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For now, and the near future, the LCD’s rule as the display technology of choice for portable devices is relatively unthreatened but developing technologies are only a few years from trying to stage a coup. On Friday, at a display industry event, Sony and Philips unveiled bleeding-edge display technology breakthroughs that may lead the charge for next-generation devices in the form of ultra-thin, bendable displays.

The Phillips announcement, which was limited to words and a photograph, captured modest press attention. The Sony news, which was also revealed in a Japanese video showcasing the technology, has been burning up the wire services.

Sony’s video press release showcased a 2.5in prototype of an “Electronic Paper” display.  It has a screen that measures in at a tiny .01 inch (.3mm) thickness.  Layered on a plastic, instead of glass, the display is so thin, in fact, that unlike LCD or Plasma TV technologies, the Sony prototype can be bent into curves yet still show high quality full motion video content. (The Philips prototype offers similar abilities).

At its core, the Sony display uses what’s called an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) technology along with several innovations.  The OLED technology which uses organic materials printed onto a thin film doesn’t require any kind of backlight to function (compared to an LCD) and as a result can be made far thinner.

Possible futuristic applications include ultra thin portable video devices that could look like they were imagined out of the archives of science fiction.  Click to Read More

With the words “Ladies and gentlemen, rock and roll,” so began MTV in August 1981.  Moments later, the video for Video Killed the Radio Star aired.  It was the first music video shown on Music Television (MTV).  Now, more than 25 years later, I wonder, as the song goes, was there a “day the music died”…. can someone tell me, has the internet “Killed the Video Star?”

When MTV first hit the airwaves in 1981 it was revolutionary, edgy…. borderline counter culture… It was the dream alchemy to capture the attention of its twelve to twenty-five year old target audience. 

For its first 6 years, using a format somewhat adapted from Top 40 radio, MTV carried almost exclusively music videos – most a similar kind of somewhat crude, rough around the edges, under-produced material to that which now litter the pages of Internet video networks.  The grainy concert clips, the saucy, crude displays, they were the antithesis of the rest of broadcast TV.  That was part of why they were adored and appreciated: They were new, they were different, and they were bold.

Eventually, as the MTV brand grew and globalized, siblings were brought to the family in the form of new channels and new kinds of programming.  Like an older child, slightly neglected because of the needs of its baby brothers and sisters, the music video moved to a place of less prominence. 

Click to Read More

If your pockets are deep enough you can afford to pay to find good content.  At least that would seem to be the case for IPTV company Joost.  Just a few weeks after closing a substantial $45m Series A financing (that bought investors around the world only a minority stake), Joost has now signed a deal with Creative Artists Agency.

The LA-based talent agency will, according to a statement from the company’s head of business development, Michael Yanover (reported by Reuters), "provide Joost greater access to programming through [CAA’s] relationships with networks, studios, record labels, artists and independently-controlled content libraries."

With strategic investment from CBS and Viacom (more here), you’d think Joost already had access to significant media relationships and networks – but I suppose the more leads the better; so long as you can afford it or the price isn’t too steep.  (It’s not clear what Joost paid for the privilege)

One thing is clear – Joost is trying hard to capitalize on all the press and publicity it can. For most startup’s, or aspiring actors, getting an agent may be a big deal but in and of itself, it’s not newsworthy. Joost seems to have a knack for getting themselves in the press (a feat, it’s founders also accomplished well with their past startup, Skype). Given the publicity, I’m surprised their competitor Veoh (which is backed in part by Hollywood notable Michael Eisner) hasn’t tried to steal, or share, in the limelight.

Whatever money Joost is spending, I hope they allocate a more sizable amount toward the quality of their service. I’ve experimented with Joost a good bit this past week and I’m not yet impressed. I know it is still a beta (and am therefore withholding final judgment), but the reality doesn’t yet live up to the hype (and the hype seems to be getting bigger day by day!). Right now, its like watching an amateur baseball player with a good swing and talking about him playing in Major League Baseball and being a superstar. The guy may or may not have the talent, but he’s not in the bigs yet, and a lot needs to happen for him to get there– I’m not a big enough baseball fan to want to watch the amateur games.

[Note: Joost is still invitation only.  As previously noted, if you’d like an invitation to try the service send an email from the Contact Page here on Metue or leave a comment and put Joost Invite as the title, or the subject.  I’ll be happy to pass one along, no strings attached (though I'd welcome any emails of people's thoughts on the Joost experience for inclusion in a future article).]

On Tuesday, Disney’s ABC Television group announced it would make available, beginning immediately, episodes of some of its popular programs, including Grey’s Anatomy, Lost and Ugly Betty to video-equipped phones on the Sprint network. The four most recent episodes of programs will be available to subscribers who use participating data-plans at no extra charge. At some point in the future, commercials will be added to the content.

The deal will be the first attempt by major media to offer full-length programming on phones, or over cellular. (Verizon has been offering short form video content).

In a statement that clearly shows Sprint made the deal in an effort to compete with the upcoming Apple iPhone (which can play video’s, including TV shows, downloaded through iTunes) Sprint’s VP for wireless data services said “You won’t need to buy episodes individually or sync to a PC to access this kind of content.”

Personally, I’m still not convinced that consumers will find much more than a novelty factor in having TV available on-demand on their phones. With so called time-shifting devices (Tivo, DVR’s etc) allowing consumers to watch programming at times that suit their schedules and not only when originally broadcast, the market for ultra-portable on-demand services seems small. If i can see a program anytime on a much bigger screen, why watch on my cell phone? It’s hard to believe this kind of service will appeal to anyone beyond the extremely bored, or the die-hard fan.

In a separate, unrelated announcement that was timed to coincide with press releases for Motorola’s next generation phones, Music subscription service Napster announced it was making its music service available on Motorola phones. The companies will share promotional efforts in North America, the UK and Germany. It was not clear how, or if, the partnership would include cellular carriers. In either case, as with the Sprint/Disney announcement, this release is another clear effort to compete against Apple’s upcoming iTunes and iPhone combination.

Earlier today, MySpace announced it would be launching branded video channels that will feature news and lifestyle video syndicated from partners including the New York Times and National Geographic.

The announcement was timed to make a statement.  This is the week when the major television networks begin the sales push for advertising for their fall show lineup. By announcing today, MySpace is boldly saying “Net Video is here to stay, and it’s going after TV.”

Among the content to be offered will be shorts from National Geographic shows like Explorer, movie reviews, content from News Corp’s IGN Entertainment channel, as well features on young celebrities, animation, and a channel from the popular web property The Daily Reel – a selection of short video clips from around the web.

Some large portion of the content will be available through a number of other outlets including traditional and Internet TV (National Geographic has been actively licensing its content including most recently to IPTV company, Joost). 

New York celebrity, gossip and news blog Jossip was reporting today that CBS News (CBS Corporation) was acquiring Jossip’s fellow New York blog Wallstrip for approximately $5m in cash with a formal announcement likely early this week.

I try to stay away from reporting on rumors but sources and information regarding this deal are credible enough to suggest it is highly likely the rumors are dancing around truth – though the price may be exaggerated.

Wallstrip is a video blog characterized as one part Saturday Night Live and one part CNBC.   It’s comedic, off-beat approach targets Generation Y and the so-called "YouTube Generation" with 3 minute episodes covering stock market news or corporate with a less than traditional tone.

Wallstrips’s audience is growing but it is not yet substantial and its content is considered inconsistent. It’s most popular episode was a show spoofing CNBC’s Jim Cramer. That episode generated 30k viewers in January. According to a Business Week article Wallstrip did reach 10k viewers in its first three months.  

While Wallstrip did receive 500k in Angel investment, from a technology standpoint there is little to no innovation worthy of acquisition – the site is built using Revver (a YouTube competitor) for its video technology and the open-source Wordpress platform is the foundation of  its website. Wallstrip’s website at this time is not directly ad-supported leading to reports that the company has revenue of $0. Jossip got that part wrong. Revver, the platform Wallstrip is built on (and distributed through) shares revenue from ads incorporated into the video 50/50 with the content creator. Revver’s revenue sharing system is well documented in their sites Frequently Asked Questions section. Still, Wallstrip’s revenue is likely small.

The rumor being reported is that CBS wants the services of Wallstrip’s host, 29 year old actress Lindsay Campbell for its own online, and possibly TV, news services.   (Lindsay’s bio and background can be found here on her personal site. She is originally from Northern California, has a degree from Stanford, and has appeared a number of New York based TV shows including Law and Order and the Sopranos.)

It’s not unrealistic that Lindsay’s caught the eye of folks at CBS. She extremely attractive and manages to comes across as more than just a pretty lady. She is well educated, credible and articulate, balanced with a style that feels hip, casual and light-hearted enough to appeal to younger audiences in Gen X and Gen Y. It’s certainly true that CBS is actively developing its online presence, including last weeks investment in Joost.  Lindsay may fit into that, and based on the rumor, would only sign a contract if Wallstrip was acquired.   

It’s unclear what underlies a price tag of $5m, or if that information is accurate.  Even as a relatively low dollar number, it seems exorbitantly rich for a start-up of Wallstrip’s stage based on available information, and likewise, however talented Ms Campbell may be, and however creative a method of recruiting/hiring personnel, $5m is an exorbitantly high cost for corporate headhunting.

Joost has been in the news a good amount lately. I’ve spoken on their activities, including a detailed look at their financing here.

For all the news, and all those curious to try Joost, the big roadblock has been the invitation-only nature of their current beta test. That’s still there but I can help.

Originally, invitations were allocated and limited by quota. Those who got them could only invite a few more people. Now, the restrictions are off. There’s no limit to the number of invites that can be forwarded on. That means, if you’re itching to try Joost and you need an invite, Metue can help. Send an email to info@metue.com or use my Contact Page. Be sure to put Joost in the title. I’ll forward anyone interested an invite to try their service. There is no email-farming, data-collection here, no strings — just a request that you come back and read the articles here on Metue again.

There are links for Digg, Technorati, Del.icio.us and other bookmarking agents on Metue. Feel free to use them, bookmark Metue with your browser, or come back. Also, feel free to send along your thoughts on Joost. I have no relationship with the company and am curious to see how people will receive their new offering.