Movies

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.

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.

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 |

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.

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: 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.

EPIX Movie Channel Launches on Verizon FiOS TV Friday

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 29, 2009 - 3:28pm.
New York - Verizon (NYSE: VZ) will launch the multi-platform pay-TV movie channel EPIX on its FiOS TV digital TV service on Friday, with a $9.99 per month price tag. EPIX, a joint venture between Viacom (NYSE: VIA), Paramount Pictures, MGM and Lionsgate, aims to eventually become a pay-TV movie channel as well, but to date has not announced any carriage deals.

Report: Netflix Streaming Also Coming to Nintendo Wii

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 29, 2009 - 8:33am.
New York - Netflix (NASD: NFLX) will make its on-demand streaming of movies and TV episodes available on the Nintendo Wii, joining the recent addition of Sony's (NYSE: SNE) PlayStation 3 and previous exclusive streaming partner, Microsoft's (NASD: MSFT) Xbox 360, according to StreamingMedia.com analyst Dan Rayburn.
tags: Games | TV | Movies | Nintendo | Netflix | Wii | Wii HD |

Sweden's Voddler Introduces Video-on-Demand Site

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 28, 2009 - 11:49am.
Stockholm, Sweden - Voddler on Wednesday debuted its online video-on-demand service in Sweden, which features movies, TV episodes and music from partners including Paramount and Disney, Variety reported. The service, which is expected to launch across all Nordic countries in a year's time, is also reportedly close to signing a deal with Sony Pictures.

Netflix to Raise $200 Million in Notes Offering

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 28, 2009 - 10:17am.
Los Gatos, Calif. - Netflix (NASD: NFLX), the online DVD rental service, said on Wednesday that it plans to raise $200 million through a notes offering.

Production on Facebook Movie Slated to Begin Next Week

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 27, 2009 - 12:20pm.
Palo Alto, Calif. - A new movie from Columbia Pictures will detail the creation of online social network Facebook, The Baltimore Sun reported.

Bruce Lee Enterprises Debuts Website; Seeks License Deals

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 26, 2009 - 12:16pm.
Los Angeles - After reacquiring merchandising rights from Universal Studios, Shannon Lee, the daughter of martial arts legend Bruce Lee and CEO of Bruce Lee Enterprises and LeeWay Media has launched a new website and is engaged in licensing name and likeness rights, and creating original film and television productions. Projects in development include a Chinese-language biopic; an animation project with Waddell Media and Flickerpix; a CG action film; and a Broadway musical.

Netflix to Enable Movie, TV Streaming to PlayStation 3

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 26, 2009 - 10:54am.
Los Gatos, Calif. - Online DVD rental service Netflix (NASD: NFLX) announced on Monday that it will extend its on-demand movie and TV episode streaming service to Sony's (NYSE: SNE) PlayStation 3 game console platform, expanding beyond a previously exclusive deal with Microsoft's Xbox 360.

Mexican Soccer Match to be First RealD Live 3D Broadcast

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 23, 2009 - 10:41am.
Los Angeles - RealD, a provider of digital 3D cinema projection systems, plans to produce its first RealD LIVE event with a real-time 3D broadcast of a match between rival Mexican soccer teams Chivas de Guadalajara and Club America on Sunday. The 3D broadcast of "El Clasico" will be available in Cinepolis theaters in Monterey and Guadalajara, Mexico, and in the U.S. at the AMC Burbank Town Center 6.

Netflix: 42% of Members Streaming; Service to Expand Overseas

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 23, 2009 - 9:21am.
Los Gatos, Calif. - Online DVD rental service Netflix (NASD: NFLX) plans to make its on-demand Web streaming service available internationally next year, CEO Reed Hastings said on Thursday during an earnings call, PaidContent reported.
tags: Video | Movies | DVD | Netflix |

WSJ: Disney Working on 'Keychest' Digital Distribution Scheme

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 23, 2009 - 7:32am.
New York - Disney (NYSE: DIS) is working on a multi-platform retail scheme, code-named Keychest, that would enable consumers to pay a single price for permanent access to a movie or TV show that could be viewed across on-demand pay-TV, Web and mobile devices, The Wall Street Journal reported. The company has reportedly been demonstrating Keychest to other studios and interested parties, and plans to introduce the technology next month.
tags: Mobile | Video | TV | Movies | Disney | Keychest |

News Corp. Exec: Hulu to Start Charging for Access

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 22, 2009 - 11:51am.
New York - Hulu, the online video joint venture between News Corp. (NYSE: NWS), NBC Universal (NYSE: GE) and Disney (NYSE: DIS), plans to begin charging users for some content, possibly as early as next year, according to remarks from News Corp. president and COO Chase Carey, the Associated Press reported.

Nickelodeon Buys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for $60M

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 21, 2009 - 8:20am.
New York - Viacom's (NYSE: VIA) Nickelodeon children's TV network announced on Wednesday that it has acquired the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) franchise from creators The Mirage Group for $60 million.