Blog articles from 06/2009

Consumer demand leads to almost 20% annual growth between 2008 and 2013-- The consumer appetite for smartphones is skyrocketing and will push annual sales worldwide from 131 million units in 2008 to over 300 million by 2013, according to international market research company Parks Associates . The firm’s new report Mobile Services: Global Outlook finds consumers are attracted to these converged devices because they combine practical and entertainment applications into a mobile...

Sonic Solutions’ Roxio CinemaNow announced today a partnership with Japan’s Fujisoft Inc. to deliver Hollywood movies through the Wii in the Japanese market. Instant-streaming downloads will be available through Fujisoft’s video-on-demand service "Minna no Theater Wii" (Everyone's Theater Wii), which debuted earlier this year in Japan. Sonic has signed Paramount Pictures as the first major studio to sell new release and catalog downloads through the service.

Retailers and broadband service providers to drive market for remote tech support to over 10 million U.S. households -- Annual U.S. revenues for remote technical support services will grow to $2.6 billion by 2013, according to a new report from Parks Associates. Digital Home Tech Support: Analysis and Forecasts finds that increased demand and technical innovations will allow retailers, broadband service providers, and third-party providers to grow their customer base and increase...

Parks Associates is a media partner for Americas Com from June 30-July 1, 2009 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Known for 12 years as GSM Americas, Americas Com acts as the annual forum for senior decision-makers from every kind of service provider to discuss the exceptional opportunities in this dynamic and growing telecoms market. Our top-flight panel of speakers incorporates 7 CxOs and 25 operator speakers covering the full range of technologies and perspectives: 3G; Mobile Broadband;...

CONNECTIONS™ Europe announces call for papers to address new challenges, opportunities in changing product and service landscape -- CONNECTIONS™ Europe has announced the call for papers for its upcoming Summit, November 4, 2009, in Amsterdam, Netherlands. CONNECTIONS™ Europe Summit, hosted by international research firm Parks Associates, is dedicated to the discussion and analysis of new business models for emerging services, applications, and advanced digital technologies. The...

French pay TV provider Canal Plus is offering a half-price weekend-only service starting this fall, says Variety . The Friday-to-Sunday night service will cost subscribers €15, about half of a normal monthly subscription.

Syabas has introduced their next-generation Internet set-top box, the C-200. A key differentiator between this and the many other set-tops, the company notes, is its support of more than 30 audio and video types, including MPEG 1, 2, 4, AVI, H.264, Xvid, MKV, Windows Media and others.

AT&T announced some new U-verse features yesterday. The ability to schedule and manage recordings from any receiver sounds cool. I wish that Verizon had that with the Home Media DVR. Here are the specific upgrades announced: * A new Total Home DVR feature: Includes the ability to schedule and manage recordings from any U-verse receiver. This adds more convenience and control over recorded shows by allowing customers to set or delete recordings from any room in their home. * On...