Firms reckon consumers want to get all their media from one source

Satellite television company BSkyB has said it will work with internet search giant Google in order to develop its broadband services and products.

BSkyB, which offers a free broadband internet service to customers, said it would focus on three areas: search and adverts, videos and communications.

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Samsung Intros MiniDV Camcorders

Samsung India has launched four new MiniDV Camcorder models in the market.

Source: Techtree News

The new range includes the VP-D352i, VP-D353i, VP-D355i as well as the VP-M110S (Miniket), Samsung's flagship MiniDV camcorder with 6-in-1 functionality, which is available for Rs 39,990.

The new range of digital camcorders come equipped with features like memory stick slot, 800K pixel CCD, digital image stabilizer, USB 2.0, high quality MPEG4 movie clip functionality and PictBridge support.

Home Video Made to Watch on HDTV

The Sony FX1 is the first three-chip HDTV camcorder for consumers. Is it worth its $3,300 price tag?

By DAVID POGUE, The New York Times

THERE are three good reasons you might not want to read this review of Sony's new HDR-FX1 camcorder. First, it costs $3,300 online(list price: $3,700). Second, it's a big black behemoth, 14 inches long; among the shiny silver microcams at a typical school concert, it would look positively idiotic. Third, it's appallingly basic: it doesn't overlay text or graphics on your video, has no infrared "night shot" mode and can't even take still photos (gasp).

Sony Movie Unit to Issue Films for PSP Game System

LOS ANGELES - The home video unit of Sony Corp. said on Friday it will release four movies in April on a new disc format designed for Sony's PlayStation Portable handheld video game device.

Source: Reuters

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment said it will release "XXX," "Hellboy," "Resident Evil 2" and "One Upon A Time in Mexico" on April 19 in the Universal Media Disc or UMD format, with additional monthly releases in the future. The unit did not set a price for the movie discs.

Sirius taps Microsoft for mobile video

Satellite radio company picks Microsoft's Windows Media software to power its upcoming mobile video service.

By Matt Hines, CNET News.com

Sirius Satellite Radio will use Microsoft's Windows Media Video 9 software to help create and broadcast future video services, the companies said Wednesday.

Dell Displays New TVs, Music Players

Products coming this holiday season also include new photo printers.

By Stacy Cowley, IDG News Service

NEW YORK -- Dell took the wraps off its holiday lineup this week, showing new printers, plasma televisions, and music players that will soon be available through its Web site.

Dell's two new, 42-inch plasma televisions are the company's first entry into that market, where it hopes to undercut competitors.

Netflix sees Amazon entering DVD rentals

Netflix said it will cut prices for its DVD rentals to compete with competitors such as Blockbuster, Wal-Mart Stores and now Amazon.

By Stefanie Olsen , CNET News.com

Amazon.com plans to enter the DVD rental business in a move that will put the online retail giant in direct competition with Netflix.

News of Amazon's intentions were disclosed Thursday afternoon by Netflix founder and CEO Reed Hastings during the company's earnings call.

Essentials of Digital TV

What's the difference between analog and digital television?

Source: Bakerfield Californien

Analog television, which has been around for the last 50 years, is carried on a signal that fluctuates widely, creating the changes in color and brightness that make up the picture. Digital television, on the other hand, consists of a signal that has two states: on or off - just like signals inside your computer.

UK viewers taking control of TV

More than 15 million homes in the UK will be able to get on-demand movies by 2008, say analysts.

By Alfred Hermida, BBC News Online

Sky will remain the dominate player in the on-demand market. People in Britain are going to take more control of what they watch on TV and when they watch it, say experts.

By 2008, more than 15 million UK homes will have access to some form of on-demand programming, media analyst Screen Digest has predicted.

Canon ZR90

At the top of Canon's affordably priced ZR line, the ZR90 offers a slightly larger zoom range than the less expensive ZR85 and ZR80, which share the same design and sensor.

Reviewed by Aimee Baldridge, CNET

It also provides numerous features absent on the stripped-down ZR80 and improves on the ZR85 with a wide-angle lens converter and an S-Video port for higher-quality output to a TV or capture from another video source.

Out in Japan: High-Def Home Movies

Sony's first consumer HD camcorder is expected to arrive in the U.S. soon.

By Paul Kallender, PC World magazine

If you're looking for a way to liven up home movie night that doesn't involve inappropriate nudity or risk of injury, what about upgrading to high-definition video? Sony's first consumer-oriented HD camcorder, already available in Japan, is slated for a November U.S. launch with a price tag of about $3700.

Giants Battle Over New DVD Format

By Ken Belson, TechNewsWorld

The competing DVD technologies are Blu-ray, which is being developed by Sony and a group of partners, and HD-DVD, which will use technology supplied by Toshiba and NEC, the leaders of this group's development effort.

The DVD format war between these two powerful camps intensified last week, when investors led by Sony bought Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. If you thought the battle over video cassette formats VHS or Betamax was the technology war to end all others, think again.

TV aims for prime time in digital home

New standard uses Web-based protocols to let televisions control other devices in a home.

By Ed Frauenheim, CNET News.com

A new standard aims to let people control audio-visual devices through a TV screen, a development that could help keep televisions central to home entertainment.

Web site lets fans see making of new 'King Kong'

Source: The Bakersfield Californien

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) - Movie fans who can't wait for Peter Jackson's multimillion-dollar remake of "King Kong" can log on to the Internet to watch the gorilla thriller as it is being made.

A new Web site maintained by fans of the Oscar-winning director features online video clips of the media-shy Jackson on the set with actors and the film crew.

Have on-demand movies finally become a reality?

Instant access to vast online movie library: We've heard promises.

Source: CNET News.com

But with rapid broadband adoption, plus services aplenty claiming to offer just this, have on-demand movies finally become a reality?

BetaPlayer - video player version 0.091 released - now supports also MPEG and more - works in MS Smartphone and Pocket PC

Source: MS Mobiles

Nowadays Windows Mobile devices have usually fast processors (MS Smartphone: 200 MHz, Pocket PC: 624 MHz) so the times when playback of movies was troublesome are over - they have enough power!

Where's the Video iPod?

By Blane Warrene, MacNewsWorld

Gartner's Michael McGuire thinks the "portable media center" already exists. He calls it a notebook.

He also believes that there are two barriers to a major shift to hard drive-based digital video. "One is the content holders, who see new methods for distributing and interacting with commercial video as a threat rather than an opportunity." The second is consumers: "If they want to watch a movie, they buy a DVD."

Sony Unveils High-Definition Camcorder

Source: Associated Press

TOKYO - Japanese electronics and entertainment giant Sony Corp. plans to begin selling a camcorder designed for consumers that takes video at digital high-definition quality and is being priced at about $3,600.

Sony said Tuesday the 4.4 pound HDR-FX1 is set to go on sale next month in Japan and before the end of the year globally.

ProCon Announces QuickCapture A2D Camera System

nNovia QuickCapture A2D with SpiderCam "bullet-style" camera

Source: DigitalProducer

ProCon Technology, USA offers the ultimate turn-key camera/recording system on the market! Combining the body-worn nNovia QuickCapture A2D with the SpiderCam high-resolution "bullet-style" camera achieves the perfect combination in high-resolution video capture.

Digital 5 Announces Advanced AV Streaming Technology

Source: Digital 5, Inc.

Intel NMPR Validated AV Software Offers True Scalability and Fast Deployment of Connected Consumer Devices

LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. -- Digital 5(TM), Inc. today announced the launch of its latest streaming technology software to support the secure management and distribution premium video and audio content throughout the connected home from either the local PC or across the Internet.

China To Develop Audio & Video Frequency Standard

Source: China Tech News

Zhongguancun AVS Development Base is saying that part of the AVS standard, a technical standard for coding and decoding audio and video frequency has been completed by Chinese scientists and related enterprises at home and abroad.

It is hoped that, with this new standard, domestic enterprises will no longer have to worry about being controlled by foreign enterprises on account of technology and patent costs.

Film group turns to secure DVD players

By Dinesh C. Sharma, CNET News.com

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts will supply secure DVD players to voting members to prevent them from illegally copying films competing for awards.

Cinea, a subsidiary of Dolby Laboratories, this week announced a deal with the academy to supply SV300 DVD players.