05/22, 10:20am
Demo mission still requires NASA permission to dock with ISS
Space X has launched its Dragon capsule atop a Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station (ISS), aiming to become the first private company to take on the task. While the live webcast of the launch and flight is now finished, a recap is available online and it can be also be watched below, although from a different source. The unmanned mission will take a few days to reach the space station, and eventually, the plan is to offer space travel to Mars as well.
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05/03, 3:43pm
Google hosts star-studded event for advertisers
Google is making a big push to try to shake up the worlds of advertising and television. On Wednesday, the company drew advertisers to the Beacon Theater in New York for a star-studded show centering around a $100 million investment in channels across YouTube. The search giant intends to turn its popular video sharing service into the portal for 21st-century video entertainment, replacing cable television much in the same way that cable once overtook broadcast television.
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04/27, 3:35pm
Google TV YouTube app now much more capable
The Google TV development team has enhanced the YouTube app for users' hardware. A new My YouTube tab organizes channels and videos of users. It also sports a new Recommendations feature that will help users watch more of what they like.
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04/20, 12:50pm
YouTube faces large royalty bill in Germany
YouTube has lost a court battle in Germany over copyrighted music posted in video clips, in a decision that may result in a sizable royalty bill. German royalty collection group GEMA convinced a court that YouTube has failed to protect copyrighted music sufficiently, requesting content filtering at the time of video upload.
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04/19, 11:05am
YouTube brings new UI, more, to AudioSwap feature
YouTube this week detailed a number of enhancements to its AudioSwap feature that lets users quickly and easily add an audio background to their videos. The company expanded the library to 150,000, with more being added daily. A new option allows users to completely replace their original audio or add a soft background that retains the original sound, or anywhere in between thanks to a slider control.
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04/18, 11:45am
European unlocked HTC One X update brings fixes
The HTC One X is getting its first official software update in Europe, Android Central reported. The 30MB over-the-air update, version 1.28.401.9, fixes some bugs as well, including removing the on-screen menu key within some apps such as YouTube. The auto brightness levels are also now less pronounced, and battery life is said to be extended.
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04/17, 1:25pm
Xbox Live services to go free from April 19-23
In an attempt to get some more users hooked on its premium Xbox Live subscription service, Microsoft will offer it for free for five days, commencing on Thursday, April 19, and running until Monday, April 23. Partners like Hulu Plus, Netflix, and EPIX will also open their doors for free during the same time period. Depending on where users are, however, they will get various amounts of free app access during those five days.
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04/16, 1:25pm
Google gets MGM video rentals
Google on Monday scored a key deal with MGM to get some of its movies on Google Play Movies and YouTube. About 600 of the studio's 4,100 titles will be available, the majority of which are back catalog titles rather than cutting edge content. The deal still means having access to titles such as the original The Terminator and Rocky that had previously been absent.
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04/11, 1:15pm
Joel McHale explains viral video to Nintendo
Nintendo has created a YouTube video (below) advertising the 3DS with comedian Joel McHale. In a staged meeting, McHale from The Soup and a Nintendo representative simultaneously discuss how to make and subsequently create a viral video using typical clichés.
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04/10, 4:15pm
YouTube Live marks anniversay with additions
Google's YouTube Live got a trio of pro-level tools on Tuesday to mark its anniversary. A new variant of Wirecast is tailored specifically to controlling a live stream and can tap into multiple camera or audio sources. The free app allows for live effects and graphics as well as dropping in static files.
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04/10, 3:05pm
D-Link adds MovieNite media hub
D-Link threw itself into low-cost media hubs Tuesday with the MovieNite. Borrowing from the design cues of the Apple TV and Roku 2, the device at $60 is one of the least expensive capable of 1080p video. Its primary sources are Netflix, Vudu, and YouTube for video as well as Pandora for streaming music and Picasa for photos.
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04/09, 10:25am
Lenovo IdeaTab S2109 shows up in YouTube vid
The Lenovo IdeaTab S2109 tablet that went through FCC testing last month has now showed up in a very official-looking YouTube video. The 9.7-inch tablet's specs are revealed and possibly confirmed in the video, including its 9.7-inch, 1024x768 IPS LCD display. A stock Android 4.0 OS is onboard, and the tablet is just 8.9mm (0.35in) thick.
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04/07, 12:10pm
Zeen to offer two-way magazine making
YouTube's main founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen have been developing a service that could both create and help read "beautiful magazines." Zeen currently has very few details, but its name is a play on the concept of a personal "zine" and suggests a way of aggregating news and other articles that can be shared with others. Social sharing will be a key ingredient, as both the privacy policy and offers to link accounts on Facebook or Twitter make it clear that this will be a regular feature.
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04/06, 1:55pm
MegaUpload lawyers up with popular names
The MegaUpload execs who were jailed in New Zealand have hired law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan along with lawyer Andrew Shapiro to represent them in their upcoming legal defense, CNET revealed on Friday. Shapiro, part of the law firm, is known for successfully defending YouTube from Viacom in a high-profile case back in 2010. The firm is one of the best in the country, according to MegaUpload attorney Ira Rothken. The new hires will have their hands full as they try to defend their clients against criminal conspiracy charges that are said to have cost copyright owners over $500 million in damages.
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04/05, 2:15pm
High-def YouTube videos get auto 3D conversion
YouTube has now added automatic 3D conversions to short user videos shot in 1080p quality, the company announced on Thursday. The beta conversion was introduced last September, but users had to select it themselves before today. The automatic feature is also in beta mode, but users will have the option to select 3D now in the quality tab on the bottom options bar.
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04/05, 1:10pm
Google must defend against Viacom again
Google was dealt a major setback after a court sided with Viacom's appeal to its loss against Google in a copyright lawsuit. The 2nd US Court of Appeals decided that a jury stood a reasonable possibility of finding that Google's YouTube knew there was bootleg material being uploaded to the site. Google was allowed a safe harbor provision guarding it against lawsuits for content it didn't know about, the appeals court said, but it wasn't certain whether or not Google was aware of specific content.
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04/04, 2:15pm
Convergence Consulting estimates 2012 cutters too
Over one million pay TV customers stopped their subscriptions in the US last year, a Convergence Consulting Group research report (PDF) published this month found. The total number was 2.65 million since 2008, as users look to online streaming services such as Netflix. Researchers estimated the 2011 figure at 1.05 million.
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04/04, 9:05am
Paramount strikes google deal for movies
Google confirmed a deal with Paramount Pictures on Wednesday that would significantly expand its movie roster. "Nearly" 500 movies are coming both to Google Play Movies and YouTube as rentals in the US and Canada. Some are available immediately, while others are being rolled out over the next few months.
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03/28, 8:55am
European Commission pushes back Google date
The European Commissioner's competition head Joaquin Alumnia on Wednesday postponed a decision on possible antitrust charges versus Google. He pushed back from a promise of late March or early April until after April 8, or after Easter. Investigators had asked for "some more days, even weeks" to accommodate the holidays while still conducting a proper investigation.
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03/22, 3:10pm
Nokia N9 hacked to run on Android 4.0.3
NITDroid Development forum member e-yes has just shared a custom ROM of Android 4.0.3 for Nokia's N9. Dubbed Project Mayhem, the hack lets users choose which OS they want to boot into after powering the phone up. The handset usually runs on MeeGo, and many of the key functions are retained when running Anroid.
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03/21, 4:40pm
YouTube will color-correct, stabilize user videos
Following up on offering a basic video editor last year, YouTube has now introduced a way of automatically improving the quality of videos. By simply agreeing to the changes, users can have their moving images stabilized or color-corrected. Only videos flagged for improvement will be changed, with users seeing a notification and a preview of the changes.
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03/15, 1:40pm
Waterproof Sony Bloggie Sport ships on March 16
The Sony Bloggie Sport camera introduced at this past CES is now shipping. The rugged and water-resistant camera can be submerged in up to 16 feet of water while taking photos or 1080p videos. The five-megapixel camera has 4GB of storage space, but no memory card slot.
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03/15, 10:25am
Office 15 to support web extensions dubbed Agaves
The Office 15 program suite coming alongside Windows 8 will support web extensions dubbed Agaves from third-party developers, The Verge found. Developers will have the ability to make a section in an Office app to let websites interact with documents in order to bring extra features. Users will get the Agaves from Microsoft's Office Marketplace as well as the developer sites themselves.
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03/13, 11:20am
Android media and YouTube divisions at odds
Google's difficulty competing with Apple in media may be a virtue of problems with its own internal culture based on investigations brought to light on Tuesday. CNET understood that executives behind Google's VP of global content, Robert Kyncl, complained that the content strategy was "fragmented" and working in separate directions. Content partners have complained both that Google's actual content lagged Apple's and that the Android and YouTube teams didn't appear to be coordinating with each other.
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03/12, 10:55am
Tudou and Youku to tie up
The Internet video space grew significantly in scale Monday after Youku offered to buy local rival Tudou. The voluntary takeover would see Youku buy all of Tudou's stock for an equivalent over $1 billion. The Tudou badge would continue to exist, but the two would operate under a unified Youku Tudou company.
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03/07, 12:15pm
Nikon pulls D800 promo videos with Canon content
In a promo video for its recently released D800 at its Bangkok launch, Nikon included footage that not only was used without permission but also shot with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II. Once the video was shared on YouTube (below), people who recognized their work began calling Nikon out on its mistake. One such party was Norwegian pro photographer Terje Sørgjerd, whose work is seen in Nikon's video, was used without permission, and was shot with a Canon 5D Mark II.
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03/02, 11:30pm
YouTube on Android gets key update
Google slipped out a quiet update to YouTube for Android (Android Market) to help out those on older devices. Those using Android 3.1 or earlier can now play HD video previously reserved for 3.2, 4.0 and up. Anyone can also sign in with a Google account, not just an account already enabled for YouTube.
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03/01, 10:35am
Parrot AR.Drone 2.0 coming to Brookstone in May
Parrot's AR.Drone 2.0 remote-controlled quadricopter introduced at CES is now available for pre-order at Brookstone. While the official ship date is in May, a limited number of units should arrive on April 9. Compared to its predecessor, the new AR.Drone has the ability to capture 720p videos and stills from its integrated camera.
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02/29, 12:20pm
YouTube adds more languages, options to subtitles
YouTube has updated its video captioning capability that was launched nearly two years ago. Outlined online, the changes include new language support including Japanese, Korean, and English for both automatic captions and transcript synchronization. Speech recognition for these languages is also supported, while video owners can add captions and subtitles in 155 different languages and dialects.
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02/23, 5:40pm
Demand answers by February 29
Attorneys general from 36 states have sent a letter to Google CEO Larry Page raising questions over the company's new unified privacy policy. In it, the state watchdogs expressed concern over both the potential invasion of privacy and the increased risk of identity theft. They have asked for a response no later than next Wednesday, a day before Google's now policy is set to become effective.
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02/23, 4:20pm
HTML5 may get pseudo DRM with proposal
Google, Microsoft, and Netflix have put forward a proposal that could add a level of copy protection to HTML5 audio and video. Encrypted Media Extensions would let apps on the web and elsewhere use keys to control who has access to a given media stream. It would allow any format that would work in HTML5 as long as the format itself can support some kind of key or bit.
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02/23, 6:10am
Leading Korean ISP KT set to charge content makers
KT, Korea’s top ISP may set a precedent for charging data-heavy content providers including Google’s YouTube and other Internet-enabled service operators including charging Apple, should it move forward with launching a rumored smart TV and back it up with content delivery services through iTunes and other apps. According to Reuters, while the company already charges heavy-end users for downloading content, they argue that services such as YouTube are ‘free riding’ on ISPs who have to foot the bill for heavy infrastructure investment.
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02/17, 3:50pm
Philips details four lines of new Smart TVs
Philips has just offered a first look at its upcoming range of Smart TVs. The 7000-series is the range-topper, getting active 3D support and two-player, full-screen gaming in 2D by showing a different image based on viewing angles. They can also convert 2D signals to 3D, and will be available in 40-, 46-, and 55-inch sizes.
All get two 20W speakers, five HDMI inputs, three USB ports (for adding a mouse and keyboard, in addition to a thumb or hard drive), integrated Wi-Fi, and Ethernet. Philips' two-side Ambilight backlighting tech is built into the panel, and the sets have DLNA network streaming.
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02/17, 12:15pm
Philips ships media player box in the UK
Philips has entered the set-top media player segment with its own HMP2000. It connects to displays using HDMI and home networks over integrated Wi-Fi, though there is no Ethernet connection. It does sport a USB port for local media playback, however. Preloaded apps let users connect to Netflix, YouTube, and BBC iPlayer in the UK.
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02/16, 2:45pm
Clik provides universal web-linked remote
Kik launched an offshoot app, Clik, on Thursday. The Android- and iOS-based apps borrow a trick from Sony's Vscreens that lets a mobile device remote control and push video to any target device with a browser. Visiting the website (above) makes a QR code unique to that computer that, when scanned by the app, lets the phone or tablet push YouTube videos to the computer's larger screen. It doesn't require Wi-Fi to work and can have multiple users talking to one host.
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02/13, 11:20pm
Update arriving for all devices
Google has already posted a Google TV app update that brings several new YouTube features that the company detailed yesterday. The app has been refreshed to improve the overall experience, with a focus on content discovery through channel pages organized by category.
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02/12, 7:05pm
YouTube Google TV gets update
Google's big Google TV news, or part of it, may have been detailed early in news on Sunday. The Android TV platform's YouTube app is being updated with a much stronger emphasis on channels ahead of original content plans. Matching up is a new discover feature that lets viewers find content by the category rather than just the channel.
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02/09, 11:40pm
Eolas sees web patent lawsuit claim tossed
Eolas' attempt to patent the "interactive web" may have been dealt a permanent blow after a jury in the normally patent lawsuit-friendly town of Tyler, Texas ruled that the patent was invalid. The decision negated both any attempts at claiming damages and also negated three future trials. The rejection came in part after testimony from the spiritual creator of the web, Tim Berners-Lee, as well as individual creators whose work predated that of Eolas owner Michael Doyle.
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02/02, 11:30pm
Google said hesitant in privacy questioning
Google representatives were reported as being hesitant to fully answer questions relating to concerns over privacy on Thursday. In the wake of a hearing at a Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade subcommittee, California representative Mary Bono Mack briefed The Hill and others that the answers weren't "very forthcoming" in terms of the impact on families. She saw the unified privacy policy as ironically more complex for the user and that, even with Google's assurances, it wouldn't be easy to turn certain sharing off.
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02/02, 12:25pm
$40 LTE plan back at MetroPCS on more phones
MetroPCS this week brought back its Unlimited $40 per month plan for 4G handsets. It's available on the Samsung Galaxy Attain 4G, LG Esteem, and Samsung Galaxy Indulge smartphones, which were only previously available with the $50 or $60 LTE plans. The same unlimited web browsing and YouTube access in addition to the same unlimited talk and text as before is included.
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01/30, 3:15pm
LTE plans now start at $50 for Android Lineup
MetroPCS has dropped its lowest-cost "unlimited" LTE wireless phone plan. The no-contract carrier first offered the $40 LTE plan last January. Its lowest price for voice, text, and enhanced LTE data services is now $50 per month.
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01/28, 2:10am
YouTube filter makes false positives
YouTube's anti-piracy screening has both come under fire and gotten some relief on Friday. The system is now known from an anecdote at Vice to generate false positives if enough of a song is improperly attributed to the wrong group. When Universal-backed group Yelawolf took a sample from an After the Smoke track and had its adaptation leaked, the Universal takedown claim not only brought down the Yelawolf leak but the original track the sample came from.
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01/26, 6:50pm
Question how users can opt out
US Lawmakers have sent a letter to Google CEO Larry Page asking questions about the company's new privacy policy that it announced on Tuesday. The new policy consolidates more that 60 individual policies covering Google products into a single global policy. The legislators expressed concern over the logistics of how consumers would be able to opt out.
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01/25, 5:10pm
Trouble widespread, but inconsistent
A number of Apple TV owners are finding it impossible to view YouTube videos, according to complaints on Apple's support forums. Affected people will see an error message: "No content was found. There is a problem communicating with YouTube. Try again later." The issue appears to be affecting countries worldwide, including Argentina, Australia, Japan, Canada, the US, the UK, and at least parts of continental Europe such as Spain and Denmark.
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01/23, 9:25am
YouTube sees big increase in video viewing
YouTube in a briefing Monday said it had pushed past four billion video streams a day. The milestone was explained to Reuters as a 25 percent boost over the three billion from just eight months earlier. A full 60 hours of new video was being uploaded every minute versus 48 hours at the earlier point.
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01/20, 12:30pm
Raspberry Pi shown running AirPlay YouTube video
The sub-$40 Raspberry Pi single-board computer has now been shown to be able to support Apple's AirPlay wireless media streaming thanks to a tweak. The ARM-based, Debian Linux-running system can stream from an iPad to a connected HDTV, as shown in the video below. While there was a bit of a delay before it started, the YouTube video otherwise played back without a hitch on the big screen.
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01/20, 9:45am
Vevo may drop YouTube for Facebook in hosting
Music video provider Vevo might shift its library from YouTube to Facebook if leaks are accurate. The service is believed in "very preliminary" talks that would see Facebook host the content and split ad revenue, CNET understood. The two sides had met "at least twice" and as recently as within two weeks.
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01/20, 12:20am
Major TiVo Premiere update arrives at last
TiVo posted a much-requested update for its Premiere-series DVRs mid-week that answered a number of complaints while adding upsides of its own. The 20.2 upgrade speeds up the interface to touch on a common lag problem and brings the Grid and Live Guides into HD for the first time. Those who have more than one TiVo now have the luxury of streaming a show recorded on one TiVo to another on the same network instead of having to transfer it completely.
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01/19, 2:45pm
Megaupload forced closed
Megaupload's troubles were magnified Thursday after word emerged that it has been shut down by Federal prosecutors in Alexandria. The site is currently inaccessible. Reports have also emerged that company staff have charged with violating piracy laws, allegedly contributing to $500 million of lost revenue.
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01/18, 10:40am
EU may start formal Google dispute in two months
EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia in a discussion late Tuesday raised the possibility that a formal antitrust dispute with Google could start in late March. He informed Reuters that comments from investigators would come in near the end of the quarter, which ends that month, and that he didn't "expect anything sooner" for a full complaint. Leaks had tipped an early 2012 filing, if it went ahead at all, but hadn't been corroborated directly until now.
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