Technology360

New DVR may have video on demand

DirecTV is preparing to offer a digital video recorder (DVR) service in mid-2005 that could duplicate virtually every feature now available from current partner TiVo, plus provide video on demand similar to what's offered on cable, say executives of the company preparing the software. ...¶... [Abe] Peled [, CEO of NDS Group] says that a big selling point for his DVR is in the way it handles pay-per-view (PPV). With TiVo, users must agree to pay for a PPV movie before recording it for subsequent viewing. But the NDS system will enable DirecTV to signal a user's DVR to record several movies, making each available for viewing at any time. ... Link: USATODAY.com.

Digital Kids: Growing Up in a High-Tech World

Cell phones, PDAs, computers and MP3 players may seem a bit confusing to the average adult but for kids born in the digital age, these devices are second nature. For the second part of our series, "Digital Generations," a 13-year old and his family talk about what it means to grow up as a part of the Net Generation. ... Link: NPR.

Home Video On Demand

Digital Silo has introduced an interesting new subsription service that permits you to share your home video via the Internet.  From the company's press release:  "Broadband Internet users can now enjoy the benefits of Home Video On Demand (HVOD) with the introduction of the world¹s first-ever streaming media service that delivers home videos directly to family and friends anytime and anywhere in the world.  ¶  Incorporating all the functionalities and technology of VOD systems now being used by broadcasters and cable operators, Digital Silo's HVOD process allows camcorder owners to convert their home videos into broadcast quality streaming media without having to purchase any hardware or software.  Digital Silo provides an end-to-end solution for families looking to share and preserve their home videos."  Click here for pdf brochure.  --Dennis

Video’s last gasp

In the face of marginal demand, VCR vital signs continue in slow-death form. ...¶... With demand for the 32-year-old technology falling dramatically over the last 10 years, Dixons decided it was time to ditch it. In contrast, sales of DVD players grew seven-fold during the last five years; at Dixons, DVD sales currently outperform VCR sales by 40 to 1. ¶ Across the Atlantic, sales of stand-alone VCRs dropped 52.6 percent to 6.4 million units in 2003, according to the U.S. Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). This decline is expected to continue to 4.9 million units in 2004. ... Link: Red Herring.

Mark's Monday Memo, 11/29/2004

Mark Schubin's memo for this week can be accessed at digitaltelevision.com. --Dennis

Radio reading services look for new ways to support themselves

... She listens to the 18-year-old Radio Information Service, which serves about 1,000 people, charging subscribers $20 a year. The service, with about 250 volunteers, nearly closed earlier this month after its funding almost dried up. ¶ With government funding becoming harder to get, radio reading groups are finding they need to be creative to stay on the air. ... Link: The Herald Standard.

TiVo Their Way: Ads, Copy Brakes

Digital video recording pioneer TiVo has long promised "TV Your Way." But the company's plans for pop-up ads and restrictions on copying have sparked worries that the service may be eroding consumer control in favor of Hollywood and advertiser interests. ...¶... TiVo officials say that starting in March users will begin to see static images, such as a company logo, appear on their television screens as they fast-forward through commercials. The billboard-like ads -- which will last about four seconds for a fast-forwarded 30-second spot -- may offer giveaways or links to other ads. Viewers could choose to provide some advertisers with their contact data in order to get more direct marketing. ... Link: Wired News.

Gigabit Ethernet Video Routers Bringing the Digital Revolution to the World

The market for Gigabit Ethernet Video Routers is on the verge of rapid growth due to their ability to deliver a new generation of digital TV services, according to In-Stat/MDR. This market, at about $63 million worldwide in 2004, will soar to more than $930 million during 2008, the high tech research firm reports. ¶ The capabilities of Gigabit Ethernet Video Routers are expanding to support advanced audio and video compression methods, and widening their features and functions to provide fully converged Internet Protocol networks that are capable of delivering an extended range of multiple services that go beyond the so-called ‘triple play’ of just video, voice, and high speed data. These multi-play services include HDTV, local ad insertion, network PVR, switched broadcast, games-on-demand, and future services that will be developed for digital TV. ... Link: In-Stat/MDR.

In Search Of Better Video Search

IBM, Microsoft, and academic researchers are trying to invent ways to find specific images in video footage. ¶  For 20 years, computer scientists have been working on improving ways to search among reams of video clips for a particular shot. New research by IBM, Microsoft, and academic teams studying the problem could bring them a step closer to that goal. ¶ At a conference in Cambridge, England, last week, an IBM researcher gave the first public demonstration of a computer system called Marvel that uses statistical techniques to learn about relationships between colors, shapes, patterns, sounds, and other clues from video footage that can help identify its content. IBM's prototype then labels the footage so users can go back and find individual shots. That could be a boon not only to TV news producers but intelligence analysts watching surveillance video and even PC users editing home movies. ... Link: InformationWeek 8/30/04.

Thanks to paidcontent.org.  Also see Striking up video search. --Dennis

Striking up digital video search

Google, Microsoft and Yahoo are quietly developing new search tools for digital video, foreshadowing a high-stakes technology arms race in the battle for control of consumers' living rooms. ¶ Google's effort, until now secret, is arguably the most ambitious of the three. According to sources familiar with the plan, the search giant is courting broadcasters and cable networks with a new technology that would do for television what it has already done for the Internet: sort through and reveal needles of video clips from within the haystack archives of major network TV shows. ¶ The effort comes on top of Google's plans to create a multimedia search engine for Internet-only video that it will likely introduce next year, according to sources familiar with the company's plans. In recent weeks, Mountain View, Calif.-based Google has demonstrated new technology to a handful of major TV broadcasters in an attempt to forge alliances and develop business models for a TV-searchable database on the Web, those sources say. ... Link: CNET News.com.

Georgia Tech's Ramesh Jain comments on some of the technical aspects of this: "This is a very natural step for the Big Three search players.  Brian Roberts of Comcast has been talking about search being a key product for his company and other cable and high bandwidth Internet service providers are not far behind.  AOL has already bought a company in this space.  So this game is getting hot. ...   Link: Ramesh Jain weblog.

Also see In Search of Better Video Search. --Dennis