Mobile DTV On The Way

The following entertainment article was written for Spreety TV Online by professional journalist Carolyn Giardina.

Mobile DTV On The Way

By Carolyn Giardina

In a move that underscores the shift toward viewing television content on non-traditional devices, the Advanced Television Systems Committee has approved a mobile digital television standard.

The standard defines the technical specifications necessary for U.S. broadcasters to provide TV content and new services to mobile and handheld devices — including mobile phones, small handheld DTVs, laptop computers and in-vehicle entertainment systems — using its digital television transmission system.

The mobile system was developed to support services including advertiser-supported television and interactive services delivered in real-time, subscription-based TV, and file-based content download for playback at a later time. The system might also enable transmission of data broadcasting services.

Additionally, the ATSC Mobile DTV Standard was developed to provide a framework to enable new receiver capabilities. Per the spec, receivers that make use of an optional Internet connection would enable interactive television services, such as audience measurement, viewer voting, and the integration of Internet-based applications and transactions with TV content.

Industry leaders in the consumer electronics and broadcasting fields applauded the new standard.

“This will introduce the power of local broadcasting to a new generation of viewers and provide all-important emergency alert, local news and other programming to consumers across the nation,” said Paul Karpowicz, National Association of Broadcasters television board chairman and president of Meredith Broadcast Group.

Added National Association of Broadcasters executive VP Dennis Wharton: “We strongly believe that all Americans will benefit from the advanced capabilities of mobile DTV and broadcasters’ innovative use of over-the-air spectrum.”

“The Consumer Electronics Association congratulates ATSC on achieving this new standard, which will help chipmakers and equipment manufacturers proceed with product development and deployment,” said CEA president and CEO Gary Shapiro. “The ATSC Mobile DTV standard gives broadcasters an opportunity to provide consumers with the next generation of compelling over-the-air content.”

The ATSC began formal development of the Mobile DTV spec in May 2007.

Car: Digital Living Room?

The following entertainment article was written exclusively for Spreety TV Online by professional journalist Carolyn Giardina.

Your Car: The Next Digital Living Room?

By Carolyn Giardina

“The car is becoming the next digital living room,” asserted Consumer Electronics Association president and CEO Gary Shapiro during a recent press conference.

In fact, CEA suggested that the automobile is becoming the “fourth screen,” along with televisions, computers and mobile devices. This year, sales of in-vehicle technology are expected to top $9.3 billion, the organization reported.

Reflecting this development, president and CEO of Ford, Alan Mulally, will deliver the opening keynote address at the 2010 International Consumer Electronics Show, January 7-10, 2010, in Las Vegas.

“Convergence and personalization are a particularly important trend, and mobile technology and wireless had become the epicenter of our lives,” Shapiro said. “Ford is acting and thinking like an electronics company… listening to those who demand a connected experience.”

The 2010 CES is expected to feature in-vehicle technologies including advancements in portable GPS, location based services, in-car video, wireless technology and integrated products for combining entertainment with navigation and security.

Jim Buczkowski, Ford’s director of electrical and electronics systems engineering, explained that driver distraction is an important issue, and therefore Ford is looking to developments such as voice recognition technology, in an effort to ensure that consumer electronics devices are used in a safe way.

Some of the Consumer Electronics Show’s scheduled in-vehicle electronics exhibitors include: AT&T CruiseCast by RaySat Broadcasting, Directed Electronics, Dual Electronics, InstallerNet, Kenwood USA, Kia Motors, Metra, Mitek, Pioneer and Scosche.

Mulally joined Ford in 2006, after serving as executive VP of The Boeing Company and president/CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. He has served as a past president of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and is a former president of its Foundation. Additionally, Mulally served as a past chairman of the board of governors of the Aerospace Industries Association. This year, he was named to Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People.

Watch Macy’s Parade Online

For the 2009 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which starts at 9 am ET, the following are places to watch online:

• Earthcam’s Thanksgiving 2009 Page (w/ Replays)
• CNN Live

Enjoy multiple views of the Macy’s Parade from a variety of vantage points as it marches down a brand new parade route. Additional sites of interest:

• Official Macy’s Parade Site
• NBC Clips on Macy’s Parade

Thanksgiving TV Online

Spreety’s latest video is about watching Thanksgiving TV shows online:

The Spreety Thanksgiving TV Online page is available for a limited time with all the links to enjoy.

If you would like to learn more about free TV online, check out the http://Spreety.com site.

CSI Crossover Online

Crime Scene Investigation has a three part crossover series online.

The episodes span the following:

• CSI: Miami – Bone Voyage
• CSI: NY – Hammer Down
• CSI – The Lost Girls

CBS created a special page to promote the crossover. All three episodes are available at http://www.cbs.com/csicrossover/video/.

If you would like to learn more about watching TV online, please check out Spreety.com.

Dog Lovers Movies Online

Dog lovers, this is for you.

Netflix recently added several movies to their watch instantly, including:

• Bolt
• Beverly Hills Chihuahua
• Snow Dogs

For a free Netflix trail to watch the above movies, click here.

There are other dog lover TV shows online, including Dog Whisperer, It’s Me or the Dog, and Dogs 101 from Animal Planet. Click here to search online TV for “dog”.

V Online

ABC’s remake of the 1984 sci-fi classic “V” will be online on November 7, on the ABC site. As extra media, ABC has added a “Peace Ambassadors” program online.

The classic original “V” is also online on the WB site.

If you would like to learn more about free TV online, please visit Spreety.com.

Online TV Trends: Avid

The following entertainment article was written exclusively for Spreety TV Online by professional journalist Carolyn Giardina.

Trends to Watch: Spreety Asks Avid Technology

By Carolyn Giardina

Traditional TV and online TV are moving closer together, and it is not just about watching TV on a PC, observes the folks at publicly-traded Avid Technology, a leading developer video and audio production technology, as well as supporting infrastructure.

“Increasingly we are seeing TV’s with direct networking capabilities built in,” Bill Roberts, Avid’s market segment director, post production, tells Spreety. “The macro level trend is that as we move away from the requirement to distribute content over the air, more content will be ‘pulled’ over IP networks. For content owners who have had to rely on an indirect relationship with their audiences (relying on cable and broadcast), this can be a new and liberating way to distribute content without having to resort to a physical medium like a DVD.”

Roberts relates that he is tracking industry reports that suggest TV consumption is remaining consistent in the household, but it is being augmented by increased consumption via network and mobile devices.

With an increasing dependence on the Internet, the lines between gathering, structuring and distributing media are blurring. “News is a great example,” Roberts says. “Previously, broadcasters would gather, edit and distribute content once or twice a day. Today, a news story can begin with a series of viewer Tweets from an event, progress to still and moving images from ‘citizen journalists,’ become a news package and ultimately require substantial ‘context’ setting by anchors and professionals – all the while servicing integrated media distribution paths: the Web, TV, newspaper, radio, etc. The challenge here is that news used to be rundown centric and the other media were often subservient. With the online component in the mix, broadcasters have to be ready to distribute on any medium at any time. Avid, like our customers, is working to make the tasks of structuring and distributing content for any medium simple and deeply integrated.”

The use of HD camcorders is among the consumer trends that Avid is watching. Says Roberts: “With increased consumer capture of high quality video, we see an increasing need to structure that content. Also, as people experiment with basic tools there is a desire to improve the quality of their content. We view this as very encouraging as our goal is to provide a wide range of tools for consumers who wish to structure and share their content.”

He’s also watching the level of interest in stereoscopic 3D content. “Some of our broadcast customers globally are testing stereo to the home and with an increasing number of TV’s now supporting stereo display, we think this will be an important trend to watch.”

SpreetyBlog.com

After much consideration, Spreety has moved its Spreety TV Online Blog to http://SpreetyBlog.com.

Posts will still be made to this wordpress blog.

Halloween TV Online

Spreety’s latest video is about watching Halloween TV shows online:

The Spreety Halloween TV Online page is available for a limited time with all the links to enjoy.

If you would like to learn more about free TV online, check out the http://Spreety.com site.