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ArchivesFirst Sony Blu-ray DVD Players and Movies to Hit Market on May 23Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:53am.
Culver City, Calif. - Sony Pictures Home Entertainment announced on Tuesday that the first Blu-ray Disc next-generation DVD players and movies will be released in the U.S. on May 23. Samsung Electronics will ship its $1,000 BD-P1000 Blu-ray Disc player on that date, with Pioneer's BDP-HD1 and Sony VAIO PCs with Blu-ray drives to follow soon after. Meanwhile, the first players to support Toshiba's rival HD DVD format are also expected to ship in May, with a basic machine expected to be priced at $499. The first Blu-ray movie titles shipped will include Sony and MGM's "50 First Dates," "The Fifth Element," "House of Flying Daggers" and "The Last Waltz." Separately, Canadian film studio Lionsgate plans to release 10 Blu-ray titles on May 23, with new releases like "Crash" and "Lord of War" to sell for $39.99, while library titles including "Saw" and "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" will cost $29.99.
Google CFO Warns of Slowing Growth; Sparks Sell-OffAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:50am.
Mountain View, Calif. - Shares of Google closed down more than 7% on Tuesday after the Internet search giant's CFO warned an investor conference that the company's growth is slowing. George Reyes said that Google will need to begin finding new ways to boost its revenue, triggering a sharp sell-off of the stock, which at one point was down 10%. "Growth is slowing and now largely organic. The search monetization gains have now largely been realized," Reyes told attendees of a Merrill Lynch conference in New York. "I'm not turning bearish at all. I think we've got a lot of growth a head of us," he said. "It's a question of what rate."
Comcast Video-on-Demand to Offer Day and Date Premieres From IFCAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:47am.
Philadelphia - Comcast, the nation's largest cable TV provider, announced on Tuesday that it has signed an agreement with independent film distributor IFC Entertainment, to offer movies on its video-on-demand service on the same day that they premiere in theaters. Launching in March, the IFC in Theaters service will debut two independent films each month on Comcast On Demand on the same day as their theatrical release, for a video-on-demand viewing fee of $5.99 per movie. At least 24 films will be released simultaneously in theaters and on demand in 2006, including "CSA: The Confederate States of America," "I Am a Sex Addict," "Three Times," "American Gun," "Russian Dolls" and "Sorry, Haters".
Six Video Game Icons to Receive Stars on San Francisco's Walk of GameAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:43am.
San Francisco - Six video game icons will be honored with stars on the Walk of Game, a year-old tribute to the gaming industry located inside the Metreon entertainment complex in Downtown San Francisco. New stars to be unveiled on March 16 includes lifetime achievement awards honoring Sid Meier, the creator of "Civilization" and "Pirates," and John Carmack, the technical director of "Doom" and "Quake" developer id Software. Also receiving stars in the games and characters category will be Lara Croft of Tomb Raider, StarCraft, Final Fantasy and EverQuest. Each October, gamers worldwide cast their votes through paper ballots and online submissions during a month-long voting period. The top four games or characters and the top two lifetime achievers are then honored with a permanent 24-inch by 24-inch steel star on Walk of Game. Nominations for 2007 will be announced later this year.
Mobile Entertainment Publisher Phonebites Raises $7 MillionAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:41am.
San Francisco - Phonebites, a San Francisco-based publisher of mobile entertainment, said on Tuesday that it has raised $7 million in its second round of funding, led by Mayfield Fund. Previous investors Cardinal Venture Capital, Garage Technology Ventures and Greenpark Capital also participated. Phonebites is the developer of a mobile audio distribution platform called the RAZZ, which allows users to interject sound clips directly into their phone conversations. The company raised $3 million in its first round in January 2005.
Japan's Softbank to Acquire 23% of U.K. Gambling Site BetfairAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:37am.
London - According to a report in the Financial Times, SoftbankCorp., a Japan-based Internet investment company, has agreed to acquire as much as 23% of Sporting Exchange Ltd., the U.K.-based online gambling group that controls Betfair. Although financial terms were not disclosed, the Financial Times said Softbank would pay about $22.80 a share. Sporting Exchange said it would likely release details for the deal, which should be completed by April 3, within the next few days.
PassAlong to Sell Custom CDs of P2P Selections in Retail StoresAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:33am.
Franklin, Tenn. - PassAlong Networks, the provider of a legal peer-to-peer file-sharing network with 1.6 million songs, on Tuesday introduced a service that will let consumers choose digital songs online and then pick up a custom CD of their selections at a nearby store within an hour. The company partnered with PhotoChannel Networks, which powers the online photo printing services offered by Wal-Mart Canada, CVS, Eckerd Drugs and Costco Canada, to deliver the custom CDs to customers. Tennessee-based PassAlong said the CDs will include customized jewel cases with track listings. The service is scheduled to launch later this year.
Report: Number of Residential VoIP Customers Triples in 2005Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:30am.
Arlington, Va. - The number of residential Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) customers, not including PC-to-PC services, more than tripled to 4.2 million last year, and is expected to reach 18 million by 2009, according to a new report from the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), an industry trade group. The TIA said that the market is being driven by a number of factors, most notably the lure of inexpensive voice communications and increasing broadband subscribership. The organization said that VoIP carriers are now moving beyond the residential market, and are beginning to introduce services geared toward the small-business market.
Virginia to Accelerate Roll-out of Verizon FiOS TV ServiceAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:09am.
Richmond, Va. - In a win for Verizon, the Virginia House of Delegates on Monday passed compromise legislation designed to hasten competition for cable television services in the state. The bill, already passed by the Senate, would help Verizon more rapidly launch its FiOS TV service in the state, while at the same time give local governments the authority to ensure that the company doesn't solely target wealthy neighborhoods. Verizon already offers its Internet-based FiOS TV service in parts of Northern Virginia.
Sony Ericsson Releases Seventh Walkman PhoneAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:06am.
Research Triangle Park, N.C. - Cell phone joint venture Sony Ericsson on Tuesday introduced its seventh Walkman phone, the W300, which features up to 1GB of memory, camera and video capture, and a 1" screen that displays media player information while the phone is closed. Scheduled to ship in the second quarter of 2006, the phone will also support data-sharing over a Bluetooth wireless connection.
CEO of Online Poker Site PartyGaming to ResignAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:03am.
London - Gibraltar-based PartyGaming, owner of the largest online poker website in the world, announced that its chief executive officer, Richard Segal, will resign in June. Segal, who lives in the U.K., is understood to have made the decision after he refused the board's request to relocate to Gibraltar permanently. Segal led PartyGaming's initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange last year. He is also credited with spearheading the company's expansion into blackjack and the unification of its online betting system.
Visteon to Supply XM Receivers for Hyundai SonataAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 8:59am.
Van Buren Township, Mich. - Automotive supplier Visteon announced on Tuesday that it has signed an agreement to supply XM Satellite Radio-compatible receivers for the Hyundai Sonata. Hyundai is the first automaker to make XM a standard feature on its full vehicle lineup; the XM-equipped Sonatas will become available later this year.
Fast Search & Transfer to Power Searches on TVGuide.comAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 8:56am.
Oslo, Norway - Fast Search & Transfer (FAST), a developer of search technologies, announced on Tuesday that its technology is now powering the search functions on TVGuide.com. Norway-based FAST's search technology will help users navigate TV Guide's database of listings, show and episode descriptions, news, reviews, ratings, celebrity information, podcasts and other information.
iLoad-c Enables iPod Nano Downloads Over Mobile Music ServicesAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 8:53am.
Campbell, Calif. - Software developer Wingspan on Tuesday introduced its iLoad-c, a device that can download music from a wireless network operator's mobile music download store directly onto an Apple iPod Nano portable player. Campbell, Calif.-based Wingspan said the $199 device will initially be compatible with Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile networks when it ships by mid-summer. The company said it is also looking to enable Wi-Fi capability within the device. Wingspan's other products include iLoad, which copies CDs to an iPod without a computer, and iLoad-v, which records video and music from a cable or satellite TV set-top box directly onto an iPod.
Nominees Announced for 6th Annual Game Developers Choice AwardsAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 8:51am.
San Francisco - The International Game Developers Association on Tuesday announced nominees for its 6th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards, to be held in conjunction with the Game Developers Conference next month in San Jose, Calif. Titles up for "Best Game" include "Animal Crossing: Wild World," "God of War," "Guitar Hero," "Shadow of the Colossus" and "The Movies." A full list of nominees in all categories is available from the link below.
Vivendi Seeks MySpace Unsigned Artist for "Scarface" Game SoundtrackAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 8:47am.
Los Angeles - Vivendi Universal Games said on Tuesday that it has partnered with News Corp.'s MySpace social networking site on a nationwide talent contest that will place an unsigned artist's song in its upcoming "Scarface: The World Is Yours" video game. The winner will also be an opening act at a VU Games concert, to be held in May during the Electronic Entertainment Expo. Separately, VU Games' Sierra Entertainment publishing label on Tuesday said it shipped its "SWAT 4: The Stetchkov Syndicate" PC game expansion pack to retailers.
EA Ships "The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II"Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 8:31am.
Redwood City, Calif. - Electronic Arts on Tuesday shipped its "The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II" real-time strategy PC game to retailers. The sequel was developed at EA's Los Angeles studio. EA also released its 'M' for Mature-rated "Black" title for PlayStation 2 and Xbox, developed by Criterion Games, and its "The Sims 2 Open for Business" PC expansion pack.
Game Trust, AOL Partner on 2nd Casual Game Developer ContestAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 8:28am.
New York - Game Trust, a provider of infrastructure for premium online casual games, said on Tuesday that it partnered with AOL on its second annual Casual Game Evolution Challenge, and is seeking Java-based Web game submissions. Prizes include one $20,000 distribution contract and two $10,000 distribution contracts.
Korea's Webzen to Distribute Online Game from Red 5 StudiosAuthored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 8:24am.
Seoul, South Korea - Korean online games firm Webzen said on Tuesday that it has signed an agreement to publish an as yet undisclosed massively multiplayer online game developed by Red 5 Studios. California-based Red 5 was founded by former members of Blizzard Entertainment, which developed "World of Warcraft" and "Diablo II."
INgrooves Produces In-Game Soundtrack for Capcom's "Final Fight"Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 8:19am.
San Francisco - INgrooves, a digital distributor of mainly electronic music label artists, announced on Tuesday that it has licensed 28 hip-hop and electronic music tracks from its catalog to Japanese video game publisher Capcom, for use in the company's "Final Fight: Streetwise" game for PlayStation 2 and Xbox. San Francisco-based INgrooves also released the game's soundtrack today, on services including iTunes.
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