Daily Marauder


ONLINE VIDEO OF THE WEEK: TWITTER WHORE by Marauder
October 10, 2008, 5:53 PM
Filed under: Feature | Tags: , , , , , , ,

ONLINE VIDEO OF THE WEEK: TWITTER WHORE

Recommended to me today by my favorite Angelino, Twitter Whore chronicles the life of one Twitter-obsessed girl.  I personally, abstain from Twitter much like I try to abstain from reading US Weekly. . .except on special occasions.

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BROADCAST/CABLE by Marauder

BROADCAST/CABLE

Two popular series that built considerable ratings momentum during the summer — “Psych” and “Burn Notice” — have each received orders for 16 new episodes from USA Network. “Psych,” which will be entering its fourth season, averaged 2.2 million viewers in the 18-to-49 demo while the second season of “Burn Notice” averaged 2.8 million among that age group. Variety (10/9)

With a strong showing by cable networks such as FX, USA and TNT over the summer, and the cable industry’s dominance at this year’s Emmy competition, cable networks appear ready to take on what some see as the last bastion of exclusivity for the Big Four broadcast networks: fall programming. MSNBC/Reuters (10/9)

On Nov. 30, MTV will debut a documentary on Britney Spears titled “Britney: For the Record.” The program, which includes extensive interviews with Spears, chronicles a three-month, turbulent period in the singer’s life this year. Reuters (10/10)

“Living With Ed” on HGTV and “Property Ladder” on TLC are the most engaging shows on cable TV, according to new findings from Nielsen IAG. Other shows appearing in the top 10 were “Real Housewives of Orange County” and “Date My Ex: Jo & Slade” on Bravo, “Army Wives” on Lifetime and “Damages” on FX. TVWeek.com (10/9)

Living with Ed

MTV tapped Whitney Port (The Hills) to star in a new series, The City which will follow her professional and personal life after she moves to New York City, per Multichannel News. (Cynopsis 10/10)

Production started in North Carolina on the new HBO sitcom Eastbound and Down executive produced by Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Chris Henchy, Jody Hill, Danny McBride and Best Best. The six-episode comedy stars Danny McBride as Kenny Powers, a major league baseball pitcher who gets kicked out because of bad behavior and becomes a gym teacher at the middle school in the North Carolina town where he grew up. The series is slated to debut next year. (Cynopsis 10/10)

This Is Your Life, which began as a radio show in 1948 then later was one of early TV’s biggest hits on NBC, will be making a comeback. Mark Burnett and Ralph Edwards Productions are teaming to produce a new version in a deal brokered by William Morris. (Cynopsis 10/10)

Discovery Channel introduces its new series Time Warp on Wednesday, October 15 at 8p with back to back 30m episodes.  Time Warp slows everything down to extreme slow motion, showing viewers how a juggler can toss around chain saws and not get hurt, a martial artist braking a stone slab, and other slowed down moments in time. (Cynopsis 10/10)

VH1 has picked up a second season of Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew from Irwin Entertainment, with the first of 8 episodes set to premiere on October 23rd at 10p. A sneak peak of the first episodes will be available on VH1.com starting on October 17. (Cynopsis 10/10)

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ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA by Marauder

ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA

Private equity fund Mithras Capital, which holds 1.9 million shares of Yahoo (about 0.14%), will propose to Microsoft that they buy Yahoo at $22 per share, Reuters reports. Microsoft would then unload Yahoo’s Asian assets adn non-search businesses, take $3 billion worth of cost savings and some tax benefits, and end up with Yahoo’s search business for $10.3 billion.  Microsoft is obviously thrilled to see this kind of corporate chaos at Yahoo, although they are unlikely to even respond to the proposal. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/10/09/yahoo-shareholder-asks-microsoft-to-re-bid-at-22 10/9)

NHL.com dropped the puck on its new online subscription service GameCenter Live powered by NeuLion, offering users a free weekend-long trial beginning today to watch the season’s first games. The streaming video service will offer up to 40-games a week (local blackouts apply) with a variety of interactive features including multiple camera angles for select games and a multi-view option that allows you to keep an eye on 4 games at once. Sign up before Oct. 15 to lock in a special rate of $19.95/month payable in monthly installments or $159 for the season. (Cynopsis 10/10)

i-Rights, part of the Digital Rights Group (DRG) has signed a three-year deal to distribute Bebo‘s 10 part online comedy series Chelsey:OMG!, a fish-out-of-water tale about a young American girl in London for the first time. (Cynopsis 10/10)

I dig the trailer at least.  It’s like a younger, more American version of Bridget Jones Diary.  I really need these online series to word on their reminder functionality because requiring the audience to remember a series online in a non-appointment viewing world is near impossible.

Socially enlightened integrated media company GOOD launched a new six-part web series, Wild Frontier of Sports, appearing exclusively on social networking site Imeem. (Cynopsis 10/10)

The first video to load up was devoted to Dodgeball and specifically the rise of Dodgeball in Brooklyn.  Hysterical and well done.  I’d like to send this video shout-out to Evan, the number one Dodgeball fanatic in my friend group.

MoMedia International has agreed to a distribution deal with Sky to provide content for Go!View, the new video-on-demand service for the Sony PSP. MoMedia will supply Go!View with 10 episodes per month of The Aiya! Gang, an Asian version of Jackass, Endemol-owned JoeCartoon and Kamikaze Videos, described as funniest home videos meets Dirty Sanchez. (Cynopsis 10/10)

Content from online video sites such as YouTube and Blip.tv now is available on TV screens via Verizon Communications’ FiOS service. The telecom said it would soon add video-download service Starz Play. Light Reading (10/9)

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WIRELESS by Marauder
October 10, 2008, 5:46 PM
Filed under: WIRELESS | Tags: , , , , , , ,

WIRELESS

At least one research company says it believes Google‘s Android open-network software for cell phones will spur greater consumer interest in smartphones and encourage wireless carriers to push even further to create a standard mobile platform. In a new report, ABI Research said one benchmark of Google’s success would be recognition among operators and handset makers in the value of creating a common platform. InformationWeek (10/9)

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GAMING by Marauder

GAMING

Can’t afford a ticket to China to go visit the Forbidden City? Well, now all you need is your computer. IBM, which is a big believer in virtual worlds, and China’s Palace Museum have created an exact replica of the 178-acre Forbidden City. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/10/10/real-world-got-you-down-ibm-invites-you-to-a-virtual-forbidden-city 10/10)

The one segment of the industry that may fare well during the downturn is gaming, based on recent trends:

  • Nintendo continues to lead among 3rd generation consoles approaching 30 million global units sold. The company’s Wii Shop Channel is gaining popularity, offering downloads of classic games for points that can be purchased online or at a retail outlet. The platform also offers an increasing selection of WiiWare – games built by independent developers
  • Microsoft says sales are picking up steam since it lowered the price on the entry level Xbox 360, even in Japan where the company has struggled to gain market share. Microsoft raised its forecast for sales in Japan, emboldened when publisher Square Enix said the latest Final Fantasy edition would launch for the Xbox 360 as well as the PS3. (FF has quite a cult following it Japan)
  • Sony is so confident that it is refusing to lower the price of the PS3 for the holiday season according to Edge magazine, which at $399 is the priciest console on the market. Sony said it’s on track to meet its goal of selling 10 million units of the PS3 and 15 million units of the PSP in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009 (Cynopsis 10/10)
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TECHNOLOGY by Marauder

TECHNOLOGY

SlingCatcher, the Sling Media device that hooks directly from the PC to the TV and allows people to view broadcast TV, online video and personal content, now is available for just shy of $300. The set-top box, when attached to a Slingbox device, also can access content from a DVR or another set-top that supplies cable or satellite programming. CED Magazine (10/2008)

Apple’s media invitation to an event Tuesday provides strong evidence that the company will introduce new laptop computers, and published reports indicate that at least one model, at under $1,000, will cost less than any MacBook to date. The company is expected to show new versions of its MacBook and MacBook Pro lines, with aggressive new pricing aimed at making them more competitive with rivals. The Wall Street Journal (10/10) , MarketWatch (10/9)

Revenue from LCD-TV sets will outpace that of all other consumer-product sectors by 2012, according to new research from iSuppli Corp. The company reported that global LCD-TV sales, which accounted for $61 billion in 2007, will nearly double by 2012, to $111 billion. Electronista (10/9) , TMCnet.com (10/9)

Carmakers are adding support for Apple’s iPod at such a quick clip that most 2009 vehicles will carry the feature as an option, according to a report from iSuppli. But drivers are looking for connectivity beyond the popular digital-music player: ISuppli said carmakers would also offer USB interfaces on about one-third of all vehicles, double the number from 2008. TWICE (10/8)

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