Columbia Pictures’ “After Earth” was screened via a Sony 4K digital cinema projector this weekend during the Cine Gear Expo in Los Angeles. After attendees filled the 500-plus-seat Paramount Theatre on Friday, a second screening was added on Saturday. “After Earth” was among the first feature films produced using Sony’s 4K F65 camera. Sony, Canon and Red are among the major camera makers now able to support 4K. Continue reading Cine Gear Expo: Industry Vets Discuss 4K for Cinema and TV

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

CBS Interactive’s GameSpot.com announced its plans yesterday for comprehensive coverage of next month’s E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo). The coverage will feature more than 100 hours of original live and on-demand programming from the Los Angeles Convention Center in addition to on-air integration with CBS Television stations. This marks the first time GameSpot will produce pre-show programming for a television audience. Continue reading CBS and GameSpot to Offer Extensive E3 Coverage in June

In an effort to boost lagging television sales, Best Buy announced that 700 of its U.S. stores will start selling Sony 4K Ultra HDTVs this week. The home theater departments of Best Buy and Magnolia stores will prominently display the 4K sets and offer demonstrations that tout the benefits of the new format over current 1080p offerings. The demos are expected to emphasize up-scaling capabilities to help attract consumers. Continue reading Best Buy Now Selling Sony 4K Televisions in its U.S. Stores

We recently reported that Microsoft has scheduled a May 21 event to launch its next generation Xbox console (we’ll have details next week). Another piece of hardware has also been in development, but its future is less certain. Microsoft has been working on a set-top device for streaming video and other entertainment media, including a version that uses Kinect motion-control technology. However, it is not clear whether the product will be released. Continue reading Will the Microsoft Set-Top Box Ever See the Light of Day?

According to inside sources, Google may unveil its rumored subscription music services today at the Google I/O developers conference in San Francisco. The company has reportedly signed separate licensing deals with Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group that involve both YouTube and Google Play, the entertainment hub for the Android operating system. Earlier this year, Google signed similar agreements with Warner Music Group. Continue reading Google Signs Labels, Readies Subscription Music Services

Sony may soon offer an affordable alternative for transitioning from paper notebooks and textbooks to digital solutions. According to a Japanese press release, the company is developing a 13.3-inch flexible e-reader called Digital Paper. Designed for use in classrooms, the grayscale reader weighs about 0.78 pounds, is a mere 7mm thick, features a touch capable 1,200 x 1,600 pixel display and includes Wi-Fi, 4GB of internal memory and a microSD card slot. Continue reading Digital Paper: Sony Announces Ultra-Thin Flexible E-Reader

The Entertainment Technology Center presented longtime Warner Bros. exec Chuck Dages with the Bob Lambert Technology Leadership Award during an industry gathering at USC’s Town & Gown Wednesday evening. The event also celebrated the first 20 years of ETC@USC and featured a studio technology leaders panel, during which execs discussed production and distribution challenges emerging from an evolving digital landscape. Continue reading Technology Leadership Award: ETC Honors Chuck Dages

Home entertainment server maker Kaleidescape opened its own download store for HD movies this week. This new system lets users download “Blu-ray quality” versions of movies that can then be played through Kaleidescape or on the Web and through mobile devices via UltraViolet. However, there is a concern regarding the amount of data each download will consume, as each movie can average around 50GB. Continue reading Kaleidescape Launches Download Store for HD Movies

Amazon reportedly has plans to launch a television set-top box that would stream video over the Internet to televisions and provide access to the company’s expanding video services, including the Amazon Video on Demand store. The new device, expected as early as sometime this year, would compete with Apple’s set-top box, Apple TV, in addition to video-delivery products from Roku, Boxee, Microsoft and Sony. Continue reading Could Amazon Set-Top Box be an All-In-One Media Center?

Microsoft announced this week that it has scheduled a special Xbox event to be held May 21 at the company’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington. The company is expected to unveil its next-generation Xbox videogame console during the event, and is believed to be prepping the new console for a holiday release to compete with Sony’s anticipated PlayStation 4. Continue reading Microsoft Plans Event to Unveil Next-Gen Xbox Console

Popular band OK Go traveled to the Arctic Circle in Northern Sweden to capture the “sound” of the Aurora Borealis, better known as the Northern Lights. As part of a new collaboration with Sony, the band used a variety of Sony electronic devices to record the natural phenomenon for a music video and Sony advertising campaign. The video is scheduled to launch in May of this year. Continue reading Sony and OK Go Record Sounds of the Northern Lights

Sony Pictures Television has announced the fall 2013 debut of getTV, a new digital broadcast network that will specialize in classic movies. The network is Sony’s third branded channel in the U.S. and will initially be offered on digital subchannels for Univision-owned affiliates. Sony is reportedly pursuing additional station partners before getTV’s official launch. Continue reading Sony Readies Launch of New Classic Movies Network

Microsoft’s Xbox 360 was once again the best-selling game console in March, marking its 27th consecutive month topping the sales charts, according to The NPD Group. Microsoft reports that 261,000 Xbox 360s were sold last month in the U.S., while spending on related hardware, software and accessories totaled $402 million. While the Xbox beat Nintendo’s Wii U and Sony’s PlayStation 3, hardware sales were down from the previous year. Continue reading Xbox 360 Tops Sales Charts for 27th Consecutive Month