During last week’s CEDIA Expo in Dallas, Sony showcased its new line of Full HD home theater projectors, including two models that support 4K. Sony is also providing high dynamic range support with its VPL-VW665ES, which allows HDMI input of HDR content with a 300,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio. Meanwhile, Kaleidescape debuted its Encore line with the 4K Strato movie player, the “world’s first 4K Ultra HD high dynamic range movie player for the home.” Kaleidescape showed new Alto players and the Terra server, which simultaneously streams 4K content to up to seven Strato players. Continue reading CEDIA Expo: 4K Players, Projectors Coming to Home Theaters

As 4K UHD TVs slowly come to market, and streaming services continue to introduce support for 4K and high dynamic range programming, Ultra HD Blu-ray is the next logical step. During its press conference at the IFA trade show in Berlin yesterday, Samsung became the first company to officially announce a 4K UHD Blu-ray player. Samsung’s UBD-K8500 supports HDR, offers 64 times the colors of standard Blu-ray, and plays UHD content at up to 60 frames per second. 20th Century Fox is providing content for the player, and plans to issue all its new releases in 4K Ultra HD with HDR. Continue reading IFA 2015: Samsung is First to Announce 4K UHD Blu-ray Player

Paramount Pictures is looking to experiment with two October film releases — “Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension” and “Scout’s Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse” — by shortening the length of time it takes to make them available to watch at home via digital platforms. AMC and Cineplex are joined by several smaller operators in participating in the new approach. However, Cinemark (the nation’s third largest exhibitor) and Regal Entertainment Group (the No. 1 chain in North America) have declined. Continue reading Paramount to Experiment with Flexible Film Release Window

Roku has updated its Roku 2 streaming box and is introducing platform enhancements that make it easier to find video content across multiple apps. The new Roku Search allows users to search for movies, TV shows, actors and directors across all apps via the interface. Since the company does not produce any of its own content, it does not include any bias when displaying content on its UI, something that cannot be said of rival streaming platforms. This may be appealing to television manufacturers looking for platform partnerhips. Continue reading Roku Announces Refresh for Streaming Box and Updates Search

Fox Searchlight has produced a virtual reality experience to promote the film “Wild” starring Reese Witherspoon. The three-minute, 360-degree sequence features Witherspoon as her character in the film as she takes a break from a hike in the woods. Fox Searchlight is planning on showing “Wild – The Experience” at the Consumer Electronics Show and the Sundance Film Festival next month. The immersive experience is compatible with Samsung’s Gear VR. Continue reading Reese Witherspoon Stars in ‘Wild’ Experience for the Gear VR

The home entertainment divisions of Hollywood studios are projected to generate record sales of movies and TV shows on digital platforms this holiday shopping season between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Digital sales are experiencing an upswing as more consumers access media via their mobile devices, smart TVs and connected game consoles. In addition, retailers such as Best Buy, Target and Walmart are pushing digital in an effort to make up for the downward trend in disc sales. Continue reading New Holiday Sales Records Predicted for Digital Home Video

According to DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group, U.S. consumer spending for Q3 2014 was an estimated $3.92 billion, down 1.2 percent from the same quarter last year. Consumer spending on DVDs and Blu-ray Discs combined was down 8 percent in the quarter, while electronic sell-through grew 26 percent. Transaction VOD was down almost 7 percent; however, spending on subscription VOD, such as Netflix streaming, saw an increase of more than 26 percent for the first nine months of the year. Continue reading DEG Numbers Point to SVOD Growth, Physical Disc Decline

The Entertainment Merchants Association will hold its Digital Media Pipeline on October 8 at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. Celebrating its sixth year, Digital Media Pipeline is a one-day B2B event that brings together thought leaders to discuss digital delivery of home entertainment. ETC’s Phil Lelyveld will be a featured speaker as part of a next-gen technology panel. ETC community members are invited to attend the conference at the discounted EMA member price of $295. Continue reading EMA to Hold Sixth Annual Digital Media Pipeline Next Week

To promote the home entertainment release of Ben Stiller’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” Twentieth Century Fox has teamed up with Google Glass and YouTube personality, iJustine, for a new way to experience Mitty’s adventures. From April 8-15, iJustine is in Reykjavik, Iceland as part of a crowdsourced adventure, recording her endeavors with Google Glass, and posting them on YouTube and other social media platforms. The film comes to Blu-ray and DVD April 15. Continue reading Google Glass Brings Fans on Real “Walter Mitty” Adventures

Revenue from digital platforms are up 24 percent for the first six months of 2013, as an increasing number of consumers are turning to online options for entertainment. While overall disc sales, including DVD and Blu-ray, declined 4.7 percent for the same period, revenue generated from Blu-ray discs are up 15 percent. According to the Digital Entertainment Group, consumer spending on home entertainment grew more than 2 percent to $8.6 billion. Continue reading Blu-ray, Electronic Sell Through and VOD Having Solid Year

Intel’s talks to purchase media content for a new TV service are moving forward, according to people familiar with the matter. Although Intel has yet to close any programming deals, the chip giant is reportedly offering to pay as much as 75 percent more for content than traditional cable rates. Sources indicate that Intel has moved substantially on subscriber fees it is willing to pay and has also suggested preventing viewers from skipping commercials for a show’s first run. Continue reading Sources Say Intel Advancing with TV Service Content Deals

During a Q3 earnings call Wednesday, News Corp. COO Chase Carey discussed how Fox has experienced significant growth in home video due to digital downloads. Carey cited digital rentals and downloads via sites such as iTunes and Amazon as the primary contributing factor. He also suggested that in a few years “Hulu will look a bit different than it does today,” in order to compete with Netflix. Continue reading Exec Credits Digital Downloads for Fox Home Video Growth

In a study conducted by NPD Group with over 4,000 participants, only 47 percent of home entertainment devices, such as Blu-ray players, gaming consoles, smart TVs and streaming media devices are connected to the Internet. Results of the study also determined that 40 percent of connected televisions are used to watch Netflix content, with other video sites such as YouTube following at 17 percent, and Hulu at 11 percent. Continue reading Majority of Entertainment Hardware Not Actually Connected

Home entertainment server maker Kaleidescape opened its own download store for HD movies this week. This new system lets users download “Blu-ray quality” versions of movies that can then be played through Kaleidescape or on the Web and through mobile devices via UltraViolet. However, there is a concern regarding the amount of data each download will consume, as each movie can average around 50GB. Continue reading Kaleidescape Launches Download Store for HD Movies

Consumers spent approximately $4.69 billion on home entertainment purchases and rentals during Q1 2013, according to the Digital Entertainment Group. Spending rose more than five percent over the same period in 2012, due to a new slate of titles and growth of electronic sell-through (largely a result of increased access to digital content). Some credit the success of UltraViolet, which may be loosening Apple’s grip on the EST market. Continue reading New Titles and EST Boost Home Entertainment Spending