Japan Archives - Page 20 of 20

By Dennis Kuba
September 2, 2011

In its first international venture, Hulu is launching its subscription service in Japan where it will offer hundreds of premium feature films and thousands of TV shows for $19.19/month.
The service will be accessible via select connected TVs and smartphones (Engadget reports that Panasonic Blu-ray players, Sony Blu-ray players and TVs, Xbox 360 and PS3 consoles and Android tablets are relegated to the “coming soon” list.)
Content will be provided from CBS, NBCUniversal, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Twentieth Century Fox, The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros. Additional local market content will be added including Japanese-produced and other Asian content.
Hulu is also announcing an exclusive mobile marketing partnership with NTT Docomo. Details will be forthcoming.
A follow-up post from GigaOM yesterday outlines the differences between Hulu’s current U.S. offerings and its plans for the Japanese market, “that could give a hint at what Hulu might look like in the future.” So is there a “no ads, higher fees and more content suppliers” future for Hulu outside of Japan? If so, watch out Netflix!

By Rob Scott
September 1, 2011

Sony announced it will launch a head mounted display dubbed the “Personal 3D Viewer” HMZ-T1 in Japan this November (some of you may have seen the prototype at CES 2011).
The wearable display is designed for viewing both 2D and 3D on a “movie theater-like virtual screen,” equivalent to a 750-inch display, according to Sony.
The device uses twin 0.7-inch OLED panels with 1280×720 resolution and 5.1 surround sound. It is expected to sell in Japan for around $700 (possibly higher when it makes its way to the U.S.).
ETCentric staffer Phil Lelyveld comments: “Online chatter discusses this as an alternative to 3DTVs versus the social aspect of viewing. The health warning at the bottom of the press release is rather strange, given the target market.”
Health warning from the Sony press release: “Considering the protection of the growth and development, we ask children (age 15 and younger) to refrain from using this product.”