Breaking Digital Video News

E.U. to Allow "3-Strikes" Laws in New Telecoms Regulation

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 5, 2009 - 12:35pm.
Brussels - The European Union has dropped language from proposed telecoms regulation that would have established Internet access as a "fundamental right," providing new leeway for countries like France and Great Britain that have enacted or are considering "three-strikes" laws that suspend repeat copyright infringers' Internet connections, according to published reports. The issue had been a sticking point holding up the telecoms regulation, and the new version represents a compromise between copyright and consumer interests.

DMW Vlog: Craig Newmark on What's Next For Craigslist

Authored by Jay Baage on November 4, 2009 - 6:58am.

DMW Vlog - Craigslist's Founder Craig Newmark was featured in a really interesting luncheon keynote interview at DMW's recent Digital Media Conference West. We caught up with him afterwards and talked briefly about what is next for Craigslist, what he sees as the most interesting online phenomena right now and which social networks he uses himself.

Wal-Mart, Amazon, Target in Pre-Order DVD Price War

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 6, 2009 - 10:38am.
New York - After retail giant Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) cut the price of pre-order DVDs on its website to $10 on Thursday, rivals Amazon (NASD: AMZN) and Target (NYSE: TGT) followed suit by lowering their own pre-order DVD prices to $9.99, the Associated Press reported. On Friday morning, Wal-Mart responded by further discounting pre-order DVDs to $9.98. The price-cutting wars followed a similar battle over book prices amongst the three retailers -- which in recent weeks pushed prices as low as $8.98.

Norwegian Court: ISP Telenor Need Not Block The Pirate Bay

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 6, 2009 - 9:57am.
Oslo, Norway - International record label trade group IFPI has lost its court case that sought to compel Norwegian ISP Telenor to block its subscribers' access to file-sharing hub The Pirate Bay, TorrentFreak reported.

Walmart.com Prices Top 10 Pre-Order DVDs at $10

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 5, 2009 - 1:28pm.
Brisbane, Calif. - Walmart.com (NYSE: WMT) is now offering a $10 price tag and free home delivery on its top ten pre-order DVD and Blu-ray movie titles. Titles available through the offer include "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," "Star Trek" and "Julie and Julia." The DVD promotion comes as Walmart.com is engaged in a price-cutting war with Amazon and Target.

Blockbuster to Market iMemories Home Movie Transfer, Storage

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 5, 2009 - 1:24pm.
Scottsdale, Ariz. - iMemories, a website that provides digitization, storage and sharing service for home movie films and videos, on Thursday announced a partnership with Blockbuster (NYSE: BBI), which will market its services on Blockbuster.com and in select Blockbuster retail stores. The service lets users create custom DVDs of their home movies, as well as share them on password-protected websites.

Sling Media Founder Backs Web TV Index Clicker

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 5, 2009 - 8:40am.
Los Angeles - Clicker, an index of TV shows and other video available online, has received an investment from Sling Media founder and former CEO Blake Krikorian, who has also taken a seat on the company's board.

Everlater Lands Funding for Online Travel Journals

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 5, 2009 - 8:30am.
Boulder, Colo. - Everlater, the provider of an online travel journal service that lets users share travel experiences, announced that it has raised an undisclosed sum of first round funding, led by Highway 12 Ventures.

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Authored by Jay Baage on November 4, 2009 - 1:23pm.

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YouTube Head of Content Partnerships Steps Down

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 3, 2009 - 10:33am.
San Bruno, Calif. - Google's YouTube has lost its head of content partnerships, as Jordan Hoffner has left to joint a new content venture at IAC headed up by Ben Silverman, PaidContent reported. Hoffner will be replaced at YouTube by Chris Maxcy, who was leading YouTube's music content partnership efforts.

Redbox Experimenting with $2 DVD Kiosk Rentals

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 3, 2009 - 10:32am.
Los Angeles - Redbox, the unit of Coinstar (NASD: CSTR) that operates automated DVD rental kiosks, is testing new price points above its current standard $1 per night model, Video Business reported. The company, which operates some 18,000 kiosks, is testing $2 per night -- for the first night -- rentals in Pennsylvania, and a nightly $1.50 per night rate in New Mexico. Redbox said in August that it would test different pricing models, as well as experiment with Blu-ray and video game titles in its kiosks.

tags: Movies | DVD | Redbox |

Hulu Provides Schedule of Upcoming TV Episode Releases

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 3, 2009 - 10:31am.
Los Angeles - Hulu, the online video joint venture between News Corp. (NYSE: NWS), NBC Universal (NYSE: GE) and Disney (NYSE: DIS), has launched a new feature that will let users know when new episodes of TV shows are scheduled to become available on the site. The new Coming Soon feature will offer a weekly schedule of when shows from ABC, NBC ad Fox are slated to go live on Hulu after their broadcast premieres.

Foo Fighters Live Concert Webcast Serves 440,000 Streams

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 3, 2009 - 10:28am.
Los Angeles - A live webcast of a performance by the Foo Fighters from their Los Angeles studio drew 440,000 live streams and a total of more than 150,000 viewers from around the world, NewTeeVee reported. The webcast was produced by Livestream, and available online via the band's site, Livestream, Facebook, and the iPhone. A recent live webcast of a U2 concert on YouTube drew a reported near 10 million viewers.

Best Buy to Launch CinemaNow-Powered Download Service

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 3, 2009 - 9:20am.
Minneapolis, Minn. - Electronics and media retailer Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) announced on Tuesday that it will launch its own branded, on-demand movie and entertainment service, powered by Sonic Solutions' Roxio CinemaNow.

Web Video Index Blinkx to Raise $8.1 Million in Share Offering

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 3, 2009 - 7:25am.
San Francisco - Blinkx, the provider of a searchable index of Web videos, announced on Tuesday that will raise $8.1 million through an offering of shares representing 10% of the company.

Out-of-Home Digital Network Zoom Buys Gym Screen Media

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 3, 2009 - 7:09am.
London - Zoom Media, the U.K.-based provider of a digital out-of-home programming and advertising network in health and fitness venues, announced on Tuesday that it has acquired rival Gym Screen Media.

Redbox to Rent Summit, NCircle DVD Titles in Kiosks

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 2, 2009 - 11:38am.
Oakbrook Terrace, Ill. - Redbox, the automated DVD rental kiosk unit of Coinstar (NASD: CSTR), announced on Monday that it has signed new two-year distribution agreements with Summit Entertainment and NCircle Entertainment. Summit's recent films include "Twilight" and "Knowing," while NCircle distributes mainly children's titles, such as "Richard Scarry's Busytown Mysteries," and "Sid the Science Kid." Redbox operates a network of 15,000 $1-per-night automated DVD rental kiosks in the U.S.

Paramount to Distribute Movies on Kingston Flash Drives

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 2, 2009 - 11:36am.
Fountain Valley, Calif. - Kingston Digital, a maker of flash memory-based products, said on Monday that it has partnered with Viacom's Paramount Digital Entertainment to deliver full-length movies on Kingston USB flash drives and SD cards.

Report: Apple Pitching Networks $30 iTunes TV Subscriptions

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 2, 2009 - 7:59am.
New York - Apple (NASD: AAPL) has been pitching TV networks a plan to offer an iTunes-based TV subscription service that would cost about $30 a month, All Things D reported, citing multiple unnamed sources.
tags: Video | TV | Apple | Disney | ABC | iTunes | ESPN | Steve Jobs |

Report: Comcast Closer to NBC Universal Deal

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 2, 2009 - 7:50am.
New York - Comcast (NASD: CMCSA) is closer to a deal with General Electric (NYSE: GE) to take over control of its NBC Universal unit, after meetings last week concluded with a tentative agreement on the main points, The New York Times reported, citing people briefed on the talks. Under the proposed deal, Comcast would contribute "several billions of dollars in cash and its own stable of cable networks," and receive a 51% stake of NBC Universal.