Netflix is streaming its Watch Instantly service away from Xbox 360 and over into the PlayStation 3 camp. The Netflix deal with Microsoft (Xbox) simply expired. Not much to get excited about, really. As we've written before, the Watch Instantly is underwhelming, a lot of average to low-grade movies that are generally available any night on … [Read more...]
Archives for October 2009
‘The Prisoner: Complete Series’ on Blu-ray
At the least, we can be grateful for AMC's "reimagining" of "The Prisoner" because it hastened the arrival of the classic cult series on Blu-ray. "The Prisoner," of course, was in no need of a remake. The '60s spy series feels more relevant than ever ... and yet remains very much a product of its time -- 1966-1967, the glory days of psychedelia … [Read more...]
Hulu turning to paid content, exec says
Hulu has paid content in its near future, News Corp. deputy chairman Chase Carey says. The popular online video site that's prized for its free streams of TV shows "needs to evolve to have a meaningful subscription model as part of its business," Carey told a broadcasting conference Oct. 22. News Corp. owns Hulu along with NBC Universal and … [Read more...]
YouTube thinking big, in 1080p
We're days away from 1080p HD displayed at full resolution on YouTube. The amateur video giant has been supporting 720p "high def" for a while now, and while uploaders could get a 1080p video onto the servers, display rubbed up against that maximum output. No more, apparently. YouTube's HD mode will now offer 720p and 1080p, depending on the … [Read more...]
YouTube loses top content deal maker
YouTube's chief of content partnerships, Jordan Hoffner, is leaving after three years on the job. Hoffner helped YouTube get into the premium content game in some fashion, making deals with Disney/ABC and Time Warner, and setting up an internal movie "channel." Hoffner is off to Barry Diller's new multimedia production unit at IAC, joining Ben … [Read more...]