Kmart Dumps Blu-ray Due to Price
Kmart has decided not to carry Blu-ray players due to their high prices, instead focusing solely on HD DVD this holiday. While it may no longer be the bastion of discount stores it once was, Kmart's move highlights the problems facing Sony's format as HD DVD continues to get cheaper.
The HD DVD Promotions Group said that Kmart's decision to go exclusive wasn't related to an end-cap purchase (where vendors can buy specific shelf space and lock out competitors), but rather because the cost of Blu-ray players are more tailored to home theater enthusiasts. HD DVD meanwhile, will have players under $200, with even deeper discounts after Thanksgiving.
Can Yahoo! Messenger 9 Topple AIM?
Yahoo on Tuesday rolled out a beta version of Yahoo! Messenger 9.0, cleaning up the client's user interface and making it easier to call contacts and send text messages. But more interesting is news that Yahoo! Messenger saw its user base grow 19% over the past year, which pulls it closer to overtaking AOL in the US.
AOL, which owns both AIM and ICQ, has dominated instant messaging for a decade, but both Yahoo and Microsoft have chipped away at AOL's lead, taking advantage of the company's dial-up business collapse that left AIM largely stagnant. MSN -- now Windows Live Messenger -- counts the most users worldwide, but AIM still reigns supreme in the United States.
HD DVD Player Drops Below $200
Despite the fanfare, the battle for control over the next-generation DVD market is still inconsequential; the DVD version of Transformers sold 43 times more copies than the HD DVD version, which was the best selling title thus far. But that could change this holiday with players finally dropping below $200.
Circuit City and Wal-Mart are now selling the Toshiba A2 -- a second-generation HD DVD player -- for $198, over $100 off its original price of $299. The A2 only offers 1080i output, but most new televisions can do 1080i-to-1080p conversions better than players anyway, and firmware upgrades keep it as up to date as current Toshiba HD DVD players.
$100 Laptop Goes on Sale for $200
Can Microsoft Make Vista More Compelling?
Although Windows Vista has been on sale for nearly nine months, Microsoft has yet to seriously market the operating system, letting a certain rival control public mind share on a number of fronts. That's all about to change, as the Redmond company attempts to make Vista more compelling to consumers.
At an event in New York City this week timed to coincide with Apple's launch of Leopard, Microsoft executives invited members of the consumer press from all over the world to see why they should pay attention to -- and write about -- Vista this holiday season.
In Browser War, It's Really Google vs. IE
While Mozilla may get all the credit for finally dethroning Internet Explorer as the only dominant Web browser with its development of Firefox, the man behind the curtain continues to be Google, which provides the vast majority of the cash that keeps Mozilla going.
According to financial statements posted this week by Mozilla CEO Mitchell Baker, the company brought in $66.8 million in revenues during 2006 - a 26 percent improvement from 2005's revenues of $52.9 million. A full 85 percent of Mozilla's revenue for 2006 came directly from Google through its search box partnership.
Private BitTorrent Site Raided, Operators Arrested
In what could serve as a chilling warning to operators of other private file sharing networks, UK and Dutch police jointly raided the homes of those running OiNK, an invite-only BitTorrent site that allegedly has been the source of much pirated music.
According to investigators, pre-release music was first uploaded to OiNK and would then spread to other Web sites, blogs and file sharing networks. Because membership required an invitation, OiNK's operators felt secure from legal crackdowns that have recently occurred on other P2P sites and service.
Microsoft Targets Family Gamers with New Xbox 360
Learning from the continued success of Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft is taking a new approach to gaming this holiday season by focusing on family gamers who care more about basic fun games then complex worlds with high-powered graphics like "Halo 3."
Although much of the next-generation console war was centered on advanced visual capabilities, Nintendo had the surprise hit with its relatively diminutive Wii. The casual and family gamer, who was largely overlooked by Microsoft and Sony, has become the driving force behind Nintendo's resurgence in the gaming industry.
HD TiVos Can Now Share Content
As expected, TiVo Series3 and HD units are beginning to see support for the DVR's TiVoToGo and Multi-Room Viewing features with the arrival of software update 9.2. The capabilities had been disabled due to concerns about sharing copy-protected HD content.
Multi-Room Viewing also TiVo boxes to share recorded content back and forth. HD content is not available for playback on standard-definition Series2 TiVos, however. TiVoToGo enables subscribers to transfer shows from the DVR to the PC using the TiVo Desktop software or Roxio on the Mac.
Motorola, Sony Ericsson to Push Open Phone OS
Although its RAZR handsets set a new standard in mobile phone design and sold tens of millions of units, Motorola's dirty little secret is beginning to impact sales: its horrible phone user interface. The company is now endeavoring to resolve this by partnering with Sony Ericsson on building an open platform for phones.
Motorola has agreed to acquire a 50 percent stake in UI Holdings BV, the parent company of UIQ Technology AB, which is owned by Sony Ericsson. UIQ makes a phone interface platform based on Symbian utilized in many Sony Ericsson phones, but thus far it has failed to catch on with developers like Nokia's own Symbian-based Series60 and Microsoft's Windows Mobile.
AOL Lays Off 20% of Work Force
Confirming the rumors, AOL told employees Monday that it would lay off 2,000 workers, which amounts to about 20 percent of its total global work force. 1,200 employees will lose their jobs in the United States, with 750 cut from AOL's headquarters in Dulles, Virginia.
The layoffs come as part of AOL's continued transition away from Internet service provider to advertising-driven Web services. In a letter to employees, AOL CEO Randy Falco said when he came to the company, he knew such measures would be required. Pink slips will begin arriving tomorrow, and continue for the next couple of months.
AT&T Snaps Up Wireless Spectrum
AT&T has signed a deal with Aloha Partners to buy 12 megahertz of spectrum in the 700 MHz frequency for $2.5 billion, which will enable the company to expand its wireless services across the United States. Broadband Internet coverage and broadcasting digital TV over the air are possible uses for AT&T.
Interest in the 700 MHz spectrum has soared recently due to an upcoming FCC auction in which the government will raise at least $10 billion. The auction is slated to begin January 8, 2008 and will include the likes of Verizon and Google. Many see the release of the spectrum as a way to boost competition in the wireless broadband Internet space.
Real's Rhapsody Now Available on TiVo
Following through with a partnership first announced last January, RealNetworks and MTV said Tuesday that their Rhapsody music service will soon be available through TiVo set-top boxes. TiVo subscribers will be able to browse and stream songs and movies on demand from Rhapsody.
The deal is part of a broader initiative by Real to expand Rhapsody's presence in the media industry in hopes of gaining some ground on market leader Apple's iTunes. The company recently sold a stake in Rhapsody to MTV, creating a new joint venture. Real previously also forged partnerships with Nokia and Reingcom, the maker of iRiver music players.
Internet Explorer 7 Now Available to Pirates
Microsoft has released a minor update to Internet Explorer 7 for Windows XP, removing the requirement for users to be validated through the company's Windows Genuine Advantage program. This means those with non-legitimate or pirated copies of Windows can now upgrade their browser.
IE7 was released to the public nearly a year ago, but has yet to overtake its predecessor as the most used Web browser. The removal of the WGA requirement is sure to boost install numbers over IE6, and -- as Microsoft notes -- in turn protect more users from security threats on the Web.
WindowBlinds 6 Alters Vista Interface
Stardock has released version 6 of its popular WindowBlinds user interface skinning application, which is the first tool that can overhaul the look of Windows Vista - from the Taskbar to window borders and buttons.
Although Microsoft improved upon the "Luna" skin it created for Windows XP back in 2001, the Redmond company still does not enable users to change the interface graphics of its operating systems, Vista included. This is a positive for Stardock, which has been helping users "skin" Windows for nearly a decade.
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