During yesterday’s breakfast event unveiling Google’s new Nexus 7 tablet, the company also announced the $35 Chromecast, a small thumbnail device that connects to televisions via HDMI and enables users to send content via Wi-Fi from phones, tablets or PCs to the TV screen. Chromecast comes with three months of free Netflix and offers more functionality than Apple TV’s AirPlay. “On paper at least, it’s the best device Google has ever announced,” suggests Wired. Continue reading Is New Google Chromecast All About the Future of Pay TV?

The popular designer Asher Nahmias recently removed his work from a well-known online store due to accusations that Stratasys, a 3D printer manufacturer, improperly used one of his designs. The incident highlights the confusion surrounding copyright and 3D printing, which involves more than just individuals stealing designs from corporations. But as 3D printing grows, intellectual property issues surrounding it will not be addressed overnight. Continue reading 3D Printing Raises Complex Questions of DRM and Copyright

BookVibe, created by startup Parakweet, analyzes the tweets of a user’s Twitter followers, and creates book recommendations based on mentioned books. The company uses artificial intelligence technologies to differentiate between a tweet with genuine regards to a book and a tweet that only mentions it. Parakweet is also developing tools for publishers and media companies for more advanced analysis on social media of books and movies. Continue reading BookVibe Makes Recommendations Based on Twitter Feeds

Apple has been in discussions with cable companies and television networks for more than a year regarding licensing agreements for a new service that would allow viewers to access live and on-demand television via an Apple set-top box or TV. In recent discussions, the company reportedly told media execs it hopes to offer a premium version that enables viewers to skip ads. According to people briefed on the discussions, Apple would compensate networks for the lost revenue. Continue reading Apple Pitches Ad-Skipping Tech for its Proposed TV Service

Research firm AppNation forecasts a dramatic increase in the overall app economy in the U.S. over the next four years. The AppNation report predicts that the combined value of paid apps, app-enabled purchases of goods and services, and in-app advertising will double to $151 billion by 2017. While smartphones and tablets largely drive today’s app economy, innovations with smart TVs and connected cars are expected to help drive future app commerce. Continue reading Report: App Economy Expected to Double in Value by 2017

The Visual Effects Society (VES), the industry’s professional honorary society, released “The State of the Global VFX Industry 2013,” a comprehensive strategic analysis of the business drivers impacting all sectors of the VFX industry working in film production and presentation of solutions to mitigate instability. Initial recommendations focus on improving business and financial management acumen among artists and facilities management through training programs and new standards and practices. Continue reading VES Publishes Analysis: The State of the Global VFX Industry

Netflix’s stock value has increased 178 percent during 2013, one of the best performing companies on the S&P 500 index. In order to maintain its edge, Netflix may need to be more like Amazon than HBO, with more of a focus on spending than a fixation on profit growth. But Netflix’s practice of dropping unpopular content may give competitor Amazon a new opportunity to secure exclusive rights to additional programming and gain ground over Netflix. Continue reading Netflix Spending More On Content While Dropping Content

A federal judge in Manhattan ruled yesterday that Apple colluded with five U.S. publishers in 2010 to drive up the prices of e-books. The decision threatens to limit Apple’s options when negotiating future content deals and potentially exposes the company to additional investigation of its other business practices. The decision to go to trial was considered a significant risk for Apple since the publishers, after denying any wrongdoing, had already settled similar charges. Continue reading Federal Judge Rules that Apple Colluded on E-Book Pricing

Digital media firm Fullscreen — which hosts more than 15,000 YouTube channels with 200 million subscribers and 2.5 billion monthly views — has launched a suite of apps designed to help content creators monetize videos through search engine optimization and partnership facilitation. The new Fullscreen Creator Platform also includes analytics tools for insight into audience behavior. In addition, Fullscreen has announced a free iOS app for tracking video performance from phones (Android coming soon). Continue reading Fullscreen Launches Creator Platform for YouTube Producers

Amazon has been quietly testing what it hopes will be an improved means of viewing Flash video content on mobile devices. For the past six months, some Kindle Fire users have been provided with an “experimental streaming viewer” option when they attempt to access video clips on sites including CBS.com, Fox.com and NBC.com. The Silk browser for Kindle Fire enables the streaming by splitting the workload between the mobile devices and Amazon cloud servers. Continue reading Mobile: Amazon Turns to the Cloud for Streaming Flash Video

Samsung has picked up Israel- and New York-based TV startup Boxee for about $30 million. Boxee started six years ago by offering PC-based media center software and eventually launched its own hardware product, the Boxee Box. The company attempted to solve its content problem with the launch of the Boxee TV, which was rebranded in April as Boxee Cloud DVR. With the acquisition, Samsung plans to shut down Boxee’s unlimited Cloud DVR service on July 10. Continue reading Samsung Acquires Boxee, Plans to Shutter Cloud DVR Service

Hollywood studios are reexamining traditional distribution models in an era of piracy enabled by digital technologies. Today’s media savvy consumers have evolving expectations regarding how they discover and share music, video content and games, thanks in part to new cloud-based technologies, streaming media services and sophisticated social tools. Some media companies are even considering the idea that models popular with pirates are worth imitating. Continue reading Shift in Consumer Demand: Should Studios Emulate Pirates?

New embedded technologies may replace mobile devices as personal computers are being killed off by smartphones and tablets. The “post-mobile” device could change the way humans interact with their computers, removing the need for keyboards and allowing users to simply touch or speak with their devices. Wearable devices will be an early example of new technologies that will incorporate radical ways in which users and devices interact. Continue reading Embedded Technologies to Drive Future Post-Mobile Devices

Video game “re-stream” is a popular video genre on YouTube where gamers post recorded video of their gameplay, sometimes accompanied by voice-over commentary. One of the most popular channels is Machinima, which is looking to transform itself from a YouTube channel with billions of monthly views to a real media company. It may be the future of television, so long as Machinima, and others like it, can overcome copyright issues and create a sustainable model. Continue reading Machinima Looks to Turn Game Re-Streams into Big Business

Barnes & Noble announced this week that it will stop producing its own color tablet e-reader, the Nook, in favor of third party, co-branded devices. The company’s decision may reflect a trend in the decline of dedicated e-readers competing with the growing popularity of tablet devices. Consumers are looking to tablets, which have more features and apps available, including e-reader capability, compared to standalone e-readers. Continue reading In the Wake of Heavy Losses, Future of Nook is Uncertain