Blog articles from 06/2008

Yesterday, Yahoo announced that it ended talks with Microsoft about selling/integrating some of its ad assets with Microsoft’s. Today, it signed a deal with Google to allow the latter to deliver ads next to some of Yahoo!'s search results and supply ads on certain of its sites in the U.S. and Canada. Yahoo! claimed that the move will bring between $250 million to$450 million cash to the company in the first year. It is an open secret that Google has a much better monetization rate...

Protecting digital content flows to the home is easy enough but once it's delivered, there are numerous ways it can be copied. DVD-Rs, DVRs, PC TV tuners, etc. all open the door to having a DRM free copy. A recent Wall Street Journal article is calling attention to Hollywood's efforts to block the broadcast of video to unsecured devices. "Selectable output control", as it is technically referred to, is currently prohibited for standard definition broadcasts. Hollywood has...

Apple iPhone made splashes on Monday on various technology sites and today's HP's turn with its Voodoo Envy and other new products. I did a pre-briefing with Rahul and the team last week. After hearing about all the great features and salivating over the beautiful (and thoughtful) design, my jaw almost dropped when I heard the starting price, only $2,099. Of course, if you really want to trick it out, you can add different options and customize it to your taste. I cannot wait to get my...

The market is buzzing with anticipation over a 3G iPhone. Steve Jobs is expected to unveil the device on Monday when he speaks at Apple's Worldwide Developer's Conference. I wanted to take a step back and offer a few observations on the buzz-phenomenon that is presently occurring. Recall that the current iPhone uses EDGE, a 2.5G technology with limited bandwidth capability. The new 3G iPhone will boast WCDMA. Now given the amount of anticipation and buzz, you might think that WCDMA...

When I got my VUDU hooked up at the house, I had to run to Best Buy to purchase some powerline adapters (in this case, the D-Link Powerline Ethernet Adapter Kit). Now, VUDU provides a wireless option about about half the cost. They announced their Wireless Kit - two ASUS 802.11g adapters - available for $79. When we find the time to watch a movie, I really have liked the VUDU experience. For all of its great features, Verizon FiOS TV service is frustratingly slow in bringing up...

Yahoo is the latest distribution partner for CBS Interative, according to this press release from yesterday. The CBS content will be added to Yahoo!'s programming lineup which also includes programming from NBC, Fox and more than 15 cable networks. Yahoo joins the CBS Audience Network , where partners such as AOL, Veoh Networks, Joost, Comcast's Fancast, and YouTube, among others. It's going to be interesting to see how the difering strategies of CBS and NBC-Universal eventually...

New technology solutions for the living room featured June 17 & 18... Parks Associates will sponsor the “Digital Den” at the Entertainment Supply Chain Academy (ESCA), June 17-18 at the Hotel Intercontinental in Culver City, CA. The “Digital Den” will showcase cool emerging technologies enabling a “new” experience in the living room. The Digital Den (Petite Salon Room) will feature demos throughout the two-day event by the following companies: 3ality Digital;...

I've been following baseball this year with far more enthusiasm than is really needed at this point. After all, there are still more than 100 games to go in the season, and many school districts in the Dallas area haven't even gone to summer break! But I can't help it - the Cubs are playing well this year, and those of us rooting for the North Siders are delusional enough to think that 100 years is long enough to wait for a World Series. So, I'm agonizing over every game and box score as...