We all know HDTV is the wave of the future. Sets are becoming more affordable, Programming is widely available, and two formats are feuding for the HD home movie market. Life is 1080 bliss. Even with all the excitement surrounding the move to HD, I still can't help but wonder what's next for television. I bet the folks over at iCinema have a pretty good idea.
The Centre for Interactive Cinema Research specializes in immersive media viewing experiences. One of their latest products, the T_Visionarium II uses a 360 degree screen and 3-D technology, which allows the viewer to spatially navigate through thousands of video feeds. The system also uses a database and tagging system, allowing similar programs to be grouped together. It goes a little something like this.
Basically you step into a Circle-Vision style theater, slip on some glasses, grab your remote, and start clicking. Thousands of programs are instantly available. At first, it overwhelms you. Then you spot a video of African Safari. You click it, and it zooms (in 3-D) to the forefront. As the clip settles in place, several others line up around it. African folk dancing, Animal Planet, White Rhino conservation, hunting, Egyptology, and many other feeds related in some way to your initial choice become available. You go on clicking and clicking; linking to choice after choice. Just like that, channel surfing has become interactive media browsing.
I have to tell you this concept really appeals to me. This is exactly what I wind up doing whenever I go to Wikipedia, or Youtube. I will look something up, and an hour later, I find myself 15 links in, and on a topic far removed from where I started.
Let's be honest. Nobody is going to be installing one of these in their living room any time soon. It's more the concept I'm excited about. I could see a toned down version working really well for a video on demand service. Still, I would love a chance to step in to the real thing, and give it a spin.
Click READ below for a description and several pics of the Visionarium II
It happens every year. I'm interested in more fall television premiers than I have time to watch. The 4 major networks coupled with a handful of cable shows are all vying for my attention, and I simply don't have time to waste on something that's going to get the axe after a few episodes. Finally, there's a website to help weed out the stinkers. BrilliantbutCancelled.com features the latest fall preview news, and keeps track of info like time slot changes, ratings, and critics reviews. Readers can sign up to vote on which shows they think are most likely to go the way of the Dodo. Brilliant but Canceled then reports the votes as a ratio. For example, ABC's Men In Trees has a 3:1 shot of being canceled, while CBS' Jericho is much lower at 22:1. (Numbers subject to change.)Interestingly, the site is an extension of the Bravo network whose parent company NBC has a few shows of its own on the list.
It's a little hard to navigate, so I took the liberty of including a few links to the stuff I liked best. Hopefully the design will improve.
Click here for the "DeathWatch Watch" - the latest in cancellation news Click here to vote and see the Fall '06 show ratios.
As an unabashed Apple fanboy, I always love to see a credible publication give Steve Jobs and Co. their due. This time it's TV Week sining the praises of the iPod with video. While even I (Apple fanboy) think their headline might be going overboard a bit, I do agree that the iPod - iTunes combo certainly got the ball rolling.
According to the article, more people are watching shows on alternative players than ever before. TV Week also credits the industry with trying to get ahead of the change. This proactive attitude has saved network and cable channels many of the headaches the music industry faced.
The article also mentions the fact that Apple is not alone. The newly acquired YouTube is a prime competitor for viewers. This fall many network websites themselves are also offering video content for the masses.
For those of you who check in with us daily (and why wouldn't you?) there really isn't anything new here. But it is a good recap on all that's happened in downloadable content over the past year. Click READ below for a link to the article
From Junky to Funky is a half-hour show on the DIY channel where the hosts go out and find junk and turn it into, uhhh, funk. Or at least that's what the article says it's about. I don't know because I've never seen it. But props go out for a catchy name. Anyway, behind the scenes is what we care about. Take a trip inside the post production workflow of this show which uses a Media Composer Adrenaline system, Avid Xpress Pro system (with it's Mojo going on) and Digidesign Pro Tools|HD digital audio workstation. Shot with Sony Betacam SP and DV25 equipment, the post production crew also has to deal with a little VHS thrown in the mix. Check out how they handle the workflow.
Skype co-founders Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom hope to merge TV and the web with their new project codenamed The Venice Project.
"People love to watch TV. They love professional storytelling by people who know what they are doing. And people love the Internet, because of the choice and the social qualities. We are trying to bring the best of both worlds together," Friis said.
The premise is simple; combine the interactivity of the web with TV in a system designed for content owners, advertisers, and consumers. Unlike YouTube or Google Video, there will be no central server hosting the content but rather using peer-to-peer technology, like previous projects Skype and Kazaa, The Venice Project will stream content to viewers. Friis and Zennstrom are shopping the idea around to small, medium, and large media companies in hopes of getting full length professional content on the network. Of course, anyone will be able to contribute video and use this new medium to grow their audience. Should be interesting time come November when The Venice Project is set to go live.
You know what my favorite days were in elementary school? Filmstrip days! That's right, I am old enough to have watched filmstrips... although I think that's more a commentary on lack of funding for education, than my age (only 28.) But, lest we wax political here at DVGuru, lets move on.
My teacher would wheel in the AV cart from down the hall, pull down the projector screen, and fire up the old flicker show. It was a mixed bag at best. If we were lucky, maybe a Disney character doing math problems. I'm not sure why, but my favorite part was the Tick-Tick-Tick of of a reel that had reached it's end. I doubt many schools use filmstrips these days, but in my experience, most are still in the digital dark age. The Library Video Company hopes to change that.
A new product called Safari Montage offers a broadcast quality, plug & play, video-on-demand server for schools and public libraries. It comes pre-loaded with 1000 shows targeted at a specific age group, and offers subscriptions to additional content. Because the video is stored locally on the server, It supports up to 55 instances of simultaneous playback for the same clip, and offloads much of the stress placed on a library's current broadband connection. It also helps avoid many of the problems associated with streaming.
We use a service very similar to this at the local television station I work for. It's nice to see it being adopted in a place where more people can have the on-demand experience. Now if they could just tack that Tick-Tick-Tick noise on at the end.
Click "Read" for a link to the press release, or click here for a video demonstration.
The online media company Revision 3 which was started by Kevin Rose, founder of Digg, is officially launching tonight. Well, they already launched quite some time ago with shows like Diggnation, Systm, the Broken, and others but this time they have $1 million in angel funding. This new Internet TV network is going to launch new shows like Not Mainstream Typical Videos (Not MTV, awesome) and Mysteries of Science Explained. Revision 3 hopes to legitimize on-demand IP content by turning back to an advertising model from back in the 1920's -- product placement. As Jay Adelson, CEO of Digg.com sees it "This is the first media company, the first Internet TV network that actually produces its own content and distributes it itself." Come January when Apple may release their iTV product, there will be a huge rush for content, but Revision 3 already has a head start. If you thought Internet video was big this year, wait until you see the flurry of new content and possibilities next year.
The Pinnacle PCTV HD Pro stick is a neat little USB tuner that supports over the air HD signals (ATSC) as well as standard definition content from cable or satellite providers. Included is software that lets you do your typical Tivo things like record, fast forward, and rewind TV. Sit back and watch from a far with the included remote and take your media with you because you can save direct to DVD, DivX, iPod, and PSP formats. Not a bad for a $130 way to add digital video recording capabilities to your laptop. There is also a Windows Media Center Companion package for an extra $99 that will bring the over-the-air HD goodness to your media center. Expect to see these products out in October.
UPDATE: The Media Center Companion is for people who have Microsoft Windows Media Center Edition but do not have the remote control or the receiver. The PCTV HD Pro stick comes with its own version of recording software, the Pinnacle Media Center, and a Pinnacle Media Center remote (not an MCE remote). However, both are listed as compatible with Microsoft Windows Media Center Edition. So, if you've got MCE and would like to add either HD or SD to your system, these might be the products for you. If you don't have MCE, stick with the HD Pro stick or the PCTV Pro USB (ATSC and NTSC respectively). Thanks for the clarification, Stephen.
Star Trek, The First Generation has been digitally remastered for TV syndication. The nationwide remastering and re-release of the series represents the first time the original show has been in syndication since the late 80's.
Loads of digital work going back into this series. Newly remastered features include graphics, stars, ships, phasers, planet backdrops, and THEME!
Some markets/ stations will be carrying the show in high-def - makes you wonder if older shows from the 60's shot on film will end up looking better and having longer lifes in re-syndication than shows from the last two decades shot on tape. Hmmm....
Syndication starts this month. Check your market for local listings.
We've seen "DVR Proof" ads before, but none as inventive, or annoying, as this one. Instead of trying to make DVR users sift through a 30 second commercial for a $1 coupon, cable channel FX will show british viewers a 30 second slate for it's new show "Brotherhood." While probably as much publicity stunt (hey, we're biting) as useful ad, viewers could see anywhere from 3 - 6 seconds of the slate, depending on their DVR's fast forward speed. We get the point, FX, you want us, the TiVo generation, to watch your new show... but what about the people who don't even think about using a DVR? They'll see a 30 second slate... for all 30 seconds. If I see anything static on TV for 30 seconds, I'm changing the channel, sorry FX!
Two of my favorite underdogs coming together at last. Blip.TV, underdog of the visual social media world to 900-pound-lumbering-gorilla YouTube, and Akimbo, underdog of the internet streaming TV market to... well... obscurity, have come together in a true symbiotic partnership. Aikmbo is a company always looking for content, and Blip.TV is a company looking for popularity. Now users of Akimbo on-demand service will be able to see Blip.TV's user generated content on their TVs. Akimbo sells both a standalone box, and a plugin for Windows Media Center Edition, if you need your videoblog fix.
The FCC set a roadmap today of how exactly it's planning on divying up the broadcast airwaves space when all those TV folks switch to all digital broadcasts in 2009. While the usual high-tech suspects are excited about the chance to snatch up more of the broadcast spectrum for their wireless devices, more of note of this article is the basic assurance that the all-digital broadcast deadline is progressing forward.
Yep, that's billion with a "B". Comcast's video-on-demand service has surpassed 3 billion program views since 2004. In July alone, customers watched 180 million ON DEMAND shows.
"Customer response to ON DEMAND over the past few years has been extraordinary," said PageThompson, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Video Services for Comcast. "ON DEMAND is the ultimate viewing experience, and as more customers try the service and we continue expanding our content library with viewers' favorite shows from top networks and VOD-exclusive programs, we expect ON DEMAND use to continue climbing."
I think any viewing that is on-demand is going to be a success in today's society. We all have wacky schedules and just can't sit down at "normal" viewing times to watch stuff. That's why I love my Tivo, I can watch shows on my terms.
Warner Bros. has announced plans to create original programming for digital media outlets, such as the internet and cell phones. Dubbed Studio 2.0, the special branch will produce entirely new live action and animated content, although that they "expect to derive some content from the talent, writers and producers in the WBTV (Warner Bros. Television) roster, as well as scouting for new sources of material."
Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune will be going HD on September 11th. Almost every other genre on TV has made the switch, so it is about time for game shows to join in too. So what took so long? Sony, the producer of the shows, had HD studio cameras but everything else had to be replaced or acquired. The set had to be redone with a new layout for the wider aspect. On top of that, Sony built a brand-new HD control room. You can read more about the changes at DigitalVideoEditing.com
As an unabashed Apple fanboy, I always love to see a credible publication give Steve Jobs and Co. their due. This time it's TV Week sining the praises of the iPod with video. While even I (Apple fanboy) think their headline might be going overboard a bit, I do agree that the iPod - iTunes combo certainly got the ball rolling.
Skype co-founders Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom hope to merge TV and the web with their new project codenamed 
You know what my favorite days were in elementary school? Filmstrip days! That's right, I am old enough to have watched filmstrips... although I think that's more a commentary on lack of funding for education, than my age (only 28.) But, lest we wax political here at DVGuru, lets move on.
The online media company 
Star Trek, The First Generation has been digitally remastered for TV syndication. The nationwide remastering and re-release of the series represents the first time the original show has been in syndication since the late 80's. 
We've seen "DVR Proof" ads 
The FCC set a roadmap today of how exactly it's planning on divying up the broadcast airwaves space when all those TV folks switch to all digital broadcasts in 2009. While the usual high-tech suspects are excited about the chance to snatch up more of the broadcast spectrum for their wireless devices, more of note of this article is the basic assurance that the all-digital broadcast deadline is progressing forward.
Yep, that's billion with a "B". Comcast's video-on-demand service has 
Warner Bros. has 
