03.06.07
Posted in Entertainment, Movies, Television, Videos at 10:49 am by stark
If you’re a fan of the television series Heroes, you might have noticed that last nights episode came with a little bonus, a preview clip of the upcoming film Spider-Man 3. I warn you though, this clip definitely spoils at least a couple small plot points, so if you’re one of those people who wants to be 100% surprised, stay away from that link. Personally, I think this movie is looking amazing and has loads of potential to beat both the previous two. I guess we only have a few more weeks to wait now, and then we’ll all get to see it…
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02.22.07
Posted in Technology, Entertainment, Television at 1:57 am by stark
With such huge hype behind the big G’s takeover of Youtube last year, one can’t help wonder how good a decision it really was when yet another huge partn er seems to be reconsidering it’s deal with the search engine giant. According to a person knowledgeable in the talks, CBS has decided to step away from a multi-million dollar deal due to an inability to come to an agreement on the length of the deal. Responsible for blockbuster shows such as Survivor, CSI, and The Late Show with David Letterman, CBS has been the leader in television broadcasting for several years and is definitely a big loss to the entire Youtube userbase. While an agreement is not yet ruled out, it is looking likely that a much smaller agreement is the most likely possibility. So, with last weeks news of Viacom throwing down the hammer and walking away from Youtube, did Google make a big mistake in purchasing the online video resource? I would never count Google out, and all it takes is one big application and all these broadcasters will be right back at Google’s doorstep…
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02.11.07
Posted in Technology, Entertainment, Movies, Television at 4:11 pm by stark
Last week we discussed Walmart’s foray into the movie download race with the launch of their brand new service. Immediately, there were many complaints that the site would not work with any browser other than Internet Explorer. This was strange, to say the least, considering the massive size of Walmart and the fact that nowadays cross compatibility is a necessity not just a luxury. This was almost universally chalked up to an over site or poor programming. However, now it appears it may be intentional. Many users are now reporting that Walmart has completely turned off the new application to FireFox, Safari, and any other user on a browser they don’t like. This seems like a pretty poor decision for a company who is already late to the game and faces very stiff competition. I can already see Netflix, Amazon, and iTunes smiling from ear to ear…
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02.06.07
Posted in Technology, Entertainment, Movies, Television at 12:57 pm by stark
After their initial tests were a success, Walmart has decided it’s finally time to throw their hat in the ring of the battle royale that is the digital movie download business. Later today, Walmart will officially launch a new site at walmart.com/videodownloads that will allow customers to download both film and television content directly to their home computers.
Although the market is already packed with competition from the likes of Amazon.com, iTunes, NetFlix, and CinemaNow, Walmart has the advantage of already having made a deal with the Big 6 movie studios (Universal, Sony, Paramount, Warner Brothers, 20th Century Fox, and Disney) and several television studios ( including Fox, MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, CW, FX , and VH1). Prices for all film downloads will be in the range of $12.88-$19.88 US when a DVD is first released and older films will be set at $7.50. Television shows will be $1.96 per episode. With ranges like that, It’s easy to see why many of these companies were willing to work with Walmart and not Apple.
While Walmart is definitely a company NO ONE should take lightly, as they have the money and resources to make this a successful venture, they have a lot of work to do in convincing customers that their option is superior to others. To be considered a success, Walmart will not only have to co-exist with its competition, but will have to make some serious in-roads into the overall market share, which is currently dominated by iTunes in both movies and television. What Walmart really wants is to bring in more customers to its 4,000 stores around the world, and only time will tell if this venture will help them accomplish that goal.
One thing’s for sure, the Digital Movie download space just got a lot more interesting…
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