BlackBerry TiVo App Lets Users Remotely Schedule Shows to Record

The free TiVo app for Blackberry and smartphones features a program guide, which users can browse by category, most popular, or even daily picks. The guide also offers plenty of details about each show, including a description and air time. Of course, the real benefit of the app is the ability to remotely program your TiVo to record your favorite shows.

[via Switched]

'Poetic' autism film divides campaigners

"I have no interest in right or wrong… I will plot to rob you of your children and your dreams."

These words come from a short film called I Am Autism, which has sparked a spat between people with autism across the US and a charity that aims to represent them.

An amazing and moving film.

[via NewScientist]

UK Internet Advertising takes overtakes Television

According to The Guardian, the UK has become the first major economy where advertisers spend more on internet advertising than on television advertising, with a record £1.75bn online spend in the first six months of the year.

The milestone marks a watershed for the embattled TV industry, the leading ad medium in the UK for almost half a century. It has taken the internet little more than a decade to become the biggest advertising sector in the UK.

Rage becomes first 'mobile phone' movie

The first major film to be distributed for free exclusively through a mobile phone has been released to the public, reports TechRadar.

Downloadable in seven parts, Rage has a star-studded cast – featuring the likes of Jude Law, Steve Buscemi and Eddie Izzard – and has been directed by Sally Potter.

Although the movie has been available in bite-sized DLC for the last week for iPhone users, it is now having its full-length mobile phone premiere, courtesy of interactive IPTV platform Babelgum.

Make your (video) case for passing the health insurance reform

President Obama's Organizing for America has just announced a powerful new way for Americans to help: Organizing for America's Health Reform Video Challenge.

In their own words:

This is your chance -- you ingenious, insightful, funny people out there -- to make a 30-second ad telling the story about why the status quo has got to go, or explaining how the Obama plan will ensure we get the secure, quality care we need without breaking the budget.

The top submissions will be voted on by the public and a panel of experts, with the winning ad aired on national television. This is your opportunity to add your voice and creativity to the debate, get some great exposure for your work, and make a huge difference.

No experience is needed -- if you have an idea, we want you to give it a shot. And if you know someone who is especially handy with a camera, please forward this note along right away. Just make sure you submit your ad by October 18th.

Warner Inks Deal to Bring Green Day, Madonna, U2 Back to YouTube

Warner Music Group has completed a deal with YouTube that will bring back music videos for Green Day, U2, Madonna and other artists to the video-sharing site from which they were removed in December, according to two executives familiar with the talks.

[via Adage]

The Best Guides to Watching TV Online

Liz Gannes for NewTeeVee has put together a great list of the best guides for watching TV Online.

Watching new TV shows from Switzerland

Its' been 3 years since I opened this blog and linked then to articles mentioning how copyright issues with foreign TV networks were being addressed. But I haven't crossed an article on that subject in almost as long.

Does it matter? Not really, from Switzerland I am able to enjoy the return of my favorite TV shows as well as watch the new shows that premiered this week (they won't be on TV here for months or years if at all). And there are some great shows: The Good Life, Mercy, The Beautiful Wife, Jay Leno. They are all available in streaming, usually a day or two after they air in the US, and amazingly, the number of streaming sites offering these shows just continues to grow, season after season.

Some of these streaming sites interrupt the viewing to make you fill out a survey, or pay up to continue viewing. They are finding a way, or trying to find a way to commercialize their service.

Why aren't the networks?

Related:

-- Hollywood whining about illegal streaming again

-- Embedded code of US TV series on video sharing sites spreads

-- Opinion: Why TV viewers resort to piracy

Future is TV-shaped, says Intel

The world's biggest chip maker predicts that by 2015 there will be 12 billion devices capable of connecting to 500 billion hours of TV and video content. The BBC reports.

Intel said its vision of TV everywhere will be more personal, social, ubiquitous and informative.

Intel's developer forum in San Francisco was told that the success of TV is down to the fact there are a growing number of ways to consume content.

Today that includes everything from the traditional box in the corner of the living room to smartphones, laptops, netbooks, desktops and mobile internet devices.

... We are seeing an amazing move of video to IP (internet) networks. By 2013 90% of all IP traffic will be video. 60% of all video will be consumed by consumers over IP networks," said Cisco's vice president of video product strategy, Malachy Moynihan.

Pay for BBC iPlayer says TV chief

Users of the BBC iPlayer should be charged "micro payments" to use the online catch-up service said Lorraine Heggessey, chief executive of TV production company Talkback Thames, speaking at a BBC event on Tuesday.

Most broadcasters now offer an online catch-up service, and with advertising revenue falling in the commercial TV sector, there is increasing industry support for the idea of charging for it.

Research carried out by Fremantle suggests that people would be willing to pay up to £2 for certain shows.

Read full article.

President Obama on Letterman

David Letterman and President Barack Obama discuss whether the President believes racism is behind recent political attacks.

Sand Artist Becomes YouTube Sensation

The Internet has a new star, and she plays with sand. CBSNews reports.

Actually, "play" is too dismissive a term to describe what Kseniya Simonova (left) does.

A "sand artist," she recently demonstrated her gift on the TV competition "Ukraine's Got Talent," winning the top prize. A video of her performance has since received more than two million hits on YouTube.

As described by Ian Johnston in London's Telegraph, Simonova, 24, draws pictures in sand on top of a light table, the images (projected onto a large screen) depicting the effects of the Nazi Invasion.

With a soundtrack of period songs and bombs bursting, Simonova's 8 1/2-minute animated display shows ordinary people suffering the deprivations of war.

It moved the audience to tears, and won Simonova the top prize, approximately $120,000.

Pirate Bay buyer faces setbacks

The sale of file-sharing site The Pirate Bay has been hit by a further setback after its potential buyer was served with a bankruptcy petition, reports the BBC.

The document was filed with a Swedish court by a creditor of Global Gaming Factory (GGF), which outlined plans to buy the site in June.

The creditor - Advatar Systems - is claiming more than 1.3m kronor (£116,000) in unpaid debts.

It is the latest in a long series of hold-ups which have stalled the sale.

Musicians: iTunes Not Paying Fair Share

Songwriters, composers, and music publishers are making preparations to one day collect performance fees from Apple and other e-tailers for not just traditional music downloads but for downloads of films and TV shows as well. Those downloads contain music after all.

These groups even want compensation for iTunes' 30-second song samples.

[via CBS News]

Cablevision to Launch Clickable TV Ads

Cablevision announced today that it will begin rolling out interactive TV ads, allowing viewers to use their remotes to “click” on a commercial in order to get more information.

[via NewTeeVee]

Harry Potter-like wand as a TV remote

Spotted on Switched, a Harry Potter-like-wand as a TV remote. Made by The Wand Company.

Report. Hulu, A Threat to TV Networks

In a new report, Laura Martin, Soleil Securities analyst estimates that the online video hub will cost TV networks $920 per viewer in advertising if their audiences are cannibalized by Hulu. And she believes the bulk of viewing on Hulu is indeed taking eyeballs from TV.

[via Mediapost]

France passes harsh anti-P2P three-strikes law (again)

The French legislature today passed into law a second version of the ultra-controversial HADOPI "three strikes" law that targets illegal Internet file-swappers. arstechnica reports.

The revised proposal does address the concerns of the "Sages" who sit on France's Constitutional Council who objected to the first version of the law, but it does little to mollify critics. Internet disconnections of up to a year can be ordered by a single judge in a "streamlined" proceeding, while Internet users who fail to "secure" their connections can also be punished if other people use those connections to exchange copyrighted material.

Related:

-- French "3 strikes" law returns, now with judicial oversight!

-- France govt goes into spin mode to salvage three-strikes law

-- France ignores EU and passes antipiracy law

-- Once Again, France Will Vote on Piracy

-- EU undermines Sarkozy's plan to to Fight Illegal Downloads

-- French reject Internet Piracy Law

-- Sarkozy move to punish illegal downloaders sparks liberties row

-- Assembly approves Sarkozy plan for French television

-- European Parliament says "no" to disconnecting P2P users

-- Illegal downloaders 'face UK ban'

-- French plan e-mail warnings for illegal downloads

Play Dexter iPhone game and win a walk-on-role in Season 5

Dexter The Game for iPhone is now available on iTunes, in anticipation of Dexter Season Four, premiering September 27.

In their own words: Dexter the Game is the killer 3D iPhone game based on Showtime's original TV series featuring Dexter Morgan, America's favorite serial killer.

In the game, the player helps Dexter choose his next victims while always protecting his identity, analyzes crime scenes, uncovers evidence and uses stealth tactics to stalk hisprey. The outcome of every choice and action revolves around the Code of Harry: only kill the guilty, maintain the mask, and above all, don’t get caught.

By playing the game, you could win a walk-on role in Season 5, be invited to lunch with the show's writer or receive one of many instant prizes including DVDs and t-shirts. To get a code, purchase Dexter the Game from the iTunes App Store. See www.dexterthegame.com for official rules.

VisitDenmark removes bogus video

VisitDenmark, which is the official Danish tourist agency, has removed a bogus film from the Internet and apologised for its distribution after it transpired that the story behind the viral advertising was untrue and adverse reactions have flooded in. Politken.dk reports.

The story featured on YouTube purported to be a young Danish woman and her baby appealing to find the baby’s foreign father, with whom the woman had had a one night stand. The young woman in the video, however, is a Danish actress and the baby is not hers.

Veoh wins copyright case

A federal district court says Veoh, a Web video site that has come under legal fire from entertainment companies the past several years, is not liable for the copyright violations committed by its users, a decision that could help YouTube defend itself against Viacom's $1 billion copyright suit.

[via News.com]

Clicker What's Online

Start-up company Clicker (with a Mad Men inspired logo) aims to help people watching TV online to figuring out what’s on. They claim to be the first “structured, comprehensive and unbiased guide for online television.” VentureBeat reports.

Clicker not only tells you what video is available on the web now, but also what’s missing. It demonstrated this by searching for Seinfeld and coming up with only six episodes. Clicker points to the page where the video’s hosted; it doesn’t necessarily host or embed the videos itself. Users can also add data about the show, putting in tags or memorable quotes.

The site is in private beta over the next few weeks. It has a couple of business models: it could function on advertising or share revenue with sites it directs a lot of traffic toward. It could also offer a paid pro version.

Only open to beta testers for the moment, it will be interesting to see if it's as good as sidereel.com.

UK. Product placement for TV approved

Product placement is to be allowed on British TV shows, in a move due to be announced next week, reports the BBC.

Independent broadcasters will be allowed to take payments for displaying commercial products during shows.

The change is intended to bring in extra funds for commercial broadcasters. Experts believe it could raise up to £100m a year.

There are currently strict rules against product placement and this ban would remain in place on BBC shows.

Read full article.

Related:

-- USA. The State of Product Placement

-- Product Placement Creeps Into Amateurs' YouTube Offerings

-- Obama's Abercrombie Fans. For real? or product placement

-- Product placement agency targets YouTube

-- Screen Actors Guild slams "Stealth" Ads

-- MPs reject TV product placement advertising plans

AT&T Entertainment Features Online TV Content and Movies

AT&T Thursday announced the launch of AT&T Entertainment, a new Web site that lets you watch thousands of streaming TV shows and movies on your PC. The online content - provided by numerous content providers including ABC and NBC Universal (via an agreement with Hulu), CBS Interactive and dozens more - is available to all consumers at www.entertainment.att.net.

Great for US viewers, again the rest of the world is left out in the cold:

[Read full press release]

TV remote control ‘allows you to switch channels with flick of the wrist’

A television remote, the UWand, that allows viewers to switch channels with flick of the wrist has been developed using technology similar to Nintendo’s Wii game controller. The Telegraph reports.

It allows users to adjust the volume, change the channel or any other function on a television.

While sitting on a sofa, consumers simply point the uWand in the appropriate direction, click to make selections and move it to interact with screen menus, and manipulate objects such as photos.

Using technology similar to the popular Wii games, the uWand uses infra-red technology that controls a cursor that then scrolls through menus or helps change the volume.

Clicking on a channel will help change it, while pointing the contraption to the right or left will adjust various settings.

A small inbuilt camera allows it to be connected with two small beacons either built into the television or on a detachable bar beneath it.

Read full article.

Related innovative remotes:

-- Turning the TV on with your voice

-- Clapping your hands to control your remote

-- Touchless Remote Control

-- The New TV Remote: Your Bare Hand?

-- You Face as a Remote Control

-- Twist and Squeeze Remote Control

-- Remote responds to voice commands

-- Gestures Control Hitachi TV

Coming soon: Finding your friends on YouTube

According to Google's YouTube Blog, YouTube will soon be making it even easier for you to find people you know on the site. A "You may know these people" suggestions box will be introduced on the homepage over the next few weeks that shows you the YouTube channels of people who might be your acquaintances, and lets you easily connect and subscribe to them.

Read more.

Pirate Bay bidder kicked off Swedish stock market

The Swedish company that bid £4.7m to buy notorious file sharing website the Pirate Bay has been banned from trading shares on its stock exchange amid claims that it had "seriously violated" rules.

The move comes amid claims that Global Gaming Factory X took a "casual" approach to financial disclosures surrounding the bid, which it launched in June.

The company, which makes software and runs a chain of internet cafes, had shocked the technology and media industries by announcing that it planned to buy the Pirate Bay and turn it into a legitimate operation.

It proved particularly surprising coming just two months after four men were sentenced to prison and fined a total of £2.4m for their links to the controversial site.

[via The Guardian]

Google shows off videos in text ads

Google is now offering advertisers a chance to insert a video trailer into their text ads. "In many cases, the best information is video," said Nick Fox, business product management director on Google's AdWords team. News.com reports.

Fox demonstrated how Electronic Arts is using a video trailer inside an ad for the new Tiger Woods video game. The result is a marriage of the text ad format that Google has used to rise into a dominant Internet company with the display ad style that others, such as Yahoo, are hoping to finally make a success.

Google hasn't made many changes to its text ad format and now sees this as a big opportunity," wrote J.P. Morgan's Imran Khan in a research note distributed after the Webcast. It can charge either by the click through to the advertiser's Web site or by the play of the video, therefore adding a revenue stream that didn't exist before.

Read full article .

New "Internet Meter" will Officially Measure Web TV Audience

Yesterday, Nielsen announced that they will make their new "Internet Meter" available by year's end to measure the online television viewing audience, reports Read Write Web.

The Internet Meter software will be deployed by the end of 2009 to their "People Meter" households - the chosen few whose TV-viewing habits function as the representative sample for measuring a show's success.

This new addition to the ratings game is bound to have a major impact on TV monetization efforts as both networks and advertisers will see, officially, how many viewers have tuned in to watch this "2nd screen."

TV Viewing Moves Online

Nearly one out of four U.S. households watches TV online, up from 20 percent last year, reports The Conference Board and TNS. And Hulu.com is fast becoming the hot site - just behind YouTube.com - for watching TV programs. In fact, the number of households visiting Hulu.com has increased almost fourfold in the last year.

Nearly 80 percent of consumers log on daily for entertainment. In fact, entertainment is cited as one of the most important Internet activities, behind only personal communication and work-related activities.

... News shows are the most popular online programs - watched by about 43 percent of online TV viewers. About 35 percent enjoy sitcoms, comedies and dramas, while 19 percent of online TV viewers indulge in reality shows and 18 percent follow sports. Other forms of online content include previews, user-generated content, additional content from favorite shows, soap operas and advertisements.

[via Reuters. Image from Ypulse]