YouTube looking to enter rental movies on demand business, says WSJ
by Ross Miller 
posted Sep 2nd 2009 at 6:02PM
wsj posts
Sony's big plans for OLED HDTVs may slip to next year
by Richard Lawler posted Aug 17th 2009 at 6:04PM
DISH Network might attempt DirecTV merger again?
by Richard Lawler posted Aug 6th 2008 at 7:39PM
[Thanks, Adam]
The Wall Street Journal catches on to HD DVD grey market imports
by Ben Drawbaugh posted Oct 18th 2007 at 4:07PM
Hard core HD DVD fans have known for sometime that they can obtain otherwise exclusive Blu-ray titles via overseas websites like Amazon.co.uk; but we were still surprised to see the Wall Street Journal pick up on it. It's not that we don't think people are doing this, but we wonder how many. Sure, early adopter types won't have any problem ordering a title online and paying a bit more for it, but in the grand scheme of the format war, how big of deal is it? The WSJ doesn't know either, but does a great job of describing the reason (distribution rights) for the loop hole and some of the more popular ways (xploitedcinema.com) to do it. Meanwhile, we'll just keep our count to the titles available the average consumer at his local retailer.The Wall Street Journal talks format war
by Steven Kim posted Sep 26th 2007 at 4:39PM
We've talked the HD DVD / Blu-ray format war to death, using everything from officious study group findings to our own Mossberg rules out 1080p as "an important factor" in HDTV buying
by Darren Murph posted Nov 13th 2006 at 8:05AM
Walter Mossberg has taken questions and given answers on everything from scratch-prone iPod nanos to toilet seats, and now he's on the hot seat taking fire from prospective HDTV buyers. Other than touting his recently purchased Pioneer Elite PRO-1140HD plasma as being his display of choice, he tackled a nagging issue concerning 1080p (or the lack thereof). He opens by stating that 1080p "isn't an important factor at all," claiming that television networks will not embrace the format "anytime soon," and that the average joe can't tell the difference between the already-stunning 1080i and 1080p in the first place. He reiterated that only "techies, hardcore gamers, and videophiles" should even take 1080p into consideration (unless you're using the monitor primarily on your PC, of course), and shouldn't postpone that impending HDTV purchase another day waiting for 1080p-capable sets to fall in price. He also mentions that while built-in OTA tuners are certainly a boon for users inclined to setup an antenna and receive such programming, acquiring most other non-network HD feeds will require a subscription to a cable / satellite provider anyway, thus potentially diminishing its importance in your purchase. Regardless, buying an HDTV can certainly be a daunting task, but in the end, Mossberg insinuates that you shouldn't underestimate your own two eyes in discovering which set will please you most.[Via digg]
Why doesn't your cable provider offer more features?
by Richard Lawler posted May 6th 2006 at 5:44PM 
Across the country people have cable envy, as someone in Hawaii who might even have the same provider can get an extra HDTV channel or VOD selection they can't. Prices vary, rollouts are staggered, capacity is limited etc. etc. etc. This WSJ article does a bit more delving into the wheres and whys of cable feature offering and prices.Among our HD Beat readers, are you generally satisfied with the selection (everybody needs more high definition channels) and features your cable company offers, or are you waiting to/have already switched to satellite or IPTV offering for more capabilities?
