Netflix has launched support for high dynamic range streaming content, starting with the first season of “Marco Polo.” Fans of the original series who have HDR-supported TVs will be treated to vibrant visuals, including “much higher brightness levels and a greater range between dark and light,” explains PCWorld. “Subscribers will need Netflix’s 4K Ultra HD plan,” and the company “recommends Internet speeds of at least 25 Mbps per second.” While “Daredevil” will also get HDR in the future, Netflix has yet to announce additional series to do the same. LG, Samsung, Sharp, Sony and Vizio are among the TV manufacturers shipping HDR-supported sets. Continue reading Netflix HDR Video Streaming Looks Great, Requires Bandwidth

The UHD Alliance this week announced a new Ultra HD Premium certification and logo program for UHD Blu-ray players. The logo debuted at January’s CES as an easy way for consumers to identify TVs and Blu-ray titles that conform to the “premium” 4K Ultra HD ecosystem. “The group said 30 4K Ultra HD televisions have been certified under the Ultra HD Premium logo program to date, with more to follow,” reports HD Guru. “The premium logo is reserved for products, content and services that comply with performance metrics for resolution, high dynamic range (HDR), peak luminance, black levels and wide color gamut among others.” Continue reading Trade Group Extends Ultra HD Logo Program to Blu-ray Players

In a 21-page petition, a group comprised of the NAB, America’s Public Television Stations, the Consumer Technology Association and the AWARN Alliance is asking the FCC to authorize use of the new ATSC 3.0 transmission standard — what the collective refers to as “Next Generation TV” — in order to improve delivery of 4K broadcasting, streaming to smartphones and tablets, personalization features and IP-based services. ATSC 3.0 “will create the bedrock for continuing innovation by the television industry for decades to come,” claims the petition. Continue reading ATSC 3.0: NAB Calls on FCC to Authorize Next Generation TV

Washington and Silicon Valley are poised to clash again in the ongoing debate over encryption technology in relation to data privacy, law enforcement and national security. Senate Intelligence Committee chair Richard Burr (Republican, NC) and Dianne Feinstein (Democrat, CA), the panel’s vice chair, have introduced proposed legislation that would require companies to unlock encrypted devices when served a court order. Congress has been working on a balance between security and privacy regarding encryption, especially in the wake of the recent iPhone case. Continue reading Proposed Encryption Bill Faces Opposition from Silicon Valley

Vimeo has partnered with Spotlight Cinema Networks to bring its short-form indie video content to theaters. Each month, 1-3 Vimeo shorts will be featured in Spotlight’s 20-minute preshow before each movie screening. The Spotlight network has over 200 theaters nationwide, including indie and art house chains. “The company works with Angelika Film Center, Laemmle Theatres and Landmark Theatres, among others,” reports TechCrunch. Spotlight “is owned by Mark Cuban, Todd Wagner and Arthouse Marketing Group” and works with indie chains, “specifically those catering to an upscale, 18+ audience.” Continue reading Vimeo Indie Vids Coming to the Silver Screen This Weekend

During Facebook’s F8 developer conference in San Francisco yesterday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that the social giant is making its Live API available to developers in an effort to take video streaming via Live beyond smartphones to third-party apps and other devices. “Zuckerberg demonstrated this with a drone flying on stage, streaming video in real time to Facebook Live,” explains Variety. “Of course, integrating Facebook Live should also open up the platform to broadcasters and other professional content producers that don’t want to use a phone to stream their videos.” Early partners testing live streaming of non-mobile video feeds include Ooyala, Grabyo and Mevo. Continue reading Facebook Offers Live Streaming for Broadcast, Drones, More

Atom Tickets has signed partnerships with Regal Entertainment and AMC Entertainment theater chains. The digital movie-ticketing startup’s launch, slated to roll out in June, will cover most of the country as a result of the agreement. Atom’s investors include Lions Gate, Disney and Twentieth Century Fox. The startup “uses a mobile app to help moviegoers organize groups to go to movies together,” explains The Wall Street Journal. “The company is betting that making it easier for friends and family to plan film outings on their phones will boost theater attendance and concession sales, particularly among young people.” Continue reading Digital Ticketing Startup Partners with Major Theater Chains

NAB and the Entertainment Technology Center at USC are coproducing a Virtual Reality Summit at the annual NAB Show on Wednesday, April 20, from 1:00-5:00 pm at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The half-day summit will address key concepts and lessons learned regarding VR production. Hands-on practitioners will discuss the technical and business aspects of producing content in this emerging marketplace, which some consider to be a new media type and art form. You can register for the Virtual Reality Summit and learn more about the NAB conference at the event’s website. Continue reading Event Reminder: NAB, ETC to Present Virtual Reality Summit

Starting next month, Netflix will increase the price of its two-stream HD service plan by 25 percent for long-term streaming customers. Subscribers previously paying $7.99 monthly will now be charged $9.99 per month for the service’s standard plan. The rate change will be based on subscriber billing periods. Those who signed up at $8.99 per month following the previous increase in May 2014 will experience the jump to $9.99 this October. Netflix members will have the option of continuing at $7.99 for a single stream SD plan or keeping the HD plan at $9.99. Continue reading Netflix’s Two-Stream HD Plan Increasing by $2/Month in May

Strategy Analytics projects that virtual reality headset revenue will reach $895 million worldwide this year. The researcher expects about 77 percent of that revenue will come from new devices from HTC, Oculus and Sony, while the three brands will only account for 13 percent of volume. VentureBeat reports, “lower priced smartphone-based devices will dominate share of the 12.8 million unit virtual reality headset market.” Oculus launched the Rift two weeks ago, HTC launched its Vive last week, and Sony is slated to launch the PlayStation VR by October. Continue reading Global VR Headset Sales Expected to Reach $895M in 2016

Cablevision is integrating Hulu’s SVOD service as a native channel for Optimum TV, making it the first U.S. cable operator to do so. The New York-area cable operator is “letting subscribers access the streaming TV service directly from the interactive program guide on all current-generation set-top boxes,” explains Variety. Cablevision is using ActiveVideo’s cloud technology that delivers online video to STBs. The Hulu channel is available in select Cablevision areas and will go wide in the coming weeks. Netflix has been available via pay TV for several years through an integration with TiVo. Continue reading Cablevision First Provider to Integrate Hulu as Native Channel

Guests staying at the Boston Park Plaza hotel now have the ability to connect their smartphone to the hotel’s Wi-Fi network and watch television shows on their room TV via the Netflix or Hulu mobile app. Thanks to SoniCast, a new in-room hospitality solution based on Google Chromecast, guests can stream video from any Google Cast-enabled app. “The solution is being managed by Sonifi, a hospitality technology provider that’s currently managing in-room TV and Wi-Fi in 1.2 million hotel rooms worldwide,” reports Variety. “SoniCast is using Google’s Chromecast streaming adapter, but extends it with hotel-room-specific tweaks.” Continue reading Hotels Are Turning to Chromecast for In-Room Entertainment

NAB and the Entertainment Technology Center at USC are coproducing a Virtual Reality Summit at the annual NAB Show on Wednesday, April 20, from 1:00-5:00 pm at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The half-day summit will address key concepts and lessons learned regarding VR production. Hands-on practitioners will discuss the technical and business aspects of producing content in this emerging marketplace, which some consider to be a new media type and art form. You can register for the Virtual Reality Summit and learn more about the NAB conference at the event’s website. Continue reading Event Reminder: NAB, ETC to Present Virtual Reality Summit

Verizon Communications announced yesterday that it has purchased a minority stake in AwesomenessTV, the digital entertainment network geared toward teens and young adults. Verizon is buying 24.5 percent of the video company, now valued at $650 million. DreamWorks Animation owns 51 percent of the unit (it acquired Awesomeness in 2013), and Hearst owns another 24.5 percent. According to the telco, plans include creating a “a first-of-its-kind premium short-form mobile video service featuring leading talent in front of and behind the camera.” Continue reading Verizon Invests in AwesomenessTV to Grow its Mobile Video

Roku announced a new version of its Streaming Stick this week. “The newly enhanced $50 HDMI streaming dongle still outputs in HD and lacks the 4K capability of the company’s top-of-the-line Roku 4 streamer box,” notes Wired, “but faster processing speeds and updates to the Roku mobile app give the Streaming Stick a big boost.” The updated device is thinner, longer, and has transitioned from purple to black. Roku has improved performance, boot-up and navigation speeds. The dongle is powered by a quad-core processor the company claims will offer eight times the processing power of the last version. Available for preorder, it will start shipping in the next two weeks. Continue reading Roku Unveils Updated Streaming Stick with Focus on Speed