - U.S. factory sales of consumer electronics will reach a new high of $135.4 billion this year, an 8% increase over 2005's $125.9 billion total, according to projections from the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) trade group. Sales of digital televisions, which are forecasted to reach 18 million units and $23 billion, next-generation video game consoles ($14 billion) and MP3 players ($4.5 billion) are projected to lead the record growth of the industry. The CEA expects 30% of all MP3 players sold in 2006 to have video playback capability. "MP3 technology helped boost the audio and accessories markets in 2005. With the introduction of video playback capability, MP3 player sales surged 200 percent in 2005 to $3 billion. Trends in 2006 should be no different," said CEA director of industry analysis Sean Wargo.
Sony, Fox, Lionsgate, Paramount Announce First Blu-ray DVD ReleasesAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:47am.
Los Angeles - Hollywood movie studios Sony Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox, Lionsgate and Paramount Pictures on Wednesday announced the first titles they plan to release on Sony's next-generation Blu-ray Disc high-definition DVD format. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment will offer an initial slate of 20 titles on Blu-ray Disc when Blu-ray players hit retail, with titles to include "The Fifth Element," "For a Few Dollars More," "Robocop" and "The Last Waltz." This summer, the company will also release "Black Hawk Down" and "The Bridge on the River Kwai" on 50 GB, dual-layer Blu-ray Discs, while "Underworld Evolution" will be among the first Sony titles to include bonus Java-based games on the disc. Sony plans to release four new catalog Blu-ray titles a month this summer, accelerating to 10 per month by the fourth quarter. Twentieth Century Fox has also earmarked 20 titles, which will include "Fantastic Four," "Ice Age" and "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen." Lionsgate said it will initially offer 10 titles on Blu-ray in the spring, including recent theatrical releases "Saw" and "See No Evil," and the library titles "Dune," "Reservoir Dogs" and "T2: Judgment Day." Paramount Pictures will also offer 10 titles, including "Tomb Raider," "Sahara," "Sky Captain & the World of Tomorrow" and "Sleepy Hollow." Paramount also plans to release the same films on the rival HD DVD format, as one of several studios that has pledged to support both next-generation DVD formats.
Spitzer's Probe of Digital Music Price-Fixing to Include Online ServicesAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:45am.
San Francisco - The digital music price-fixing probe recently launched by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer will also targeting digital music services, in addition to the already confirmed subpoenas sent to major record labels, CNET News.com reported. "Everybody expects to be contacted, and some already have been," Jonathan Potter, executive director of the Digital Media Association, which represents Yahoo, Apple, AOL and others, told News.com. Yahoo, Napster and Apple declined comment for the story. Spitzer is reportedly looking into the wholesale prices that labels charge music services per song, which are around 75 cents per track; the industry standard pricing at online stores is 99 cents per track. Some labels have expressed the desire to have more a more variable pricing structure for digital music, charging more for top hits and less for less popular catalog tracks. The New York Attorney General has also in the past gone after the music industry for radio payola, while the FTC settled CD price-fixing charges with the labels. "This may simply be a shot across the bow," attorney Michael Graham told News.com. "Spitzer may be saying, 'Guys, we've caught you twice before, and we know you would never try it a third time, but we're going to make sure.'"
Analyst Raises Google's 2006 Price Target to $600; Stock SurgesAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:41am.
Mountain View, Calif. - Shares of search engine giant Google rose nearly 5% on Tuesday after Piper Jaffray analyst Safa Rashtchy lifted the firm's target price in 2006 from $445 to $600. "Although such a high multiple may seem aggressive, we believe that given Google's dominant position in an already large yet still rapidly growing market, its phenomenal brand power and its status as a technology leader justifies such a valuation," Rashtchy wrote. In 2005, the analyst raised Google's yearly price target four times, as the company time and again beat forecasts. Google's shares closed at $435.23, up $20.37.
DISH Network Reaches 12 Million Satellite TV SubscribersAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:40am.
Englewood, Colo. - EchoStar Communications, operator of the DISH Network satellite TV service, announced on Wednesday that it passed the 12 million subscriber mark during December 2005. The company said it gained its first million subscribers in December 1997, adding that the 6.74 million net new customers it has gained over the past five years is more than all other satellite TV and cable companies during the same period. Rival DirecTV currently claims 15 million customers.
XM Introduces New Satellite Radio ReceiversAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:38am.
Las Vegas - XM Satellite Radio on Wednesday introduced a number of new satellite radio products from manufacturing and design partners including Audiovox, Advanced Global Technology, Pioneer and Samsung. Audiovox has developed the XM Passport, a tiny, $29 portable tuner that can be inserted into a variety of XM-ready home stereos, DVD players, car radios and portable players. XM partnered with Advanced Global Technology to develop the Sportscaster receiver, a $59 plug-and-play satellite radio that comes with 30 pre-programmed presets for XM sports channels and can be played in the car, home or through a boombox. Pioneer introduced the Inno, a $399 portable XM2go radio that can record and store 50 hours of XM radio programming and also play MP3 files, while Samsung debuted its Helix and Nexus lines of XM radios, which can also record and store XM content and play MP3 files.
News Corp Names Head of Internet Investment UnitAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:37am.
New York - Australian media tycoon Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation has named 33-year-old Jeremy Philips as the head of its Internet investment arm, which of late has been busy with acquisitions of MySpace.com parent Intermix Media, IGN Entertainment and Scout Media. The new executive vice president, office of the chairman previously worked at ecorp, Citigroup and McKinsey & Company.
Verizon to Offer FiOS TV Service in Howard County, MDAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:36am.
Ellicott City, Md. - Verizon announced on Wednesday that it has won approval from the Howard County Council to offer its FiOS TV Internet-based TV service to the Maryland county's 265,000 residents. Verizon has similar deals to offer FiOS TV in Herndon and Fairfax counties in Virginia, as well as in other locations in Texas and Florida.
Samsung Introduces New Line of Entertainment on Demand PhonesAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:34am.
Las Vegas - Korean consumer electronics firm Samsung on Wednesday introduced a new line of Entertainment on Demand mobile phone handsets, which it will display at the Consumer Electronics Show this week. The phones -- including the t809, a900, a920, a940, a950 and a970 -- feature external stereo speakers, full-color screens and capabilities for over-the-air downloads of music and video content. Samsung said several of the phones are compatible with mobile music services from Sprint and Verizon. The company will also introduce an 8 megapixel camera phone, and what it says is the world's first mobile WiMAX headset.
Modeo to Launch Mobile TV Service in 30 U.S. MarketsAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:33am.
Houston - Crown Castle Mobile Media, a developer of mobile TV delivery technology, announced on Wednesday that it has changed its name to Modeo, and plans to deliver a live mobile TV service to the top 30 U.S. markets. Texas-based Modeo completed a pilot of its service in Pittsburgh last year, and plans to launch commercially in markets including New York City during 2006 and 2007, with handsets from Motorola and Nokia. The Modeo service will be on display at the Consumer Electronics Show.
MobiTV Launches PDA Wi-Fi Service, Upgrades for Sprint, VerizonAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:32am.
Las Vegas - MobiTV, a developer of live mobile TV delivery technology, announced on Wednesday the launch of a Wi-Fi MobiTV service for a number of Palm PDAs, which will deliver the company's mobile TV service at 24 frames per second to the wireless devices over any Wi-Fi network. Separately, the company said its MobiTV2 service, which features an enhanced program guide, is now available for Sprint and Cingular subscribers with compatible handsets. MobiTV offers 28 mobile TV channels to more than 500,000 subscribers.
MediaBay to Distribute Spoken Word Through MusicNet, MSN MusicAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:30am.
Cedar Knolls, N.J. - MediaBay, a distributor of spoken word audio content, announced on Wednesday that it has signed an agreement with MusicNet, a digital music service provider, to offer its library of 75,000 hours of spoken word content to MusicNet partners including Yahoo, HMV and Virgin Digital. New Jersey-based MediaBay also recently announced a partnership with Microsoft, to create a co-branded subscription service and audiobook store on MSN Music.
WorldSpace Satellite Radio to Play in India's Cafe Coffee Day ShopsAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:29am.
Silver Spring, Md. - WorldSpace Satellite Radio, a provider of satellite radio services in foreign countries, said that its India subsidiary has formed an alliance with Cafe Coffee Day, India's largest coffee chain. Through the deal, WorldSpace's satellite radio content will be played throughout the day at approximately 100 Cafe Coffee Day shops across India.
Eton to Design Receivers Featuring Sirius Satellite RadioAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:28am.
Las Vegas - Eton, a designer of consumer electronics audio products, announced on Wednesday that it partnered with Sirius Satellite Radio, to incorporate SiriusConnect Home technology into its Eton and Porsche Design by Eton radio lines. The design firm will introduce a new line of radios that include Sirius receivers in 2006.
Thomson to Offer Sirius Radios, Debuts Portable Media PlayerAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:26am.
Las Vegas - French consumer electronics firm Thomson announced on Wednesday that it has partnered with Sirius Satellite Radio, to offer Sirius programming on RCA and GE home audio devices. The products include a $299 RCA Bookshelf Audio System, a $299 RCA Home Theater System and a $119 GE Spacemaker under-cabinet kitchen audio system. Separately, Thomson on Wednesday introduced the Lyra X3000 Personal Multimedia Recorder, a $399 device with a 3.6-inch screen that can store and play video including recorded TV programs from the DirecTV 2Go portable satellite TV service.
Akimbo, Thomson to Develop Co-branded VOD Set-topAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:25am.
Las Vegas - Akimbo, a provider of video-on-demand programming and delivery technology, on Wednesday said it partnered with French consumer electronics firm Thomson to create a co-branded Akimbo Player. The $199 RCA Akimbo Player will offer some 8,000 titles over broadband lines to subscribers, from 150 providers including Movielink.
Axion Introduces First Line of Portable Media PlayersAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:23am.
Las Vegas - Consumer electronics maker Axion on Wednesday introduced its first line of portable media players, which feature built-in microphones and will use Windows Media technology. Axion will offer a 2.5-inch screen model for $149, and a 3.5-inch screen model for $169 in the first quarter of 2006.
Creative ZenCast Software Adds Audio/Video Blogs to PlayersAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:22am.
Milpitas, Calif. - Consumer electronics firm Creative on Wednesday introduced ZenCast, an application that allows users of its Creative Zen line of MP3 players to access, create and transfer thousands of audio and video blogs. A beta version of the software is available for free today, and will begin shipping with the company's devices in the first half of the year.
Oscar de la Hoya to Grace Cover of EA's "Fight Night Round 3"Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:20am.
Redwood City, Calif. - Electronic Arts said on Wednesday that it has signed Oscar de la Hoya to serve as cover athlete and spokesman for its "Fight Night Round 3" title for Xbox 360 and Sony PSP. Arturo Gatti and Mickey Ward will be featured on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions; the game is slated for release in February. Separately, EA announced that its Maxis studio is currently developing "The Sims 2 Open for Business," the third expansion pack for the PC game.
Glu Mobile to Publish "World Series of Poker" Mobile GamesAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on January 4, 2006 - 7:18am.
San Mateo, Calif. - Wireless entertainment publisher Glu Mobile said on Wednesday that it has signed a license agreement with casino operator Harrah's Entertainment for the rights to publish "World Series of Poker" mobile games, ringtones and graphics. San Mateo, Calif.-based Glu plans to begin publishing WSOP content in 2006.
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