Blog articles from 05/2011

Microsoft Corp plans to buy Internet phone service Skype for $8.5 billion. The Skype deal is the biggest in the 36-year history of the world's largest software company. With around 663 million users worldwide, Skype, which is based in Luxembourg, is the world's most popular Internet communications service company, and the acquisition is expected to become a big push in Microsoft's online services. It is expected to support several of Microsoft's devices such as Xbox and Kinect,...

Android Market is expected to offer more applications for download and/or purchase than Apple’s App Store. The Android application store’s growth rate has been accelerating recently. According to a report, Android Market added 28,000 new apps in April 2011, whereas Apple lagged behind with only 11,000 new apps. Reports say Android Market’s high growth rate does not necessarily mean that the average mobile app developer will have a better shot at generating revenues from...

Warner Bros. home entertainment announced that it has agreed to buy Flixster . Warner Bros. is hoping this acquisition will help consumers organize and discover their favorite movies with the applications on their computers, phones and other devices. The acquisition also includes Rotten Tomatoes, a popular movie review and news site. Warner Bros. is seeing DVD sales shrink annually as movie fans start to seek out their favorite movies on digital services. To help stop the...

In an effort to compete in the billion-dollar market for online coupons, AT&T will introduce its own discount site sometime in the next month, in Los Angeles, Atlanta and Dallas-Fort Worth. On its yellowpages.com subsidiary site, AT&T is sweetening the deal for consumers who register by giving them a $10 credit. AT&T , the second-largest U.S. wireless carrier, will be competing in the market against Groupon, and a growing number of new entrants, including Facebook and...

According to Parks Associates’ new report TV Everywhere: Growth, Solutions, and Strategies ,  TV Everywhere services will be available to 81% of U.S. and Canadian pay-TV subscribers through their current service provider by mid-2011. U.S. TV service providers in particular have moved aggressively as consumer data show multiscreen services can help reduce churn and attract younger subscribers. Nearly 40% of U.S. broadband consumers ages 18-34 find TV Everywhere...

Bill Ablondi , Director of Home Systems Research, Parks Associates is presenting during the session, "Digital Lifestyles at Community Associations" on Thursday, May 5th from 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM at the CAI Annual Conference and Exposition in Boca Raton, Florida. The 2011 CAI conference explores The Next Wave—ideas for building strong, resilient communities and strategies for enhancing professional growth and stability no matter what lies ahead. Whether you are a...