Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - (Page 12) ELECTRONIC DELIVERY www.homemediamagazine.com Screen Digest: Online Movies Will Represent Small Portion of Market By Kyra Kudick nline movies are expected to represent only 5% of home video spending by 2012, according to forecasts by Screen Digest. Screen Digest chief analyst Ben Keen said Apple’s iTunes and Microsoft’s Xbox 360 have dominated the online download market largely because they can afford to sell the movie content at break-even prices, as their goal is to profit from hardware device BRIEFS I HULU, YOUTUBE, ITUNES ADD SESAME STREET To celebrate its 39 years of broadcasting on PBS, “Sesame Street” programming is now available on the Web at Hulu, YouTube and iTunes, according to Reuters. Users can download full episodes from season 35 and onward for $1.99 each. Apple’s iTunes store also offers programming such as “Talk, Listen, Connect” and “Happy Healthy Ready for School,” which features “Sesame Street’s” Elmo. Google’s YouTube will start a “Sesame Street” channel with more than 100 clips from the show. Hulu, an online video venture between News Corp. and NBC Universal, will feature 100 “Sesame Street” segments as well as celebrity actor guests such as Julia Roberts and Laurence Fishburne. Highlights from the first 10 seasons of the show are available on DVD. – Michael Lee I DISH HAS CONVERTER BOX WITH DVR Dish Network’s new DTVPal DVR will be made available for preorder Nov. 19. The device is the sole digital-to-analog converter box with digital video recording functionality sold in the United States, according to Dish Network. The DTVPal DVR lets users record up to 150 hours of standard-definition or up to 30 hours of high-definition programming, said Tom Stingley, EVP of sales and distribution for Dish Network. Additionally the box allows for viewing high-def programming over-the-air as well as standard-def digital programming. – Billy Gil O Y sales, such as the iPod and Xbox 360, rather than content sales. Keen argued this pricing structure makes it difficult for non-device-led services to compete and survive. “While profits in the rapidly developing online video market may be hard to find, current winners include the major movie studios and other owners of high-value content, who enjoy good prices from service providers,” Keen said. YouTube, MGM Partner for Web Channels By Chris Tribbey ouTube has launched two channels dedicated to MGM content: Impact, with fulllength action movies and highlights of MGM’s video-on-demand action offerings, and American Gladiators, with highlights and full episodes from the show. The agreement between MGM and YouTube promises more YouTubehosted MGM channels in the future. “We’re looking to mine the breadth and depth of the MGM library to build out and promote branded, mul- tiplatform opportunities on demand, online and wherever viewers consume their entertainment,” said Jim Packer, co-president of MGM Worldwide Television. “Our agreement with YouTube opens the door to a number of themed broadband channels that will both serve the consumers’ growing appetite for entertainment media consumption in the digital space and on-demand space.” Impact has become one of Comcast’s more popular on-demand channels since it launched in August, MGM said, and the YouTube channel will feature complete movies and TV episodes, and clips of movies and TV shows available on cable. Both the Impact and American Gladiators YouTube channels will include new videos every month and will be supported by ads. “By partnering with MGM, YouTube is strengthening its position as an entertainment destination where Hollywood studios can reach a global audience and where our audience can watch their favorite full-length films, TV shows and clips,” said Jordan Hoffner, YouTube’s director of content partnerships. I CISCO ROUTER TO IMPROVE STREAMING, DOWNLOADING Cisco Systems launched an edge router designed to improve speed for movie downloading and smartphone Internet access, Reuters reports. The ASR 9000 edge router is said to carry six times the capacity of similar routers. It will carry a price tag of $80,000, and will come in sixand 10-slot versions, with several service providers now testing the product, according to Reuters. – Billy Gil I VUDU BOASTS MORE THAN 1,100 HD TITLES ON DEMAND Video-on-demand set-top box provider Vudu announced it carries more than 1,100 high-definition titles on demand. Vudu says it averaged more than 150 HD titles added per week in October. “The motivation to accomplish this really sprang from our customers, retail partners and home theater installation professionals, all of whom were asking for more HD content,” said Edward Lichty, EVP of content at Vudu. Vudu boasts a total of more than 10,000 VOD titles, including standard-definition fare. High-definition titles are streamed in two formats: instant-start HD and HDX. Vudu’s VBX100 box plays movies in 1080p resolution at 24 frames a second, including standard-definition titles, which it upconverts, according to Vudu. – Billy Gil I MORE VIZ ON XBOX Viz Media’s animated series “Bleach” and “Death Note” will be available for download on Xbox Live. The shows have been dubbed in English from their original Japanese translations. Viz also recently put the two series on Hulu.com. – Laleh Ghalambor MYSPACE BOWS PRIMETIME APPLICATION DIGITAL COPY BY CATEGORY Title Release Category New Theatrical (1997-Current) Direct-to-video Features Theatrical Catalog (pre-1997) Foreign Language TV Series (single-disc) Total Total* 84 12 11 1 1 109 By Billy Gil M DIGITAL COPY BY STUDIO Studio Fox Sony Warner Universal Lionsgate Paramount/DreamWorks Peace Arch Prairie Dog Productions Disney Total Total* 38 37 11 8 6 5 2 1 1 109 * Includes both titles released and announced for delivery by 3/31/09 Source: The DVD Release Report ySpace has launched a new application for its Primetime service, which allows for streaming TV and movie content. The MySpace Primetime Application is free to download and can be easily embedded on profiles and home pages. The application gives users access to content from video site Hulu (like MySpace owned by News Corp., as well as NBC Universal) as well as the 150-plus branded channels on MySpaceTV, including additional content from Warner Bros., Sony and MySpaceTV originals including “Roommates” and “Special Delivery.” The application is ad-supported through such means as companion display advertising, tickers, pre-roll and post-roll ads. Premium TV content available through MySpace Primetime includes “30 Rock,” “Saturday Night Live,” “24” and “Heroes,” as well as classic TV programming. “The Primetime Application highlights how professional video content is being voraciously consumed across the MySpace ecosystem, not just within MySpaceTV,” said Jason Kirk, VP of video and entertainment for MySpace. “Video on MySpace flows throughout the network, as there are multiple entry points where videos can be discovered, watched and shared including comments, bulletins and MySpaceTV. Independent analyst Rob Enderle said the MySpace Primetime Application is “potentially a game changer.” “It really opens up TV on the Web and ties in social networking, which makes the programming more easily shared and the programs potentially more successful,” Enderle said. The application can be added at www. myspace.com/primetimeapp. I REPORT: MOBILE ENTERTAINMENT UP The use of portable entertainment devices is up, according to a recent report by The NPD Group. The company surveyed 3,258 members of its online consumer panel who were pre-identified as owners of portable devices such as PlayStation Portable (PSP), Nintendo DS, iPods, iPhones and other smartphones. Smartphone owners showed the highest increase in usage, with 46% claiming to use the device more than in the previous three months. – Kyra Kudick I FANCAST GETS ‘JON & KATE PLUS EIGHT’ Comcast-owned Web video site Fancast (www.fancast.com) has added TLC’s “Jon and Kate Plus Eight” to its video offerings. Fancast will house six full-length episodes from four seasons of the show. Fancast touts more than 6,000 free full-length TV episodes. – Michael Lee TOP 5 RANK TITLE E LE C T R O NI C SELLT H R OUG H Week ended November 9, 2008 RELEASE DATE VIDEO LABEL GENRE TOP 5 RANK TITLE E L E C TRO N I C DO WN L O A DS Week ended November 9, 2008 RELEASE DATE VIDEO LABEL GENRE 1 2 3 4 5 Journey to the Center of the Earth Mongol Kit Kittredge: An American Girl Get Smart 10/28/08 10/14/08 10/28/08 11/4/08 Warner Warner Warner Warner Warner Adventure Comedy Action Family Comedy Source: CinemaNow 1 2 3 4 5 Journey to the Center of the Earth Made of Honor 88 Minutes Deception Baby Mama 10/28/08 10/31/08 10/31/08 9/23/08 10/8/08 Warner Sony Pictures Sony Pictures Fox Universal Adventure Comedy Thriller Thriller Comedy Source: CinemaNow Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay 7/29/08 Home Media Magazine November 16–22, 2008 http://www.homemediamagazine.com http://www.Hulu.com http://www.fancast.com http://www.myspace.com/primetimeapp http://www.myspace.com/primetimeapp
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 Home Media Magazine - November 16, 2008 Contents News HD-3 TV DVD Valentine’s Day Reviews Research Top 20 DVD Sellers Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts Just Announced Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Home Media Magazine - November 16, 2008 (Page Cover1) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Home Media Magazine - November 16, 2008 (Page Cover2) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Home Media Magazine - November 16, 2008 (Page 1) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Home Media Magazine - November 16, 2008 (Page 2) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Contents (Page 3) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - News (Page 4) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - News (Page 5) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - News (Page 6) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - News (Page 7) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - HD-3 (Page 8) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - HD-3 (Page 9) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - HD-3 (Page 10) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - HD-3 (Page 11) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - HD-3 (Page 12) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - HD-3 (Page 13) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - TV DVD (Page 14) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - TV DVD (Page 15) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Valentine’s Day (Page 16) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Valentine’s Day (Page 17) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Valentine’s Day (Page 18) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Valentine’s Day (Page 19) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Reviews (Page 20) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Reviews (Page 21) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Reviews (Page 22) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Reviews (Page 23) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Top 20 DVD Sellers (Page 24) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Top 20 DVD Sellers (Page 25) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts (Page 26) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts (Page 27) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts (Page 28) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts (Page 29) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Just Announced (Page 30) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Just Announced (Page 31) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Just Announced (Page 32) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Just Announced (Page Cover3) Home Media Magazine - November 16-22, 2008 - Just Announced (Page Cover4)
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