Samsung’s new TV Discovery service will enable viewers to search for and watch live TV, on-demand video and online videos from outlets such as YouTube. The company plans to unveil the new platform at Mobile World Congress this week in Barcelona. TV Discovery will work on Samsung’s line of smart TVs and its mobile devices. The service will learn user preferences and give recommendations based on each user’s viewing history and interests. Continue reading Samsung to Launch TV Discovery for Video, Live Television

Film editor Dan Lebental, motivated by the desire to interact more directly with media, has designed an editing app called TouchEdit that he describes as a “21st century version of the Moviola.” Lebental was intrigued by the similarity of using the iPad’s touchscreen with how editors would formerly “touch film.” His app intends to bring back that simplicity while integrating the latest in mobile technology and cloud-based services. Continue reading Movie Editor Develops Frame-Based Editing App for iPad

Ratings company Nielsen announced this week it will expand its definition of television with a new comprehensive plan to measure video viewing across multiple platforms including broadband, Xbox and iPads. The decision to reach beyond traditional television viewing comes from the What Nielsen Measures Committee, a group comprised of members representing TV and cable networks, local TV stations, ad agencies and several big brand advertisers. Continue reading Nielsen to Redefine TV Ratings by Measuring New Platforms

According to journalist Michael Wolff, cable is on a fast track to oblivion with an unsustainable business model. Currently, cable operators pay media companies to carry their cable channels, then pass the costs onto customers in the form of large bundled cable bills. After that, cable channels get to sell advertising. But as viewing habits change and new options become available, consumers are increasingly abandoning the traditional model. Continue reading TV Viewing Trends: Is Cable On the Fast Track to Oblivion?

At the HPA Tech Retreat, Sony Pictures Television announced its plans to shoot between three and five pilots in 4K this season, perhaps signifying the beginning of a shift towards popularizing 4K. At last month’s CES in Las Vegas, there was a big push for the Ultra HD platform; about 50 sets were unveiled. But after the conference, many were left to wonder if content and delivery would be made available for the currently expensive TV sets. Continue reading HPA Tech Retreat: Sony to Shoot Several New Pilots in 4K

During this week’s Hollywood Post Alliance Tech Retreat in Indian Wells, California, industry veterans are discussing the transition to digital cinema and what that means for the future of production, distribution and exhibition. “The industry has spent more than $3 billion… and by the end of this year I predict we will be releasing movies in the U.S. without any film prints,” said Jerry Pierce, chairman of the Inter-Society Digital Cinema Forum. Continue reading HPA Tech Retreat: Digital Cinema Opens New Possibilities

The Web series “Video Game High School” (“VGHS”) premiered on YouTube in May of 2012 and became a meteoric success. The series subsequently earned sponsorships from Sony and Monster Energy Drinks, and is now available on Netflix. Season Two of the critically-acclaimed series, currently in production, raised more than $808,000 on Kickstarter and could end up becoming the model for future online series. Continue reading Successful YouTube Show May Serve as Model for Web Series

Talk of a smartwatch from Apple is heating up as the electronics giant is reportedly experimenting with wristwatch-like devices designed with curved glass, according to people familiar with the efforts. The watch would operate on Apple’s iOS platform and would be based in the company’s understanding of how this type of glass can curve around the human body. Apple declined to comment on such plans. Continue reading Update: More Speculation Emerges About an Apple Smartwatch

Samsung has announced a pair of new Galaxy smartphones aimed at the lower-end of the market. The Galaxy Young and the Galaxy Fame, expected to land in emerging markets, will come in either single-SIM or dual-SIM configurations. The announcement comes weeks before the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, where pricing and availability may be revealed. Rumors suggest the company is also readying a new flagship phone that enables touchless gestures. Continue reading Samsung to Release Smartphones Aimed at Emerging Markets

The future of search may have very little to do with traditional search. “Rather, next-generation applications will surface the information we need when we need it — whether we know we need it or not,” writes GigaOM. “We’re talking about doing a video chat, sending an email or just surfing the Web, and seeing relevant content appear before your eyes.” The article refers to the model as “anticipatory computing” or “information gravitation.” Continue reading Information Gravitation: A More Personalized Search Future

Twitter is getting ready to launch its advertising API sometime in the first quarter. Many have speculated that 2013 would be the year that the social network would reach the $1 billion mark in advertising revenue. The introduction of mass-market advertising could help achieve this milestone. The API will target large advertisers and their agencies by providing the opportunity to launch scaled-up campaigns across Twitter. Continue reading Sources Indicate Twitter is Ready to Launch Advertising API

New 3D printing technology can offer a second chance at life for toys “unfairly granted a short run in the stores,” writes Wired. An example of this is toy designer Wayne Losey’s vision of action figures to be assembled with various parts and pieces. While working at Hasbro, Losey attempted to sell these sorts of figures, but each was unsuccessful on the market. Continue reading 3D Printing: Snap-to-Build ModiBots Offer New Life for Toys

It is now illegal for U.S. customers to unlock phones to enable them to work on different networks. “The U.S. Copyright Office is no longer granting unlocking an exemption to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The DMCA makes it illegal to ‘circumvent a technological measure that effectively controls access’ to copyrighted material, in this case software embedded in phones that controls carrier access,” explains Wired. Continue reading U.S. Copyright Office Says it is Illegal to Unlock Phones

In his review of the new BlackBerry Z10, personal-tech columnist David Pogue reverses his earlier suggestion that Research In Motion’s smartphone was doomed. While the once dominant BlackBerry has dropped to a single-digit percentage of the market and the company’s stock has plummeted, Pogue surprisingly notes that the new phone is “lovely, fast and efficient, bristling with fresh, useful ideas.” Continue reading RIM Changes its Name, Unveils Surprising BlackBerry Z10

It seems 3D technology knows no bounds. “At Paris Fashion Week, technology and fashion collided when a model walked down the runway in a striking 3D printed dress,” writes VentureBeat. While the dress itself was a rather simple design, critics were fascinated by the way in which it was made. Will 3D printers soon be creating our clothes? Continue reading 3D Printing Takes a Turn on the Runway at Paris Fashion Week