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milestone posts

Cable companies miss tru2way deadline, insist it's no big deal

by Richard Lawler posted Jul 2nd 2009 at 4:13AM


Remember that tru2way-related Memorandum of Understanding that was all the rage about this time last year? It appears the 6 cable companies haven't lived up to at least one part of their agreement, collectively missing the deadline of July 1 to have 100% of their digital cable headends compatible. No word on how close they got, but Comcast, Cox, Time Warner, Charter, Cablevision and Bright House still insist it's "not that far off" though we don't see how missing important milestones is helping move the technology forwards.

Netflix notches 2 billionth delivery with a Blu-ray disc

by Richard Lawler posted Apr 2nd 2009 at 3:01AM


2,000,000,000. That's how many movies Netflix has shipped out since coming on the scene in 1999. Lucky number two billion -- Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist on Blu-ray) snagged Clay Shannon a complimentary lifetime subscription (guess he's not too concerned about the new, higher Blu-ray rates.) It took the company eight years to cross the one billion milestone, and only two for the next billion. While there's little indication of a slowdown in the two million movies shipped out every day from 58 distribution centers, we wouldn't be surprised if number 3 billion were just as likely to come as a download than anything else.

Continue reading Netflix notches 2 billionth delivery with a Blu-ray disc

Digital Playground announces its 100th adult Blu-ray release

by Darren Murph posted Mar 24th 2009 at 11:39PM

Make no mistake, the crew at Digital Playground has been busy. Real busy. Since going Blu-ray exclusive last June, the famed adult film studio has pushed out a staggering amount of titles on the high-def format. A full 100 of 'em, in fact. The company's Bad Girls will be its 100th Blu-ray release, a 100-minute feature (fitting, no?) that is slated to ship on March 31st. 'Course, you'll be paying a $30 premium for the BD edition over the $29 DVD, but how else will you truly be able to appreciate that RED ONE footage?

[Via I4U News]

Netflix breaks the 10 million subscriber mark, keeps on truckin'

by Darren Murph posted Feb 12th 2009 at 10:39AM Breaking News


We can't say the economic crisis has been too kind to every industry, but it's been a best friend to Netflix. As consumers divert their out-on-the-town dollars to sit-on-my-arse-and-watch-Netflix dollars, the by-mail and streaming movie rental company is just breaking records left and right. After closing a stellar 2008 with 9.4 million customers, the company has today announced that the 10 million mark has been crossed. For those struggling with basic math, that means that it has added 600,000 net subscribers since January 1st. So, where does Netflix go from here? Into every nook and cranny it can, of course, so don't be shocked to see Watch Instantly creep onto your next HDTV, set-top-box, Blu-ray player or portable microwave. Seriously, it could happen.

3LCD celebrates a score, and by score we mean 20 years

by Darren Murph posted Jan 8th 2009 at 9:00AM


Here lately, the aura of 3LCD has been somewhat overshadowed by the glitz and glam that seems to be intrinsically connected to DLP projectors, LCoS beamers and those other "new technologies." But regardless of the star factor, 3LCD has managed to hang around in a perpetually changing industry for 20 years now. Way back in 1988, the very first 3LCD projector started to ship with Kodak and Epson behind the wheel, and it took until 1994 for a 3LCD VGA PJ to see the light of day. 'Course, we all know what happened from there, but if you're the nostalgic type, head on past the break for a tear-jerking time line.

DISH Network pulls up 30 stations short of 150 HD channels goal

by Darren Murph posted Dec 31st 2008 at 2:11PM


It was a valiant effort, it really was, but unless DISH Network pulls 30 channels out of its back pocket this afternoon, it will fall short of its 150 HD channel goal. If you'll recall, the satcaster proudly proclaimed that it would be offering 150 high-def channels before the year's end, and with just hours to go (in this part of the world, anyway) before 2009 begins, it looks like failure is in sight. Now, there's nothing at all wrong with 120 high-definition stations -- we mean, hordes of cable subscribers would do unfathomable things for that many options -- but it's certainly good to call DISH on the rug in order to get those extra 30 out on the double. Let's make a deal, DISH -- you provide the remainder to the people within 30 days or so, and we'll pretend you meant before Chinese New Year.

AT&T's U-verse survives a year in Columbus, Ohio

by Darren Murph posted Dec 20th 2008 at 1:48AM


Yeah, we said it -- survived. Columbus is one of the toughest markets to be a pay-TV provider in, as you've got competitors coming from pretty much every angle. That said, AT&T has managed to grow its U-verse TV business in the Ohio city over the past year, as it is now available to over 50 communities in the area. Interestingly, the operator doesn't take the time to brag about exactly how many consumers it has here, but we're betting it's a bit less than most regions simply due to the plethora of other options. At any rate, here's your birthday card AT&T, and no, there's no money tucked away after the break.

AT&T hits goal of one million U-verse TV subscribers

by Darren Murph posted Dec 16th 2008 at 3:21PM


Just a day after announcing that U-verse TV was lit in select areas of Raleigh and Orlando, AT&T has reached its long-time goal of securing one million U-verse TV subscribers before the end of 2008. And yeah, the outfit's chief executive of telecom operations totally called this last week, but we're willing to bet he had access to some pretty confidential (and telling) figures. At any rate, the milestone has been hit less than 2.5 years after the service first launched, reaching some 79 major markets in 16 states. Kudos AT&T -- now how's about you get those expansion efforts moving forward at a frantic pace? You know you want two million by July.

AT&T's U-verse TV goes a year strong in St. Louis, Missouri

by Darren Murph posted Dec 14th 2008 at 10:00PM


Well, wouldn't you know it? Another one year birthday for another locale in AT&T's admittedly small U-verse TV family. As of now, the fiber-based programming service is available to over 355,000 living units in the St. Louis region, including sections of Arnold, Florissant, Manchester, Maplewood, St. Peters and Wellston. As always, the operator has promised to continue expanding the service on an ongoing basis, though we're beginning to wonder when "expand" will refer to something more than just a few miles out of cities already covered. Yes, that's jealousy on our breath -- so?

Satellite TV turns 20 in the UK

by Darren Murph posted Dec 11th 2008 at 11:19PM


You know, we could just aimlessly fire off unnecessary congratulatory remarks about the 20th birthday of satellite TV in the UK, but instead, we'll use this as a launching point for somewhat of a rant. A score ago, the ASTRA A1 lifted off in order to eventually provide direct-to-home (DTH) satellite TV service to "small" dishes across Europe. Today, we're simply baffled and appalled by the lack of progress. 20 years later, Americans can tune into well over 100 linear high-def channels via satellite, yet Europeans are still wondering if HD is just a figment of someone's imagination. What gives, Europe? Why the refusal to provide your people with the next level in quality programming? The source content is already out there, and we're sure DISH Network and DirecTV would be happy to share contact information if need be. We're happy for your 20 year party and all, but who throws a shindig in 2008 without at least a few dozen high-def stations on tap?

AMIMON ships 100,000th WHDI wireless chipset

by Darren Murph posted Dec 9th 2008 at 6:00AM


A full year after we expected wireless HD to really take off, we're barely in a position different than the one we started in. If we can point to any initiative in particular that has grown legs over the course of 2008, it'd be AMIMON's WHDI. Today, the company has shipped its 100,000th Wireless High-Definition (WHDI) chipset, a milestone that's pretty impressive given the general ignorance of wireless HDTVs in the consumer space. As of now, these chipsets are shipping in ultrathin LCD TVs by top-tier brands (think Sony, Mitsubishi and Sharp), and they're also finding their way into Wireless HDTV dongles that bring cordless freedom to older sets. AMIMON is hoping to see quite a few more WHDI-enabled HDTVs ship to America in 2009 -- we have all ideas the introductions at CES will be a good gauge of how ready manufacturers are to agree. Full release after the break.

Continue reading AMIMON ships 100,000th WHDI wireless chipset

BigBand Networks heads up first ever international SDV deployment

by Darren Murph posted Nov 27th 2008 at 8:52AM


BigBand Networks knows a thing or two about making the transition to switched digital video, and now it can say that it helped flipped the first ever SDV switch overseas. The company, in conjunction with interactive TV middleware provider Alticast, has "added functionality to its switched digital video solution in preparation for deployments by Korean cable operators." Obviously, the opportunities for SDV outside of North America is significant, with many markets gasping for bandwidth just to get a handful of high-def channels out to the people. Research firm In-Stat actually asserts that "Asian deployments of SDV will grow at an average rate of 85% for the next four years, reaching $212M by 2012," and we can only hope that this is one method for greatly boosting the amount of HD content available outside of the US.

Blu-ray hits a milestone: 1,000 titles on the format

by Darren Murph posted Oct 29th 2008 at 6:16PM


While most everyone's busy drooling at the thought of checking out HD Netflix streams on November 19th, Blu-ray is peeking its head out for a share of the limelight, too. Hollywood Reporter has it that Blu-ray Disc has hit a rather large milestone today: the all-important 1,000 mark. As of now, over 1,000 high-definition movies have BD written all over it, with 841 on the market currently and 185 scheduled for release. The latest big time announcement for the format is Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment's 70th anniversary platinum edition of Pinocchio, which just notched a March 10, 2009 release date. Huzzah!

India's Big TV grabs 500,000 subscribers in two months

by Darren Murph posted Oct 21st 2008 at 2:00PM

It took AT&T years to hit the magical half million mark here in the USA with U-verse TV; for India's Big TV, it has taken two short months. Oh sure, that comparison involves a hint of apple with a slice of orange, but still, it's an impressive feat no matter how you spin it. The DTH satellite arm of Reliance Communications has managed to secure 500,000 customers since launching in August, and with that kind of cash inflow, we have a pretty good feeling about it being able to maintain expansion plans. If all goes well, the lineup will blossom from 200 to 400 next year, it will offer DVR services by the year's end and it will launch 15 to 20 high-def channels by "mid-2009." Kudos, Big TV -- now, what's it going to take to get those HD options out a few months ahead of schedule?

ASTRA sees 30% increase in HD channels over three months

by Darren Murph posted Oct 20th 2008 at 9:47PM


We usually try to skim right over meaningless gloating from companies, but ASTRA's latest back-patting is actually something worth a round of golf claps. As you all well know, Europe suffers from a comparative dearth of HD options when eyed beside the USA, but it seems as if that disparity is fading. Over the past three months, the ASTRA satellite system has increased the amount of HD channels it carries to 55 -- a 30% boost. The bird beams out offerings for carriers like Sky (UK), CanalSat (France), Premiere (Germany), Digital+ (Spain), Viasat (Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland), Canal Digitaal (Netherlands), etc. According to Alexander Oudendijk, Chief Commercial Officer of SES ASTRA, the "rapid growth in the number of HD channels clearly shows that HDTV is taking off in Europe." We hope you're right, sir.




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