Toshiba denies it is dropping HD DVD
Despite rampant speculation and rumor, it seems that Toshiba is not dropping HD DVD, or at least not for the time being.
The corporation has released a brief press release this morning in an effort to put a damper on the rumors that have been spreading since the giant retailer Wal-Mart decided to go Blu-ray exclusive beginning in June.
“The media reported that Toshiba will discontinue its HD DVD business. Toshiba has not made any announcement concerning this. Although Toshiba is currently assessing its business strategies, no decision has been made at this moment,” read the complete statement.
This latest statement could simply be a way to stall before the decision to drop the failing format is officially made, but for now HD DVD fans still have some hope.
Motorola acquires largest Asian music download provider
Motorola has announced that it will be completing its previously announced acquisition of Soundbuzz, the Singapore-based provider of digital music downloads. In fact, Soundbuzz is the leading provider for the entire Asian continent.
The companies did not disclose any of the financial terms of the deal but did say it had been in the works for a few months.
“Clearly, this marks a major milestone, as it positions Soundbuzz and Motorola to better participate in the ongoing growth in Asia’s booming mobile music download market,” Soundbuzz CEO Sudhanshu Sarronwala said.
The company’s MotoMusic platform will now have 750,000 songs available for download in India, Southeast Asia, and Greater China.
Flash coming to Windows Mobile, Android
At the Adobe MAX developer’s conference yesterday, Adobe showed off their latest Flash player, one that works on both Windows Mobile phones as well as the new Android-based phone, the T-Mobile G1.
“We are excited to be working alongside Adobe to bring Flash technology to Android,” said Andy Rubin, director of mobile platforms at Google. “Adobe Flash is crucial to a rich Internet and content experience on mobile devices and we are thrilled that Google will be one of the first companies along with the Open Handset Alliance to bring Flash technology to the smartphone market.”
Notably absent from the presentation was the popular Apple smartphone, the iPhone. Although Adobe has said they have a Flash player that will work on the iPhone OS, Apple’s strict TOS will not allow it into the App Store. I mean, why would Apple let consumers play free Flash based games or watch movies from sites like Hulu when they can instead be locked into iTunes, the App Store and other Apple run platforms?
Adobe notes that 98 percent of computers have Flash installed, and it is becoming crucial to have it to enjoy the Internet. That is of course, unless you own an iPhone.
Hong Kong pirates selling bootleg Blu-rays on DVDs
According to a new Wall Street Journal article, Hong Kong based movie pirates have begun selling bootleg Blu-ray films on standard DVDs, using the AVCHD format to fit a 720p film onto a cheap DVD-5.
Although AVCHD only offers 720p and not the full HD 1080p, most consumers cannot tell the difference, and just see it as an upgrade from standard DVD anyways.
The MPA warns that because blank DVDs can be had for, on average, 30 cents a unit, the pirates are making a huge profit on every bootleg sold.
“We are concerned and are assigning priority to this issue,” said Mike Ellis, the Asia-Pacific managing director for the MPA.
The industry only first began taking notice last month when a large stash of the bootleg Blu-rays were found during a raid in China. Some of the 800 discs seized included popular titles such as “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone”, “Transformers”, and “X-Men 3.” The bootleg discs were packaged in blue cases and even included holograms to make them look like the originals.
“Pirated DVDs from this region…have been exported all over the world in the last few years. These syndicates are very quick to spot market opportunities,” said Mr. Ellis.
The MPA added that while retail Blu-ray discs retail for $25 or so, the pirated AVCHD discs sell for $7. Fortunately for the industry, the MPA says, the discs have not yet appeared outside of Asia.
“When we created the specifications for Blu-ray, we were very serious about trying to stem the tide of pirate discs regardless of where they were in the world,” noted Andy Parsons, a senior vice president at Pioneer Electronics Inc.’s Home Entertainment Group and the U.S. chairman of the Blu-ray Disc Association Promotions Committee.
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Apple adds more DRM to MacBooks
According to Crunchgear, Apple has begun building HDCP (High-Bandwidth Digital Content Protection) into their new MacBooks in order to protect iTunes Store purchased media.
Although most content are not protected, there are some newer videos that are and will not play at all unless you have connected an HDCP compliant TV or monitor.
Users trying to connect to a TV via HDMI or DVI should be fine, but users with VGA or component/composite ports only may have issues.
To understand more about what exactly HDCP is, please read our glossary entry here: High-Bandwidth Digital Content Protection.
Pic via source:
14 million active PSN accounts now, says Sony
Sony Computer Entertainment America has proudly announced that there are now 14 million active PSN accounts worldwide, matching the 14 million active users Xbox Live currently has. It is important to note however that XBL originally launched in 2002 but also costs money for a subscription. PSN is free.
As of July, Sony only had 10 million registered users who had downloaded 170 million pieces of content. That has now grown to 14 million and 273 million pieces of content.
“With 14 million active accounts and 273 million pieces of content downloaded, we know that you’re thirsting for this digital entertainment,” said John Koller, director of hardware marketing for SCEA.
“PlayStation Network has truly hit its stride with unique downloadable games and a video delivery service featuring movies, TV shows, and original programming that you can watch in HD with your PS3, or bring with you on your PSP.”
Hungry? Order Domino’s through TiVo
The popular DVR company TiVo has announced that it has teamed up with Domino’s Pizza to allow subscribers to order pizza right from their TV sets, free of charge. (You will still have to pay for the food obviously).
“This is the first time in history that the ‘on-demand’ generation will be able to fully experience couch commerce by ordering pizza directly through their television set,” said Rob Weisberg, vice president of precision and print marketing at Domino’s.
Weisberg added that TiVo users will see a Domino’s ad and be able to click on “I want it” from their TV remote.
Consumers can enter their delivery address as well as crust type and sauce through the TV and expect their food within 30 minutes.
Domino’s added that subscribers can set up a user-name and password for Dominos.com and use it place orders faster.
Pirate Bay smashes through new milestone
The infamous torrent tracker The Pirate Bay has smashed through another new milestone, reaching 25 million unique peers. It has been estimated that the site tracks over 50 percent of all BitTorrent users that are on at any point.
In 2006 the site tracked 3 million peers which moved up to 6 million peers by November 2007. In April of this year, TPB admin and founder Brokep noted that they had hit 12 million peers. The growth has been exponential and does not seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
Admin Peter Sunde added that there was previously limits on how many peers the site could track but those have been lifted thanks to new changes. “I wish we had lots and lots of money so we could just buy like 10 servers and another gigabit,” he jokingly added.
Just earlier this month the site hit 20 million peers and has been exploding ever since.
Microsoft and Paramount team up for digital downloads
Microsoft and Paramount have announced a new partnership in which the movie studio will offer films via the Live Video Store beginning on February 19th.
The first Title to hit the service will be the blockbuster “Transformers” and new and existing titles will continue to trickle in. New titles from Warner Bros. will also be hitting the service including Beowulf, and The Assassination of Jesse James.
“We’re very excited to announce this new relationship,” Paramount’s Alex Carlos added. “We have lots of great content that fits this demographic. We’re excited about digital distribution, especially being on a platform as elegant as Xbox 360.”
And Robin Burrowes, Xbox Live UK marketing manager, continued, “This announcement gives our Video Store customers in the UK an even greater choice of entertainment, with a great level of HD movie quality, as always.”
The store launched in the UK in December and allows users to purchase digital downloads of Standard Definition or High Definition movies. You have two weeks to watch the content or 24 hours to finish it after you’ve begun watching.
Each title will cost 250 Microsoft Points for SD and 380 Microsoft Points for HD.
The full list of titles are as follows:
Transformers (SD and HD)
Goodbye Bafana (SD and HD)
Intersection (SD only)
Primal Fear (SD only)
Clear and Present Danger (SD only)
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iTunes in UK adds BBC programming
BBC Worldwide has announced it has struck a deal with Apple that will allow users in the UK to download a few top BBC shows from the popular iTunes platform.
Each show will cost 1.89 pounds (about $3.70 USD) and will include such popular shows as “Torchwood,” “Life on Mars” and “Spooks”. Users can then watch the show on their computers, on TV via the Apple TV device or on Apple handhelds.
The new deal follows in the BBC’s strategy to make its shows available for download after they have aired and the deal marks the first for a British broadcaster.
The downloads are available for free on BBC’s own iPlayer for 30 days after they air and then will be available for purchase on iTunes.
“We want to give audiences a wide variety of options on how and where to view their favorite BBC shows,” said Simon Danker, director of digital media at BBC Worldwide.
“With more people now choosing to watch TV shows on their iPods, fans of series such as ‘The Mighty Boosh’ and ‘The Catherine Tate Show’ can now enjoy those shows wherever they are.”
Apple VP Eddy Cue added that he believes the shows will be popular. “Television programming has been incredibly popular with iTunes customers in the U.K.,” said Cue. “We’re thrilled to add hit programming from the BBC with favorites including the latest ratings winner, ‘Ashes to Ashes.’”
