“Dolby Laboratories has acquired rival digital cinema sound technology company IMM Sound, a privately owned Barcelona-based business, in a move that Dolby believes will help to speed adoption of its new immersive Atmos sound format,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
As previously reported on ETCentric, a number of companies have been actively working on the next generation of digital cinema sound, the most high-profile of which has been Dolby’s recent launch of Atmos.
“IMM Sound was the company that had something similar to what Dolby was doing,” notes Doug Darrow, senior vice president cinema at Dolby. “We thought if we combine forces, it could allow for more rapid adoption.”
“In the broad sense, both systems involve immersing the audience in an aural experience by placing speakers around the perimeter of an auditorium, as well as on the ceiling,” notes THR. “And both offer tools for sound facilities that would enable more sophisticated sound mixes with the notion of placing ‘objects’ versus ‘channels.'”
Although similar, the technologies developed by the two companies are considered complementary, according to Darrow. The acquisition will lead to a discontinuation of the IMM Sound brand, while IMM technologies would be used for additional Atmos development.
Atmos launched last month in the newly named Dolby Theatre in Hollywood (former Kodak Theatre) when it was used for the premiere of Disney/Pixar’s “Brave.” There are currently about 20 theaters announced as Atmos facilities.
“We’d like to see about 1,000 [Atmos] screens next year, worldwide,” Darrow said, anticipating that Atmos may emerge as a de facto standard. “In order to achieve that and to make the industry more unified we thought this [acquisition] was the right thing to do.”
File-sharing service BitTorrent is on a mission to “help artists monetize the BitTorrent ecosystem” — a system of 150 million users that most often download free songs and episodes without consideration for how it affects the content creator.
“BitTorrent Inc. hopes to change this with a new revenue model that supports collaborating artists while keeping content at its desired price (free),” reports Slate.
Last week, BitTorrent began offering a free download bundle that “pairs exclusive music and photos from hip-hop producer DJ Shadow with a free, optional install of RealPlayer,” according to the article.
This is part of a plan that BitTorrent hopes will “be a new way of distributing content, one that allows artists to profit without asking downloaders to pay up. Each bundle will come with software — like a media player or anti-virus program — and that’s where the money comes in.”
If the user decides to install the program, the software vendor will pay an advertising fee to be shared between BitTorrent and the featured artist.
However, Slate poses some legitimate questions: “Will BitTorrent’s experiment pan out? Even if ad revenue is enough to satisfy everyone’s piggy banks, its success relies on users actually downloading the sponsored software. And how many of your friends do you see using RealPlayer?”
Boulder, Colorado-based Flixmaster wants to make online video more interactive by providing simple tools for embedding hands-on features.
The company recently announced the availability of its online video platform at Fortune’s Brainstorm Tech conference in Aspen.
“The start-up’s CEO and co-founder, Erika Trautman, says its technology can be used by anyone, from fifth graders to cable companies,” reports Fortune. “The editing software developed by the firm is Web-based, with a drag-and-drop interface that lets users recreate videos by plugging in video segments and more interactive scenes.”
“Flixmaster makes videos participatory, immersive and deeply interactive,” claims Trautman.
The failure of online video is that viewers quit watching after a short duration, suggests the CEO. But when USA Network tapped Flixmaster to create an interactive online series, viewing time increased.
“The show, called ‘Sights Unseen: A Covert Affairs Prequel,’ launched earlier this month. It lets viewers choose what the characters do at key moments in the plot, and then watch the scenes they select (sort of like the video version of the once-popular ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ book series),” notes the article. “Flixmaster says viewing time for the show was up 400 percent as a result of the embedded interactive features.”
The post includes a 6-minute video of FlixMaster’s presentation in Aspen.
In its first four days of availability, Apple’s new OS X Mountain Lion operating system is setting new download records.
“The operating system has topped three million App Store downloads since last week’s launch,” reports VentureBeat. “This makes it the most successful OS for the Cupertino, California Mac maker’s history. The news comes days after hearing that Mountain Lion represented 3 percent of all Mac Internet traffic.”
“Just a year after the incredibly successful introduction of Lion, customers have downloaded Mountain Lion over three million times in just four days, making it the most successful release ever,” notes Apple SVP of Worldwide Marketing Philip Schiller.
As previously reported on ETCentric, features of OS X 10.8 include the new Messages app, Notification Center, tighter iOS integration, system-wide Sharing, iCoud integration, Dictation, AirPlay Mirroring and Game Center. Facebook integration is expected in an upcoming update, according to Apple.
“Today’s announcement only confirms what others were saying after the $20 Mountain Lion upgrade became available: the new OS is on track to be the best version of OS X, bringing Apple $38 million and climbing in new revenue,” notes VentureBeat.
Apple has purchased AuthenTec Inc. for a reported $356 million, in a move that could make iPhones and iPads more secure for mobile payments.
AuthenTec, maker of fingerprint sensors and security solutions, “owns many of the foundational technology patents from the fingerprint biometric industry, and today has a broad IP and patent portfolio consisting of nearly 200 issued and filed U.S. patents, as well as additional foreign patent derivatives,” according to the company.
“Apple is paying $8 a share for the Melbourne, Florida-based company, according to an SEC filing,” reports Forbes. “AuthenTec, founded in 1998, says it has shipped more than 100 million fingerprint sensors for use in PCs and other electronic gadgets, including more than 15 million mobile phones. Apple’s Mac computers currently don’t have a fingerprint pad for security purposes, though other PCs do.”
Analyst Brian White of Topeka Capital Markets suggests we’ll see Apple devices with fingerprint access, as well as “a mobile commerce system built using the Near Field Communications (NFC) technology he predicts will be included in the new iPhone 5,” notes the article.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has already announced that this fall’s release of iOS 6 would include Passbook, a new feature for consolidating tickets, boarding passes and discount cards. “Turning it into a digital wallet seems likely a next step,” suggests Forbes.
“With Passbook, you can scan your iPhone or iPod touch to check in for a flight, get into a movie, and redeem a coupon,” according to Apple. “You can also see when your coupons expire, where your concert seats are, and the balance left on that all-important coffee bar card.”
NBC provided 171 hours of programming for the Atlanta games 16 years ago, and this year will offer about 5,535 hours via online streaming, TV and cable. Yet the network has received some criticism for its decisions to delay coverage of events and require a cable subscription for those wanting to stream events live online.
“At the Sydney Olympics in 2000, broadband wasn’t widely available. In Athens in 2004, the smartphone was in its infancy. In Beijing four years ago, social networks had not yet exploded,” notes Wired. “Today, all three have dovetailed in a crush of information.”
That perfect storm has left NBC is a tough position. It wants viewers to tune into its primetime broadcasts each night, and so is delaying some of its coverage, but many people don’t watch TV that way anymore. It’s too easy (and almost unavoidable) to learn results prior to primetime.
“CBS gets it,” notes Forbes in a related article. “Their telecast of the Grammy’s earlier this year grabbed the largest audience since 1984, mainly because of the vast back-channel conversation blasting through Twitter and Facebook. It was snarky, it was goofy, it was great fun — but you had to watch live to participate.”
However, the Grammy coverage involves a single event that doesn’t face the same challenges in covering multiple daily events from another country that lasts weeks. The Wall Street Journal noted in its review that the approach is “forcing Olympics lovers to consider the unthinkable — staying off the Internet for much of the games’ 17-day span to avoid spoilers.”
As Forbes notes, Olympic-themed tweets may be trending on Twitter in real time, but users are likely unable to watch those events until much later, making it difficult for users to engage socially — a significant component of modern TV viewing.
“I don’t pretend that everything will be perfect,” said Mark Lazarus, head of NBC Sports Group. But the number of people tuning in “is a great early sign that our strategy of driving people to watch NBC in primetime is working.”
This is historic for NBC, marking the first time the network is streaming all of the Olympic events. “On Sunday, 11.4 million videos were watched on NBCOlympics.com, and about half of them were watched live,” notes WSJ. “That is almost triple the number from Beijing on its first Sunday of competition.”
Social TV analytics company Bluefin Labs provides a breakdown of social interaction amongst viewers during the London Olympics Opening Ceremony.
According to the report, 94.2 percent of all social TV comments during Friday night’s primetime slot were about the festivities. There were 5 million social media comments with 4.86 million on Twitter and 140,000 public Facebook comments.
The Olympics Opening Ceremony is now the #3 special event of all time in social TV, behind the 2012 Grammy Awards (13 million social media comments) and the 2012 BET Awards (8 million comments).
NBC’s primetime coverage of the Opening Ceremony was also a huge success, with a rating of 40.7 million, according to Nielsen, making it the most-watched kickoff in Summer Games history.
The program was the most popular on British television in 14 years. “The average audience was also the highest for any British telecast since 23.8 million viewed the soccer game that saw England fall to Argentina in the 1998 World Cup,” notes Variety.
These high numbers are impressive in a day and age when other, non-traditional viewing options are available. “NBC’s two-day primetime average of 35.6 million viewers is the best start to any Summer Olympics, more than two million more than Atlanta (33.3 million), and more than 6 million more viewers than Beijing (29.5 million),” explains the article.
BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Cadillac and possibly even Microsoft are looking to incorporate gesture-recognition technology into cars. However, automotive tech supplier Harman may have a jump on the competition.
The company presented a concept vehicle aimed at reducing distractions in the car by using nods, winks and hand movements for various functions.
To make a call, make the universal pinky-and-thumb “on-the-phone” gesture and say a contact in your phone’s address book. To turn your radio on or off, just wink. If you want to change the volume, tilt your head. You can even skip songs or stations by tapping the steering wheel and adjust the temperature by lowering your hand above the gear-shift knob.
“A dashboard-mounted infrared sensor watches for predefined expressions and gestures from the driver, and the data is parsed by an onboard processor that activates the appropriate features,” explains Wired. “Harman claims that the system can recognize the difference between intentional gestures and accidental ones.”
Harman says the technology won’t go into production for at least two or three more years.
Speech recognition provider iSpeech has announced plans to create the first voice-controlled smart households, which would allow users to control their appliances, lights and more with voice recognition software.
The iSpeech Home technology would “give OEMs and manufacturers a canvas where they can implement voice recognition software into TVs, home entertainment systems, lighting, refrigerators and even washers and dryers,” reports Engadget.
The company does not have any official partners yet, but plans to implement the iSpeech Home system within 6-12 months.
“We believe speech is the user interface of the future,” says iSpeech COO Yaron Oren. “Siri has done an amazing job of bringing this vision to life on the iPhone, and we are helping bring it to more applications, more platforms and new markets such as the connected home.”
According to the company’s press release, iSpeech Home supports 26 languages and comprehends voices commands such as: “Watch ESPN,” “Find movies starring Tom Hanks,” “Record American Idol,” “Turn on stereo and play Lady Gaga,” “Set temperature in house to 70 degrees,” “Turn off the lights in the living room” and “Turn on the alarm.”
“Leveraging iSpeech’s cloud, embedded and hybrid, human quality text-to-speech and speech recognition technology, iSpeech Home eliminates the challenge of a complicated user interface typically associated with home automation,” explains the release.
Time Warner opened its MediaLab facility in New York the beginning of this year. “The MediaLab has a range of biometric monitoring devices and eye-tracking testing equipment that measure a participant’s physiological responses to content,” explains The Hollywood Reporter.
During last week’s TW College Professors Thought Leadership Seminar, the company showcased the MediaLab and began soliciting ideas for its sophisticated devices.
“Time Warner has put out a RFP to academics to describe in 300 words or less what hypothesis they wish to test,” according to THR. Researchers interested in the program have three months to develop ideas.
The MediaLab has been used for studies regarding how consumers interact with media in food purchasing decisions and how social media recommendations influence content engagement.
Time Warner is looking to make best use of its CE devices including tablets, streaming media players, 3D televisions, gaming consoles, even a smart refrigerator.
“Now, Time Warner, which spent an undisclosed sum on an observation room which can spy via eight ceiling-mounted cameras on participants in a faux living room, wishes to figure out the next great research project that will offer insight into the ways people are using and are effected by media,” explains the article.
BBC, NHK and OBS are testing a new 8K broadcast system during select events at the London Olympics, including the opening and closing ceremonies.
As previously reported on ETCentric, Japanese broadcaster NHK is currently developing a Super Hi-Vision 8K TV system, which touts 16 times more picture info than current HDTV and 22.2 channels of surround sound.
“At the Olympics, NHK is teaming with the BBC and host broadcasting organization Olympic Broadcast Services to test this format — which is so precise that one could view a shot inside the Olympic Stadium that appears to be three dimensional and contains stunning detail,” notes Carolyn Giardina for The Hollywood Reporter.
“The images seem to go around corners and curves. Most people say it is more 3D than 3D. With 3D you are aware that your brain has to work. Here you just sit in front of the screen and relax,” suggests Tim Plyming of the BBC. “I think when people see it, they will say this is the next really big format.”
During the Olympics, Super Hi-Vision coverage from four venues will be screened at public viewing sites in the UK and Japan.
“The participants began planning this trial roughly two years ago, and in the coming weeks, they aim to not only dazzle viewers with an early look at Super Hi-Vision, but demonstrate for the first time NHK’s new 8K broadcast camera, as well as the ability to transmit 8K — a staggering amount of picture information — over IP networks,” writes Giardina.
The McKinsey Global Institute published a study on “unleashing value and productivity through social technologies,” which indicates that “things like improved communication and collaboration from social media in four major business sectors could add $900 billion to $1.3 trillion in value to the economy,” reports The New York Times.
The value is largely achieved through increased productivity. According to the article, this study could “add credence” to the decisions being made by corporations to spend billions on social media acquisitions and strategies.
Companies are investing in improved ways to manage how customers perceive them in chat rooms to internal communication tools similar to Facebook.
“Social technologies like wikis, broadly accessible instant messaging, content searches and user forums, McKinsey says, are particularly effective among so-called interactions workers,” notes NYT. “These people are general managers, for example, but also consultative sales representatives, engineers working with teams to figure out new products, or health care workers personally figuring out patients’ needs.”
The report suggests that the main challenges to implementing effective use of social media in the workplace “are organizational and personal, as managers have to develop nonhierarchical cultures, where data and knowledge are exposed and shared, not hoarded.”
Streaming video tech provider Roku, regarded by some as strong competition for Apple, announced it has raised $45 million to further develop its branding, international expansion and new services.
Saratoga, California-based Roku has sold more than three million of its boxes that connect streaming services to TV sets. The company plans to launch its wireless, dongle-sized Streaming Stick this fall.
News Corp. and UK pay TV giant BSkyB are among Roku’s investors. Jon Miller, chief digital officer at News Corp., will join the Roku board.
“The new relationships include both financial backing and business agreements that demonstrate the industry’s confidence in Roku as the distribution platform to bring streaming entertainment to mainstream consumers,” the company said.
Roku currently streams content from News Corp.’s Fox News, Fox’s “The X Factor,” and “Wall Street Journal Live.” The company is one of BSkyB’s partners in its recently-launched online video service, NowTV.
“We have watched Roku maintain market leadership since the launch of its streaming platform four years ago and we look forward to deepening our relationship, having already worked closely together on the launch of several products,” says Miller. “Roku’s significant technology advantage, coupled with a strong market position, places them in a unique position to be an integral part of the television landscape for years to come.”
Google announced that its new Creator Space studio, part of its Soho offices in London, will provide YouTube partners with the facilities and equipment to make their video content look more professional and sophisticated.
“It is amazing to think that some of the most successful creators on the platform, with millions of views, use little more than their bedrooms, a webcam and any props they can lay their hands on to produce compelling videos and build a global fanbase,” says Sara Mormino, director of YouTube Content Operations and Next Lab.
“But many of our partners are ready to take their channels to the next level by using the latest equipment and editing techniques as well as tapping into the valuable advice from other experts and YouTube stars,” she adds.
The Creator Space will feature two studios (including green screen), audio booths, professional lighting rigs, fully staffed editing suites, a control room and HD cameras. Additionally, the studio plans to offer workshops, training, collaborative programs and more.
“Our partners from all over Europe, Middle East and Africa will be able to book time in the space to create and collaborate with other creators, learn new techniques, as well as gaining access to state-of-the-art audio visual equipment, to help them generate great new content for their channels,” says Mormino.
The YouTube Next Lab team, charged with the development of channels and creators on YouTube, will run the London studio, which is expected to open in the coming weeks.
The post includes a video report on the YouTube Creator Camp. You can also check out the promotional video for the Creator Space studio on YouTube.
While Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey invested in Instagram before its acquisition by Facebook, his company is now playing hardball with the popular social network.
“Twitter has blocked Instagram from using its API to find new friends to follow on the photo-sharing service,” reports Business Insider. “The news comes after Instagram announced on its blog that it hit 80 million users.”
The move marks the second time Twitter has blocked API access to a social network, after it recently ended its two-and-a-half-year partnership with LinkedIn by no longer allowing users to publish tweets to their LinkedIn profiles.
The “Find Your Friends” feature on Twitter has been removed, a helpful feature that enabled users to follow the same people they follow on Twitter via Instagram. However, the “Tweet Photo” feature is still available.
“We’ve learned that the feature is missing due to API restrictions from Twitter’s end, restrictions that possibly came about over concerns about Instagram’s scale and its strain on data pulls,” notes TechCrunch in a related post. “Many social apps like The Fancy and Foursquare still have access to this part of the Twitter API — it seems very likely that Instagram was the largest developer using the Twitter Friend Graph.”
“Twitter’s agenda here isn’t at all clear, but one possibility is that it wants to control the photos experience on its platform (and preclude Facebook from doing the same),” notes TechCrunch. “Selectively limiting API access by company is definitely strange behavior in an ecosystem that thrives on API symbiosis. Imagine if Google just decided to shut off Google Maps access to apps randomly?”
“Dolby Laboratories has acquired rival digital cinema sound technology company IMM Sound, a privately owned Barcelona-based business, in a move that Dolby believes will help to speed adoption of its new immersive Atmos sound format,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
