This week, game console startup Ouya and interactive graphics company Nvidia are introducing Android-based gaming systems that can be connected to big screen TVs, and looking to take advantage in the growth of mobile device gaming. Ouya is looking to challenge Microsoft and Sony with its own low cost gaming console. Nvidia has developed Shield, a mobile device with a built-in display, which can also be connected to TVs and computers.  Continue reading Ouya and Nvidia Releasing Android-Based Gaming Consoles

Eye IO, LLC (eyeIO) announced on Friday that its Ultra HD compression encoding technology has been licensed by Sony Pictures to help the studio offer content on Sony 4K Ultra HD TVs in the home. Owners of Sony 4K TVs will be able to access a number of movies via Sony’s 4K media player, which will launch this summer. The eyeIO technology processes, compresses and encodes 4K source files into a format that requires less bandwidth. Continue reading Sony Pictures Turns to eyeIO Video Compression for 4K Player

Since the debut of Ultra HD 4K TVs at CES in January, Sony has become the first to offer 4K televisions to consumers with its new line of screens available through its Bravia brand. The first 4K Bravia sets are 55- and 65-inch models priced in the $7,000 range, while an 84-inch unit costs as much as $25,000. As an incentive, Sony is including a set of 10 4K mastered Blu-ray movies, and plans to launch a digital download service with more content. Continue reading Sony Launches 4K Bravia TVs, Other Brands Expected Soon

Mark Teitell, GM of the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem, spoke recently during a Home Media Magazine UltraViolet presentation. Teitell says we should expect a marketing push this year and suggests there will be increased transparency involving the number of titles within the 12 million-plus UltraViolet accounts. During a Q&A session, he also addressed the status of UltraViolet’s Common File Format and in-home disc-to-digital efforts. Continue reading DECE GM Answers Questions About Future of UltraViolet

At the Mobile World Congress this week, Spotify and Ford announced that the music streaming service will soon be available via the Sync AppLink platform and integrated with the Sync’s voice command system in Ford vehicles in the U.S., Europe and Australia. Additionally, iPhone and Android apps will soon pair up with the dashboard AppLink system to stream music through car speakers. Continue reading Spotify and Ford Team to Offer Streaming Music in Your Car

At the HPA Tech Retreat, Sony Pictures Television announced its plans to shoot between three and five pilots in 4K this season, perhaps signifying the beginning of a shift towards popularizing 4K. At last month’s CES in Las Vegas, there was a big push for the Ultra HD platform; about 50 sets were unveiled. But after the conference, many were left to wonder if content and delivery would be made available for the currently expensive TV sets. Continue reading HPA Tech Retreat: Sony to Shoot Several New Pilots in 4K

Jim Silver, editor in chief of timetoplaymag.com, estimates that more than 90 percent of the “so-called app toys that were trotted out last year sold poorly,” reports the Wall Street Journal. But toy companies are still trying to make it work, begging the question: “why have a hybrid, combining some aspect of a tablet with an actual physical toy or game, when a tablet alone will do?” Continue reading Sales of Physical Toys Impacted by Rise of Tablets and Apps

Sony is ramping up its efforts to provide 4K content by remastering select productions in the new format and restoring classic movies in 4K. As part of the initiative, Sony Pictures Television will remaster all five seasons of “Breaking Bad” in 4K. We can also expect to see 4K versions of “Groundhog Day,” “Ghostbusters,” “Glory,” “Funny Girl” and “On The Waterfront.” Continue reading Sony 4K Initiative: Studio Remasters Content for Ultra HDTVs

The adoption of 4K TV technology could be in the hands of console gamers, if the history of HDTV is any indication. In 2005, when few households owned HDTVs, due largely to a lack of available HD content, the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 helped transform the industry. “They gave people a reason to buy an HDTV and that gave content producers reason to invest in the formats it supported,” suggests Wired UK. Continue reading Could Success of 4K TV Be in the Hands of Console Gamers?

Is 4K the future of television or is it just another CES pipe dream? A three-part debate is taking place on ZDNet between proponent Steven Vaughan-Nichols, who suggests the future of broadcasting involves 4K, and opponent Jason Perlow, who believes the technology will be gone before it really gets started. As of Wednesday morning, 39 percent of voting readers support Vaughan-Nichols, while 61 percent back Perlow. Continue reading Future of Television: Debate Looks at Both Sides of 4K Tech

Sony demonstrated some impressive new technology at this year’s CES in Las Vegas. The company is using “nanoscale particles called quantum dots to significantly improve the color of some of its high-end Bravia televisions,” writes Technology Review. The particles increase the range of colors that an LCD TV can display by 50 percent. Continue reading CES: Sony Intros Modified LCDs with Quantum Dot Technology

Automotive technology was a major theme at the 2013 International CES earlier this month as companies embraced cars as the ultimate mobile devices. “CES is a hardware show stuck in a software world, a point driven home in the automotive booths filling the North Hall,” notes Wired. “There were apps, apps and more apps.” The article highlights eight top products that largely focus on in-car entertainment and navigation. Continue reading CES: Connected Cars Serve as the Ultimate Mobile Devices

Intel introduced its “perceptual computing” technology at this year’s CES. The company hopes it will help users switch between keyboards, trackpads, touchscreens, voice commands and gestures with ease — or even lead to simultaneous use. The new interface, designed to augment current methods of interaction, could help keep laptops alive if intuitive applications are developed. Continue reading CES 2013: Intel Debuts its Perceptual Computing Technology

The idea of “connected cars” served as one of the highlights of CES as Chevrolet, Ford and others embrace the relationship between smartphones and cars. The combination of existing cellular and Bluetooth technologies can help create smarter vehicles that not only enhance entertainment, but also aid drivers with diagnostics, safety, charging schedules and other vehicle-related issues. Continue reading Connected Cars are an Extension of the Smartphone Revolution

VideoNuze suggests that post CES, an Apple TV is inevitable. “Apple’s television opportunity is not simply to one-up the competition’s stable of smart TVs, but to re-imagine the entire TV experience as an integral part of our lives,” notes the post. Apple needs to combine components that already exist in the smart TV sphere and then “create an unparalleled experience layer that allows users to do things heretofore unimaginable.” Continue reading The Stage Is Set For Apple To Enter The Television Market