How publishers are cutting their own throats with ebook DRM
“Sci-fi author Charlie Stross has written a post about how the Big Six book publishing companies have painted themselves into a corner in the rapidly growing ebook industry. Between user-unfriendly DRM and the Amazon juggernaut, they’re slowly pushing themselves out of business. Quoting: ‘Until 2008, ebooks were a tiny market segment, under 1% and easily overlooked; but in 2009 ebook sales began to rise exponentially, and ebooks now account for over 20% of all fiction sales. In some areas ebooks are up to 40% of the market and rising rapidly. (I am not making that last figure up: I’m speaking from my own sales figures.) And Amazon have got 80% of the ebook retail market. … the Big Six’s pig-headed insistence on DRM on ebooks is handing Amazon a stick with which to beat them harder. DRM on ebooks gives Amazon a great tool for locking ebook customers into the Kindle platform.” Read more…
(source: Charlie’s Diary, via Slashdot)
Netflix lands ‘Arrested Development’
“If you’ve been feeling coldly toward Netflix recently, this might warm you up: The media-streaming giant has signed an exclusive deal to resurrect acclaimed comedy series “Arrested Development.” New episodes will be available only to Netflix streaming subscribers in the U.S. in 2013.”
(source: The Huffington Post, via The Daily Beast)
Google TV 2.0: Android Honeycomb. Apps. Awesome.
“When Google TV arrived last year, it possessed promise and potential that was never quite realized. Now Google TV 2.0 is here, armed with apps and a new content discovery system. And the search giant thinks they’ve got it right this time.” Read more…
(source: Gizmodo)
Happy 10th Birthday, iPod!
The first iPod was introduced on October 23, 2001. Read more…
(source: Tech Crunch)
Ultra HDTV technical standards agreed on, more pixels is a good thing
“The high-definition pride of your living room may not want to hear it, but it looks like ultra high-definition TV (or UHDTV) has now taken another step towards reality. While shop-floor products remain years away, experts in the ITU Study Group on Broadcasting Service have made several agreements on technical standards for your (next?) next TV purchase. Increasing pixel count in future sets is also expected to improve viewing angles on glasses-free 3D, which needs more dots to work its lenticular magic. 33 megapixels sounds like it should be enough to work with.” Read more…
(source: Engadget)
Can H.265 save us from the mobile video tsunami?
“Everyone knows that mobile data traffic is set to explode, driven by ever-increasing adoption of smartphones and tablets and the incredible growth of video traversing mobile networks. But a new video format is on its way, which could alleviate some of the strain on those networks by delivering high-quality video with half as many bits.” Read more..
(source: GigaOM)
‘Copyright trolls’ unite to prevent downfall of BitTorrent lawsuits
“A pivotal case that could mean the end of many mass-BitTorrent lawsuits is currently ongoing in a Virginia federal court. Labeling the pay-up-or-else scheme as a “shake down,” the judge wants to know why he should allow copyright holders to massively coerce people into paying huge cash settlements. Realizing the importance of the case, a fellow anti-piracy law firm has now joined in to protect its livelihood.” Read more…
(source: TorrentFreak)
Cable providers aim to offer channels ‘a la carte’
“Finally: Cable providers have reversed their position on ‘a la carte’ channel offerings, and hope to eventually allow customers to pick and choose which channels they want to pay for, and which ones they don’t.” Read more…
(source: Digital Trends)
The IKEA bookcase that 'foreshadows the demise of books'
Et tu, IKEA? As if Borders’ liquidation and the rise of the iPad hadn’t already sounded the death knell for old-fashioned books, now The Economist reports that IKEA is introducing a bookshelf designed to hold things other than books.” Read more…
(source: The Week)
TV in the cloud
“TV is moving to the cloud. It is inevitable, just as other kinds of media from books to music are increasingly delivered over the Internet. Netflix, Hulu, and even Apple TV are making inroads when it comes to distributing traditional TV shows and movies to Internet-connected screens. YouTube keeps grabbing more of our attention, accounting for 7 percent of total time spent on the Internet in the U.S., according to comScore.”
“And yet the TV (and movie) industry are proving more resistant to change than any other form of media. Change will come, but it won’t happen as quickly as it is with music, news, or books.” Read more…
(source: TechCrunch)
First Look: Ceton InfiniTV 4 USB CableCARD Tuner
“Compared to just a few weeks ago, it is a great time to be in the market for a Digital Cable Tuner (DCT). We just took a look at devices from SiliconDust and Hauppauge and now it is Ceton’s turn because their newest tuner, the $299 InfiniTV 4 USB, arrived this afternoon.” Read more…
(source: Missing Remote)
Is copyright only for the big guys?
“Over the last two weeks, two interesting copyright-related stories have appeared in online news reports. Both involve big media companies and small users, but not in the way we usually expect. In both instances, the large media companies “pirated” content instead of the users, and they seem to get away with it. This begs the question; is copyright only for the Big Guys?” Read more…
(source: TorrentFreak)
The Expendables makers dismiss massive BitTorrent lawsuit
“The ever-growing avalanche of lawsuits against BitTorrent users in the United States may have reached a turning point. The makers of The Expendables have voluntarily dismissed their case against 23,322 alleged BitTorrent users who they accused of illegally downloading and sharing their film. This means that the once-largest BitTorrent lawsuit ever is finally over, and it could signal the beginning of the end for the entire scheme.” Read more…
(source: Torrent Freak)
Apple quietly kills 99¢ TV show rentals
“Bad news for anyone who was looking to rent the latest episode of Top Gear from iTunes, as Apple has quickly and quietly removed their 99¢ television rental option today.” Read more…
(source: TechCrunch)
Evidence agianst BitTorrent users slammed in court
“A few months ago the U.S. Copyright Group (USCG), who pioneered the mass-BitTorrent lawsuits in the United States, were themselves sued for fraud, abuse and extortion.” Read more…
(source: Torrent Freak)
