Filed under: BROADCAST/CABLE
BROADCAST/CABLE
Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. has reached a tentative deal to buy Dow Jones & Co. at its original $5 billion offer price, although the controlling Bancroft family remains divided. The deal will be put to the full Dow Jones board on Tuesday evening. (http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB118463978304868582.html 7/17)
NBC entertainment chief Ben Silverman shook things up during his portion of the Television Critics Association’s press tour Monday by announcing that Norman Lear is working on a new project and that Jerry Seinfeld will make a guest appearance on “30 Rock.” (Yahoo!/Reuters/Hollywood Reporter 7/17)
Actor Isaiah Washington, fired last month from the ABC hit medical drama “Grey’s Anatomy” after reportedly making an anti-gay slur, has landed a new role, and a development deal, with rival network NBC. Washington will guest star in five episodes of NBC’s upcoming sci-fi action drama “Bionic Woman,” a 21st-century remake of the 1970s series that starred Lindsay Wagner and was itself a spinoff of “The Six Million Dollar Man.” (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070717/people_nm/washington_dc 7/17)
Starbucks and NBC are working together on their first business venture — the DVD, “Saturday Night Live: The Best of ’06/’07.” The DVD set, featuring never-before-seen bonus material such as dress rehearsal footage, will be sold exclusively at Starbucks retail outlets. (http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Entertainment/2007/07/16/starbucks_to_sell_snl_dvd/5295/ 7/16)
When it comes to attracting an audience, The CW network finds itself battling the Internet, cell phone services and iPods for the 18-to-34-year-old demographic. (Chicago Tribune/Los Angeles Times 7/17)
Screenwriters and studio executives in Hollywood have opened contract talks that are expected to center on the Internet and compensation for reuse of content on multiple platforms. The Writers Guild of America agreement ends Oct. 31, and so far the two sides remain far apart on the issues under discussion, according to this article. (The Boston Globe/Reuters 7/16)
Internet phone company SunRocket is moving customers to other companies as part of its effort to cease operations. Cable companies offering the triple-play bundle have cut into the subscriber base of startup phone companies such as SunRocket. (The New York Times 7/17)
Cable companies are making the switch to CableCard-enabled set-top boxes as their inventory of pre-CableCard set-top boxes runs out. Motorola and Scientific Atlanta are fully engaged in producing the new CableCard set-top boxes, but smaller cable companies are facing longer wait times. (Multichannel News 7/16)
Filed under: ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
Google says it will address privacy concerns by reducing the lifetime of “cookies” installed on the computers of people who visit its Web site. The search giant has been criticized for holding onto user information for too long. Google previously designed its cookies to expire in 2038. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=a2HLhuG4f59E 7/16)
Facebook, the fast-growing social networking site, is facing a lawsuit after rival social network ConnectU.com claimed that founder Mark Zuckerberg stole “the basic idea” for the network. Zuckerberg, 23, worked briefly as a programmer at ConnectU four years ago. (http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article2086909.ece 7/16)
ConnectU
Viacom’s $1 billion copyright-infringement lawsuit against YouTube is merely a negotiating ploy to cut itself a deal, claims photojournalist Bob Tur, who has filed his own suit against the popular video-sharing site. “If we lose, what’s to stop Google from setting up pay-per-view services?” (http://www.esquire.com/features/Youtube0707 7/16)
Scholastic, publisher of the new Harry Potter book, has obtained a subpoena to learn the identity of a user who allegedly posted copies of the final sequel, scheduled for release July 21, on Photobucket, a News Corp.-owned Web site for sharing photos and videos. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=aFQscFL28Fo8 7/16)
SoundExchange, the organization that collects royalties for musicians and record companies, has indicated to webcasters that it won’t seek immediate payment of new, higher rates. Station reps are continuing to negotiate to lower the controversial royalty hike. (http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-radio17jul17,1,5972904.story?ctrack=1&cset=true 7/17)
NBC will start streaming episodes of “Late Night With Conan O’Brien” next month as part of its effort to retool its NBC.com Web site. NBCU will also add social-networking tools, including profiles with user-generated content, in September. (Yahoo!/Reuters/Hollywood Reporter 7/16)
TV networks are experimenting with the fashionable and new social network Twitter, which allows users to reach out to groups of contacts via 140 character communiques delivered via text message or e-mail. While Twitter doesn’t yet boast a big user base, the technology allows for frequent interactions with interested and connected fans. (The Wall Street Journal (free content) 7/16)
On Monday, the FCC received comments from hundreds of individuals and groups on net neutrality. The FCC received about 670 comments in regards to rules covering net neutrality. (Yahoo!/PC World/IDG News Service 7/16)
Blogs such as GigaOm and TechCrunch are crowding into news beats once dominated by trade publications, writes Brian Caulfield. Tech mag Red Herring reportedly has been served an eviction notice. “A successful blog can simply grab more readers … than more traditional media.” (http://www.forbes.com/business/media/2007/07/16/redherring-print-blogs-tech-media-cx_bc_0716techmedia.html 7/16)
Filed under: GAMING
GAMING
The success of Nintendo’s Wii gaming console has drawn the collective attention of gaming developers, many of which have reinvested heavily in developing and producing games for the consoles. “Publishers are saying: Instead of spending $15 million or $20 million on one PS3 game, come back to me with five or six Wii pitches,” Foundation 9 Entertainment Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jon Goldman said. (The New York Times 7/17)
Sony officials have announced that they would phase out the 60GB version of the PlayStation 3 console in an effort to raise the profile of the 80GB system. Many gamers have likened the price-drop announcement last week of the 60GB PS3 to a clearance sale. (Yahoo!/Reuters 7/16)
Filed under: WIRELESS
WIRELESS
Google is developing a new search service for cellphones that will help consumers find and buy ringtones, games and other mobile content. Users will be able to search for a piece of content and get back a list of providers as well as links enabling them to easily purchase the material. (http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB118461672269867869-vFHnSZtA5io6FL9LUX_ddqWQ49I_20070815.html 7/17)
The WiFi equipped, GPS-integrated BlackBerry 8820 will be heading to retailers in the “coming weeks,” and is slated to land on AT&T later this summer, making a ton of American businessmen very, very happy. The GSM world phone features 802.11a/b/g, EDGE data , UMA (allowing the phone to seamlessly switch between cellular and WiFi networks without dropping calls), and a microSD slot which can support cards up 32GB, which is quite a lot of gigabytes. No 3G but a whole lot of Wi-Fi love none the less. (http://www.engadget.com/2007/07/17/wifi-equipped-blackberry-8820-about-to-hit-the-streets/ 7/17)
Cox and joint-venture partner Sprint Nextel launched their Pivot cell phone service in Rhode Island this week. Subscribers will be able to view content from several channels, including Fox News, ABC News and The Weather Channel, on certain Sprint cell phones. (The Providence Journal (R.I.) 7/17)
Leading car-audio companies are working overtime to determine or develop integration methods for Apple’s wildly popular iPhone. Both Apline and Kenwood have said that many of their radios are compatible with the device, although Bluetooth and video issues have been noted. (TWICE 7/16)
Hewlett-Packard is shipping its iPaq 510 Voice Messenger dual-mode smartphone, part of a new line being unveiled by the company. The phone works with 20 voice commands and can e-mail without typing. (Techworld/Computerworld 7/17)
Filed under: TECHNOLOGY
TECHNOLOGY
Samsung’s holiday lineup will include its first Wi-Fi plasma sets and a rear-projection, DLP-based 3-D system. The company also plans to have new big-screen LCD TVs in time for the holidays. (TWICE 7/16)
Philip’s new HTS8100 SoundBar looks to circumvent many of the hassles seen in traditional virtual-surround-sound systems by bending sound waves rather than bouncing them off walls. The result is a virtually wireless and impressive sound system that also touts easy setup and stellar sound reproduction. (The Globe and Mail (Toronto) 7/17)
