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Blockbuster offers new lower subscription plans for online subscribers

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blockbuster.jpgBlockbuster Inc. announced further enhancements to its online rental subscription service, giving new and existing subscribers the added choice of new lower-priced Blockbuster By Mail subscription plans that start as low as $4.99 a month. The new subscription plans are now available to all current and new subscribers to Blockbuster’s online rental service. Included is the company’s most popular three-out unlimited movie plan which will now be offered at $16.99 for Blockbuster By Mail subscribers.

“The online rental market is projected to increase 43% during 2007 and through Blockbuster Total Access and now Blockbuster By Mail, we intend to capture our share of that growth, broaden our customer base and remain the fastest growing online rental service in the marketplace,” said Shane Evangelist, senior vice president and general manager of Blockbuster Online. “Consumers have a choice and we’re making it easier for them to rent movies in a way that best fits their lifestyle – whether that’s through our stores or by mail through Blockbuster Total Access and Blockbuster By Mail.”

Originally posted on June 12, 2007 @ 3:45 pm

Yahoo launches celebrity web portal OMG!

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Yahoo is launching a celebrity-oriented web channel known as OMG! (shorthand for “Oh My God!”), in collaboration with TV gossip show Acces Hollywood, that aims to be the definitive source of celebrity news online.

“When you look at the massive demand on the Yahoo Network for this type of content, celebrities continue to rank at the top — in fact, Britney has been the top search item five years running,” said Karin Gilford, general manager of Yahoo Entertainment. “We thought that ‘Access Hollywood’ provided a fantastic brand match.”

The first Hollywood focused portal to come out on Yahoo after some time, OMG! is being eyed to compete with celebrity sites such as AOL’s TMZ.com and People.com, among others. This latest Yahoo channel features news, gossips, videos, photos and 24/7 updates from the biggest names in Hollywood.

Scheduled to go live officially on June 11, Yahoo’s OMG! is now on beta testing and can already be viewed here. Unilever and Pepsi-Lipton Tea signed up as the initial celebrity portal’s exclusive sponsors.

Originally posted on June 11, 2007 @ 9:31 am

CinemaNow seeks second chance on music videos

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watch.jpg CinemaNow, an Internet provider of premium on-demand, download and burn movies, and video content, will relive its initiatives on selling music videos through Watchmusichere.com. In support of this relaunch, the company will feature 1,600 videos from Warner Music Group and will add more record labels after July 21.

This online music video store was initially launched in 2005 but failed to catch fire partly due to lack of portable devices to play these videos. The boom of portable media devices and the recent success of Apple’s iTune music store induced CinemaNow to embark on this venture once again.

Each video costs $1.99 and transferable to 3 devices like laptop, desktop computer, or portable music device. However, it will not run on iPhone and iPods. Instead, only devices running Windows Media software can play these videos.

Originally posted on June 12, 2007 @ 9:51 am

Babelgum Internet TV network delivers niched programming to the world

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babelgum.jpgBabelgum, the new generation global Internet TV network, announced the opening its service to users around the world. Babelgum is designed to deliver quality programming to niche audiences globally. The thousands of people that pre-registered their interest with Babelgum are now being provided with access. New Babelgum members and the original beta testers can download a revised and enhanced Babelgum client application that offers a fully interactive and immersive experience.

“Today we have proven that the Internet can be used as a global distribution network for TV quality video. The convergence of broadcast and web technologies opens new opportunities for our content partners and offers a personalised experience to each of our users,” Silvio Scaglia, Babelgum’s chairman and co-founder said.

Content on Babelgum is accessed via an initial nine core channels, organized by genre, that then provide access to hundreds of hours of broadcast-quality material from both niche and mainstream programmers. But more importantly, every user will be able to create individual thematic “smart channels”, which automatically generate programming according to personal interests and tastes. Recorded preferences can be overridden by browsing channel genres and searching for specific content.

Originally posted on June 9, 2007 @ 8:38 pm

Spider-man director creates Internet horror series

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trade.jpg

The Associated Press reports that Spider-Man director Sam Raimi is helping to produce new shows for FEARnet, a horror and thriller website and video-on-demand provider. The first, Devil’s Trade, debuted last Wednesday. The series will follow three teenagers who cursed after buying an item online.

FEARNet is a joint venture between cable television provider Comcast Corp, Sony Pictures Television and Lionsgate Entertainment Corp.

Originally posted on June 8, 2007 @ 10:02 am