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NPD Report Indicates Number of Music Buyers Increased in 2011

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March 7, 2012
  • Music sales were up 14 percent for 2011 over the previous year, while the number of music buyers also increased 2 percent.
  • NPD reports 78 million Americans purchased music in 2011, marking the second consecutive year that the number has increased.
  • The report indicates that CD sales continue to decline, but some 45 million music fans opted for digital downloads via iTunes and Amazon, up 14 percent from 2010.
  • “Given that it’s easier than ever to listen to free music, legally, via streaming options like Pandora and Spotify, the fact that paid downloads are up is a little counterintuitive,” notes AllThingsD. “But that’s always been part of the streaming music service pitch to the big labels: Let us give away your stuff, and we’ll help increase demand — just like radio used to do.”

Will Adult Entertainment Virtual Convention Serve as Model for Future Events?

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March 7, 2012
  • The adult entertainment industry recently debuted its first ever convention held entirely in a virtual environment.
  • The Adult Entertainment Virtual Convention (AEVC) “brought a worldwide audience of industry professionals, fans and business owners together; and featured seminars, speaker panels, business-to-business networking along with exhibitors showcasing their products via virtual booths. The convention also tickled fan curiosity with adult star meet-and-greets and live cam sessions,” according to a press release posted via SFGate.
  • “It was topped off with an exciting Virtual Awards Show that bestowed winners in various categories of both real and virtual realms,” adds the release.
  • The event may serve as a model for similar approaches from other industries.
  • “The acceptance for the concept of an all-virtual convention was marked by the 8,000 recorded attendees, all of whom logged in online to pass through the virtual doors over the span of the three-day event,” notes the release. “The adult entertainment industry has always been a pioneer of technology, so it may not be long before we see other kinds of businesses experimenting with conventions on a virtual platform.”

Jumptap Data Suggests Kindle Fire Jumps to One-Third of Tablet Traffic

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March 7, 2012
  • Mobile ad provider Jumptap found that the Kindle Fire accounted for 33 percent of tablet traffic in January, rising from 20 percent in December and only 4 percent at its launch in November.
  • The Kindle Fire has cut into the iPad’s traffic, which dropped to 48 percent in January from 65 percent in November. However, with the new iPad launch likely, it is expected that iOS will see a boost in traffic.
  • The study also found that overall tablet traffic has increased about 50 percent monthly since November, when the Kindle Fire launched.
  • “Jumptap derives its MobileSTAT data by tracking the advertising that appears on its mobile network, which reaches 95 million users in the U.S. and 21,000 apps and websites,” reports GigaOM. “The ad network also found that Android and iOS represent 91 percent of the mobile OS market, with Android enjoying 58.8 percent of mobile market share while iOS follows with 32.2 percent.”

Survey Suggests iPad 3 to be Purchased by One-Third of Mobile Users

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March 7, 2012
  • With Apple expected to announce its much-anticipated iPad 3 today, a survey of mobile users reports that 29 percent plan to purchase the new tablet.
  • According to independent mobile ad network inMobi, of that number, 54 percent have never purchased a tablet before.
  • Nearly two-thirds of those wanting an iPad 3 said they would also consider an older device at a cheaper price, and almost half of the entire group reported no interest in a non-iPad tablet.
  • Initial rumors indicate the iPad 3 “will be slightly thicker and will include a higher-resolution Retina Display, better cameras, and the inclusion of LTE 4G chips,” reports VentureBeat. “Other rumors suggest that the unit will offer a new quad-core A6 processor to replace the iPad 2′s dual-core A5 chip, which will make processing high-end games and apps much smoother.”
  • The three most sought after features specified by survey respondents: “faster processor speed, better battery life, and higher-quality screen.”

Forrester Report: iPad Controls Tablet Market Share Over Android Rivals

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March 7, 2012
  • Apple holds 73 percent of the tablet market with the second largest competitor, HP, only claiming 6 percent of the market. Third place goes to Samsung with 5 percent, followed by Motorola and Acer with 4 percent and 3 percent shares, respectively.
  • Forrester analyst Sarah Rotman Epps wrote that Android tablets have been priced near iPads, but have inconsistent branding. Amazon and Nook have at least expanded upon the platform, building features on top of Android.
  • “Tablets are about services,” Epps told Bloomberg in a telephone interview. “That is where Amazon has succeeded where others have failed.”
  • Epps also says the tablet market is growing much faster than anyone expected.
  • “About one-third of the U.S. adult population will own a tablet by 2016, as more people bring them to their workplaces, according to Forrester,” Bloomberg reports. “The majority of tablets used for work are paid for by the employee, the research company also said.”

Disc-to-Digital: Warner Home Entertainment Sending DVDs to the Cloud

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March 7, 2012
  • Warner Home Entertainment’s “disc-to-digital” initiative will allow people to convert their DVDs into digital files stored and played back from the cloud.
  • People will be able to take their DVDs to a store that will process the digital conversion. Later, Internet retailers will email copies of DVDs purchased from them. Finally, future hardware will upload a digital copy for consumers.
  • Warner Home Entertainment Group President Kevin Tsujihara discussed the new initiative last week at Morgan Stanley’s tech, media and telecom conference in San Francisco.
  • There will be an option to get an HD version for an additional fee, although cost for the service was not specified.
  • “Persuading consumers to keep buying movies and building collections in the digital age is crucial to the bottom line of Warner Bros. and Hollywood’s other major studios, Tsujihara said. Sales are 20 to 30 times more profitable than low-cost rentals from Redbox or Netflix,” reports the Los Angeles Times.

Google Retires the Android Market Name: Recasts as Google Play

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March 7, 2012
  • The Android Market will now be called the Google Play Store as Google attempts to “make it clearer to consumers that Google offers a broad catalog of content in addition to the apps programmed for smartphones and tablets based on its Android operating system,” Reuters reports.
  • Google Play, which launched on Tuesday, is described by The New York Times as “a one-stop-shop for all of Google’s software services and applications.”
  • Google has been expanding its Android offerings to include digital books, music and videos to better compete with Apple and Amazon. These offerings were available through many different sites and the apps all had different names, adding to the overall confusion in dealing with the Android Market.
  • With the rebranding, Google will rename their media applications to feature “Play.”
  • Updates will start rolling out to Android devices in the coming weeks, but “the Web hub, which all Google users can access, will be open to the public and available for browsing immediately,” reports The New York Times.

Mobile Devices Enabling New Economies: Tablets to Outsell PCs in 2013

By
March 6, 2012
  • A post on research-based blog Asymco shows some trends in technology that suggest tablets may outsell PCs by the third quarter of next year.
  • Some of the speculations include: the annual sales growth of the iPad will double this year as well as next; Android sales will have 80 percent growth each year; and “Windows 8 tablets will account for 7 percent of all Windows PCs in the final quarter of 2012, jumping to 20 percent by 2013,” GigaOM reports.
  • “Tablet hardware is improving quickly, which brings software innovation as app developers take advantage of more processing power and graphics capabilities,” the article states.
  • “Input on tablets can be a challenge, but one look at the Asus Transformer Prime and its keyboard dock offers a glimpse of current and future solutions. Remote desktop solutions abound, and some, such as OnLive, don’t even require you to have your own PC; you simply connect to one in the cloud.”

Shutterfly to Purchase Kodak Photo Gallery Service for $24 Million

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March 6, 2012
  • As Kodak sheds most of its businesses to focus on enterprise services and desktop printers, it is looking to sell its online picture service Photo Gallery.
  • Although the deal has not been officially finalized, Shutterfly will likely acquire the division, offering $23.8 million.
  • “The agreement comprises the initial, stalking horse bid in a Court-supervised auction process under Section 363 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code that will ensure the maximization of value for the assets,” the press release states.
  • “Under the current agreement, current Gallery customers uncomfortable with being shipped off to Shutterfly will be able to opt out and either download their stored pics or buy them on DVDs. Otherwise, their accounts will be transferred in a way that is ‘preserved, and protected’ — that is to say, almost entirely unlike the way they’re handled on iOS and Android,” comments Engadget.

Canon Set to Launch $3500 EOS 5D Mk III DSLR at the End of March

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March 6, 2012
  • Canon announced the long-awaited EOS 5D Mk III DSLR, which takes its place between the EOS 5D Mark II and Canon’s professional EOS 1D X.
  • “This solid looking shooter packs a new 22.3-megapixel full-frame CMOS sensor (increased from 21.1 on the Mk II), a high-performance DIGIC 5+ imaging processor and a 61-point High Density Reticular Autofocus (AF) system — the last two being lifted from the 1D X,” reports Digital Trends.
  • The new camera is being released on the 25th anniversary of Canon’s EOS camera system.
  • “The Mk III also features a 1,040,000-dot 3.2-inch rear LCD screen — again pulled from the top-of-the-range 1D X camera — and allows photographers to display two images side by side, which is a first for an EOS camera,” adds the post. “Its ISO capability stretches from 100 to 25,600 in the standard range; it can also be pulled down to 50 at the lower end and whacked up to two you’ll-probably-never-need settings of 51,200 and 102,400.”
  • The EOS 5D Mk III will ship at the end of this month for $3,499 (body only).

Apple News: U.S. Air Force and ATF Plan to Switch to iPads and iPhones

By
March 6, 2012
  • Following the successful use of iPads by commercial airlines, the U.S. Air Force announced it will replace its paper-based flight bags with the Apple tablet.
  • “Air Mobility Command, which provides transport and refueling services to the U.S. military using cargo planes and other military aircraft, announced on Friday that the U.S. Air Force will be buying as many as 18,000 iPads worth over $9 million to be used as electronic flight bags by its pilots,” reports Digital Trends.
  • In a related story from The Verge, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives announced it will be switching out its BlackBerrys for new smartphones with better “ease of use and adaptability,” the agency said.
  • “The iPhone is set to be the big winner here, with the ATF selecting Apple’s handset to replace 60 percent (or 2,400) of those units starting in March. The remaining 1,400 will be phased out and replaced with a mix of other smartphones, though the agency hasn’t specified which mobile OS it will employ for those devices. The entire switch is expected to be completed within one year,” The Verge reports.

Square Announces New iPad App Designed to Replace Cash Register

By
March 6, 2012
  • Mobile payments startup Square plans to help merchants modernize point-of-sale devices with its new iPad app called Register.
  • The app, announced Monday morning and currently available, is designed to help merchants ditch traditional cash registers.
  • “The app accepts cash and all major credit cards, can track a customer’s purchase history, and even allows for analytics to see which times are the busiest and what days aren’t performing up to snuff,” reports VentureBeat. “The app also allows for employee permissions, tipping, and smart receipts.”
  • Additionally, Square announced it had reached $4 billion in annual mobile payments.
  • The post includes screenshots and a 1-minute video promo.

New Location-Based App Highlight Launches in Time for SXSW

By
March 6, 2012
  • Digital Trends suggests location-based apps Foursquare and Gowalla are about to face some competition.
  • “There’s a new trend set to emerge at this year’s SXSW known as ‘ambient social networking.’ At the helm of this burgeoning trend is the budding two-person startup, Highlight, headed by founder and CEO, Paul Davison,” indicates the post.
  • Highlight’s goal is simply to connect users with similar interests by running silently behind-the-scenes.
  • “Rather than the check-ins feature that even Foursquare founder, Dennis Crowley, has admitted was losing steam, ambient social networking applications will only notify users with a pop-up notification when another user of the same application approaches your immediate vicinity,” adds Digital Trends.
  • Highlight decided to launch in time for SXSW. From the company blog: “We want Highlight to make Austin even more fun for you — by surprising you with hidden connections, surfacing information about the people you meet, and helping you remember these people when you bump into them at a random New York coffee shop a year later. You can expect to see some useful enhancements to search and discovery, new ways to interact with people, and continued improvements to performance and battery life.”

Peel Aims to Replace Watercooler Conversations with Social TV App

By
March 6, 2012
  • Peel is a free app for Android and iOS devices that draws on TV show recommendations made on a social platform.
  • “The app is similar to how Pandora recommends music, or how Netflix suggests films,” reports Reuters.
  • The company has worked with Samsung to install the app on some Samsung products with infrared capability.
  • “The app also pairs up with the Peel Smart Remote for consumers who want to control their television sets without using their remote controls,” notes the article. “The pear-shaped piece of hardware takes commands from the app and then uses infrared to control the television, settop box, or virtually any other device in a user’s living room.”
  • “It’s about how to use an intelligent app to find the right show to watch based on the shows I like today and based on shows my friends are watching,” says Scott Ellis, vice president of marketing for Peel.
  • “Ellis said that the next steps for the app are to integrate a more interactive second-screen experience for television shows. The company plans to focus on the social aspect of the app going forward, and to announce a partnership with a major television show in the coming weeks,” reports Reuters.

Despite Legal Action, Aereo Wants to Bring TV Broadcasts to Devices

By
March 6, 2012
  • Aereo is a New York City-based startup that aims to bring broadcast TV signals to all devices — PCs, tablets, smartphones — with small Internet-connected antennas, closing the gap between broadcast TV and the Web. But the startup won’t ever start up if networks have their say.
  • NBC, ABC, CBS, Fox and Univision Communications are suing the company for copyright violation, claiming Aereo doesn’t have the right to take broadcast signals and retransmit them on the Web.
  • “Anytime new technology comes along that attempts to dramatically rethink the way content is distributed and consumed, those that have traditionally profited from the status quo tend to stand up and object,” comments ReadWriteWeb. “At the same time, it’s not entirely clear how copyright law applies to a case like this. It’s not an uncommon side effect of living in an age of rapid technological innovation that often outruns the pace of the lawmaking process.”
  • Aereo plans to move ahead with its plans.
  • “In a somewhat similar approach to Slingbox, Aereo assumes it can get around legal barriers because it’s just tuning into live TV, not re-broadcasting it without permission (which would be summarily illegal), and is licensing one TV antenna per-person, to be streamed one broadcast channel at a time. Not on-demand content for mass consumption, which would be a no-no in this case,” adds TechCrunch. “So, upon news of the lawsuits, Aereo promptly responded with a denial, saying that the broadcasters lawsuits did not ‘have any merit,’ essentially the equivalent of … ‘thank you very much, we’ll see you in court.’”

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