Filed under: ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA | Tags: Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud, Ashton Kutcher, Google, Myspace, News Corporation, On the Web, Ted Turner, Time Warner
ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
Amazon.com is unveiling a program that pays bloggers for Kindle e-reader subscriptions to their posts. Amazon will pay registered bloggers 30% of its subscription fee. At a $2 per month price point, a blogger could make $50,000 per year with just 7,000 annual subscribers. (Iwantmedia 5/14,http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2009/05/14/amazon-to-pay-bloggers-for-subscriptions 5/14)
Very nice. Thank you Amazon. Just published Daily Marauder. The format is a bit wonky but what the hell, still cool none the less. Love that Amazon even generates a Kindle preview so that you can see what your blog looks like on the device. FYI, Newspaper companies, speak to Kindle. They have it.
Actor Ashton Kutcher, in a quest to fulfill his promise to “ding-dong-ditch” Ted Turner‘s house after winning a race to attract 1 million followers on Twitter, unfurled a giant banner with his microblogging account’s name over the CNN logo on the Time Warner network’s building in Atlanta. (Iwantmedia 5/14,http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/05/14/cnn.kutcher.prank/index.html 5/14)
Google’s new search products demonstrate the company’s continued ability to innovate, says Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster. The Internet giant will maintain its search leadership “for the foreseeable future.” Google’s position is “essentially insurmountable.” (Iwantmedia 5/14,http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2009/05/13/is-google-insurmountable 5/13)
Just weeks after a Swedish court found the four men behind the Pirate Bay Web site guilty of promoting copyright infringement, illegal file-sharing of music is as rampant as ever, says the U.K.’s PRS for Music. “The Pirate Bay trial has done nothing to discourage file sharing.” (Iwantmedia 5/14,http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/f6fe991c-3fd0-11de-9ced-00144feabdc0.html 5/14)
U.S. social network advertising spending will fall 3% to $1.14 billion in 2009, from $1.18 billion in 2008, according to a forecast by eMarketer. MySpace is described as “the major problem.” While it has been cash cow for News Corp., “the brand has lost its shine.” (Iwantmedia 5/14,http://www.adotas.com/2009/05/myspace-drags-down-social-network-ad-spend 5/14)
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Filed under: WIRELESS | Tags: Business, Business and Economy, Jerome Kern, Mobile, Mobile phone, Playboy, Playboy Enterprises, Telecommunications
Playboy “is all about the brand,” says interim CEO Jerome Kern, who plans to extend that brand into other platforms, such as mobile-phone wallpaper. While the print magazine is “important,” he adds, “the company cannot continue to sustain significant losses.” (Iwantmedia 5/14, http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/columnists/chi-wed_phil_column_0513may13,0,1816984.column 5/13)
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Filed under: TECHNOLOGY | Tags: Mac OS X, Microsoft, Microsoft Windows, Operating Systems, Paul Otellini, Sony, Verizon Wireless, Windows XP
With its HP netbook going on sale Sunday, Verizon Wireless has increased the monthly download limit from 50 megabytes to 250 MB and reduced overcharges from 25 cents to 10 cents per MB for the same $40 a month it now charges, the carrier said today in outlining changes to its data plans. The 2.4-pound netbook will run on Windows XP Home and cost $200 with a rebate plus two-year mobile-broadband contract. Reuters (5/14) , CNET (5/13)
At Intel’s annual investor meeting this week, company CEO Paul Otellini said he expects PC sales growth patterns to return to normal later this year following a better-than-expected second quarter. The statement runs counter to the Gartner prediction that computer sales will dip about 10% in 2009. “I’m getting increasingly comfortable that the dip here is not as aggressive as they are showing,” Otellini said. 
ClipSyndicate/Bloomberg (5/13) , The Wall Street Journal (5/13) , InformationWeek (5/12) , CIO.com/IDG News Service (5/12)
VTech’s new IS9181 Wi-Fi Internet Radio, with its two 3-watt speakers and 10-watt subwoofer, gives audiophiles access to 11,000 Web-based radio stations from around the world. The device, which retails for just under $200, is compatible with Windows XP and Vista, or Mac OS X 10.4 and 10.5, and it can play back files from a number of platforms. ElectronicHouse.com (5/13)
Executives at beleaguered consumer-electronics giant Sony Corp. forecast a second consecutive annual operating loss, this time for the period ending March 2010. If that comes to pass, it will be the first time Sony has reported back-to-back yearly losses since 1958. Reuters (5/14) , The Wall Street Journal (5/14)
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Filed under: BROADCAST/CABLE
VH1′s debut of Charm School with Ricki Lake Monday night at 9p delivered a 1.4 A18-49 rating and attracted 2.3 million total viewers. (Cynopsis 5/13)
For the second week in a row, TNT, which is televising second-round NBA playoff games, was the most-watched network on ad-supported cable TV, according to Nielsen data. For the week ended May 10, TNT averaged 3.48 million total viewers. Mediaweek (5/12)
FOX pulled the remaining episode of Sit Down, Shut Up from its schedule following a 0.7/3 posting among A18-49 from this past Sunday at 7p, cites Variety. The 30m animated comedy is not expected to return to FOX’s lineup and an encore episode of King of the Hill will air in the 7p Sunday time period instead. (Cynopsis 5/13)
On Showtime’s drama The Tudors, Henry VIII (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) is keeping his fourth wife around for another season, as British singer Joss Stone reprises her role as Anne of Cleves for the series’ fourth and final season, per THR. (Cynopsis 5/13)
In the midst of pilot pick up season, NBC decided to pass on David E. Kelley’s legal drama Legally Mad. Originally thinking the drama would be a midseason series, NBC’s rejection will equate to a seven-figure penalty to the drama produced by Warner Bros. TV. The pilot is not being shopped to any other networks. (Cynopsis 5/13)
Viacom may be forced to sell Paramount Pictures, according to Citigroup analyst Jason Bazinet, despite the success of "Star Trek." Viacom’s cable networks, weakened as more advertising moves to the Internet, will find it more difficult to "subsidize the struggling studio." (Iwantmedia 5/13, http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090512-714791.html 5/12)
Disney CFO Tom Staggs is selling 75,000 shares in the media company for $1.9 million — a move seen as bad news for the stock of the parent of ABC and ESPN. Says one observer: "I would not want to be a buyer of Disney when the CFO is selling such a large percentage" of shares. (Iwantmedia 5/13, http://online.barrons.com/article/SB124207971494308217.html 5/12)
Insight Communications, the country’s ninth-largest cable provider, added 16,000 basic-video customers in the first quarter as well as 30,700 digital subscribers, 19,900 broadband users and 24,500 phone lines. The company totaled 91,200 new revenue-generating units during the first three months of the year and reported revenue of $236.7 million, 15% higher than the comparable time frame in 2008. CED Magazine (5/2009) , OneTRAK (5/12)
Filed under: ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
Warner Home Video plans to sync Facebook with the interactive features of its Blu-ray discs, starting with the release of "Watchmen Director’s Cut" in July. Purchasers of "Watchmen" will be allowed to share comments with their Facebook friends as they watch the film. (Iwantmedia 5/13, http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i4b5caa365ad73b3a32b7e201b5eae9c0 5/11)
Sounds nice but I would love to see it in action…
A few years ago, old-media companies from ABC to Viacom, aiming to show that they had a clue when it came to the Internet, created the position of chief digital strategist. Today some media incumbents are dropping the role altogether, as deals fall by the wayside. (Iwantmedia 5/13, http://money.cnn.com/2009/05/11/technology/lashinsky_cio.fortune/ 5/11)
Quincy Smith, the head of CBS Interactive since November 2006, is said to be planning to leave to start his own consultancy, possibly as soon as this summer. His departure isn’t believed to be imminent. CBS says it declines to comment on rumor and speculation. (Iwantmedia 5/13, http://mediamemo.allthingsd.com/20090511/cbs-digital-boss-quincy-smith-plans-his-next-deal-his-own-ma-shop/ 5/11)
Longtime Time Warner Cable exec Andrew Heller is being named vice chairman of Turner Broadcasting System, where he will act as coordinator for Time Warner’s "TV Everywhere." The initiative aims to make cable TV content available online for verified subscribers. (Iwantmedia 5/13, http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=136593 5/12)
The four co-founders of the file-sharing site The Pirate Bay aim to sabotage the $3.6 million fine owned to media giants for breaking copyright laws. The quartet is asking supporters to make minuscule online payments on their behalf, in hopes that tiny submissions will wreck the system. (Iwantmedia 5/13, http://www.nypost.com/seven/05132009/business/swedish_phish__web_pirates_wont_pay_boot_168941.htm 5/13)
iLike
, the popular music discovery site with a huge presence on social networks, is launching a set of new syndication services for musicians. Beginning tonight, iLike now offers extensive integration with Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, and YouTube, allowing artists to distribute content to each of their online presences from a single control panel. In addition to these, the company is also launching a new self-serve platform for building customized iPhone applications for artists, allowing them to establish themselves on the App Store with a minimum amount of effort and resources. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/05/13/ilike-launches-custom-iphone-apps-syndication-platform-to-help-artists-cast-a-wide-net/ 5/13)
Entertainment Weekly and YouTube are teaming up to capitalize on ABC’s "Lost," as scores of fans await the season finale. The Time Inc. title is "guest-editing" YouTube’s home-page spotlighted video section, marking the first time a consumer magazine has curated the module. (Iwantmedia 5/13, http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/content_display/news/national-broadcast/e3i641dc7e691e8df84bac0ada8e62eb50b 5/13)
Ashton Kutcher got his start on the small screen. His roles in That 70s Show and development of the MTV show Punk’d (which is being kind of reborn with Ustream) allowed him to become a movie star. But these days he seems more interested in using the web to further his career. His recent race with CNN to be the first user with a million Twitter followers was just one facet of what he’s doing online. He also has his own web-based show Blah Girls![clip_image003[1]](http://dailymarauder.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/clip_image00313.gif?w=1&h=1 "clip_image003[1]"){kind=small}
. But now he’s sending that the opposite way: Back to television. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/05/13/blah-girls-jumps-from-the-web-to-tv-as-kutcher-does-the-opposite/ 5/13)
AOL is said to be firing a large number of employees in its Platform-A sales unit. Remaining sales reps are being told the fired staffers will be replaced with new ones — "most likely from Google." New AOL CEO Tim Armstrong and sales boss Jeff Levick are veterans of Google.
(Iwantmedia 5/13, http://www.businessinsider.com/aol-fires-17-in-ad-sales-will-replace-them-with-googlers-2009-5 5/13)
After coming under increasing scrutiny from various state attorney generals for the open prostitution listings in its “erotic services” category, Craigslist is now folding![clip_image003[2]](http://dailymarauder.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/clip_image00321.gif?w=1&h=1 "clip_image003[2]"){kind=small}
in the face of criminal charges.The company said in a blog post![clip_image003[3]](http://dailymarauder.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/clip_image00331.gif?w=1&h=1 "clip_image003[3]"){kind=small}
that it will replace the erotic services category with a new “Adult services” category where each ad will be individually reviewed before posting. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/05/13/hookers-no-longer-welcome-on-craigslist/ 5/13)
Production company Gotham City Films has founded a new non-profit charity production division and the company dreamed up a web series to launch it. Nights At The Round Table, (think Jon Favreu’s Dinner for Five without the film focus) will premiere on multiple portals, feature a different celebrity and tackle a different cause each week. Gotham principle Beth Beasley has already lined up Hilary Duff, Shane Black and others and will host each dinner at her West Hollywood abode. (Cynopsis 5/13)
Broadcast Network Websites – Unique Viewers – April ’09
Name Unique Viewers
ABC.com 5.0 million
CBS Television 3.4 million
NBC.com 3.3 million
Fox Broadcasting 2.1 million
Cwtv.com 549,000
Top 10 Programs – Unique Viewers – April ’09
Program Net Unique Viewers
Dancing with the Stars ABC 1.711 million
Lost ABC 1.708 million
The Unusuals ABC 1.069 million
Desperate Housewives ABC 1.053 million
Grey’s Anatomy ABC 998,000
Ugly Betty ABC 721,000
Saturday Night Live NBC 672,000
Survivor CBS 561,000
Castle ABC 537,000
NCIS CBS 528,000
Top 10 Programs – Total Streams – April ’09
Program Net Unique Viewers
Lost ABC 36.7 million
The Office NBC 16.9 million
Heroes NBC 14.3 million
Dancing with the Stars ABC 13.7 million
Young and the Restless CBS 12.3 million
Grey’s Anatomy ABC 11.7 million
NCIS CBS 9.82 million
Desperate Housewives ABC 9.79 million
Castle ABC 8.27 million
House FOX 7.7 million
Source: Nielsen Online
Filed under: WIRELESS
The Imeem app currently available on the Android platform has now been submitted for iPhone App approval.( http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/05/13/imeem-about-to-expand-iphone-storage-by-way-of-the-cloud/ 5/13)
Apple is still trying to nab users who "jailbreak" their iPhones — that is install software that lets them download unofficial third-party applications, a practice that some groups defend on the grounds that it is free and does no harm to Apple. In a 2008 filing with the U.S. Copyright Office, Apple charged that jailbreaking violates the law, can damage the device and relies on modified software that infringes on its copyright. The New York Times (5/12)
Google introduced a new feature Tuesday that will deepen search connections between cell phones and PCs. Still in development, the tool will automatically send a search that a user performed on a PC to a Web-enabled cell phone. The feature was one of a slew of new search developments Google announced. Reuters (5/12)
Filed under: TECHNOLOGY
Despite reports to the contrary, plasma is by no means "on the way out" in terms of providing a high-quality TV-display experience, according to those who make the displays, such as LG Electronics. "Nope," said LG’s director of product development, Tim Alessi. "Plasma will continue to be a viable technology for flat-panel displays in the near- to mid-term future." HD Guru (5/12)
Borg Displays has introduced the Protege8 and the Protege15, two new home-control-system interfaces that use touch-screen technology. The in-wall units can control a number of home-related functions — including those for DVRs, energy-management tools and Web-based devices — and are highly energy-efficient, according to the company. ElectronicHouse.com (5/11)
Despite improvements in some countries, worldwide software piracy was on the rise last year, according to a new study conducted by researcher IDC for the Business Software Alliance. The report said that piracy accounted for 41% of all PC software in 2008, up from 38% in 2007, and led to $53 billion in estimated losses to companies. Reuters (5/12)
