The Consumer Electronics Association released data this week that suggests a quarter of prospective TV buyers in the U.S. are searching for a 3D-capable set.
“The consumers we talk to want their TVs to be smart and they want them to be 3D,” says analyst Richard Doherty of Envisioneering. “Consumer interest is alive and well.”
According to Rod Riegel, a spokesman for 3Net, 3D TV sets will reach more than 15.3 million U.S. homes by the end of the year and 30 million U.S. homes by the end of 2013. By comparison, HDTV was in only 2 million homes three years into its progression.
Still, growth in 3D channels such as 3Net has been slow. Nintendo announced it will shut down its 3D programming channel by the end of June.
“The other big 3D channel introduced at about the same time as 3Net, Disney’s ESPN 3D, has also struggled to expand its carriage beyond a launch group of top multichannel operators that included Comcast, DirecTV, Time Warner Cable, Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-Verse — and in fact, U-Verse dropped the channel last summer citing low demand,” reports paidContent.
The Pebble Smartwatch has received over $10 million in funding since it began its Kickstarter campaign, easily passing the previous funding record on the popular site.
“Pebble, a smartwatch that wirelessly connects with your smartphone to alert you of incoming calls and messages, blew past the previous Kickstarter record of $3.3 million only five days after launching its crowdsourced funding effort,” reports Wired. “It’s an amazing feat when you consider just how many big-name smartphone and tablet brands are fighting for the same attention.”
Pebble’s ability to connect with the iPhone has helped it capture a mainstream audience, with 85,000 orders from Kickstarter alone.
The Pebble watch will allow users to access notifications for calls, texts, weather, e-mails, and tweets on a 1.26 inch reflective display intended to operate well in direct sunlight.
Pebble has also begun creating partnerships with app developers, including Runkeeper and Twine.
“Pebble has already made Kickstarter history, but it will be even more exciting to see what becomes of the watch once it begins shipping this September. Will it be everything that the 67,000-plus Kickstarter backers are expecting? We won’t know until we get our hands on the finished product,” comments Wired. “It’s clear, at least, that the Pebble team is already working hard to make the best possible device for its initial supporters.”
On the brink of going public, Facebook faces “a new, unenviable test: how to keep growing and enriching its hungry new shareholders,” reports The New York Times.
Another challenge will be, as Facebook attempts to match ads to each user, it needs to do so without violating the sense of privacy and security that users hope for on a social network.
Additionally, Facebook needs to figure out other revenue options, “like allowing people to buy more goods and services with Facebook Credits, a kind of virtual currency,” suggests NYT.
It also needs to figure out how to make money on mobile devices, as more of its users log in through smartphones and tablets, which have so far been much less profitable for the company.
“The first wave of Intel-based Windows 8 tablets are expected to land in retail stores in November,” reports CNET, and more than a dozen of the products will be hybrids, according to a source. The hybrid or convertible models will incorporate aspects of both tablets and traditional computers.
“The schedule is tight,” said the source. “Looking at what Windows is trying to achieve not only with a new OS, but a new OS that needs to run four to five architectures — three ARM, Intel, and AMD.”
The Windows 8 devices will use Intel’s new Clover Trail Atom chip. The dual-core chip is designed using Intel’s 32-nanometer process technology.
There’s also a Bay Trail chip in development. “It is a gigantic performer, with similar battery life to Clover Trail,” said the source. “It will also have a lot of security features built in and Infineon [3G/4G] silicon inside.”
Researchers from the Tokyo Institute of Technology have broken the record for wireless data transmission in a proof of concept experiment, reports Gizmodo.
The scientists achieved data speeds in the terahertz range that were 20 times higher than current Wi-Fi speeds.
The team achieved this success by utilizing the “T-ray” band, part of the electromagnetic spectrum between microwave and infrared — a currently unregulated segment of the electromagnetic spectrum.
The impressive data speeds were made possible by using “a 1 millimeter-square device known as a resonant tunneling diode, which produces smaller voltages with increasing current,” explains Gizmodo. “By tuning the current, the team are able to make the tiny device resonate, and spit out signals in the terahertz band.”
Microsoft hopes to enhance the Xbox 360 experience by providing users with Web browsing capability. Microsoft is currently testing a modified version of Internet Explorer 9 that would allow users to browse from their Xbox 360.
Geek.com reports the modified version includes Kinect integration, which would allow users to surf the Web “using voice and gesture controls on your console in the very near future.”
The announcement comes soon after the success of PS3’s Webkit browser, which suggests users may now be embracing console-based Web browsing more than they had in the past.
In addition to Internet Explorer 9 integration, Xbox 360 is also working on a Skype app, and Microsoft is rumored to be releasing the “Woodstock” music service at E3. Geek.com believes these changes signal Xbox 360’s shift from “a connected gaming console into a more full-featured living room entertainment hub.”
Research firm BIA/Kelsey predicts that social media spending will grow at a compound annual rate of 21 percent.
The firm predicts that by 2016, advertisers will spend $9.8 billion in social media advertising. Last year, $3.8 billion was spent in social media advertising.
“BIA/Kelsey (which advises companies in the local media space) further forecasts the local segment of U.S. social media ad revenues to grow from $840 million in 2011 to $3.1 billion in 2016, driven by better performance and richer ad formats like videos,” reports The Next Web.
“The firm says Twitter and Facebook will be a boon for local businesses and ‘democratize social ads’ by offering self-service ad creation, distribution and analytics tools,” adds the post.
A new Nielsen report suggests people are more likely to shop with their smartphones when buying expensive consumer goods.
TechCrunch reports: “mobile coupons are most popular at grocery stores, (41 percent of mobile shoppers said they used coupons there), department stores (41 percent), and clothing stores (39 percent). At electronics stores, the majority (73 percent) read reviews, compare prices (71 percent), and scan QR codes (57 percent).”
People do not frequently use smartphones when at convenience or dollar stores, but occasionally use smartphones at mass merchandisers such as Walmart and Costco. Although these stores are known for their low prices, 34 percent of customers read reviews and 31 percent scan QR codes, according to the Nielsen study.
“Given the right pricing on the right products, it seems department stores, electronics retailers and online shops can woo customers from the Walmart-sized chains, when it comes to higher priced goods,” adds TechCrunch. “With brick-and-mortar stores turning into Amazon’s showroom, it’s more important than ever that merchants offer in-store shoppers some other advantage besides low prices. Expect the new crop of customer loyalty startups to have a big role in framing what that advantage might be.”
Not everyone is excited about Dish’s new ad-skipping technology. The interface allows users to skip over commercials after being exposed to them for a very short time, “maybe the first second,” details TechCrunch.
Dish records all prime-time TV automatically on its Hopper DVRs, making content available online right after airing on TV, and its “AutoHop” feature allows for skipping over commercials while watching.
“Obviously everyone with a DVR skips over commercials. It’s a given and it’s the way things work now,” comments the post. “However, for Dish to formalize the process programmatically is a wild move. It’s akin to a movie theater allowing folks to vote on whether the audience will see those inane pre-feature ads and previews.”
“Imagine if, a few years ago, ‘Lost’ or another huge, sprawling epic drama was available online immediately after it aired. This sort of episode saturation is a new paradigm for TV watching, one that even time-shifting advocates didn’t foresee,” explains TechCrunch.
Android continues to boost its global market share, according to a new study from Kantar WorldPanel.
“The firm’s latest research showed that Android picked up strong market share gains in most of the seven major nations around the world, including the United States, Australia, the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. The gains were measured over a 12-week period up until mid April,” reports CNET.
In both Spain and Germany, Android more than doubled its market share to 72 percent and 62 percent, respectively.
According to Kantar WorldPanel, the increases can be attributed to new smartphones from Samsung and HTC, which continue to draw market share away from RIM and Nokia.
“Android’s U.S. market share jumped to 61 percent last quarter, up from 49 percent during the holiday quarter, according to NPD. At the same time, Apple’s iOS lost ground, dropping to 29 percent from 41 percent during 2011’s fourth quarter,” indicates the post.
Anthony Mutua, a 24-year-old Kenyan man, has developed a new twist on green technology with his system that charges a phone with power generated by walking.
Mutua joins “other inventors in making mobile technology greener and more independent of traditional infrastructure,” reports Mobiledia.
For $46 dollars, consumers receive a thin crystal chip and extension cord. Users place the device inside their shoe as they walk and the pressure of each step helps to generate electricity and charge the user’s phone.
Other recent green technologies include a solar charging backpack from Ralph Lauren and a pedal-driven bike charger from Silverback.
These types of solutions are especially valuable in developing nations such as Kenya and India where traditional power sources can be costly. Exercise or solar driven devices allow consumers to circumvent government and control their own power usage.
Lilliputian Systems is developing a portable USB fuel cell capable of charging smartphones and other devices without the need for an electrical outlet.
The charger uses fuel cartridges about the size of a box of matches that are expected to cost between $3 to $5 each.
The device, targeted for release before the end of the year, will be in the $100-200 range. According to Lilliputian Systems, the device will be allowed as carry-on for air travel.
“Each fuel cell will be able to charge an iPhone 4 approximately 10 to 14 times over the life of the cartridge,” reports Digital Trends. “This device could be ideal for travelers heading overseas on short vacations as they could avoid having to purchase charging adapters. It would also be helpful for anyone using a power hungry portable gaming device like the PlayStation Vita.”
Berlin-based MoviePilot is putting a spin on traditional ways to market new movies. It brings upcoming films to fans based on their personal taste, “making better use of budgets,” according to TechCrunch.
“It focuses solely on upcoming movie projects and TV shows so that fans are less likely to miss new releases. This gives them a place to gather often long before official homepages are created, finding the right film for its natural audience and the right audience for a film,” details the post.
MoviePilot sealed $7 million Series B financing last week, including funding from venture capital firm DFJ Esprit, along with already existing contributions from T-Venture, Grazia Equity and VC Fund Creative Industries Berlin.
The funding will be used to expand into the U.S. and continue platform development.
MoviePilot has already worked with Twentieth Century Fox, Universal, Disney and Paramount.
In preparation for the planned Galaxy S III launch in Europe at the end of May, Samsung has announced a special edition Olympics phone.
“Samsung has partnered with Visa and Lloyds TSB bank in the UK to create the limited edition Galaxy S III, which will come bundled with a special Olympic-themed version of Visa’s payWave wireless payment system, allowing it to make full use of the phone’s NFC chip,” reports Digital Trends.
The Olympic S III will only be available to sponsored athletes, who “will be able to use payWave at various outlets in the Olympic Village, purchase items from around 140,000 stores outfitted with the necessary terminal and even pay for taxis,” explains the post.
“What hasn’t been revealed is whether payWave will appear as an application, or be installed on the SIM card, or how the system will need to be funded,” adds Digital Trends. “As no pictures of the device have been released yet either, we don’t know if it will have a unique color scheme or other Olympic branding to make it standout beside the standard S III.”
The NFC chip will be a standard feature when the new phone ships in the U.S. this summer.
David Carr of The New York Times observes how his own family uses TV, noting a dramatic downturn in the amount of time spent with live broadcasting.
He cites TV-related apps (especially for sports), Netflix, Hulu Plus and Apple TV as resources his family uses regularly.
“My 15-year-old has a television in her room, but it’s not even on the cable-broadcast grid; it is wired instead to a Web-enabled Wii,” explains Carr. “Like the laptop and smartphone that she never seems to be without, the television is just one more Web-enabled portal for content she controls.”
Live TV “seems very last century,” he writes. In fact, live ratings for network programs have declined for 14 consecutive quarters. In contrast, DVRs and video on demand each exist in nearly half of American homes. And online viewing with Netflix, Hulu and others has increased more than 46 percent over the last year.
“Outside of the professional football season or some breaking national news event, the television at our house has become uncoupled from the commercial-driven environment that drives the broadcast and cable business,” writes Carr. “We haven’t cut the cord so much as kinked it in a way that commercials rarely sneak through.”
Still, the big four broadcast networks and the CW will book some $9 billion in advertising revenue while the cable networks take in more than $9.6 billion during the upfronts. In spite of losing viewers, TV remains the mass medium of choice for advertisers.