In addition to its AdBitz channel, where viewers can see and vote for their favorite Super Bowl ads after the game, YouTube is also offering its very first Super Bowl halftime show. The show will stream against NBC’s televised halftime show on February 1st, which includes performances by Katy Perry and Lenny Kravitz. Hosted by Harley Morenstein of EpicMealTime, the YouTube show will include performances and appearances from some of YouTube’s biggest names including Freddie Wong and Toby Turner. Continue reading YouTube Plans Alternative Halftime Show for Super Bowl XLIX

AT&T may have solved the issue of streaming videos over its LTE network in congested areas such as sports stadiums. The company showed a demo of LTE Broadcast during the College Football Playoff National Championship. The LTE Broadcast network can stream high quality videos no matter how many smartphones are trying to tune in at the same time. The new network would also help take a load off of the main LTE network. There is no word yet on when this tech would be available for mobile devices. Continue reading LTE Broadcast: AT&T Network Upgrade Enhances Mobile Video

“Mayday! Deep Space” is a new iOS game app that lets users control the character through voice commands. Instead of playing first-person as the character, the player will build a relationship with their character. As part of the game, the user not only gives directions to their character; they also make moral decisions for the character. However, the AI does not have to do everything the user says, and can reject commands. Future AIs may eventually be able to identify emotions as well. Continue reading Voice-Commanded Mobile App Transforms First Person Games

Deloitte forecasts that the 83 million 18- to 34-year-old consumers in North America will spend about $62 billion on media consumption in 2015, an average of $750 per person. Roughly 80 percent of millennials are projected to spend an average of $80 per month on pay TV, with another $40 per year for streaming video services such as Netflix or Amazon Prime. The same demographic is likely to spend about $100 on concerts and $25 a year on music downloads and streaming services, according to Deloitte. Continue reading Research Points to Millennials Spending $62 Billion on Media

French startup Dailymotion announced this week that it is launching a streaming site for the growing number of fans who enjoy watching video of live gaming, a move that would put the company in competition with Twitch, the leader in this emerging field. The move will also provide Dailymotion with another means of taking on its rival YouTube. Gaming video has grown increasingly popular due to new streaming services, the appeal of live professional gaming events, and the rise of massively multiplayer team-based games. Continue reading Dailymotion Games Plans to Compete with YouTube and Twitch

Following his success at Discovery Channel, founder John Hendricks is ready to move forward with another media venture, only this time one built for online streaming rather than pay TV. Hendricks is scheduled to launch CuriosityStream in March, a nonfiction subscription service that offers nature, history, science and technology content on demand. As with most subscription services, CuriosityStream hopes to tap into the non pay TV market first before pushing to add from pay TV households. Continue reading Discovery Channel Founder to Launch Subscription VOD Service

Following earlier setbacks, Samsung has launched its Tizen mobile operating system in New Delhi, India with the entry-level Samsung Z1, priced less than $100. Tizen joins the likes of Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS systems that collectively hold over 95 percent of the market. Samsung is initially focusing on India’s population of mobile phone users since many of them still own basic phones. Samsung hopes to build from the market in India, gain momentum and incentivize app developers to build for Tizen. Continue reading Samsung Launches New Phone Powered by Android Rival Tizen

Turbo Tax ran a 30-second spot on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” this past weekend, marking the first “programmatic” ad for the sports network. Turbo Tax purchased the ad time through a Web-based auction, a model that is part of a new initiative recently announced by ESPN. The ad ran during the Saturday 1:00 am broadcast from a giant video screen on the show’s set, and was introduced by an anchor who said, “SportsCenter will be right back in 30-seconds.” This approach could lead to a major shift in the current advertising model. Continue reading ESPN Airs First Programmatic Ad During SportsCenter Episode

NanoTech Entertainment is hoping that its 4K movie-streaming service, UltraFlix, will become the Netflix of Ultra HD. However, its immediate obstacle is a lack of 4K content, which is expected to change now that more companies are embracing the format. Consumers who already purchased a 4K smart TV from Hisense, Samsung, Sony or Vizio likely already have the UltraFlix app (next up is LG, Panasonic, Sharp and Toshiba, according to NanoTech). Competing with Netflix and Amazon could prove an additional obstacle. Continue reading UltraFlix Aims to Become Your Choice for Streaming 4K Content

Cable news channel CNN has plans to study the use of drones as a practical tool for broadcast journalism. CNN announced an agreement with the Federal Aviation Administration that will allow the news organization to fly the unmanned aircraft despite the commercial ban on drones. CNN will report its findings to the FAA over the next two years, and help shape the agency’s complete rules for these aircraft. Drones are already used for reporting in other countries and freelance reporting in the U.S. Continue reading CNN, FAA Reach Agreement to Test Drones for Newsgathering

At CES, DTS demonstrated its new DTS:X codec that separates audio into objects rather than traditional channels (for example: dialogue or gunshots, instead of left, right, front, rear). The immersive sound technology is similar to Dolby Atmos, but DTS:X keeps dialogue separate, so the volume can be controlled independently during viewing. The company showed how DTS:X works with a television’s built-in speakers by screening a soccer match and switching audio between teams, sideline microphones and broadcast announcers. Continue reading CES: DTS Demos New Format That Offers Object-Based Audio

Online streaming earned another boost in credibility last night when Amazon and Netflix both won Golden Globe Awards. Jeffrey Tambor won Best Actor in a TV Comedy for his role in “Transparent.” The show also won for Best Comedy Series (beating Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black”), a major coup for Amazon. Meanwhile, Netflix was nominated in seven major categories, and Kevin Spacey took home Best Actor in a TV Drama for his work on “House of Cards.” Continue reading Streaming: Amazon and Netflix Make Splash at Golden Globes

The 2nd Screen Society — formed to address the companion screen viewing of TV and home entertainment — hosted the 2nd Screen Summit on January 5 during CES. Television network, production and creative tech execs gathered at the Encore Las Vegas to discuss this year’s theme — It’s all about the data: “Data is going to be the currency that fuels the entertainment industry in the years ahead and 2nd screen will be the way that data is collected.” The event featured a series of thought-provoking keynote discussions and panels. Continue reading CES: Broadcasters and Execs Gather at 2nd Screen Summit

During the LG press conference at CES earlier this week, Netflix announced that it plans to introduce high dynamic range (HDR) to its 4K UHD streaming sometime this year. While a specific timeline was not revealed, it is expected that the HDR streaming will coincide with the launch of LG’s much talked about OLED TVs. Netflix support for HDR was also announced with Sony; the company’s X900C ultra-thin UHD TV showcased at CES will run on the new Android TV platform and provide access to Netflix 4K. Continue reading Netflix to Introduce High Dynamic Range to its 4K Streaming

TiVo’s new update to its Roamio, Premiere and Mini devices will allow users to access content from various sources including live and recorded TV, streaming services and other apps the device may be connected to. The content will be arranged for display on a single user-friendly navigation screen. The OnePass upgrade was unveiled during CES and is unique from existing set-top boxes and cable/satellite services. This should be significant for TiVo users who want to access their streaming services like Netflix and Hulu. Continue reading OnePass: TiVo Unveils Update to Roamio, Premiere and Mini