The Walt Disney Company's network executive Sean Bratches said in an interview today that Disney would consider allowing the WatchESPN service application on the Apple TV set top device. Prior authentication of cable access would be required to view. No deal is imminent.
A team at Disney Research and Carnegie Mellon University have developed touch technology that could one day see everyday objects become as smart and responsive as the touchscreens people carry in their pockets today. A video on Disney Research's YouTube page shows off the technology, dubbed Touché, as well as a few proof-of-concept applications.
An unofficial Disney blogger has reported that iPads are beginning to show up at the company's Walt Disney World attractions in Orlando in order to facilitate testing of a new radio-frequency ID (RFID) based "FastPass" system that may replace the current ticket-based system. The testing is said to be going on for the next couple of weeks at Disney's central Florida parks and could allow guests to schedule "FastPass" times well in advance of their visit.
The High Court of Australia has ruled against an appeal filed by major Hollywood studios in a three year-old copyright infringement case. The studios sued Internet service provider iiNet Ltd. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the case was brought on by 32 members of the Australian Federation against Copyright Theft (AFACT) that include Warner Bros., Disney, Fox, and Paramount Pictures, among smaller, independent distributors and TV networks. The court found that iiNet had no responsibility for copyright infringements perpetuated by its customers and had no technical means of preventing it.
Hulu used its turn at upfronts for TV content to reveal that it was adding four original shows beyond those teased earlier in the year. The strategy would be headlined by The Awesomes, a superhero comedy show due in 2013 that would draw on Saturday Night Live actors Seth Meyers and Michael Shoemaker. A nearer-term committed show, the 2012 basketball series We Got Next, would have The Game's Hale Rothstein and Kenya Barris along with The Office's Danny Leiner.
In all Apple CEO Tim Cook pulled in about $378 million in 2011, even if most of that money won't be available to him for years, according to the New York Times. The bulk, $376.2 million, consisted of a one-time stock grant that won't vest unless Cook stays with Apple for 10 years. In terms of immediate pay, his combined salary, bonuses, and miscellaneous perks during the year amounted to $1.8 million.
Sony Japan are commemorating the 110th birthday of Walt Disney with the release of a new Walkman S range. Available from today and similar to a promotion in March 2010, the NW-S760 series of audio players include wallpapers featuring Disney characters and a choice between three inspirational quotes from Walt Disney to be inscribed on the reverse.
Kim Dotcom, the MegaUpload founder who was arrested and his site shut down by the US government, is now speaking out quite vigorously against the government and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). He stated that Megauplaod wasn't a host for pirates, but instead a legitimate service that was likely shut down for political reasons, TorrentFreak reported. He goes on to call his indictment as being MPAA-sponsored and allegedly has evidence that will prove his innocence.
Aereo on Tuesday grew its countersuits against TV networks to include several more networks. Fox, PBS, Univision, WPIX, and WNET were all targeted under a complaint that wanted the judge to rule that Aereo wasn't violating the networks' copyrights. It had already sued ABC, CBS, and NBCUniversal a week ago.
UK satellite TV service BSkyB was given a reprieve as the Competition Commission pushed back its deadline on ruling that BSkyB's deals with six major Hollywood studios were uncompetitive, according to The Guardian. The government watchdog extended the date of its final ruling to July because it has added Netflix and LoveFilm to its investigation. Netflix launched in the UK and Ireland in January, while LoveFilm recently added a streaming service to its rent-by-mail service.
Following an announcement in September that Starz streaming content deal with Netflix would end in February, its content has now been pulled. Starz runs 17 channels include Encore as well as movies from Disney and Sony. Although Starz does not own the rights for all of Disney and Sony films, titles that have been pulled from Netflix include Scarface, Young Frankenstein, Toy Story 3, Big Trouble in Little China, Beetlejuice, Gangs of New York among numerous others.
The Walt Disney Company's DigitalBooks division has released two new "storybook apps" for children and parents, each of which offer new perspective and interaction with a classic Disney animated film, in this case the 1994 film The Lion King and the more recent 2010 hit Tangled, based on the fairy tale of Rapunzel. Both books feature a wide range of animated clips from the films and interactive activities.
Comcast on Tuesday tried its hand at mitigating the impact of Internet video on traditional TV by launching Streampix. The service will include a mix of movies and TV shows across its own NBCUniversal as well as Disney, Sony, and Warner Bros. Access won't be confined to Comcast's own network and should include mobile and computer access to some content that would normally go through Comcast's traditional video on demand.
Disney is reportedly considering imposing a 28-day delay between DVD or Blu-ray movie releases and availability through rental chains such as Netflix and Redbox. The company's chief executive, Bob Iger, noted the potential strategy change during a quarterly conference call with investors and analysts.
Amazon on Wednesday officially confirmed earlier rumors that it has inked a deal with cable provider Viacom to bring its TV shows to Amazon's Instant Video streaming service. As part of the deal, Amazon will allow customers to access thousands of episodes from MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, TV Land, Spike, VH1, BET, CMT, and Logo. This will include past seasons of shows like Chappelle's Show, Hot in Cleveland, Jersey Shore, Yo Gabba Gabba, and iCarly, among others.
Disney has partnered with NTT DoCoMo to release a pair of new Android-powered smartphones. The phones are part of a new range of smartphones to be sold exclusively under the 'Disney Mobile on DoCoMo' brand. The first of the two models (F-08D) will be launched in late February with the second (P-05D) due to follow in March, both Japan only.
A new exposé of some of the actions behind the scenes of SOPA's rejection has shown the fundamental disconnect between the MPAA and differing points of view as well as signs that there may be progress, if slow, on an alternative. MPAA president and former Democratic senator Chris Dodd explained to The Hollywood Reporter that he had been "assured" there would be no major opposition from the White House and was caught unawares when the administration suggested it would veto either SOPA or its Senate equivalent PIPA if they passed a vote. MPAA members had started to "pick up signals" of resistance at the start of January, but they sincerely thought they had made concessions and felt "bitterly betrayed" as a result.
The Walt Disney Company in its 2012 proxy statement (below) indirectly confirmed that the late Steve Jobs' family or his trust won't be seeking a board position at the Disney shareholder meeting on March 13. Although the family is the largest individual shareholder with a 7.7 percent stake, no mention is made of them in the filing beyond their investment. It also shows that Jobs' option holdings were gone at the end of Disney's fiscal year.
Online UK movie service Lovefilm has signed a deal with Disney UK to bring a library of TV series from ABC Studios to its subscribers. Branded as ABC TV On Demand, the portal will give members access to full seasons of shows such as Lost, Castle, Desperate Housewives, and more. Shows will air as full seasons soon before the next one airs on UK paid or free TV networks.
Hulu followed in Netflix's footsteps Sunday by launching its first fictional, original TV series. Battleground covers a fictional political campaign in Wisconsin and is produced by JD Walsh, 500 Days of Summer's Marc Webb, and Hagai Shaham. It should be followed up by more documentaries, including a second season of Morgan Spurlock's A Day in the Life and Richard Linklater's new Up to Speed.
Cable provider Comcast has renewed its distribution deal with Disney, signing on for another 10 years. Programming from ABC, ESPN and 68 other channels or services is included in the deal, as is streaming to portable devices such as notebooks, iPhones and iPads through dedicated apps. Under the deal, Comcast will pay more money to Disney with each successive year as license fee schedules are introduced over time, which will more than likely translate to increased bills for Xfinity users.
Movie studios are trying to get Amazon Instant Video on to the new UltraViolet cross-platform movie rights system, insiders divulged Wednesday. At least Sony and Warner Bros. were said by Bloomberg sources to be negotiating a deal. In ideal circumstances, a viewer could buy a Blu-ray or a digital format movie and have rights to play it on the Kindle Fire or another Amazon-friendly device.
Disney CEO and President Bob Iger, who was recently appointed to Apple's board of directors, has bought a million dollars' worth of the stock out of his own pocket on the open market, according to an SEC filing. Iger fills the seat vacated by Arthur Levinson when he became Chairman of the company in October. He bought 2,670 shares at around $375.
Before the death of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, he had begun moving his assets into trusts in order to avoid undue tax liabilities. According to securities filings reported by Yahoo Finance, Jobs' 138 million shares of the The Walt Disney Company -- a majority of his fortune, worth about $4.6 billion -- will go into a trust managed by his wife, Laurene Powell Jobs. What will happen to the rest of holdings, such as his $2 billion in Apple stock, remains unclear.
Google's YouTube rentals saw the slightly unexpected addition of Disney movies on Wednesday. Both its live and animated movies, as well as Pixar's CG movies, are now available on the web- and Android-based store. Key rival DreamWorks is also making the leap.
In all Apple's newest board member, Disney CEO Bob Iger, has actually received about $84,376 in Apple stock, notes Fortune. The 142 shares mentioned previously actually represent only restricted ones. On top of this Iger is getting 75 shares of common stock, hitting the $84,376 total based on a closing price from Tuesday, when the executive was awarded his investments.
The newest Apple board member, Robert Iger, will reap at least $50,000 a year from his added work, an Apple SEC filing reveals. Iger is slated to get a "standard $50,000 annual retainer" for his position, paid in quarterly installments. He is also however being granted 142 Apple shares, which vest in February. At current prices, the shares are together worth almost $55,000.
Disney and YouTube announced they are working on a collection of co-branded family-friendly videos that will be available online. Disney Interactive will produce and program the videos for both Disney.com and YouTube. Free online video tailored to Disney's core audiences will be made available on both outlets in early 2012. The first project will be a short-form original video series based on Disney Interactive's hit mobile game "Where's My Water? ($0.99, iTunes) and its main character Swampy.
In an odd decision, Google may go into traditional TV, insiders may have divulged Thursday. The YouTube owner would use its Google Fiber in both Kansas City rollouts to include TV and possible VoIP phone service, the Wall Street Journal was told. Early talks were said underway with Discovery, Disney, and Time Warner to supply content.
CBS chief Les Moonves may have inadvertently confirmed Apple's negotiations for a streaming TV service during the company's fiscal results call. He claimed that CBS had turned down a deal for a service because it would have split ad revenues. The executive didn't give details of what the service would have involved.
Disney and its ABC division on Monday recommitted themselves to Internet video Monday with separate deals for Amazon Instant Video and Netflix. Both deals give it access to all prior seasons of both active and recently ended shows as well as back catalog access. Amazon's deal gives it both access to on-demand Instant Video as well as unlimited access for Prime subscribers.
With yesterday's report that Hulu is no longer for sale, a new report from SAI sources suggests it's still considering a sale to Google. Google did make the largest bid for the streaming service, though it also wanted concessions that Hulu wasn't willing to make. Google's bid, at about $4 billion, was more than twice as big as Dish Network's $2 billion.
Hulu in a brief note said it had decided to stop its attempted selloff. The statement, which had the support of Disney, investor Providence Equity Partners, and Fox's parent company News Corp., claimed that each of the owners though there was too much of a "unique and compelling strategic value" for each of them to sell. It would instead center on existing plans.
Yahoo is reportedly out of the increasingly uncertain bidding process for Hulu, a claimed leak said late Sunday. The search engine has allegedly been identified by the WSJ sources as the original mystery bidder but also to have exited entirely. The internal turmoil following Carol Bartz' firing and the possibility of a sell-off were attributed to the departure.
Earlier rumors of Hulu going back on its decision to sell itself off are proving true, two sources have told SAI. The bids, while they are still rolling in, aren't as high as initially hoped. Hulu's parent companies are reportedly looking for $2 billion for the online service.
Disney Mobile will soon launch a series of apps called Appmates that will turn Apple's iPad into a game board. The first is a rolling road that can be used in conjunction with toy cars from Disney/Pixar's Cars 2 blockbuster movie. The app requires special toys the iPad will recognize rolling across the screen, but the interface is touch-based, and there is no Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or cables needed to play.
DreamWorks late Sunday revealed that it had struck a deal with Netflix to provide its animated movies. The deal, unofficially estimated by a consensus of NY Times analysts to be worth $30 million, will bring movies like Monsters vs. Aliens or the Shrek series to the streaming service. It's not evident how long the deal will last other than multiple years, starting in 2013.
Roku has added some Disney-made short video segments to its online lineup, ZatzNotFunny learned. The on-demand mix includes entertainment and advertisement clips or promos for Disney's feature-length movies and is free to users. The content numbers in the hundreds thus far, but is said to expand in the months to come.
Check-in service Gowalla has announced on Thursday the release of new iPhone (App Store) and Android (Market) apps that include a feature called Social Guides. They include places friends recommend, advice from experts and the best of what's local in particular cities, parks and other regions. The launch covers 60 cities and shows off photos, highlights and experiences from friends and experts.
(Update: Netflix responds) Netflix took a large hit on Thursday after Starz said it had broken off talks to renew a content deal. Under current conditions, the TV channel provider would pull the movies and other pay TV content it licenses out to Netflix on February 28, 2012. Its statement tried to portray Netflix as cheapening its service and that it was purportedly doing its content a service by shopping for deals elsewhere.
Hulu on cue has launched Hulu Plus for Japan. The country is the first outside of the US to get Hulu and gives it a very different business model. Plus is the only option in the country and costs the equivalent of $19 per month, almost twice as much as the $8 it does in the US.
Despite his resignation earlier today as CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs is not planning to vacate his seat on the Disney board of directors, reports Bloomberg. Jobs is Disney's largest individual shareholder, with a 7.4 percent stake in the company. Though the Bloomberg report quoted unnamed sources "with knowledge of the matter" as its source, the story echoes earlier reports from CNBC.
ABC will join Fox in requiring users to log in while viewing online TV content. This solidifies earlier rumors that the Disney-owned network will do this, sources said to AllThingsD. During an earnings call, Disney CEO Bob Iger indicated he back distributing his company's content over nontraditional outlets like Hulu and Netlfix as long as it doesn't disrupt the current relationship with cable companies.
Disney is following in the footsteps of the Fox book by requiring online TV show viewers to be pay TV subscribers and log in with a cable ID. According to a Wednesday GigaOM report, the company is working on deals with content distributors to allow this. Thus far, cable networks like CNN and HBO are already requiring such logins.
Talk of iTunes Replay bringing cloud movie streaming might have come too soon. Insiders claimed Monday that Apple didn't have deals with at least four of six major movie studios. Any deal would be months off at best, CNET was told.
Apple is one of those considering making a bid for Hulu, a pair of sources claimed Thursday. The company is supposedly in "early talks" that could lead to a buyout if all went well. It wasn't clear from Bloomberg tips what stage of the bidding process Apple had reached or how serious Apple's intentions were.
Amazon.com and CBS Corporation on Wednesday announced they have entered into a non-exclusive licensing agreement that will let Amazon Prime customers stream CBS TV shows. The deal will see 2,000 additional episodes from 18 CBS TV shows such as The Tudors, Cheers, and the complete Star Trek series collection, among others. Also, later this summer, regular Amazon Instant Video customers will get access to dozens of CBS shows.
Fox's executive VP of Global Research and Technology Strategy Danny Kaye was hopeful Apple and Disney would both use the new UltraViolet media locker copy protection system. He noted in an interview that all but Disney among the studios had signed on, and that just that it was holding out "doesn't mean that [Disney] won't." He was also convinced in speaking to Pocket-lint that Apple was going to sign onboard and that it was just being conservative before leaping in.
New tips Sunday ruled out Netflix as one of the candidates to buy Hulu. The movie streaming service hasn't been actively involved, sources for the WSJ said. Hulu also reportedly hasn't been actively interested, in part since it would create overlap and reduce the number of suppliers, not increase them.
For the past few weeks, rumors have swirled around the possible sale of Hulu. Today, Disney CEO Bob Igor confirmed that Disney, NBCUniversal and News Corp., the TV streaming service's owners are indeed looking to sell off. Igor declined to provide a timeframe for a deal or to hint who might be the acquirer.
