Warner Brothers to turn on TheWB.com; watch Veronica and Buffy for free on the Web

by Daniel Langendorf

August 26th, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | Comments1 Comment

No matter what the shortcomings of TheWB.com are, it’s always nice to see more free, legal TV on the Web.

Warner Brothers announced it was resurrecting its defunct WB television brand as TheWB.com back in April. It will be available for all to see Wednesday after an extensive beta period.

At the time we liked the fact that a TV exec, Bruce Rosenblum, got the whole TV-on-the-Web thing. “We can’t stick out head in the sand and not acknowledge that there’s an evolution taking place,” he said in April.

TheWB.com is rich on content if you like older programs such as “Friends,” “The OC,” “Veronica Mars,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” and “Angel.” It even has full shows of “Friends,” “Gilmore Girls,” and “Veronica Mars” that cannot be found on Hulu, the joint-venture online video site from the NBC and Fox networks that will compete with TheWB.com for viewer attention. Continue reading »

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Kindle 2.0 is looking more like Kindle 1.5

by Daniel Langendorf

August 25th, 2008 | Posted in Other | Comments3 Comments

Peter Burrows of BusinessWeek today wrote an even-handed post about the coming of Kindle 2.0, the much anticipated update to Amazon’s much ballyhooed eBook reader. And while he feels the Kindle revolution is “awfully evolutionary,” he also questions just how evolutionary it really is.

Burrows says he can confirm that McAdams Wright Ragen analyst Tim Bueneman [via Seattle Post-Intelligencer] has been saying recently: Amazon will unveil a larger-screen Kindle aimed at college students in the coming months. Burrows also says there will be an upgrade to the Kindle base model, which will be thinner, with a better screen, more stylish, and will include fixes to some of the user interface quirks from Kindle 1.0.

Burrows quotes a source who has seen Kindle 2.0 as saying it is a big leap from its predecessor as the iPod mini was from the first iPod. “They’ve jumped from Generation One to Generation Four or Five,” the source said. “It just looks better, and feels better.”

Wow. Kindle 2.0 must be one heck of a device.

But I, like Burrows, wonder. Continue reading »

Hmm. ESPN developing "interactive television programming" around baseball content

by Daniel Langendorf

August 21st, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | CommentsNo Comments

ESPN and Major League Baseball Advanced Media announced today that they have extended their new-media rights deal, allowing ESPN to stream live games on the Internet and add baseball content onto a number of platforms and devices.

But that news didn’t catch my eye. Buried deep was a little tidbit about ESPN also developing interactive television programming around baseball content.

Ding! Ding! Ding! What the heck does that mean? Continue reading »

Yahoo, Intel attempt to solve Web content on television with "Widget Channel"

by Daniel Langendorf

August 20th, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | Comments1 Comment

Yahoo and Intel today announced they are working together to bring dynamic Web content to your television set through the use of widgets. It’s an interesting idea.

As many pundits have noted, companies large and small have attempted to bring Web content to the TV for years. All the efforts have failed for a variety of reasons: navigation issues, trying to replicate an entire Web page on the TV during programming, the introduction of the browser, keyboard, and mouse in the living room, and so on.

Yahoo thinks it may have the answer with the Widget Channel, which will allow developers to create small mini-programs (or widgets) that will be displayed on the bottom of a TV screen. These widgets offer on-screen access to everything from your pictures on Flickr, to interactions with friends on Twitter or Facebook, real-time sports scores, weather updates, stock prices, online movie rentals, and so on.

Not a bad idea.

Continue reading »

GigaOm's Mobilize conference 08 (last100 readers get 10% off)

by Steve O'Hear

August 20th, 2008 | Posted in Mobile | CommentsNo Comments

Our friends over at GigaOm are putting on what’s shaping up to be a very interesting looking conference on the Mobile Web (Disclaimer: last100 is an official media sponsor). Here are the details:

MOBILIZE presented by GigaOM
“Embrace Opportunities in Mobile Web”
September 18, 2008
Mission Bay Conference Center
San Francisco, CA
Conference web site – www.mobilizeconf.com

“MOBILIZE will explore the advancements driving growth of the mobile web and what they mean for entrepreneurs and their investors. Despite big plans and visions, the promise of the mobile web and a truly untethered Internet hasn’t been realized yet. Now, developments in design, user experience, handset technology, location and wireless network technology are changing everything. The mobile web is about to take off like a rocket.”

Note that last100 readers qualify for a 10% discount off the entry price to Mobilize by using the discount code ‘LASTONE’ at http://mobilize.eventbrite.com/?discount=LASTONE

Mobilize LaunchPad deadline is today!

If you’re a startup or budding developer in the mobile space you have just one day left to get your submission in for the Mobile Startup Launchpad. The details:

“We are looking for the 12 most promising mobile web startups to strut their stuff at the MOBILIZE Startup Launchpad. This dynamic dozen will focus on the emerging technologies that are the foundation of the mobile web era. Think your startup has the right stuff? Deadline for submission is today, August 20th. We will announce the winners on August 25th. Get in touch with us here.”

Remember that last100 readers can get a 10% discount off the entry price to Mobilize by using the discount code ‘LASTONE’ at http://mobilize.eventbrite.com/?discount=LASTONE

Moving to No. 8, Hulu continues to impress and gain viewers

by Daniel Langendorf

August 19th, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | Comments1 Comment

There were many skeptics, myself included, when Hulu first launched in March. But since then, the online video site owned by Fox and NBC has continued to impress and gain viewers.

According to new stats from Nielsen [via paidContent], Hulu now ranks No. 8 among the Top 10 online video sites, generating more than 105 million streams to more than 3.2 million unique viewers during July. Continue reading »

Taking next step: NBA wants its teams to stream live local games

by Daniel Langendorf

August 18th, 2008 | Posted in Comms, Net TV | Comments1 Comment

There’s an old adage in basketball that says you can’t be afraid to mix it up with the big boys under the basket. Clearly, the NBA is ready for a showdown with cable operators and regional sports networks.

In a first for any major U.S. sports league, the NBA wants to stream live games on the Internet in local markets. Yes, you read that right: local markets.

The NBA is hoping to secure deals with the league’s 30 teams and cable operators to broadcast local games live on the Web in time for the 2008-2009 season, which will be starting soon [via Sports Business Journal].

“We hope to have a model in place this season,” NBA general counsel Bill Koenig said. “We believe that if we can draw more people to the interactive features, it will help bring in new [fans] and keep [fans] for a longer period of time.”

Currently no major U.S. sports leagues streams live local games. Major League Baseball offers a streaming package for out-of-market games, and the National Football League will be streaming games broadcast by NBC this season.

Streaming live games, especially ones targeted at a local market, is one of the most volatile issues leagues face as teams are trying to broaden their reach and broadcasters want to protect the rights to some of their most expensive programming. Continue reading »

Review: Samsung Tocco SGH-F480

by Steve O'Hear

August 18th, 2008 | Posted in Mobile, Review | Comments8 Comments

Tocco is the Italian word for touch, and as you may have guessed, the Tocco SGH-F480 is Samsung’s latest touchscreen phone to hit the market. Once again, comparisons to the iPhone are inevitable, and although the Tocco is no iPhone killer – not that such a thing exists – it does sport at least a couple of features – haptic feedback and a 5 megapixel camera – that better Apple’s iconic device.

The Tocco is also smaller than the iPhone, measuring 98.4 x 55 x 11.6 mm compared to Apple’s 115.5 x 62.1 x 12.3 mm. It’s lighter too, shaving off just over 25 grams. Of course, what you gain in pocketability, you lose in screen real estate (particularly important for a touchscreen device), although we think that for those who find the iPhone to be on the bulky side, especially when used as a phone, the trade off could be worth it. If you’ve ever wondered what an iPhone nano might look like, the Tocco gives you a pretty good idea. Continue reading »

Weekly wrapup, 11-15 August 2008

by Steve O'Hear

August 17th, 2008 | Posted in last100 weekly wrapup | CommentsNo Comments

Here’s a summary of the week’s digital lifestyle action on last100. Note that you can subscribe to the weekly wrapups, either via the special weekly wrapup RSS feed or by email.

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[Ed. Apologies for the sparse wrapup this week. Normal transmission will resume shortly :-)]

Despite projections, eBook readers are not going to be next iPod without changes

by Daniel Langendorf

August 15th, 2008 | Posted in Other | Comments3 Comments

As a voracious reader I am happy to see the success of the Kindle, Amazon’s electronic book reader. But no matter how many devices Amazon or others sell, the whole eBook reader thing is fundamentally flawed.

Let’s be honest. Electronic reading devices mostly suck. The platforms or ecosystems eBook readers are built on — from content purchase and management to DRM — are awful.

So when I read that Mark Mahaney of CitiGroup says that Amazon is expected to sell about 380,000 Kindles in 2008, I applaud. I desperately want eBooks and eBook readers to be as successful as the iPod — and that’s millions of units sold, not just a few hundred thousand.

But eBook readers will never be as successful as the iPod. Not the way that the publishing industry works today. Not the way eBooks are designed and manufactured. Continue reading »

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