Filed under: BROADCAST/CABLE | Tags: Al Roker, Gossip Girl, HGTV, Josh Schwartz, People, Television program, The New York Times, TLC
You may have heard reports about a spinoff for The CW’s hit series Gossip Girl. The show’s creator, Josh Schwartz, says rumors to that effect are premature – there is no spinoff in the works. However, he also says there is potential for one in the future. (Cynopsis 6/12)
Although the housing market is in crisis, television shows about purchasing, renovating and flipping homes are as popular as ever. The programs consistently attract audiences of 700,000 to 1 million viewers and include TLC‘s new “Date My House” and HGTV’s “House Hunters.” (The New York Times 6/12)
Below: Jay Goldman/HGTV; Top right and bottom right, TLC
NBC announced the celebrity family match-ups for the new version of Celebrity Family Feud produced by FremantleMedia North America opening July 1 at 8p and hosted by Al Roker. (Cynopsis 6/12)
WE will offer five specials this summer that cater to its mostly female audience. These specials include “OMG! Sextuplets,” “Chain Gang Girls,” “Prince William: Sexy and Single,” “How to Marry a Prince” and “F.L.I.P. Mysteries: Women on the Case.” (Variety 6/11)
Hollywood studios are looking to deliver theatrical movies in HD to homes much earlier than their release on DVD — but they are also looking for greater copy-protection control. The studios want the FCC to block signals from traveling over certain plugs connected to TVs and video recorders — until the movies are released on DVD, but some groups assert that such a move would give studios power over choosing which digital connections they would use, thus cutting off products without those connections. (The Wall Street Journal 6/12)
The SEC has given E.W. Scripps Co. permission to split into two public companies: E.W. Scripps Co. and Scripps Networks Interactive. Scripps Networks Interactive will focus on cable networks and online shopping, including shopping-comparison sites Shopzilla and uSwitch, while E.W. Scripps will continue operating broadcast-television networks and newspapers. (The Boston Globe/Associated Press 6/11, TVNEWSDAY 6/11)
Time Warner, which is spinning off its cable unit, may use the $9.25 billion dividend from that transaction to buy back stock and acquire the Weather Channel, according to Sanford Bernstein analyst Michael Nathanson. Such a move would boost earnings-per-share growth 8.7% annually. (Iwantmedia 6/12, http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=aU8MKZytxbuI 6/11)
Charter Communications has forged a tentative deal that will permit the MSO to deliver analog, digital and high-definition programming offered by LIN TV Corp.’s stations. “Consumers are demonstrating a growing desire for quality high-definition content, and Charter’s priority is to provide our customers value and choice through a broad array of programming, packages, and enhanced services that include HD and video on demand,” said Ted Schremp, Charter senior vice president of product management and strategy. (Forbes/Thomson Financial News 6/12, TVNEWSDAY 6/11)
Filed under: ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA | Tags: Apple, Handhelds, iPhone, NBC Universal, News and Media, Olympic Games, Piper Jaffray, Smartphones
ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
NBC Universal‘s Olympic Games promotional plan for affiliates includes spots in 20 markets starring local Olympians, a free-video-on-demand campaign, both in advance of and during the event, 2,000 hours of live content on broadband, with placement available on individual station sites and on-air, direct mail and bill stuffers to tout HDTV ad sales. (Multichannel News 6/11, Broadcasting & Cable 6/11)
A Piper Jaffray analyst painted three possible pictures for the revenue for Apple‘s new iPhone App store, saying the market could be as low as $416 million in a worst-case scenario to as high as $1.2 billion if iPhone users spend an average of $15 a year downloading two applications. But skeptics say Apple will price the games much lower than many observers anticipate. (InformationWeek 6/11)
Google should be seen by media companies as an ally that is trying to make advertising work on the Internet, says CEO Eric Schmidt. “It’s a huge moral imperative to help here.” Google’s goal “isn’t to monetize everything. The goal is to change the world. . We don’t have an evil meter.” (Iwantmedia 6/12, http://news.cnet.com/8301-10784_3-9966236-7.html 6/11)
Hmm. Perhaps the TV networks have finally figured out that Google could potentially be the next online TV network?
Google CEO Eric Schmidt speaks in San Francisco.
(Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET News.com)
Martha Stewart’s Video Podcasts reached #1 on iTunes during their first day on the platform. The company is delivering about 2 hours of ad supported content (in 27 segments), all selected to tie-in to seasonal themes. The segments are also offered on the Martha Stewart On Demand service, currently available in 13 million Comcast and Cox digital homes. (Cynopsis 6/12)
Starting June 16th, for eight straight weeks, Hulu will be premiering TV shows and full-length movies daily in a campaign called “The Hulu Days of Summer.” (Iwantmedia 6/12, http://popwatch.ew.com/popwatch/2008/06/hulu-days-of-su.html 6/10)
Angel premieres on Hulu 6/23. Hulu is becoming more of a TV network every day. Interesting. . .
Online auction house eBay is shutting down its Internet-based system for buying and selling television and radio ads. The 1-year-old system won little support from the cable networks, which mostly stayed away fearing the process would cheapen the value of their ads. (Iwantmedia 6/12, http://www.adweek.com/aw/content_display/news/media/e3i95a8c8893ac9738a77d4f8849f19c1b0 6/11)
Microsoft’s Office Labs team, a testbed for ideas from company employees, is testing a Facebook-like social network to help employees keep tabs on each other. The network, called TownSquare, is intended to operate as an internal service within a company. (Iwantmedia 6/12, http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Messaging-and-Collaboration/Microsoft-Goes-Facebook-on-its-Employees 6/11)
Michael Eisner’s latest web project Foreign Body, meant to be a prequel leading up to the latest Robin Cook novel, is nearly DOA, points out Silicon Alley Insider, racking up only 140,000 views since launching May 27 according to Tube Mogul. That’s hardly enough to justify its $500,000 budget. (Cynopsis 6/12)
Why buy the Weather Channel? News Corp.’s Fox Interactive Media is launching Fox Weather, at weather.fox.com, a Web site with social tools intended to help build a network of amateur weather watchers. Users can register profiles and write blogs and post photos and videos. (Iwantmedia 6/12, http://mashable.com/2008/06/11/fox-weather 6/11)
Video-based Entertainment Shares by Platform 2008, U.S. Online 12+
Platform % of total viewing
TV (cable/DBS/OTA) 63.9%
Video Games 13.0%
PC Video 10.3%
DVDs 7.2%
Video on personal devices 3.9%
Video on cell phones 1.7%
Source: SRC
Filed under: WIRELESS | Tags: Apple, Facebook, Handhelds, iPhone, Jaiku, Pownce, Six Apart, Worldwide Developers Conference
If youre one of the many interested in the comparison, heres some food for thought… You can click the image at left for a feature comparison of the Bold & iPhone 3G (thanks Hayden!). (http://crackberry.com/blackberry-bold-vs-iphone-3g-comparison 6/11)
Click below to enlarge.
Six Apart has introduced an iPhone version of their BlogIt software, which allows users to quickly post updates to their blogs, Twitter, Pownce, FriendFeed, Jaiku, and Facebook. The current version of BlogIt is a traditional iPhone web-based app, though we can probably expect a native version on the way (Six Apart announced a native version of TypePad at Apple’s WWDC conference earlier this week). You can reach the app by pointing your iPhone’s browser to http://blogit.typepad.com/. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/06/12/six-apart-introduces-blogit-for-iphone 6/12)
Filed under: GAMING | Tags: Business, Electronic Arts, Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Take-Two, Take-Two Interactive, Take-Two Interactive Software, Takeover
Take-Two Interactive Software will have to go to court regarding its noncompliance with a subpoena and regulatory investigation regarding a takeover bid by Electronic Arts. Take-Two said it would not support an FTC petition if a settlement could not be reached before the hearing. (The New York Times/Reuters 6/12)
Filed under: TECHNOLOGY | Tags: Business, Companies, Mark Cuban, Nintendo Wii, Physics, Plasma, Plasma display, Television
It’s a Wii without the $250 console. It’s virtual Pong and so much more. Any object is now an input device, even your fingers. Bang, bang! But there’s no better way to introduce you to CamSpace than by letting you watch the demo video below. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/06/11/camspace-creates-a-wii-for-everyone-minus-the-nintendo-console 6/11)
This is simply amazing. Avoid buying an extra remote and just use this.
Demo Video
Japanese manufacturer Shinoda Plasma Co. will demonstrate for the first time in the U.S. next week its 125-inch, curved-screen “Shipla Wall” television. The superslim TV uses plasma tube arrays, allowing for a superior picture and a tenth of the weight of a regular plasma TV. (ElectronicHouse.com 6/11)
Shinoda Plasma’s Shipla Wall
The iPhone 3G may have GPS, including a real-time map of a driver’s route, but without text or a voice offering turn-by-turn directions, the newest iPhone does not have the same capabilities of personal navigation devices, according to this article. Since the device is open to third-party developers, PND maker TomTom has put software to the test that would provide these features via the new iPhone. (TWICE 6/11)
Energizer is adding a tiny disposable battery to its portfolio with a 0.2-ounce power device that it has dubbed the AAAA. The company said the new battery would power Bluetooth headsets, noise-canceling headsets, flash audio players and products “still in development.” (ElectronicHouse.com 6/12)
Filed under: MISC | Tags: Carl Icahn, Hannah Montana, Lorne Michaels, NBC Universal, New York Times Building, Rockefeller Center, Rockefeller Plaza, Times Square
Financier Carl Icahn announced plans to become a blogger more than four months ago. He now states he will start his blog “next week,” but adds that “human nature” could delay his plans. Icahn says he hopes to post entries showing examples of corporate waste. (Iwantmedia 6/12, http://www.nypost.com/seven/06122008/business/carl_is_no_blog_icon__just_yet_115066.htm 6/12)
Sales of licensed Disney merchandise is expected to break records and top $30 billion in global retail, up from $27 billion last year. The company’s new “tween” businesses — “High School Musical” and “Hannah Montana” — are expected to rake in some $2.7 billion this year. (Iwantmedia 6/12, http://www.cnbc.com/id/25079772 6/10)
Mort Zuckerman’s Worldwide Plaza and the old New York Times Building in Times Square are among the buildings that NBC Universal is considering as it looks for a new home for many of its New York-based operations. NBC may sell some of its space at 30 Rockefeller Plaza. (Iwantmedia 6/12, http://www.nypost.com/seven/06122008/business/nbc_eyes_morts_digs_115079.htm 6/12)
