Ariel Braunstein and Scott Kabat, formerly of Pure Digital Technologies (creator of the Flip Video line of camcorders), have launched a new venture called Knowmia — “a crowdsourced video platform designed to help teachers find and create online video lessons while improving the learning experience for students,” reports Digital Trends.
Knowmia is a member of Y Combinator’s collection of start-ups. Its software curates video lessons from teachers around the world for a personalized, affordable approach to online tutoring.
“The platform offers more than 7,000 free lessons that cover a variety of subjects, including algebra, chemistry, history and American literature,” notes the post.
The videos are primarily from YouTube and Vimeo. The start-up has recruited teachers who add related content including notes and quizzes. The goal is to create a centralized hub for educational videos.
Digital Trends draws comparisons to Khan Academy and TED’s new education platform.
“The team describes its ‘Knowmia Teach’ app as an ‘iMovie for teachers,’ allowing educators to mark up their lessons and videos in interactive demonstrations for their students,” explains the post. “In this way, Knowmia’s app competes directly with that of Educreations and ShowMe, both of which offer interactive whiteboards for teachers that let them create interactive, multimedia lessons.”
“High frame rate (HFR) cinema isn’t here yet, but it’s one of the most talked-about topics in the media and entertainment space,” notes Debra Kaufman for Creative COW. “But how many frames per second is ideal? How does HFR cinema change the workflow and the bottom line?”
A group of experts met for a panel during the recent SIGGRAPH conference in Los Angeles to discuss “why we should be excited by the opportunities of HFR cinema and what we can expect in day-to-day production and post workflows.”
“The higher the frame rate, the more realistic the image, and even more so with 3D,” said pioneer Douglas Trumbull. “My interest is in hyper-cinema. By combining 3D with extremely high frame rate on an extremely large screen at extreme brightness, the result is more like live performance. This offers a new interesting unanticipated opportunity to make movies that are like live events. The viewer is in the movie, on the adventure.”
HFR advocate James Cameron screened test footage of identical content comparing 24 fps, 48 fps and 60 fps versions. His producing partner Jon Landau explained that HFR technology can raise the impact of both 2D and 3D experiences.
“We want to find technologies that disappear and transport the audience more into the narrative story,” said Landau. “We thought 3D was one step in that direction. We have a responsibility as filmmakers to continue to push technology to tell stories in better ways, to tell stories that couldn’t be told before and to drive people out of their homes into theaters.”
ILM visual effects supervisor Dennis Muren experimented at home by playing Ray Harryhausen’s stop-motion animated film “The 7th Voyage of Sinbad” at higher rates and noted how motion looked more natural and characters looked less artificial. He also experimented with TV commercials at 120 fps.
“I think HFR is a great tool,” Muren said. “It’s closer to reality. You can always filter the camera or cut it back, all the things that cameramen have done to take the curse off video. But the audiences can connect more. Add 3D on top of that and you’re there. I’m a big proponent of it.”
The panel discussed the history of frame rate experimentation and the cost and production considerations that led to 24 fps as a standard for film. The group also addressed current experimentation and how dramatically new the possibilities are in a digital process. Additionally, obstacles were addressed, specifically the potential massive amount of data involved with HFR production.
“The enthusiasm over the possibilities of HFR cinema was tempered by some of the impact on VFX and post production toolsets and workflows,” reports Kaufman. “But if the past — including the recent past with the adoption of 3D — is any indication, this won’t hold anything back.”
Reaction to the upcoming 48 fps screenings of Peter Jackson’s “The Hobbit” will be influential, suggests Kaufman: “If audiences are enthusiastic, everything will fall into place: studios will greenlight HFR projects, some directors will enthusiastically embrace it, hardware and software vendors will come out with the technology to handle it, and the VFX and post houses will deal with the consequences, as they always have.”
We should expect a decline in network television coverage of this year’s national political conventions, but a dramatic “gavel-to-gavel” increase in Web streaming.
Online video will move to the forefront as the top four broadcast networks compete with new rival start-ups such as Politico and The Huffington Post to cover speeches and events live via the Web.
The Internet will take center stage when Republicans convene in Tampa, Florida next week and Democrats the week after in Charlotte, North Carolina.
“NBC, in fact, is likely to forgo prime-time TV coverage entirely of the Democratic convention the night of Wednesday, September 5, when it is contractually bound to air the kickoff game of the NFL season between the New York Giants and the Dallas Cowboys,” reports the Wall Street Journal.
“This year, more than any other cycle, we are going to reach millions more viewers in ways other than just television,” said Marc Burstein, senior executive producer for special events at ABC News.
There will also be some interesting social tie-ins as more audiences are expected to access coverage via smartphones and tablets than TVs.
“Time magazine, for example, has formed a partnership with Foursquare, a location-based mobile check-in service, for the conventions, in which Time has provided content that users can unlock when they get to certain locations in Tampa and Charlotte,” notes the article.
“CNN has joined with Facebook Inc. to gather political sentiment from its users. Bloomberg has teamed up with Event Farm on apps to simplify ticketing to events at the conventions. Other organizations, including National Journal, have launched their own apps to help visitors navigate the conventions.”
VentureBeat recently took the new Cadillac XTS sedan for a test drive and reports on the company’s CUE (Cadillac User Experience) digital system.
CUE has an in-dash display with 8-inch capacitive LCD touchscreen and a heads-up display on the lower part of the windshield.
“It’s kind of a space-age experience, dubbed ‘car infotainment,’ that gives us a glimpse of the future of cars and technology,” notes VentureBeat.
CUE lets you call up your favorite radio stations and phone numbers. Up to 60 favorites can be reached with one or two finger gestures.
“Points of interest can include any locations, like your home and work addresses, the best gas station, the nearest grocery store, and other places that you go to often,” notes the post. “If Starbucks is your favorite coffee place, you can tap on the Starbucks favorite button and it will call up the nearest places.”
The system includes a 1.8-liter storage space under the dash with USB for charging your iPhone or calling up your music collection on the dashboard screen. You can easily access apps on the screen (Android phones can also connect via Bluetooth).
“Navigation works particularly well with CUE. If you have a map showing you turn-by-turn navigation, the lower part of the menu will fade out and disappear if your finger isn’t near it,” explains the review. “This gives you a bigger map screen to view, helping you navigate better by minimizing distractions. You can pinch and zoom on the 3D map to focus on a particular spot on the map. Points of interest, weather, and your Onstar safety system are also easily accessible.”
Those who want to avoid the touchscreen while driving can opt for voice commands via Nuance speech recognition technology.
CUE, powered by a three-core ARM11-based processor, comes standard in the new Cadillac ($44,075-$61,805).
“Outline transition plan for new CEO. Discuss potential candidates and process,” states a confidential internal memo dated in July, and obtained by Variety. The three-page document reportedly details how two of Hulu’s parent companies, News Corp. and Disney, plan to transform the streaming service.
“Whether that plan will be carried out with or without CEO Jason Kilar, whose future at the joint venture has been the subject of speculation for nearly two years, is the question,” reports Variety. “But sources caution that no search committee has been hired nor have other candidates been approached for his job. There have been preliminary talks between Kilar and Hulu board members about his future, but without resolution.”
The article notes this is an example of the “central tension gripping media conglomerates today as they juggle the often conflicting interests of growing the brands of tomorrow while still protecting existing revenue streams.”
A management buyout of Providence Equity Partners, another Hulu owner, is expected to close in September. The buyout will allow Hulu execs with vested shares, including Kilar, to cash out. The change in ownership structure could also lead to significant changes in content licensing agreements.
“As tremendous a payday as the one likely coming to him next month, he’s likely to be richly rewarded for sticking it out and growing the company to the point that could yield greater upside down the line,” the article points out regarding Kilar. “That said, his owners remain concerned he has enough money coming to launch a new vision elsewhere.”
According to Variety, the memo also outlines potential amendments to programming:
1) “No more exclusivity for current-season content once restricted to Hulu and the networks’ respective websites. Now Disney and News Corp. can turn around and license programming to another third-party, i.e. YouTube, which could dilute Hulu’s competitive advantage in the marketplace.”
2) “No more content parity. ABC.com and Fox.com will be able to hold back certain content to differentiate their own sites from Hulu, which was once entitled to everything on the networks’ sites.”
3) “Exclusive ‘super-distribution’ rights Hulu once retained to syndicate content to third-party sites like Yahoo and AOL would revert back to Disney and News Corp.”
In the wake of a federal ruling that online video viewing is protected by U.S. privacy law, Hulu could face millions of dollars in damages for transmitting consumer information to third parties.
The suit alleges that the video-streaming service forwarded viewing information of its users to Scorecard Research, Facebook, DoubleClick, Google Analytics and QuantCast.
“In a proposed class-action against Hulu, U.S. Magistrate Laurel Beeler ruled the Video Privacy Protection Act of 1988 applies to Hulu,” reports Wired. “The popular video-streaming service… argued that the 1988 act, passed to protect video store rental records, did not apply to streaming services.”
“The question is whether the mechanism of delivery here — streaming versus bricks-and-mortar delivery — ends this case at the pleading stage,” wrote Beeler. “Hulu’s remaining argument is only that it is not a ‘video tape service provider’ because the VPPA does not expressly cover digital distribution (a term that did not exist when Congress enacted the statute). Given Congress’ concern with protecting consumers’ privacy in an evolving technological world, the court rejects the argument.”
Congress adopted the VPPA in 1988 after Supreme Court nominee Robert Bork’s video rentals were published in a newspaper. The act requires consumer consent for disclosure of such information, something that may not suit today’s digital approach to media.
“Netflix is lobbying Congress to alter the law, seeking to allow its customers to automatically share their viewing history on Facebook or other social-networking sites,” explains Wired. “Music streaming services allow this feature, but the Video Privacy Protection Act forbids it for video.”
“The Hulu privacy case is now one step closer to trial, and the question of who can share your video playlist is about to break wide open,” suggests ReadWriteWeb in a related post. “The VPPA, the argument goes, puts video streaming businesses at a serious disadvantage on the social Web, especially when you compare them to, say, audio streamers like Pandora and Spotify.”
Closing arguments are likely to be held this week in a potentially groundbreaking lawsuit that could impact how tablets and smartphones look and work.
As previously reported on ETCentric, Apple is seeking $2.5 billion in damages from Samsung for alleged patent infringement, while Samsung has countersued for $422 million.
“After nearly a month of testimony in the legal dogfight between Apple and Samsung over patents, the two parties are expected to make their closing arguments on Tuesday,” reports The New York Times. “It will then be up to jurors to hash out which Apple patents, if any, Samsung stepped on when it created devices that compete with the iPhone and iPad.”
Should Apple win, Samsung and others will likely start designing smartphones and tablets that look very different from Apple’s products.
However, a win for Samsung could have the opposite effect. “Expect to see an awful lot of Apple knockoffs without fear of retribution,” says Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at tech research firm Gartner.
“Although Apple sued Samsung, the outcome of the case has broader implications for other companies that create devices based on Google’s Android operating system, along with Google itself,” notes the article.
“Apple wants an order permanently barring Samsung, the largest maker of Android smartphones, from selling products in the United States that violate its patents. A legal victory against Samsung could give Apple extra ammunition in lawsuits it has filed against other Android makers,” explains NYT.
While some reports suggest Samsung has been on the defensive much of the trial, analysts have suggested the outcome may not swing fully in one direction or the other.
Jorge Contreras, associate professor of law at American University, predicts a “mixed result” — with Apple winning a few of its claims and losing others. Contreras suggests Apple has better footing with its claim of infringement on design patents for the iPhone and iPad, but has a challenge in proving claims regarding “utility patents” that address various software functions.
A promising new technology hopes to offer 3D films on television displays without the need for special 3D glasses. According to the Fraunhofer Institute, researchers plan to unveil the technology at the end of the month during Berlin’s IFA trade show.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications research team at the Heinrich-Hertz Institute in Berlin says it has developed a new technology that converts Blu-ray 3D content in real-time to be shown on autostereoscopic displays.
“We take the existing two images and generate a depth map — that is to say, a map that assigns a specific distance from the camera to each object,” says Christian Riechert, research fellow at HHI. “From there we compute any of several intermediate views by applying depth image-based rendering techniques.”
“And here’s the really neat thing: the process operates on a fully automated basis, and in real-time,” adds Riechert.
Simultaneous interpretation allows the viewer to screen a 3D Blu-ray disc without the need for glasses while enjoying the same familiar experience of a conventional stereoscopic approach, including the ability to fast forward, rewind, start and stop, etc. The researchers claim that flickering on the edges of objects (commonly due to imprecise estimations) is now imperceptible.
The team’s next step is to collaborate with industry partners to port the software onto a hardware product that can be used with televisions. The post suggests it will be “at least another calendar year” before we see a product in stores.
The first-ever LA Mobile Arts Festival is set to open this weekend in Santa Monica, celebrating iPhoneography — the “up-and-coming art form” launched by the popularity of the iPhone’s built-in camera and a growing collection of compelling apps.
“The event features 600-plus works from iPhone artists around the world — prints, mixed-media installations, sculptures, sound and video projects, and more,” notes CNET. “It’s sponsored by iPhoneArt.com, one of a number of online communities dedicated to sharing and promoting the burgeoning mobile arts.”
The festival, which will feature works by more than 150 mobile photographers, will also showcase innovative techniques in underground mobile art, reinventing the daguerreotype, and performance art. It will include hands-on workshops and photowalks along Venice Beach and the Santa Monica Pier.
The event will take place for one week at the 22,000-square foot Santa Monica Art Studios (3026 Airport Avenue). The opening gala is slated for Saturday, August 18, 7:00-10:00 pm.
Mobile ad company InMobi recently surveyed 1,055 Americans regarding how much time they spend engaged with different types of media.
“Users responded that they watched TV for 141 minutes a day,” reports Business Insider. “But they spent 144 minutes a day — 26 percent of the nine hours they used various media — with their phones.”
The post features an infographic that breaks down mobile device usage and mobile activities during a typical day. The most common activities of mobile use include general information and search, social media, games, entertainment, email, local search, shopping and banking/paying bills.
Interesting statistics regarding which media most impact purchasing decisions: 59 percent for mobile devices, 57 percent for TV and only 34 percent for computers.
According to the infographic: “66 percent are more or equally comfortable with mobile advertising vs. TV or online ads.”
Broadcast networks are now battling two streaming TV start-ups that transmit their content without permission.
“Alki David, the provocative media entrepreneur who recently launched an Aereo-like streaming TV service called BarryDriller.com, may have unintentionally just done broadcasters a huge favor in their fight to stop both online video services,” reports Adweek.
“That’s because instead of solely banking on a favorable legal outcome against Aereo in New York, broadcasters now have a second suit in a different jurisdiction,” explains the post.
This could potentially provide two routes for appeal to the Supreme Court if either lower court decides against them.
ABC, CBS and NBC have joined the FOX lawsuit against BarryDriller.com in a federal court in California. The networks are already seeking to stop the Barry Diller-backed Aereo service in a New York federal court.
“The problem the networks had in New York, they were trying to swim upstream to get away from the Cablevision decision,” notes David Wittenstein, partner and head of the communications practice for Dow Lohnes. “If you’re the networks, you go to another court in another part of the country. You start with a clean slate.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if the Supreme Court overturned the underpinnings of Cablevision,” comments Mary Rasenberger, partner with Cowan, DeBaets, Abrahams & Sheppard. “The Supreme Court has a more holistic view of copyright than the lower courts do.”
Sony Computer Entertainment has announced that its PlayStation Mobile cross-platform gaming service will launch this fall, available on PlayStation Vita and Sony’s Xperia mobile devices.
“Previously branded the PlayStation Suite, it will provide a platform for third-party software developers and publishers to create new content like games for portable devices,” reports Reuters.
The new service will initially be made available in nine countries including Japan, Canada and the United States.
The Sony unit also says that Asustek Computer and Wikipad will participate in the PlayStation Certified licensing program, so users of mobile devices from those companies can access PlayStation Mobile content.
“Makers of iOS and Android devices depend on content to boost hardware sales and a community of developers to generate application software content,” explains the post. “Sony did not fully elaborate on its PlayStation Mobile plans in terms of costs and revenue projections, but it has pinned its long-term growth on mobile and gaming devices.”
Forbes published an interesting guest post this week from Al Bunshaft, managing director North America for Dassault Systemes.
Bunshaft discusses the noteworthy trend toward 3D as a new standard for communication via manufacturing and design industries, and now through consumers.
“What’s fascinating about this recent trend is that it is being driven not by consumers’ need to disassociate themselves from their everyday lives, but rather the ability to interact with their own world in new ways,” he writes. “We’ve now entered the Age of 3D Experience.”
For the first time, 3D technology is accessible and affordable to all in an era of powerful, miniature processors. “You don’t need an engineering degree to design, interact or work with 3D objects; you just need an Internet connection,” suggests Bunshaft.
Gaming, movies and television are three forms of entertainment media that are pushing to create more lifelike experiences through advancements in 3D.
“Realism is critical to sustain consumers’ attention which is why 3D environments created using real, scientific data are becoming the communication standard of the world today,” writes Bunshaft, noting additional examples of 3D beyond entertainment such as archeology, trauma treatment, training in the oil and gas industry, virtual clinical trials and crash safety.
“Unique 3D experiences have pragmatic applications in our everyday lives. Similar to the Internet’s story arc, 3D is evolving from a solitary initiative to a community one,” writes Bunshaft.
“People are able to interact with lifelike 3D models and with people from around the world to flatten the world out just a little bit more. The basic human need to congregate with like-minded individuals is driving 3D to its next, fascinating iteration,” he concludes. “Personally, I can’t wait to see it.”
3D pioneer Gene Dolgoff (who invented the first LCD projector, helped develop HDTV, and is currently revolutionizing lenticular imaging technologies at 3-D Vision Inc.) has created a prototype box that he claims will convert any TV into a 3D set.
“Could this be the spark the long-promised 3D revolution needs?” asks Adam Rosenberg, writing for Digital Trends.
Dolgoff — who built his first stereoscopic CRT in 1963 — hopes to provide digital stereoscopic 3D to every viewer with a low-cost device that will convert any type of television into a 3D TV.
“He’s established a Fundable to get the project going — complete with a competition built around having a community-sourced design for the device — and he may well turn to Kickstarter for additional funding once the groundwork is established,” explains the post.
“I was immediately doubtful when I read the pitch,” writes Rosenberg. “After seeing it in person, my doubts were proven to be unfounded. This tech works. And it works exceptionally well.”
Working from his 3-D Vision lab on Long Island, Dolgoff demonstrated the bulky, noisy converter to Rosenberg on multiple displays using DVD, Blu-ray, PlayStation 3 and live television broadcasts.
Rosenberg reports the prototype’s results were impressive and notes that a mass-produced version would be much smaller, lighter, and presumably make less noise.
According to Dolgoff, the software does all the heavy lifting: “It takes the two-dimensional input video signal and it looks at two frames at a time. It looks at brightness, contrast, color saturation, sharpness, position in the frame, because as the depth goes back, all of these things decrease. When you have motion, the occlusion of background objects by foreground objects also gives a lot of information.”
“My whole initial thrust was [the knowledge] that we can’t get everyone to buy a new TV, that’s going to be a logjam. So let’s find a way to make everybody able to see 3D right away with whatever they have,” says Dolgoff. “Once we get it out there, it’s going to get a lot more people watching 3D on their 2D sets and a lot more people buying 3D sets. That’ll start increasing the installed base, which will then provide the incentive for more content to be made in 3D. And then the 3D consumer field will really take off.”
Apple was granted a patent this week for technology resembling a cable box that would allow users of its TV device to change channels via an onscreen menu that appears over the video display.
If the company acts on the patent, Apple TV “will upgrade to live TV, complete with regular and cable channels, and recording abilities,” reports CNET.
The original 2006 patent filing includes supporting images of TV shows from HBO, ABC, CBS and FOX — and indicates that search and browse tools would be integrated into the system.
“If Apple comes through on these designs, this could really boost the functionality — and popularity — of Apple TV, which has been limited by a dearth of native channels,” notes CNET. “Its greatest asset has been with connecting Apple devices for those who own many of them, but for everyone else, there has always been other choices to go to for TV programming.”
The post includes a copy of the full patent application.