Business News Holding

Tag: tv

  • Tried PC Videoconferencing – Well How About On An HDTV?


    With webcams now commonplace on PCs and laptops it seems natural that they should take the next step – to HDTVs.

    Videoconferencing expert Emblaze VCON says it has developed technology that allows up to six different users to interact through home TV screens.

    Linor Shachar, VP sales and marketing for the Israeli company, told hdtv.biz-news that it hoped to have found a partner "within months" to develop its TV videoconferencing solution.

    Emblaze is best known for its desktop videoconferencing applications.

    She said having the ability to videoconference from your home HDTV set was the logical "next stage" with the advent of internet-connected televisions.

    "It’s very interesting and we are very confident that it will be everywhere," she said.

    "We have the technology, now we are looking for a partner."

    Shachar said the preferred partnership was with a TV manufacturer and the intention was to have the technology embedded rather than as a set-top box.

    She said companies such as LG were already working on HDTVs with built-in cameras.

    The Emblaze technology will allow a user to open up to six windows on the screen and videotalk with others.

    "So, for instance, you might be watching a football match on TV and want to speak to a friend," said Shachar.

    "You can do that through a window within the main TV screen."

  • Could Savings Ratios Give A Clue To Market Robustness?


    Black Friday has arrived in the US and many retailers are hoping fears of prolonged economic difficulties will not hamper consumers’ appetite for spending – not least for HDTVs.

    Paul Gray, Display Search’s director of European TV research, has added some intriguing analysis to the various predictions about how robust consumer demand is likely to be in key markets in the coming months.

    He examined the correlation between the TV penetration and savings and reckons there is some kind of a link.

    Based on his results, the US and UK markets are the most vulnerable whereas Italy and Germany appear well placed to ride out a recession.

    Describing himself as "stunned" by the findings he said the correlations appeared almost too good to be true.

    "But it does perhaps give a peek into where demand can be expected to be most robust," he said.

    "Clearly Germany and Italy have few sets. If the set fails, the choice is to replace it or read a book instead."

    Gray said that by comparison, the US and UK had enjoyed an Anglo-Saxon credit binge and much of the market is supported by second sets.

    "When times get tough, these will not be replaced, or the impulsive demand for another set will easily be extinguished by tight household budgets," he said.

    "These markets look most vulnerable, and indeed have so many sets in the home that in really tight times a bedroom set could be called into front-line duty if the main set fails."

    Just how accurate his methods are remain to be seen, but there is a certain logic to them – isn’t there?

  • Netflix "Watch Instantly" Comes To Macs


    Online movie rental giant Netflix is finally offering Mac users its instant watching service.

    Windows users have been able to watch movies and TV episodes instantly since early 2007.

    The upgraded service will initially only work on Macs with Intel chips – but the Los Gatos, California-based online DVD rental pioneer said that was around 70 per cent of their Mac subscribers.

    It requires Microsoft’s Silverlight software and Mac users will have to download a Silverlight player to access Netflix’s extensive streaming library.

    The deployment is the first step in an anticipated roll-out of the new platform to all Netflix subscribers by the end of the year.

    It is expected that Netflix members who watch content instantly on their computers will enjoy a faster, easier connection and a more robust viewing experience with Silverlight.

    Among the viewing enhancements with the new player is a breakthrough in timeline navigation that vastly improves the use of fast-forwarding and rewinding.

    The new Netflix player takes advantage of PlayReady DRM, which is built into Silverlight, for the playback of protected content on both Windows-based PCs and on Macs.

    That had not been possible with previous generation technologies.

  • Broadcast and online TV can co-exist

    Reports suggests that VOD does not detract from broadcast TV

    Video on demand shouldn’t be viewed as a threat to broadcast TV but helps promote it, according to a report.

    Thinkbox, the marketing body for the UK’s commercial broadcasters, says that online VOD services do not detract from linear television viewing.

    It has released figures showing that the popularity of web services such as iPlayer, 4OD and Sky Player appear to be incremental to the broadcast television that people have always watched.

    The report says that both broadcast and online TV platforms are growing simultaneously, which it suggests underlines how the two fulfil different needs for viewers.

    It adds that this underlines “that they can co-exist and indeed promote each other”.

    Online TV services, according to Thinkbox, are primarily used as a means of catching up with the broadcast stream.

    Thinkbox recently announced that it has commissioned further research to examine how and why people use online TV, its relationship to broadcast TV and the advertising opportunities it affords, with preliminary results expected before the end of the year.

  • Younger viewers ditching TV for mobile media

    Smartphone.biz-news.com asked Christian Harris, CEO of mobile video provider Gorillabox, for his views on the mobile TV market

    More and more younger viewers are eschewing traditional TV schedules and embracing new technology – mobile TV, DVRs, online streaming and downloading – to set their own viewing schedules.

    So much so, that research just released reveals the average age of those watching TV in the US has tipped 50 for the first time.
    The study of the big five US broadcast networks by research firm Magna Global shows the average viewer no longer falls within the 18-49 demographic so sought after by advertisers.
    While average viewing age figures for the UK are not available, research by entertainment analysts Attentional shows viewing time among those aged 16-34 has been declining faster than other age groups.

    This is a situation of which Christian Harris, CEO of mobile video provider Gorillabox, is fully aware.
    He believes that mobile viewing will rapidly become a prime means of consuming content for the 14-28 market.
    “Significant consumer segments don’t consume media on radio or TV any more,” he said. “It is either web or mobile.
    “For this audience, mobile is a key channel for content. To serve the mobile channel for this audience, mobile broadcasting is a primary capability.
    “The question isn’t ‘why should you?’ – it’s ‘why wouldn’t you?’”

    Last month, Gorillabox partnered with the AIDS charity 46664 and mobile operator 3 to provide mobile TV content from Nelson Mandela’s birthday concert.
    Video of artists such as Amy Winehouse, Razorlight, Annie Lennox and Queen was streamed live over mobile networks across the UK from London’s Hyde Park.
    Gorillabox was responsible for the deployment of content on the streaming platform, billing integration and customer care, while 46664 marketed the service and worked with Gorillabox on making the live video content available from the concert.

    Harris said the mobile portal improved accessibility to music videos from some of the world’s biggest musicians and celebrities.
    “Large-scale events need to be fully supported by multi-channel content distribution,” he said.
    “This used to be radio and TV and more recently web. However, this now also includes mobile.”
    A recent survey by mobile TV and video solutions provider QuickPlay Media revealed significant barriers hindering users from consuming TV and video content on their mobile phones – factors included lack of awareness of the services that are on offer and the perceived high costs involved.
    But the survey showed that demand for mobile TV existed with 65 per cent of those questioned, who said they would be willing to watch an advertisement if it meant that the content was free or discounted.

    The 3G iPhone could have a significant impact on the mobile TV market as research shows that many iPhone owners have accessed TV and video content with greater frequency than subscribers using other types of mobile handsets.
    With added 3G capability, the iPhone brings with it some attractive attributes to the mobile TV market, including video-friendly specifications, access to a rapidly increasing range of Apple TV and video content and the ability to support multiple methods of delivering TV and video (sideloading, indoor WLAN and high-speed 3G cellular data access).

    Harris said Gorillabox runs its own delivery technology called the G-box platform .
    Developed in-house, he said the platform could handle any content or media format over GPRS or 3G networks to any mobile phone in the European Union and the US.
    He said Gorillabox was able to deliver live and on-demand media from any location in the world via its UK data-centre to mobile devices.
    “We also enable the discovery of the services via mobile search,” he added.
    “Our objective is to make the event as visible and reachable as possible and, where appropriate, provide advertising and billing.”
    There’s no doubt mobile TV content is going to become increasingly accessible.
    Christian Harris asked “why wouldn’t you watch mobile content?” – we would be really interested to hear your views?

  • LCD HDTV to be sold in Japan which allows simple transfer of high def content from the PC to the TV


    Watching high def content downloaded from the Internet is going to get a whole lot easier for viewers in Japan.
    A liquid crystal display high-definition television made by byd:sign Corporation is to be the first with DivX Certification sold in the Japanese market.
    The video format will let viewers watch digital content from PCs on the HDTV – rather than on a PC monitor.
    Katsumi Iizuka, chief executive officer of byd:sign Corporation, said DivX videos had enabled consumers to enjoy high-quality content through the internet.
    “DivX Certification enhances our HDTV features and gives added value,” he said. “We plan to provide more valuable entertainment to our customers in working with DivX high quality content and devices in the future.”
    Kevin Hell, chief executive officer of DivX, said the DivX certified LCD TV would allow the Japanese market to easily transfer high-definition videos directly to their TVs.
    “DivX is the only video format that offers consumers an easy and flexible way to move video content across devices, guaranteeing interoperability between the PC, TV, DVD players, mobile phones, and more,” he said.
    “Byd:sign’s compact LCD HDTV is a prime example of the simple transferability of high-quality content in an open, digital system.”

  • Number of LCD TVs being returned rises as viewers demand better quality for HDTV


    The refund rate on LCD TVs has increased to 25-30 per cent in North America despite a drop in prices by branded TV retailers.
    Many vendors reduced prices for 32-inch and 40-inch LCD TVs in May in an attempt to boost sales.
    However, the move has led to a rise in the number of products being returned as viewer expectations about the quality of high-definition images rises.
    The introduction of HD TV broadcasts in North America has made it much easier to compare the resolution of LCD TVs, according to a report in DigiTimes.
    It quotes industry sources who attribute the high refund rate for LCD to consumer dissatisfaction with low-priced products that did not meet their original expectations in terms of picture quality.

  • Wireless high definition transmitter removes clutter of cables


    Monster Cable has unveiled a transmitter that wirelessly sends HD video signals from a device such as a Blu-ray player to a high definition TV up to 10m away.
    The transmitter sends the video signal using ultra-wideband, or UWB, technology from Sigma Designs Inc.
    It will also upscale non-HD signals to high-def resolution before displaying on screen. A receiver plugs into a HDMI port on the back of the TV.
    To back up the short-range wireless capability, the boxes can also connect via coaxial cable to reach each other in different rooms, up to 110m away.
    Noel Lee, president of Monster Cable, which is better known for its expensive video and audio cables, said: “We had opportunities with lots of other systems that just didn’t have the quality of service.
    “Sigma is the first partner we found … that has a robust enough technology.”
    The Monster Digital Express HD boxes will be available in the US in October for $299.95 each.
    UWB is just one of several technologies being utilised for wireless HD connections, an area that has presented problems in maintaining a steady flow of wireless data at very high speeds.
    A consortium that includes Sony, Toshiba and Intel is promoting another wireless technology called WirelessHD, with transfer speeds that are even higher than UWB.

  • Australian market first to get recordable Blu-ray player outside of Japan


    Panasonic is to roll-out sales of a range of Blu-ray recorders in Australia, making it only the second country after Japan to receive the devices.
    A 500GB Twin High Definition Tuner and VIERA Link model is to go on sale this month as well as various lower-spec recorders, the first 46” plasma TV and new 37” Full HD LCD TV models.
    Paul Reid, Panasonic Australia’s Director for Consumer Electronics Group, described the move as a “significant breakthrough” for Blu-ray.
    “Panasonic has led the way in home entertainment products and continues to bring innovation to the market with Australia’s first Blu-ray recorder for the living room,” he said.
    Other overseas markets, including Europe and the US, are to receive the new model shortly.