Saying "it's very clear that streaming is energizing our growth," Netflix chieftain Reed Hastings announced strong earnings, revenues and subscriber increases for the fourth quarter, sending its stock on a two-day tear. Profits were up 45%. Hastings credited Netflix's movie-streaming service Watch Instantly with the flashy numbers, which handily … [Read more...]
Archives for January 2009
YouTube, top talent agency near deal
YouTube and Hollywood's the William Morris Agency are about to sign a deal in which WMA's clients would appear in online videos. The Web video talks were first reported in today's New York Times. Reps for both parties refused to comment, the Times said. WMA apparently will take an ownership stake in the videos produced for or by … [Read more...]
Boxee thinks outside cable TV
The New York Times today profiles Boxee, a company whose software allows users to cherry-pick video content from various online outlets and watch on a regular or high-def TV monitor. The New York online video company "is treading over the carefully negotiated business arrangements of much larger companies and garnering accolades from tech-heads … [Read more...]
Hulu takes the fall for ‘Sunny’ blackout
"We screwed up royally," Hulu CEO Jason Kilar has told site users in a major exhibition of transparency. The trouble started when the upscale video site suddenly pulled nearly three seasons of the FX channel hit "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." Kilar, pictured, wrote on the blog, "We gave effectively no notice to our users that these … [Read more...]
LG flows Netflix stream into HDTVs
No black box required: LG continues to cut innovative deals with movie and TV content distributors, this time routing Netflix's streaming video service through new LCD and plasma HDTV models to be introduced at this week's Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas. The "Broadband HDTVs" are expected in market this spring. Streaming video will come … [Read more...]