Netflix today announced the launch of Netflix Families, a new destination site intended to promote Netflix’s family-friendly offerings. The website features Netflix recommendations for parents and children, streaming tips and promotional content. Also, Amazon announced that it has added more than a thousand books, games, educational apps, movies and TV shows to its Kindle FreeTime Unlimited, including kids’ titles from Disney, Warner Bros. and Electronic Arts. Continue reading Netflix and Amazon Continue Pursuit of Younger Audience

Multiple sources familiar with the ongoing Hulu acquisition talks have suggested that a deal with DirecTV is in “very advanced stages” and could close by the end of this month. If the deal is approved, DirecTV would acquire over 4 million paying Hulu Plus subscribers, which generated $695 million in revenue last year, including advertising. The latest negotiations have reportedly ranged in price from half a billion to more than a billion dollars, depending on structure and terms. Continue reading Inside Sources Believe DirecTV will Acquire Hulu this Month

If rumors prove true, Facebook’s photo-sharing app Instagram may soon include the ability to take and share short videos, similar to how Vine works. Following the company’s release of a hashtag feature and the rollout of its new iPhone and Android features, Facebook has scheduled a product launch event for Thursday in Menlo Park. “A small team has been working on a big idea,” reads the invitation. “Join us for coffee and learn about a new product.” Continue reading Mysterious Facebook Press Event to Unveil Instagram Video?

Social media platform LinkedIn has been making the transition from a utilitarian network designed for business professionals to something much more dynamic. Since October, LinkedIn has been offering original content authored by a select group of “Influencers,” leaders from a variety of fields that post their thoughts on life, careers and success. Traffic to all LinkedIn’s news products has increased eightfold since the Influencers were introduced. Continue reading LinkedIn Turns to Influencers to Enhance Publishing Efforts

Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei met several weeks ago with Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt to discuss the potential benefits of cable industry mergers, according to a person familiar with the matter. Liberty acquired a 27 percent stake in pay TV operator Charter Communications early last month. Ten days ago, Liberty Chairman John Malone told shareholders that Charter probably has “the best operating team in the business.” Continue reading Chief Execs Discuss Benefits of Mergers in Cable Sector

Amazon recently announced plans to offer online grocery shopping in Los Angeles. While the $79 Amazon Prime provides customers with two-day shipping and streaming TV shows and movies, the $299 AmazonFresh Service, originally tested in Seattle, will additionally enable members to order groceries that will be delivered to the door in hours. Retail giants such as Walmart and Costco have suggested that online grocery delivery is a nearly impossible business. Continue reading Fresh: Amazon Brings Online Grocery Shopping to Los Angeles

“TV Everywhere” and “cord-cutting” were major themes at this week’s NCTA Cable Show in Washington, D.C. where the industry presented technologies intended to sustain its relevancy. Examples included Roku and Xbox as cable set-tops, smartphones as remotes, iPads as TVs, a Slingbox product from Arris and more. Comcast unveiled its X2 cloud DVR and TiVo is expanding its TV Everywhere options with a new Web portal. Continue reading NCTA Cable Show: Battling Cord-Cutting with Technology

Microsoft and Best Buy announced yesterday that they are teaming up to convert the computing sections of 600 Best Buy locations into new in-store retail shops called Windows Stores. The 1,500-2,200 square feet mini-stores plan to feature an array of Microsoft products including computers, phones and Xbox video game machines. Windows Stores will be distinctly designed featuring prominent Microsoft colors and logos, and plan to start opening this summer. Continue reading Windows Stores: Microsoft and Best Buy Team on Retail Space

As part of the grand opening of the Interactive Media building at the USC School of Cinematic Arts, filmmakers George Lucas and Steven Spielberg spoke on a panel regarding the future of entertainment. During the discussion, the inevitable landscape of entertainment media was characterized as grim for the majors with rising movie ticket prices and theatrical releases becoming a niche market, as content continues its vast migration to online video-on-demand. Continue reading Industry Vets See Big Future for VOD, Problems for Studios

During the NCTA Cable Show this week in Washington D.C., Comcast CEO Brian Roberts unveiled the X2 cloud-based entertainment platform that will enable Xfinity TV subscribers to access live and on-demand television programming, online video, personalized recommendations and apps across platforms including computers, smartphones, tablets and TVs. The company has also upgraded its current X1 platform with a new “Send to TV” feature that allows users to send Web content to their set-top box. Continue reading NCTA Cable Show: Comcast Unveils X2 Cloud-Based Platform

The growing popularity of streaming services such as Netflix, Roku and Apple TV have led to older audiences becoming more comfortable with the on-demand approach to viewing traditional television content on devices other than their TV sets. As a result, producers of Web-based programming are hoping that inexpensive Internet talk shows will help with this online transition for new viewers as well as consumer-brand advertisers. Continue reading Talk Shows are Making the Transition to Mobile Programming

During this week’s Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, Disney Interactive promoted “Disney Infinity,” its upcoming video game environment and merchandise hybrid that incorporates physical toy figurines based on popular characters from the company’s films and television shows. Kids can interact with RF-outfitted action figures, power discs, and play set hexagons that can integrate film locations and theme park attractions. Continue reading E3 2013: Disney Infinity Has Potential as Major Franchise

At this week’s Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, Microsoft announced that its new Xbox One game console will be available in November for $499 (a price level higher than it has historically set), while Sony said its soon-to-be-launched PlayStation 4 console will sell for $399 (although a specific date was not mentioned). Both companies are facing mounting pressure from the growing success of mobile and social games. Continue reading E3 2013: Microsoft and Sony Announce Game Console Prices

Television viewers are uploading episodes of their favorite shows and re-editing them, marking the next step in the increasingly interactive relationship with media content. One viewer unpacked the nesting-doll narrative of “Arrested Development” when the new season was released on Netflix, and re-edited it in chronological order before posting links on Reddit. Fans of HBO’s “Game of Thrones” recently posted their versions of a particularly violent scene to YouTube, after setting it to pop music and cartoon sound effects. Continue reading Television Fans Edit Their Own Versions of Favorite Shows

Intel’s talks to purchase media content for a new TV service are moving forward, according to people familiar with the matter. Although Intel has yet to close any programming deals, the chip giant is reportedly offering to pay as much as 75 percent more for content than traditional cable rates. Sources indicate that Intel has moved substantially on subscriber fees it is willing to pay and has also suggested preventing viewers from skipping commercials for a show’s first run. Continue reading Sources Say Intel Advancing with TV Service Content Deals