New York - Media conglomerate Viacom on Tuesday announced that it has filed a $1 billion federal copyright infringement lawsuit against video-sharing site YouTube and parent company Google. [more..]

Washington - A coalition of large technology firms -- including Microsoft, Google, Dell, HP, Intel and Philips -- have asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to allow unused TV channels ("white space") to be used for distribution of Internet access into homes and offices, The Washington Post reported on Tuesday. [more..]

New York - More than one-third (36.5%) of U.S. adults who use the Internet also own a video game console, and 15.9% also own a portable game console, according to a survey conducted by Internet audience measurement firm Nielsen/NetRatings. [more..]

Schaumberg, Ill. - Motorola announced on Tuesday that its Motorola Ventures unit has invested an undisclosed sum in Amimon, a developer of chips used in wireless transmission of high-definition video. [more..]

Arlington, Va. - Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive (WPNI), the online publishing unit of The Washington Post Company, said on Tuesday that it has acquired SHOP DC, an online shopping and fashion guide for the D.C.-area founded by former University of Maryland MBA student Zoey Rawlins. [more..]

Campbell, Calif. - Casabi, a provider of digital home content and services, said on Tuesday that it has raised $10 million in its second round of funding, led by Canaan Partners. [more..]

San Francisco - Eurekster, a provider of community-driven, social search technology, announced on Tuesday that it has raised $5.5 million in its second round of venture capital financing, led by Technology Venture Partners and Transcosmos Investments. [more..]

Los Angeles - Disney is planning to launch a parenting website that will include search, user-generated articles on parenting topics, and eventually a Wiki-style compilation of articles that can be added onto by users, the Associated Press reported. Disney Family is slated to go live later this week, and remain in beta testing until the summer. Disney created an advisory board for the site that includes mothers who operate their own blogs, some of which will be featured on the site. [more..]

New York - The Orchard, a digital distributor of independent label music, said on Tuesday that it has signed an agreement with social music network Last.fm, that will allow the service's 15 million users to access The Orchard's catalog of over one million tracks via its customizable radio service. Last.fm offers a feature called "scrobbling," which automatically catalogs what music members are listening to on their computers' media players; the deal will allow Orchard-distributed tracks to be scrobbled by Last.fm users. [more..]

Los Angeles - VMIX Media, a video-sharing site that says it employs human content screeners to filter copyrighted and other inappropriate content, announced on Tuesday that it has added an NBC Channel to its service. Hosted and controlled by NBC Universal Television, the channel on VMIX.com will offer clips from shows like "30 Rock," "Heroes" and "Late Night with Conan O'Brien." [more..]

Las Vegas - Texas Instruments' DLP Cinema unit on Tuesday introduced its new .98 DLP Cinema chip, which the company said is housed in a smaller, more efficient cabinet and outputs up to 18,000 lumens. TI added that its DLP Cinema projectors saw a 350% increase in global deployments in 2006, a year in which the 18 top-grossing films were released in digital format and shown on its projectors. [more..]

Glendale, Calif. - DreamWorks Animation announced on Tuesday that, beginning in 2009, it will produce all of its films using stereoscopic 3D technology. "I believe that this is the greatest opportunity for movies and for the theatrical exhibition business that has come along in 30 years," said DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg. "Advancements in sound have dramatically improved the auditory experience, but there hasn't been a corresponding breakthrough in the way we see movies until now." The company's first production using the format, "Monsters vs. Aliens," is slated for release in the summer of 2009, when "several thousand screens" are expected to be equipped for 3D. [more..]

Raleigh, N.C. - Microspace Communications, a distributor of digital cinema via satellite, said on Tuesday that Sony Electronics used its system to distribute the first Digital Cinema Initiatives-compliant 4K film, beaming "The Da Vinci Code" to Sony's San Jose laboratory via satellite. "4K delivery and projection permits the content that was originally captured to be displayed on the screen at the highest resolution possible today," said Peter Lude, senior vice president of solutions engineering for Sony Electronics. "We tested the satellite distribution of the 4K content for security, reliability and for compatibility with digital cinema projection systems." [more..]

Burbank, Calif. - Thomson's Technicolor Digital Cinema (TDC) unit announced on Tuesday that it has signed agreements to install digital projection systems in theaters owned by Zyacorp Entertainment and Wehrenberg Theatres. Under the deals, TDC will initially install its projectors at all of Zyacorp's Cinemagic theaters in the Northeastern U.S., and in select Wehrenberg theaters throughout the Midwest. Thomson said it plans to install up to 5,000 digital projectors over the next 3-4 years, and at least 15,000 in the U.S. and Canada over the next ten years. [more..]

New York - Ground Report on Tuesday announced the launch of its site that allows amateurs to publish original articles, rate content and earn a share of advertising revenues. Stories posted to the site are given prominence based on ratings by users, and will be published exclusively under Creative Commons licenses. "GroundReport's mission is simple: create an independent news source and give everyone a voice," said GroundReport founder and CEO Rachel Sterne, who previously held positions at the United Nations and LimeWire. [more..]

Burbank, Calif. - Warner Bros. Entertainment said on Tuesday that it has licensed thousands of original stills and film clips to Getty Images. Seattle-based Getty Images, which also hosts professional celebrity and event photos, will then license the Warner Bros. content for use by editors, publishers and filmmakers. [more..]

Burbank, Calif. - Disney Interactive Studios said on Tuesday that it has shipped its "Spectrobes" title for the Nintendo DS to retailers. Developed by Japan-based Jupiter, the anime-inspired action roleplaying game includes a Wi-Fi feature that lets players download new content and access results online, and a local wireless feature that lets players trade or battle with one another. [more..]