Wi-LAN this evening said the delay in its Wi-Fi lawsuit had borne fruit as it had made some settlement deals and expected more before the February 2 trial. It struck deals with 2Wire, Belkin, Lenovo, Marvell, Netgear and Westell over the past few weeks. It also anticipated that Apple, Dell, D-Link, HP, Sony and Toshiba would cave before Wednesday.
Blockbuster yesterday submitted a US Securities and Exchange Commission filing that reveals the company doesn't believe it can continue business. The video store is no longer certain that it can remain a "going concern" and may have to stop operations and close its doors if its financial situation doesn't improve in the near future. The warning comes in spite of a $250 million refinancing loan having been put in place just last week; Blockbuster now says there is "no assurance" that it can meet the requirements of the transaction before it's completed on May 11th.
As promised earlier this month, video and game rental giant Blockbuster on Tuesday announced it would begin selling the previously introduced 2Wire MediaPoint player, a hub that brings video-on-demand (VOD) movies over the Internet to users' TVs. The set-top box connects to the Internet via an Ethernet link or built-in Wi-Fi module and, unlike similar products from competitors, does not require a monthly subscription or minimum rental requirement. Blockbuster promises DVD quality movies with the ability to fast-forward, rewind and pause capabilities, as well as saving movies for viewing later. The player has an HDMI connection for connecting it to HDTVs.
2Wire has recently introduced its MediaPoint set-top box that is designed to deliver HD video content via a broadband connection. The MediaPoint will offer remote access options, allowing users to control its functions over the web, and connects to home networks via a wired or wireless connection. It will also stream media from connected USB flash drives and external hard drives thanks to built-in USB ports. There is of course an HDMI output, and the device is compatible with UPnP- and DLNA-enabled devices.
