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  1. A Day in the Life by Morgan Spurlock

    March 14, 2012 by AK

    A Day in the Life by the Morgan Spurlock just got global distribution rights. Los Angeles-based Hulu has inked a deal to distribute its original content to the international market, the firm said Monday, in a deal with FremantleMedia Enterprises. Hulu said the deal calls for FremantleMedia to handle distribution rights to its original content internationally, including distributing the content over traditional media. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. The two said the first title to hit the international markets will be A Day in the Life, the Morgan Spurlock series which has been running on Hulu and Hulu Plus. The online-only series is entering a second season on Hulu.

    This is the exact reason HULU, Netflix, Yahoo, are making their own content, to make it much more easy to distribute globally. Perhaps Yahoo can buy a piece of one of the smaller studios and become a Netflix for online web tv only.


  2. March Update: INTEL getting into WEB based TV

    March 12, 2012 by AK

    - Netflix trying to be on cable boxes to offer shows on demand

    - fav.tv acquired by TV Guide

    - Intel set to make set top boxes and offer TV channels or become a virtual cable company - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304450004577277732222512596.html


  3. HULU Superbowl Ad

    February 28, 2012 by AK

    with Alec Baldwin promoting HULU.


  4. Vinod Khosla saying Disruption in TV coming

    February 23, 2012 by AK

    Point 5 from his list of industries going through disruption:

    TV 2.0 (Miso, Flingo, Maker Studios, both first and second screen apps as well as content production & sourcing): “TV as an interactive and social experience both on the primary and the second screen.” Most U.S. Internet users, I am told now, have a second screen in front of them when watching TV. Whether it is true or not, it soon will be, and the interaction that is possible will allow for all kinds of creativity and user engagement shows/applications/techniques. More importantly, program production, be it video for TV, audio for radio, or text for next-generation news formats (tomorrow’s “newspapers”?) could be crowdsourced or gamified. This allows for new personal brands to emerge (much like the Drudge Report or Politico or some YouTube channels that are emerging now). Better experiences for users, better targeting for advertisers, more access for programmers and the creative types are all likely. Your proxy or agent prioritizing your viewing or reading queue will be an adjunct area. The big guys and the small guys meanwhile will battle for newer first screen experiences and applications.


  5. NetFlix Business

    February 21, 2012 by AK

    Wrriten by Netflix CEO Reed Hastings:


  6. Comcast Launching Xfinity Streampix

    February 21, 2012 by AK

    Xfinity Streampix, that will cost $4.99 a month, below Netflix’s current  streaming service of $7.99 a month.

    Comcast’s new service will include programming from its own NBCUniversal as well as Walt Disney’s ABC and Time Warner Inc.’s Warner Bros.

    Competition is ramping up in this space. Amazon has been beefing up its own web-streaming service and Verizon Communications earlier this year struck a deal with Coinstar’s Redbox to launch its own streaming service.


  7. Video Plays On Tablets, Mobile Devices And Connected TVs Nearly Doubled in Q4

    February 15, 2012 by AK

    Ooyala, the online video provider, today released its fourth quarter review of web video, in which it analyzes the viewing behavior of 100 million monthly unique users.

    Not only that, but connected TVs are really beginning to make waves, Google TV in particular. Ooyala’s report found that video plays on tablets, mobile devices, and connected TVs nearly doubled in the fourth quarter (from Q3).

    What’s more, viewers are now twice as likely to compete a video when watching on a tablet or connected TV, as compared to watching video on a desktop. And, unsurprisingly, when viewers plop down on their couch in front of their connected TV, they’re watching four times as many long videos compared to short videos, as videos longer than 10 minutes now account for more than half the hours played on connected TVs.

    While the average conversion rate across all devices increased from 35.1 percent in Q3 to 39.6 percent in Q4 (with viewers watching longer on all platforms), it seems that connected TVs saw the biggest growth in Q4, as their viewers proved to be the most engaged of all the platforms, completing videos at a rate of 47 percent (with tablet viewers following close behind at 38 percent.)

    What’s more, users of connected TV devices and gaming consoles were 70 percent more likely to watch three-quarters of a video. And, in terms of name brands in connected TVs, Google TV’s share of video plays increased by 91 percent this quarter.

     


  8. Our Mentor Mark Suster on The Future of TV (Partner, GRP)

    February 15, 2012 by AK

    1. The promise has been made for too long, People are cynical

    2. The right factors are finally in place

    3. YouTube is the new Comcast

    4. The distributed ad platform enabled this industry to evolve

    5. Internet TV is following the CLASSIC case of the “Innovator’s Dilemma”

    6. Cable & Satellite packages will become music albums

    7. Mass adoption of Internet video has already taken place

    8. TV is the medium people prefer (whether we like it or not)

    9. Video is different than text. It requires unique, creative skills

    10. This revolution is starting in Los Angeles.

     



  9. Youths Are Watching, but Less Often on TV

    February 13, 2012 by AK

    To a child, television shows on the iPad are still television, but to Nielsen, it’s not: the company counts computer and mobile streams of shows separately, making it difficult for the television industry to get a handle on changing habits.

    Accordingly, there is a growing sense of urgency within the industry to make online and mobile viewing as measurable as traditional couch-bound viewing. Ad-buying agencies are gradually moving some client money to the Web to reach the 20- and 30-somethings who are becoming harder to reach with traditional television.

    But for three straight quarters, there have been declines in viewing among Americans under 35, even when DVR viewership is factored in, according to Nielsen data analyzed by The New York Times.

    Read the rest at NYTIMES or start to Watch TV now at TVRecaps.com


  10. Voice for TV

    February 10, 2012 by AK

    Dragon TV would be an alternative to a completely integrated solution, as it would allow anyone to build in Siri-like voice technology into TV sets, DVRs and other set-top boxes. However, it could easily form the backbone of whatever Apple may have in store for its “iTV” product, too.

    According to Nuance’s announcement, you’ll be able to navigate your TV by saying things like “go to PBS,” “What’s on Bravo at 9 tonight?,” “Watch Dexter on DVR,” “Find comedies with Vince Vaughn,” and more.

    Let’s see what Apple has in store for us with its Apple TV, for now you can watch tv online at TVRecaps.com