Given how CES is now a barometer for such a wide array of technology segments, GigaOM Research decided to ask our readers which way the tech winds will blow over the next year based on what they saw in Las Vegas. (Subscription required) Read more »
TV broadcasters and programmers must embrace a new set of video-delivery techniques to reach consumers today. Online delivery to so many types of consumer devices means that video programmers must produce multiple internet-streaming formats that use different types of security and different ways of inserting ads. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Sure, using voice commands to turn on the car radio on your iPhone is nifty, but iSpeech wants to elevate speech-recognition technology beyond the device and distribute it throughout our homes. Tony Stark can talk to his house in Iron Man, so why can’t you? Read more »
Is the trend for smart TVs that connect to the Web and run apps a big mistake? Anthony Rose, the co-founder of hot social TV app Zeebox, took to the stage at MIPCube to suggest the future of television lies somewhere very different. Read more »
Apple might be looking to expand its live sports offerings through a deal with the English Premier League, a new report says. It’s an interesting proposition but not a cheap one: Sky paid £1.6 billion (around $2.5 billion) for its current broadcast rights. Read more »
This is the third in a series of posts this week that will highlight key people, companies and trends to watch in 2012 in the sectors we cov… Read more at paidContent »
The media world is changing, due to new devices from which viewers can access content and the ease of finding content on-demand. As a result, big media companies can no longer rely solely on the strength of their content to win out against alternative viewing options. Read more »
With the rollout of its massive Xbox Live update, Microsoft has made a strong bid for the pole position in the digital living room. And with dozens of new programming partners also included with the update, the company now offers perhaps the most comprehensive, versatile and ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Are you still waiting to buy Iomega’s Boxee set-top box? Then maybe it’s time to look for alternatives or call your relatives in the UK: Iomega just told us that it won’t be selling the device in the U.S. but will concentrate on Europe instead. Read more »
Tremor Media executive chairman Jason Glickman is working on a new company called Connected Sports Ventures. While still in stealth, the startup looks poised to change the way people watch sports by connecting their social activity on second-screen devices with what’s happening on the big screen. Read more »
If you’re a cable provider, what do you do when Fox comes to re-negotiate its retrans deals, asking for more money now that it’s put its shows behind a pay wall? And what do you do when subscribers begin demanding access to Fox content online? Read more »
Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility could be a big boost to Google TV, and could signal a shift in its positioning from an operating system that Google sells to consumers to one that is used by a number of pay TV operators instead. Read more »
Roku has raised another $8 million, according to an SEC filing. The round comes just a few weeks after Roku launched the latest version of its broadband set-top boxes, which in addition to streaming video, also features casual games. Read more »
Hulu is turning Japanese with the launch of a subscription service in the country. The company today announced that it will launch the service before the end of the year, but declined to provide further details. Hulu actively looked for partners in Japan earlier this year. Read more »
Connected consumer electronics are poised to surpass PC sales by 2013 as tablets, televisions, game consoles and Blu-ray players all latch on to the web, says iSuppli. All of these devices will add strain to wired and wireless networks for years to come as a result. Read more »
DirecTV has admitted to taking a look at Hulu’s financials to see if it’s worth buying. While the satellite provider could accelerate its rollout of TV Everywhere services with such a buy, DirectTV’s CEO said a Hulu acquisition isn’t necessary to achieve its long-term vision. Read more »
Most major public cable, satelleite and IPTV providers have announced earnings, and it’s clear that the second quarter was a weak one in terms of net subscriber additions. That will cause many to once again question whether online video services are causing viewers to quit cable. Read more »
Through the DECE’s UltraViolet format, Warner Bros. and other studios will begin making movies available for sale this year that can be purchased and watched on a number of different devices. Key to Time Warner’s introduction of these services will be its Flixster social discovery app. Read more »
Roku just came out with a new generation of streaming media players, complete with support for Angry Birds and other casual games as well as advanced Netflix streaming. Want to see it in action? Then check out this week’s episode of Cord Cutters. Read more »
Best Buy is treading carefully into the connected TV space, introducing two new models of TVs that rely on a TiVo-powered user interface and Chumby apps for additional content. But savvy buyers might be disappointed by the lack of streaming services available on the new TVs. Read more »
Netlix recently posted a job opening for a UI designer specialized on kids websites and online games. Does the video giant plan to launch a separate website dedicated to its large library of kids content, or will the entire Netflix UI become a bit more kid-friendly? Read more »
Netflix is using price hikes to manage the transition of users away from the physical product and towards digital streaming. While there are some similarities between that and the newspaper business, publishers shouldn’t get their hopes up too much about copying the Netflix model. Read more »
Close to 60 percent of all Netflix subscribers access the video service through a game console or another connected or mobile device, according to new data from Nielsen. Hulu, on the other hand, has a far smaller footprint in the living rooms of its users. Read more »
The Mobile Content Venture has unveiled the brand name and logo for its upcoming mobile broadcast venture, now dubbed Dyle.tv. But will this service succeed where FLO TV failed? To do so, it’ll need to be on many devices, and have content people want to watch. Read more »
Criterion Capital Partners is announcing Wednesday that it has bought SeeSaw.com, a site that aspired to become U.K.’s Hulu but was close to being shut down just six weeks ago. SeeSaw’s past is troubled, but Criterion is nonetheless willing to make a bet on its future. Read more »
Microsoft could be rolling out a new subscription video service later this year, pitting it against services like Netflix and Hulu Plus, as Microsoft seeks to grab more revenues from Xbox subscribers. But it will need to be available on other devices, too. Read more »
Tablets are taking our entertainment experience in a new direction, and in the next two-to-five years, the tablet could serve as your secondary video screen or universal remote control. All of which means that the future of the digital home is already here. Read more »
Pictures and details of the next generation of Roku set-top boxes have been revealed, thanks to a filing with the FCC. So should you get ready to buy one? It probably depends on if you already own a Roku — and how much you like Angry Birds. Read more »
Yahoo TV is one of the oldest connected TV platforms still around, but it continues to innovate. Its broadcast interactivity feature offers new ways for broadcasters and advertisers to reach consumers. But with some of its OEMs looking at other platforms, can it fulfill its promise? Read more »
OnLive is a few steps closer to bringing its streaming video game service to new TVs and Blu-ray players, thanks to a partnership with Intel to add its service to chip sets and the release of a universal controller designed to work with various connected devices. Read more »
Verizon’s new digital media services seek to make it easier and cheaper for media companies to deliver over-the-top video to multiple devices and networks. While leveraging its IP backbone to avoid Internet congestion, Verizon Digital Media Services also seeks to automate video distribution. Read more »
This morning, we’ve gathered more than 50 entrepreneurs, executives and investors at our San Francisco offices to engage in a town hall-style forum to discuss what could happen if we had the “app store” revolution (and the app store economy) on our TV sets. Read more »
The television business is on the cusp of the biggest technological upheaval since cable TV emerged. With that in mind, we examine the leading contenders’ strategic positioning, relative strengths and weaknesses & provide the early line on their odds of success in the connected TV marketplace. Read more »
The television business is on the cusp of the biggest technological upheaval since the introduction of cable TV. The addition of Internet connectivity to living room devices will enable new functionality around programming services, program discovery, social networking, ad targeting and measurement — aspects of the TV viewing experience that have remained largely unchanged for decades. These trends have the potential to become the foundation for new economic models around how viewers pay for video service and how program creation is financed. In this report, we examine the leading contenders’ strategic positioning, relative strengths and weaknesses, and provide the early line on their odds of success. Companies mentioned include Google, Apple, Boxee, Roku, Vudu, Samsung, Microsoft and Sony. To see a full list of companies and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Google headlines this week beg the question: Would Facebook ever pursue a three-screen strategy by offering up its own TV platform to users? The answer could be yes, as the TV screen seems too big a honeypot to ignore for a company that lives on advertising dollars. Read more »
Apple and Google may be making all the headlines over the future of the living room, but another tech giant seems to be missing from the connected TV conversation: Cisco. What would Cisco need to do in order to compete in the connected TV space? Read more »
