ABC plans to live-stream Sunday’s Oscars telecast in eight markets via online and Watch ABC apps for customers of participating pay TV partners including AT&T U-verse, Cablevision, Charter Communications, Comcast, Cox Communications, Google Fiber, Midcontinent Communications and Verizon FiOS. ABC also announced it has retired its standalone Oscars app; red carpet and backstage action will be folded into Watch ABC, available to Oscar fans for free. Continue reading ABC to Live-Stream Academy Awards via Web and Mobile Apps

Millennials, who typically get their video from Vine, Instagram, Snapchat and other social and online sources, are developing a new vernacular for viewing, said futurist Rob Tercek at the Digital Entertainment World conference in LA last week. He believes that the DreamWorks deal to produce children’s content for Netflix is a play by Netflix to capture and cultivate a generation of viewers, similar to the way Apple seeded schools with Apple computers. Similar trends are playing out with various Internet companies. Continue reading DEW Conference: Futurist Rob Tercek on Internet Companies

Is post production dead… or has it just fled to the cloud? That question was posed by HPA President Leon Silverman who moderated a panel on the future of post production at the HPA Tech Retreat yesterday. Post production facilities coping with complicated metadata and new delivery platforms are moving services to the cloud, and panelists from companies including Sony, Premiere Digital, Paramount, Light Iron and others described how they are incorporating cloud services. Continue reading HPA Panel Addresses Post Production’s Move to the Cloud

According to a new report from Javelin Strategy & Research, most mobile commerce took place via tablets in 2013, due primarily to the doubling of tablet ownership year-over-year. Javelin reports that $59.7 billion in sales were made from mobile devices last year, up from $20.7 billion the year prior. The study shows that $56.6 billion was made through a mobile site or app while $3.1 billion was made via a mobile POS. Tablets were responsible for $28.7 billion in mobile commerce. Continue reading Study: Mobile Retail Sales Soar in 2013, Especially Via Tablets

Apple is currently in talks with Time Warner Cable and other potential partners to add video content to a new Apple TV set-top box, according to people familiar with the matter. Apple is reportedly hoping to reveal the new device in April, and start selling it for the December holidays, but this may change since the company has still not secured agreements with distribution and programming partners. The device will be an update of the current Apple TV, with an upgraded interface, faster processor and easier navigation. Continue reading Apple to Launch Updated TV Box, in Talks with Content Partners

Netflix has been experimenting with new methods of artificial intelligence to improve its products. The streaming service has plans to begin using deep learning models, and while it has yet to specify what exactly it will be improving, the service is likely to use the tech for enhancing its movie recommendations feature. Other companies have also begun putting deep learning into practice in order to train their systems to better recognize text and images, as well as their meanings. Continue reading Netflix Will Use Deep Learning to Improve Recommendations

Foxconn executives have been in talks about robotics with former Android executive Andy Rubin, specifically to discuss new robotic technologies and speed up deployment of robots in its factories. Rubin asked Foxconn Chairman Terry Gou to help integrate a tech company that’s being acquired by Google, which last year acquired eight other robotics companies. In the meeting, Gou was said to have expressed excitement over automation technologies demonstrated by Rubin. Continue reading Foxconn and Former Android Exec Rubin Are Talking Robotics

In a few years’ time, apps will become one of the most popular tools among consumers around the world for computing. Research group Gartner predicts that by 2017, mobile apps will be downloaded more than 268 billion times and that each individual user will provide data to more than 100 apps daily. This usage is estimated to generate about $77 billion in global revenue. And by 2015, cognizant computing will be key to enabling smart home functions. Continue reading Gartner Predicts Future of Mobile Apps, Cognizant Computing

YouTube is poised to be one of Google’s biggest assets with potential for billions of dollars in ad revenue, and the video site now has new leadership tasked with making that a reality. Long-time Google exec Susan Wojcicki, formerly SVP of advertising and commerce and one of the company’s earliest employees, is reported to be the new SVP in charge of YouTube. The video site has more viewers than any other like it, and it will be Wojcicki’s job to compete more with TV for ad dollars. Continue reading YouTube Gets New Leadership in its Quest for Ad Domination

Amazon Studios is releasing its second batch of original pilots, all vying for the opportunity to become a series to be made available on Amazon’s Instant Video service. Viewers are encouraged to stream the 10 pilots at AmazonOriginals.com, write reviews and rate each show. Feedback will help the studio determine whether or not to commission a full season. The current batch includes five shows for children and five geared toward adults from the likes of Chris Carter, Roman Coppola and Jill Soloway. Continue reading Amazon Launches its Second Pilot Season with 10 New Shows

Amazon’s newest app feature will make it even easier to never have to leave your home to purchase media, gifts and common household goods. The new feature, “Flow,” will soon be available in Amazon’s shopping app for iOS, and it will allow users to simply scan any object with their iPhone camera and place an order for that specific product. The app does not require barcodes to work — just a clear image — and it takes less than 30 seconds to place an order. Continue reading Amazon’s Flow Plans to Enhance Shopping by Scanning Objects

Carolyn Giardina of The Hollywood Reporter forwarded us news that the Best Picture Oscar winner “Chicago” has been remastered in Dolby Vision to create a “Chicago: Diamond Edition” Blu-ray that will go on sale next week. The Blu-ray audio for Rob Marshall’s 2002 film also features a new Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mix. Unveiled at CES, Dolby Vision is the company’s tech specification for high luminance, wide color gamut and high dynamic range intended for HD or 4K resolution images. Continue reading Dolby Vision Used for New “Chicago: Diamond Edition” Blu-ray

Amazon plans to offer brick-and-mortar retailers a new checkout system using its Kindle tablets, expected to be available as early as this summer. The development stems from Amazon’s acquisition last year of certain tech and engineers from GoPago, a startup known for its cloud-based mobile payment platform. The move could provide Amazon with a significant growth opportunity. However, it also faces numerous competitors in the checkout system space.  Continue reading Amazon to Introduce Kindle Checkout System for Retail Stores

Amazon announced in a fourth-quarter earnings conference call that it might be raising prices on shipping fees through its Amazon Prime program. The $79-a-year shipping service could go up in price by as much as 50 percent, increasing the company’s bottom line by close to $500 million. The announcement came as a pleasant surprise to investors following a slow holiday season for Amazon and its lowest growth rate in several years. Continue reading Amazon Says It May Increase Shipping Fees of Prime Service

TV loyalty program provider Viggle, formed in 2010, announced it has acquired San Francisco-based Dijit Media, a b2b platform developer and maker of TV and movie guide apps for mobile devices. Dijit’s primary consumer app is NextGuide, which combines listings from live TV and streaming services such as Amazon, Hulu, iTunes and Netflix for an automated and curated directory of movies and television shows. Financial terms of the deal have yet to be disclosed. Continue reading Viggle Purchases Dijit Media and Popular TV App NextGuide