When the clock strikes its last midnight in 2013—or somewhere around there, anyway—dozens of movies will disappear from Netflix streaming. Fortunately, you’ve still got some time to churn through the ones you’ll miss the most. Here’s a list of the very best of the movies that’ll be gone in 2014.
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It’s a near-guarantee that you haven’t been to a Blockbuster this year, or possibly this decade. And after today’s announcement that the company is shutting down its 300 remaining stores, you likely never will again. But that doesn’t mean that video stores have outlived their usefulness—or, especially, that streaming is anywhere near ready to replace it.
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Contrary to what the popular press might have us believe, piracy isn’t killing content. At least, that’s what a team of scholars from the London School of Economics has found after conducting a deep analysis of the situation.
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A few more of these, and it won’t even be news. Netflix is going hard into the original content business, and judging by the outstanding results with House of Cards, we’re guessing that it’ll be aiming for similar results with a different demographic here. Derek, described as something of a comedy / drama mishmash, is fronted by the affable Ricky Gervais. The show actually aired as Dramedy over on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom, so while it’s not exactly a Netflix original, it’s getting “original treatment.” Per usual, the entire season will be available to stream at once on September 12th (overwhelming, we know), and if you’re looking to decide just how much time you should set aside, the trailer is embedded after the break.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD
Via: Variety
Source: Netflix (YouTube)
Unfortunately, decrees such as the one just approved in Vietnam are seemingly becoming more common, not less. Similar outcries were voiced after both Iran and Belarus laid down draconian laws about how their citizens were to interact with the internet, and now Vietnam is being shelled by residents and outsiders alike for a new decree that essentially bars the sharing of outside news. The specific verbiage states that “personal electronic sites” (such as Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.) “are only allowed to put [sic] news owned by that person.” In other words, sharing of information from “press organizations or government websites” is now outlawed, as is the act of providing “general information” on profiles and blogs. Exact punishments are apparently still being drafted, but whatever arises, you can bet that the Vietnamese government is going to take a huge amount of flack for crossing this line.
Filed under: Internet
Via: TechDirt
Source: Bangkok Post
Tim Stevens, forever known as a bearded legend and a dignified gentleman in the realm of Engadget, once placed a small sum of money into a charity bet with Gene Munster. At question, as you’ll likely surmise, was whether or not Apple would reinvent television before the end of the year. The outfit’s CEO has since upgraded the Apple TV from a hobby to an “area of intense interest,” and it seems that discussions are indeed in the works. Jessica Lessin, formerly of Wall Street Journal fame, has been known to break an Apple story or two, and she’s recently published a report that puts Apple and cable companies at the table to discuss the premise of ad skipping.
Simply put, Apple wants to offer consumers the ability to watch live and on-demand programming “over an Apple set-top box or TV” at a premium, with ads being skipped over and ISPs receiving a slice of the money. That money, of course, would seemingly have to trickle down to the companies who are getting (potentially) shafted when it comes to air time, but details surrounding that notion seem to be unclear. Of course, one could say that folks are already addicted to skipping ads, and if Apple’s crafting an idea to make anything from a phenomenon that’s already happening… well, you could certainly imagine one or two executives having a listen.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, Apple
Source: Jessica Lessin
Amazon Studios is hell-bent on developing movies and TV series, and on top of script submissions, it’s now asking filmmakers to send in 2-15 minute long shorts to pitch their feature-length film ideas. Those would serve as a foundation for your project and “express an idea that’s begging to be seen on the big-screen, in full-length, full-budget form,” according to the division’s Hollywonk blog. Amazon Studios will spend 45 days evaluating each submission, and those added to the development slate will receive $10,000. After that, you’ll get put into the development pipeline, which could get you paid writing and directing opportunities, guidance and feedback from partners like Warner Bros., and up to $400,000 if your baby hits theaters. Private submissions are welcome, but if you’re feeling brave, you can also post it for the world to see — hit the source or More Coverage link for more info.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Amazon
Source: Amazon Studios Hollywonk blog
What’s in a name? A whole lot, if you’re asking yours truly. “All Your Entertainment. Input One.” Such intriguing statements were declared in a document that leaked from Redmond last summer. The slogan “All in one, input one” was on the Microsoft banners decorating the LA Convention Center for E3 this year. But this probably left many wondering: what is “input one,” exactly? It didn’t go unnoticed by those who follow the TV industry. Input one is commonly used in the biz to refer to the TV input most Americans use to access the majority of their content. This is the input that’s displayed when the TV is turned on, and it’s the input that most connect their set-top box from their cable or satellite provider to. Naturally, it’s a highly coveted position in the content industry and one that is well fortified by the incumbents.
Microsoft has had its sights on input one for a long time, and this particular go-round isn’t all that unfamiliar. The Xbox One intends to share input one in what I’d call a man-in-the-middle attack. How well it works won’t be revealed until later this year, but clicking through will reveal how I think it’ll play out, why this attempt is a direct result of industry constraints and finally, how it matches up with the competition.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD, Microsoft
The dream of wearing a lightweight headset, like the Oculus Rift, in order to simulate physical presence isn’t limited to the imaginary worlds of video games. One man’s vision is that of immersive TV shows, movies and live sports. In fact, David Cole, co-founder of Next3D and an industry veteran who helps content creators and providers produce and deliver 3D, has been using his Rift dev kit to bring TV and film to life since the kits started shipping in March. The company is combining its video processing and compression technology with its experience in content production and stereoscopic delivery to offer what it’s called Full-Court.
Next3D hopes to leverage its existing relationships with creators and providers to assist them in jumping into the world of live-action VR content. This includes both pre-recorded and live broadcasts. We wanted to see this firsthand, so we jumped at the opportunity to witness the creation of content and experience the results. This trial run of Next3D’s stereoscopic, 180-degree field-of-view camera rig, and the post-processing to adapt it to VR, was part of the production of the paranormal investigation show, Anomaly, at Castle Warden in St. Augustine, Fla. Being nearby, we braved the perils of the haunted surroundings to tell you about what we hope is only the beginning of virtual reality content.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD
Just weeks after TWC TV was overhauled for iOS products, the carrier has announced that a “serious” update will hit the Android version of TWC TV as soon as next Tuesday. The refresh will add access to over 4,000 On Demand shows and movies, as well as live TV streaming and On Demand support for older Android devices still stuck on v2.2+. Moreover, some of that content will also be available while you’re away from home, “mirroring the experience” already available for iOS products. Moral of the story? Keep an eye on the Play Store as May 14th rolls around.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Software, HD
Source: Time Warner Cable Untangled, Google Play
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