| MacUpdate Weekend Sale | :This weekend MacUpdate has slashed prices on Painter 12 and Painter Lite. Painter 12 retails for $429, but has been reduced by 54% to $199. Painter Lite has seen a 58% price cut from $69 to $29. Hurry, because these deals are only available until May 19th 2013. |
Amazon has cancelled two television pilots, after poor screenings. The television version of Zombieland will not be made into a series by the internet retailer, nor will Bebe Neuwirth's musical comedy Browsers about interns at a Huffington Post-esque website. Amazon has picked up John Goodman's Washington DC satire Alpha House, and Silicon Valley sitcom Betas.
Senator John McCain (R-AZ) today introduced the Television Consumer Freedom Act of 2013, aimed at migrating away from the cable industry practice of bundling, and moving the entire industry top to bottom towards "a la carte" offerings. The act as it stands is voluntary, offering incentives to companies operating in accordance with the directive, rather than severely penalizing recalcitrant companies for noncompliance.
Rovi has revealed that Toshiba will be the first television manufacturer to launch a range of DivX Plus Streaming-certified HDTVs. The addition of DivX Plus Streaming to the televisions will allow users to watch streaming content with typical features found in DVD and Blu-ray Disc usage, such as support for multi-language subtitles and audio tracks.
LG is putting curved OLED televisions on sale earlier than first thought. The electronics producer is opening up its 55-inch EA9800 to pre-orders in Korea today, with shipments in the country expected in June. The HDTV's release outside of Korea will apparently be announced in the coming months, along with regional pricing.
Lovefilm has signed an agreement with Warner Bros International TV Distribution, adding more content to its on-demand roster. The Amazon-owned British subscription streaming service will now offer a number of extra TV series, including seasons one to seven of The West Wing, all nine seasons of One Tree Hill, all seasons of Nip Tuck, and episodes of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.
Reports that Panasonic will halt plasma-based HDTV production has been refuted by an executive as incorrect. Henry Hauser, vice president of merchandising at Panasonic USA has said that plasma panel development is still taking place, contradicting comments made by Panasonic Display vice president Kiyoshi Okamoto that the company had researched its last plasma panel.
Panasonic has stopped development of plasma-based HD television panels, and is unlikely to start up research on the display technology again. Panasonic Display Vice President Kiyoshi Okamoto confirmed the closure of plasma research and development during an event where the company revealed the pricing for its line of HDTVs for 2013.
Sony will be opening up two new Ultra HD televisions for pre-order in the United States on April 21st, alongside an announcement for the company's 4K Media Player and video distribution service. The 55-inch and 65-inch sets, both capable of displaying 4K-resolution content, will be priced considerably less than the $25,000 flagship counterpart, measuring at 84 inches diagonally, but will still retain most of its feature set.
Dutch television manufacturer TP Vision has created a new TV that replaces the bezel and base stand with a single pane of glass. The Philips DesignLine TV has a black gradient lowering from the screen to the floor that also hides the screen itself when switched off, and the TV itself is designed to lean against a wall or pillar.
Announced at the AllThingsDigital Dive Into Media conference today, Intel plans to launch its long-rumored online television service this year that not only provides content-on-demand like most services, but also streams live television. According to Erik Huggers, the vice president and general manager of Intel Media, the company is currently negotiating deals with content providers.
British free-to-air satellite television provider Freesat will be allowing users to view YouTube videos through it's set-top box. The app will soon launch on the service under it's web-based On Demand service, and joins existing streaming offerings from the BBC, ITV, and soon Channel 4 and Channel 5.
The BBC Trust is allowing the BBC to put some of its television programs onto the BBC iPlayer on-demand service before being broadcast. The 12-month trial will consist of up to 40 hours of assorted TV shows appearing on iPlayer ahead of their scheduled transmission through normal channels, as the corporation tests it's effectiveness.
British cable service provider Virgin Media has been acquired by Liberty Global. The deal, worth $23.3 billion in cash and stock, gives Liberty a bigger stake in European businesses, as well as providing both companies the chance to save around $180 million per year after regulatory and shareholder approval and the acquisition closes.
The first channel dedicated to broadcasting Ultra HD content has launched in Europe. Operated by Eutelsat Communications, the channel started broadcasting demonstration footage on January 8th, with the aim of helping television manufacturers, satellite services, pay-TV operators and production companies in broadcasting their own content in the format.
At its Consumer Electronics Show keynote speech, Sony has unveiled a range of "4K" (3840x2160) TVs, currently in the prototype stage. The display comes in a range of sizes, from the previously-announced 84-inch set, to a 65-inch, and 55-inch model, the latter two both new to CES. Supporting the televisions, Sony intends on launching a 4K video distribution system in the US the summer of 2013. The "UltraHD" system offers approximately twice the resolution (horizontal and vertical) of existing HDTVs, and four times as many pixels.
LG has revealed more details about its range of televisions for 2013, ahead of CES. Adding to the announcement of Google TV-enabled screens the company has already shown, it has also opted to give more information on features the HDTVs will have, including NFC, Miracast, WiDi, and a new recommendation function.
Budget HDTV manufacturer Westinghouse plans to showcase a new line of Ultra High Definition (UHD) televisions at CES in January, as in previous years. The new 4K-capable TVs include a 110-inch model as well as more conventionally-sized 50, 55, and 65-inch models, with all UHDTVs being geared up for an early-2013 release.
LG has released some details on its oncoming Google TV hardware refresh and range extension, set for the first half of 2013. The original 47-inch and 55-inch televisions already in the range has been joined by three more size options, as well as a refreshed physical design, and an upgrade to its onboard software to Google TV 3.0.
Sharp is joining the 4K race with its own Ultra High-Definition television. The "Integrated Cognitive Creation" (ICC) Purios joins the ranks of LG and Sony in putting a 4K screen on the market, and although the 60-inch display doesn't match its 84-inch competitors, Sharp does boast it to be the first 4K TV to be released with a THX-certification.
At the Business Insider Ignition conference, Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes expressed his desire to purchase a television designed and built by Apple. The CEO believes that Apple would likely have a solution to a fundamental problem with the television business -- content discovery and search. The executive doesn't believe that Apple will be the only manufacturer dealing with the problem, and expects to see "as many interfaces as you can get."
Verizon has updated its FiOS Mobile iPad [Free, App Store] app adding channel streaming to the mobile device. The latest version of the app now offers 75 channels to be streamed live from anywhere on the home network, as well as improvements to the process used to set up the iPad as a remote control, and other improvements.
Sony has revealed it will offer buyers of its 4K TV sets content specially created for the high resolution screens. While not detailing the exact nature of the plan, Ray Hartjen of Sony claims that customers of the 84-inch XBR-84X900 television will receive access to the "world's first 4K Ultra HD delivery solution" at no charge.
Bang & Olufsen has put a Smart TV on sale, the first in its television range. The BeoVision 11 Smart TV looks similar to the BeoVision 10, except it has a selection of onboard apps that can connect to the Internet. It is also one of the first televisions to support hybrid broadband TV (HbbTV), a pan-European standard for personalized and interactive TV services.
Vizio has added a new line-up of sleek and slim Smart HDTVs to its roster, just in time for the holiday season. The six new televisions include options from the E-Series and M-Series ranging from 55-inches to 70-inches, with and without 3D, as well as a 58-inch 21:9 Cinemawide Class LED TV with 3D capabilities.
Toshiba has shown off its attempt at an 84-inch 4K TV at IFA 2012. Following after previous attempts by LG and Samsung in recent months, and Sony showing its own off at the same trade show, the unnamed television equals the Quad Full HD 3840x2160 resolution and physical size of other 4K efforts, and certainly dwarfs its previous high-resolution television demonstrations.
Sony has revealed its previously-rumored 84-inch 4K television. The company's first attempt at a 4K TV set, the XBR-84X900 with its 3840x2160 LCD panel display was shown off at a press conference at IFA 2012 earlier today. The screen release follows Sony's own 4K home cinema projector and follows similar big-screen releases by Samsung and LG in recent months.
According to "sources familiar with the matter," Apple is in discussions with the largest cable operators in the US to allow an Apple device, such as an Apple TV, to be used as a cable box for watching live television and other content. No deals appear to have been made at this time. The move would represent something of a sea change in Apple's strategy, with a more cooperative approach to media distribution, as opposed to the current licensing model with the the iTunes ecosystem.
Electronics manufacturer Toshiba's 2012 HD television line has been completely refreshed over the last couple of weeks. In announcing seven new models, the manufacturer has executed the most sweeping change of its consumer television line in over a decade. All the models are available at retail now.
Bang and Olufsen has unveiled the BeoPlay V1, the first television from the high-end audio manufacturer's brand B&O Play. The television uses self-contained speakers set in a Scandinavian-industrial style powder-coated steel cabinet, contrasting with the previous TV releases. The manufacturer also noted an iOS docking station, called the BeoPlay A8, which adds Apple AirPlay support as an update to the original BeoSound 8.
