My picks from audio and video trends for 2016:
Smartphone have increased screen sizes and have finally become mobile TVs: Smartphones have overtaken the tablets as the most popular mobile device for viewing videos. The most watched content were targeted at teenagers videos and animation series for children.
Smartphone cameras are great, or at least close enough to great that you don’t notice the difference. We’ve reached the point where you’ve got to work pretty hard to find a phone with a mediocre camera. Compared to a DSLR, smart phone cameras are lousy because they use tiny sensors, but still the camera in your pocket is crazy good considering the limitations manufacturers work under. The vast majority of top-tier smartphones use Sony sensors for their main cameras. The molded plastic lens elements in many cameras have reached the point where they’re essentially perfect. Smart phones are already deployed in many newsrooms for mobile journalism video shooting as it is easier (and cheaper) to learn how to film and edit on your phone than it is to use a big camera.
For new smart phone camera technologies you could see array of lenses to enable Lytro-like refocusing, create 3-D depth maps, and improve image quality in low light. In many cases smart phone cameras and DSLR are complimentary: Although the smartphones have decimated the point-and-shoot segment, sales of DSLR and other high-end rigs remain.
Live streaming video from smart phone becomes mainstream. Periscope was one of the first apps to really make live streaming events simple and easy enough that people wanted to do it. Many other apps are following the trend. Facebook begins testing live video streaming for all users.
Drone videography will ger more popular as drones become more popular. Many people will learn basic and creative aerial filming techniques for drone video cameras.
Whether or not the 2016 International CES holds any big surprises remains to be seen. This year’s CES will focus on how connectivity is proliferating everything from cars to homes, realigning diverse markets. It is quite probable that 4K TV will be big at this years’ CES show due to growing demand and falling prices. 4K becomes mainstream in 2016. CES will also have some 8K sets, though the market for 8K is at least five years away if not more (Tokyo Olympics in 2020 may be broadcast in 8K). Some new display technology is coming. LG has already demoed rollable 55, 66 and 77-inch OLED-based panels. Avegant’s Glyph technology literally beams video content onto your retinas. Analysts Predict CES 2016 Trends article gives you more ideas what to expect.
We can finally declare that 3D image in TV was a flop. Five years ago, it was estimated that the 3D technique can occupy the rapid pace of living cinemas addition. Then slowed different with technologies. But why the technology is virtually failed even though every new TV set has been added to display the 3D image as an option? Analysts said some people lack the ability to stereoscopic vision and for many, the 3D image caused eyestrain or nausea. Stereo image is to be left to various virtual reality applications.
After a year in which the weakness of smart TVs were exploited, Samsung goes on the offensive in 2016. Samsung’s new Tizen-based TVs will have GAIA security with pin lock for credit card and other personal info, data encryption, built-in anti-malware system, more. Samsung’s betting big on the internet of things and wants the TV to sit at the heart of this strategy. Samsung believes that people will want to activate their lights, heating and garage doors all from the comfort of their couch. If smart TVs get a reputation for being easy to hack, then Samsung’s models are hardly likely to be big sellers.
Whole TV industry need to go through a major transition as in most major developed markets, TV growth is slowing and in some cases stagnating. TV will account for 38.4 percent of the $503 billion global ad market in and will drop to 38 percent of the market in 2016. Digital ad spending will overtake TV as biggest category by 2017 or 2018.
Streaming video will be big in 2016. Almost all of the networks are streaming their content and streaming media is going mainstream fast. Third, 15% of American adults report they have become “cord cutters” – meaning they have abandoned paid cable or satellite television service. Many of these cord cutters say that the availability of televised content from the internet and other sources is a factor in their move away from subscription television services.
There seems to be a strong nostalgic audio trend going in. Whether it’s a sweet portable record player, a tabletop wooden radio or a full-size jukebox, the market for vintage-inspired electronics remains strong. Aside from record players, the vintage trend carries over to radios and speakers.
It seems that Americans were willing to spend on vinyl records. Nielsen numbers show that vinyl record sales rose 260 percent between 2009 and 2014, and sales for 2015 are on track to beat 2014’s total vinyl sales of 9.2 million units. Vinyl records generated more revenue in the first half of 2015 than free-to-use streaming services, but that’s not the full story. Despite vinyl sales increase it’s clear that the future of the music industry is digital. Total revenues from the digital music sector is expected to rise while physical sales will drop. Future is filled with streaming music services – both subscription services and free.
On the other end of audio spectrum High resolution audio tries to push to market at CES (again). Hi-Res Audio is the fastest growing category in music. Apple Music is planning to launch new its Hi-Res music streaming in 2016.
W3C group formed in the summer of 2015 a new working group: The Music Notation Community Group consists of representatives from some of the biggest names in the music notation software business who’ve come together to create a standardised way to display western music notation in your browser. It believes are achievable goals that can be met in 2016.
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Tomi Engdahl says:
W3C wants to standardise music notation in your Web browser
The group wants to combine MusicXML and Standard Music Font Layout into a new standard.
http://arstechnica.co.uk/business/2015/12/w3c-group-looks-at-standardising-music-notation-in-your-web-browser/
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Hovalin: Open Source 3D Printed Violin Sounds Great
http://hackaday.com/2016/01/02/the-hovalin-open-source-3d-printed-violin-sounds-great/
[Matt and Kaitlin Hova] have created The Hovalin, an open source 3D-printed violin. Yes, there have been 3D-printed instruments before, but [The Hovas] have created something revolutionary – a 3D printed acoustic instrument that sounds surprisingly good. The Hovalin is a full size violin created to be printed on a desktop-sized 3D printer. The Hovas mention the Ultimaker 2, Makerbot Replicator 2 (or one of the many clones) as examples. The neck is one piece, while the body is printed in 3 sections. The Hovalin is also open source, released under the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike license.
Hovalin
An open source 3D printable acoustic violin
http://www.hovalin.com/
Tomi Engdahl says:
The TV industry is constantly trying to find ways to entice people to upgrade their old sets and CES is its biggest sales pitch of the year.
There’ll be lots of 4K TVs (and maybe a handful of 8K models). And many more models than last time will offer HDR, Dolby Vision, and other fancy visual things that enhance the experience beyond just resolution.
Source http://www.theverge.com/2016/1/1/10695954/what-to-expect-ces-2016
Tomi Engdahl says:
Andrew Wallenstein / Variety:
Yahoo shuts down Yahoo Screen, moves video content to its digital magazines like Yahoo Music — Yahoo Shutters Video Service Yahoo Screen (Exclusive) — Yahoo has shut down Yahoo Screen, the video hub the beleaguered company launched over two years ago to unite its many original and syndicated programming under one roof.
Yahoo Shutters Video Service Yahoo Screen (Exclusive)
http://variety.com/2016/digital/news/yahoo-shutters-video-service-yahoo-screen-exclusive-1201671374/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Ernesto / TorrentFreak:
Intel, Warner Bros. sue LegendSky, a Chinese maker of HDFury devices that allow users to pirate 4K streams by stripping HDCP encryption
Warner Bros and Intel Sue 4k Content Protection “Stripper”
By Ernesto on January 4, 2016
C: 109
Breaking
https://torrentfreak.com/warner-bros-and-intel-sue-4k-content-protection-ripper-160104/
Warner Bros. and Intel’s daughter company Digital Content Protection have sued a hardware manufacturer that creates devices enabling consumers to bypass 4K copy protection. The devices, sold under the HDFury brand, can be used by pirates to copy 4k video from streaming platforms as well as other HDCP 2.2 protected content.
Last November several pirated copies of 4K videos started to leak from both Netflix and Amazon. These leaks were unusual as online 4k streams were always well protected against pirates.
While it’s still not clear how these videos were copied, a new lawsuit from Warner Bros. and Intel’s daughter company Digital Content Protection (DCP) suggests that HDFury devices may be involved.
The companies have filed a lawsuit at a federal court in New York against the maker of the devices, technology company LegendSky.
Starting a few weeks ago the Chinese company launched a range of new devices which allow users to strip the latest HDCP encryption. This hardware sits between a HDCP-compliant source device and another device, allowing it to pass on a “stripped” 4K signal.
https://www.hdfury.com/shop/splitters/integral-4k60-444-600mhz/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Peter Kafka / Re/code:
Twitter invests in Muzik, maker of high-end wireless headphones; social network will be integrated directly into headphones, allowing users to share music
Twitter Invests in Muzik, a High-End Headphone Startup
http://recode.net/2016/01/04/twitter-invests-in-muzik-a-high-end-headphone-startup/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Android Set Top Box Lets You Stream and Record via HDMI Input
http://hackaday.com/2016/01/06/android-set-top-box-lets-you-stream-and-record-via-hdmi-input/
While on the hunt for some hardware that would let him stream video throughout his LAN [danman] got a tip to try the €69 Tronsmart Pavo M9 (which he points out is a re-branded Zidoo X9). With some handy Linux terminal work and a few key pieces of software [danman] was able to get this going.
The Android box was able to record video from the HDMI input with pre-installed software found in the main menu as [danman] explains on his blog.
Long story short, [danman] was able to get the stream working over the network. Although he did have to make some changes to the stream command he was issuing over ssh.
Using Tronsmart Pavo M9 for HDMI input streaming
https://blog.danman.eu/using-tronsmart-pavo-m9-for-hdmi-input-streaming/
Thanks to a tip of my reader, I found a relatively cheap (69Eur) Android box with HDMI input and record ability. I thought that it should be possible not only to record the HDMI input but also to stream it in realtime so I ordered one for experimenting.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Natt Garun / The Next Web:
Netflix expands to 130 new countries including India, Vietnam, Turkey, South Korea, Poland, and Russia, but not China; stock up over 7% — Netflix officially arrives in India, Russia, Vietnam and more – totaling 130 new countries — At the opening keynote at CES, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings …
Netflix officially arrives in India, Russia, Vietnam and more – totaling 130 new countries
http://thenextweb.com/insider/2016/01/06/netflix-officially-arrives-in-vietnam-india-turkey-singapore-and-more/
At the opening keynote at CES, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings has confirmed that the streaming platform will expand to yet another major market – India – along with other countries including Vietnam, Turkey, Singapore, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Poland, Russia, Azerbaijan and many more.
The long list totals 130 new countries, which added to the 60 where it already operates, means Netflix covers nearly every nation on earth.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Jon Healey / Los Angeles Times:
Dish releases Hopper 3 set-top box, can record 16 HD shows simultaneously, introduces HopperGo, a portable, $99 battery-powered storage device
CES 2016: Dish offers a DVR for the stream-and-binge generation
http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-dish-hopper-more-tv-recording-more-portability-20160105-story.html
Having settled almost all the lawsuits that the major TV networks have filed against it, Dish Network returned to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Tuesday with another boundary-stretching, lawyer-enriching approach to recording and viewing television shows.
Its latest set-top box is the Hopper 3, the third edition of the high-capacity TV receiver it introduced in 2012. The original one enabled Dish subscribers to record automatically every prime-time show aired on the major broadcast networks, then play them back with commercials automatically skipped. The second generation of the device added the ability to watch recorded shows via the Internet or transfer them to an iPad to view offline.
The new version can record twice as many shows at the same time — 16 — and has enough room to store 500 hours of high-definition video, which will make it that much easier to capture every single episode of any show one might be curious about. The box also makes it possible to watch four shows at the same time in high definition on a single TV set (Dish calls it “Sports Bar Mode,” reflecting what may be the best application of that feature).
The networks are understandably nervous about technologies that can undermine their shows’ value to advertisers. Nevertheless, Dish and broadcasters have a shared interest in persuading consumers to keep paying for network TV, and the Hoppers serve that interest.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Martyn Williams / Computerworld:
Sony to launch 4K video streaming service Ultra in US this year, will bring Sony content to Bravia TVs
Sony to launch 4K streaming service in US this year
http://www.computerworld.com/article/3019329/personal-technology/sony-to-launch-4k-streaming-service-in-us-this-year.html
Sony will launch a 4K video streaming service in the U.S. this year, seeking to give consumers access to more content to watch on 4K TVs.
The service, called “Ultra,” will deliver new and previous releases from Sony Pictures and Sony-owned dramas to Sony Bravia TVs, the company said Tuesday at CES in Las Vegas.
The 4K picture format delivers images with four times the resolution of today’s high-definition TV and is becoming a standard feature on high-end TVs, but to date there is little content broadcast in the format.
Satellite and cable providers are expected to introduce a handful of channels this year, but for companies like Sony seeking to sell more 4K TVs, a greater selection of content is vital.
Sony Pictures, the company’s motion picture arm, has been shooting in 4K for years giving it a ready library of content that can be offered to viewers. The service will be delivered over fast Internet connections thus avoiding having to go through pay TV service providers.
The 4K content will be delivered with HDR (high-dynamic range) information embedded in the stream.
Sony has also been pushing 4K camcorders so its customers can capture their own lives in 4K resolution.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mona Lalwani / Engadget:
Sennheiser announces AMBEO, a 3D audio tech for capturing and reproducing audio for VR
Sennheiser’s 3D audio will finally make VR complete
Immersive sound is the better half of virtual reality.
http://www.engadget.com/2016/01/06/sennheiser-3d-audio-will-make-vr-complete/
Virtual reality is incomplete without immersive audio. Even though you might be able to strap on a headset and be visually transported, the absence of 3D audio can quickly break your illusion. With stores getting ready to stock VR headsets this year, the need for an audio experience that can match, and even enhance, the visuals is more pressing than ever. Today at CES, Sennheiser announced AMBEO, a 3D audio technology that promises to change the way audio is captured and reproduced.
According to the co-CEOs Daniel Sennheiser and Dr. Andreas Sennheiser, “3D audio is the new frontier of excellence, set to transform the listening experience for users across a broad range of applications, from virtual reality gaming to audio recording and broadcasting.”
The German audio company has been working on 9.1 sound for some time, so immersive audio isn’t an entirely new space for them.
Tomi Engdahl says:
An option for the U8903B audio analyzer from Keysight Technologies enables the two-channel instrument to perform Bluetooth 4.0 audio testing and link monitoring. The U8903B supports AGHSP/HSP 1.2, AGHSP/HSP 1.6, A2DP, and AVRCP profiles.
Source: http://www.edn.com/electronics-products/other/4441022/Analyzer-performs-Bluetooth-audio-measurement?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_today_20160105&cid=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_today_20160105&elq=42d3499d125d4358be09e17a2e5c3c96&elqCampaignId=26343&elqaid=30107&elqat=1&elqTrackId=9c215869c5a6432d8fe706ecc5a7c1ac
Tomi Engdahl says:
Live-streaming paper plane drone takes to the skies
PowerUp FPV tin-rattles its way to $460k
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/01/08/powerup_paper_plane_drone/
For an example of just how far paper plane and drone tech have come since the historic launch of our Vulture 1 aircraft back in 2010, look no further than the PowerUp FPV – described as the “first ever paper airplane drone with a live streaming camera”.
The chaps behind the PowerUp FPV have raised a substantial $460k down at Kickstarter for their latest toy, having previously tin-rattled their way to a whopping $1,232,612 for the PowerUp 3.0.
The PowerUp FPV has all the bells and whistles you’d expect following the last few years of rapid consumer drone development, including autopilot and live streaming FPV via Google Cardboard.
It’s nice idea – albeit limited to around 10 minutes’ flight by the limitations of Lithium Ion batteries – and there are doubtless plenty of hours of fun to be had designing custom paper flying wings.
If you fancy pushing the paper plane envelope, there are bare bones (no wings or head-mounted display) kits available for $149, or a bare bones option (with wings and display) for $179.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Forget about 4K, 8K will come now
4K picture quality looks very good on the big screen, but not the end of development. Las Vegas CES show will be on display for 4K content in comparison to four times the accuracy of the 8K-capable televisions. Shift bits therein is based on a new SuperMHL technology.
MHL Consortium points out that the 4K technology, especially the rapid expansion of the base to the fact that consumers have access to and to buy in connectivity solutions, with 4K image we can smoothly screens. The same is required for the 8K up to proliferate.
CES MHL consortium JCE and KinnexA present for cables and accessories with 8K image transfer is successful.
SuperMHL MHL Consortium is a fourth generation connection technology that supports 8K resolution, for example, in addition to downloading devices 40 watts of power. The connector can also be physically HDMI or USB-type (C or micro).
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3814:unohda-4k-nyt-tulee-8k&catid=13&Itemid=101
Tomi Engdahl says:
See the first videos shot with Nikon’s 360-degree action camera
Company releases first sample footage taken with its KeyMission 360 camera
http://www.theverge.com/2016/1/8/10735400/nikon-keymission-360-sample-video
At CES this week, Nikon announced the KeyMission 360, its first-ever action camera. Now, the company has released the first videos shot with the 360-degree 4K camera, which is the first in what Nikon is calling a “family” of action cameras.
The three videos were shot in appropriately rugged locations, featuring climbers, mountain bikers, and kayakers. You can use your mouse or keyboard to shift perspective on the videos, which were shot and edited entirely with the KeyMission 360.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Polarizing 3D Scanner Gives Amazing Results
http://hackaday.com/2015/12/23/polarizing-3d-scanner-gives-amazing-results/
What if you could take a cheap 3D sensor like a Kinect and increase its effectiveness by three orders of magnitude? The Kinect is great, of course, but it does have a limited resolution. To augment this, MIT researchers are using polarized measurements to deduce 3D forms.
The Fresnel equations describe how the shape of an object changes reflected light polarization, and the researchers use the received polarization to infer the shape. The polarizing sensor is nothing more than a DSLR camera and a polarizing filter, and scanning resolution is down to 300 microns.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mark Gurman / 9to5Mac:
Sources: iPhone 7 will do away with the standard 3.5mm headphone jack; premium Bluetooth Beats earbuds with charging carrying case could debut this fall
Apple developing revamped, cord-free Beats with charging case ahead of iPhone 7
http://9to5mac.com/2016/01/08/iphone-7-wireless-headphones-beats/
With its resources from the 2014 acquisition of headphone maker Beats Electronics, Apple is prototyping a completely new set of Bluetooth earphones with the potential of launching the accessory alongside the iPhone 7 this fall. The new earphones are said to be completely wireless, which is to say that they do not even have a cable connecting the left and right ear pieces. Sources say that the headphones are similar in concept to the Motorola Hint headset (pictured above) and Bragi’s new Dash headphones that were shown at CES this week.
It’s expected that the in-development accessory will include a noise-cancelling microphone system, enabling phone calls and communication with Siri even without Apple’s prior in-line microphone and remote.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
Razer announces $200 Stargazer webcam with Intel RealSense3D technology, dynamic background removal, face and object 3D scanning
Razer Raises The Bar On VR Gaming With Its New $200 Stargazer Webcam
http://techcrunch.com/2016/01/06/razer-raises-the-bar-on-vr-gaming-with-its-new-200-stargazer-webcam/
Last summer, gaming tech company Razer said that it was working with Intel on a webcam that would take in-game video recording to a higher level. Today, at CES in Las Vegas, the company is taking the wraps off that product.
Stargazer is Razer’s new $200 camera, shipping in Q2, that will let game players record themselves in high definition, with the focus on catchy new features, such as a new way to immerse players directly into games without resorting to green screens; and a new 3D scanning feature that will first make its debut in Minecraft, courtesy of Intel’s RealSense technology.
With virtual reality, immersive 3D and social experiences fast becoming the norm for high-end games and gamers, Razer is quite literally jumping into the frame with both feet. As a webcam, the Stargazer is setting a new bar for what gamers can have to record themselves in the middle of the action.
Video capture comes in at 60 frames per second at 720p (compared to 30 FPS in most of today’s webcams). It also can be used in high-definition mode, recording 1080p video at 30 frames per second. Sound is getting some attention, too, although perhaps not as much as videos: the microphone is noise-cancelling and dual-array.
The Stargazer is based around Intel’s SR300 camera, which is built on its RealSense technology — an HD camera that uses AI to “see” like a human eye to track depth and motion, but also incorporates other features like infrared to detect much more than a human eye can, and features such as gesture recognition to launch different commands on the computer connected to the webcam.
The Stargazer features, Razer says, works with OBS, XSplit and Razer Cortex: Gamecaster broadcasting software. But even if Razer is built “by gamers, for gamers” as its motto says, it also understands that people buying these devices may be using them for more.
The same features to remove backgrounds in gaming streams, Razer says, can also be used in Skype video chats and also with real-time motion capture technology, such as that of FaceRig. Other features include face and object 3D scanning and facial recognition which can be used as a security feature to unlock your computer if you use Windows (via Hello).
Or — in a more fun twist — to scan objects in 3d to upload them into other environments. While the 3D feature will work with development engines like Unity, the first application of the latter of these is a fun one: Intel says its first public integration with the feature will be in Minecraft.
Notably, the Stargazer currently is configured only to work in Windows 10 environments. It will be interesting to see how and if Razer expands that to include Android or other platforms.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Financial Times:
Sources: Apple Music now has more than 10M subscribers — Apple’s music streaming subscribers top 10m — Apple has passed 10m subscribers for its music streaming service, taking six months to hit a milestone which took its arch-rival Spotify six years to hit, according to people familiar with the matter.
Apple’s music streaming subscribers top 10m
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0%2F742955d2-b79b-11e5-bf7e-8a339b6f2164.html#axzz3wvlqkXyZ
The rapid growth of Apple Music, which launched in more than 100 countries in June, raises the stakes in streaming, a form of distribution that offers hope to the music industry after more than a decade in the doldrums.
“It’s good news that Apple is making streaming work but it is also going to accelerate the decline of downloads,” said Mark Mulligan, music industry analyst with Midia Research. Apple was rapidly gaining on Spotify and at its current growth rate had “the potential to be the leading music subscription service sometime in 2017.”
Streaming is becoming the dominant form of digital music consumption and is growing rapidly as download sales decline.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Ministry of Innovation / Business of Technology
Radiohead’s Thom Yorke compares YouTube business model to Nazi art theft
“Sorry, was it yours? Now it’s ours.”
http://arstechnica.co.uk/business/2015/12/radioheads-thom-yorke-compares-youtube-business-model-to-nazi-art-theft/
Radiohead has been among the most prominent rock bands to embrace the Internet as a music distribution platform—particularly with its pay-what-you-want launch of 2007 album In Rainbows. Since then, its members have frequently spoken out about how musicians have been denied their hard-earned cash by both major labels and music-streaming services.
On Monday, pop music blog Consequence of Sound caught wind of an Italian magazine Q&A with lead singer Thom Yorke before the musician’s planned performance at a concert linked to the UN’s latest climate talks. According to Consequence of Sound’s translation, the chat went all over the place and included Yorke’s thoughts about how he discovers new music lately.
“I certainly do not use YouTube,” Yorke told La Repubblica. He explicitly called the company out for not paying artists or only paying them “small sums,” even though the service runs advertisements before music videos play.
“They make money from the work of artists who do not get any benefit,” Yorke said (according to the translation). “Service providers make money: Google, YouTube. A lot of money. ‘Oh, sorry, was it yours? Now it’s ours. No, no, we are joking, it is always yours.’ They seize it. It’s like what the Nazis did during the Second World War. Actually, they all did that during the war, the British, too—steal the art from other countries. What’s the difference?”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Flat Camera Uses No Lens
http://hackaday.com/2016/01/11/flat-camera-uses-no-lens/
Early cameras and modern cameras work pretty much the same way. A lens (or a pinhole acting as a lens) focuses an image onto a sensor. Of course, sensor, in this case, is a broad term and could include a piece of film that–after all–does sense light via a chemical reaction.
Sure, lenses and sensors get better or, at least, different, but the basic design has remainded the same since the Chinese built the camera obscura around 400BC (and the Greeks not long after that).
Of course, the lens/sensor arrangement works well, but it does limit how thin you can make a camera.
That’s why researchers at Rice University are working on a new concept design for a flat camera that uses no lens.
The idea is simple: take a conventional sensor and place a mask over it that has a grid-like arrangement of apertures. The resulting image doesn’t match what you would see, but it provides enough information that a computer can reconstruct the picture.
No lens? No problem for FlatCam
http://news.rice.edu/2015/11/23/no-lens-no-problem-for-flatcam-2/
How thin can a camera be? Very, say Rice University researchers who have developed patented prototypes of their technological breakthrough.
FlatCam, invented by the Rice labs of electrical and computer engineers Richard Baraniuk and Ashok Veeraraghavan, is little more than a thin sensor chip with a mask that replaces lenses in a traditional camera.
Making it practical are the sophisticated computer algorithms that process what the sensor detects and converts the sensor measurements into images and videos.
“As traditional cameras get smaller, their sensors also get smaller, and this means they collect very little light,” he said. “The low-light performance of a camera is tied to the surface area of the sensor. Unfortunately, since all camera designs are basically cubes, surface area is tied to thickness.
FlatCams may find use in security or disaster-relief applications and as flexible, foldable wearable and even disposable cameras
FlatCam shares its heritage with lens-less pinhole cameras, but instead of a single hole, it features a grid-like coded mask positioned very close to the sensor. Each aperture allows a slightly different set of light data to reach the sensor. Raw data sent to the back-end processor – for now, a desktop computer – is sorted into an image. Like much larger light field cameras, the picture can be focused to different depths after the data is collected.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Conexant takes sound and voice control to the next level
http://www.edn.com/electronics-products/electronic-product-reviews/ces/4441121/Three-New-Conexant-announcements-at-CES-2016-today–Sound-and-voice-control-taken-to-the-next-level?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_productsandtools_20160111&cid=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_productsandtools_20160111&elq=84a438d5be2844d7a874203ae7d25b79&elqCampaignId=26447&elqaid=30235&elqat=1&elqTrackId=c3ce7c91b28f4f03bfd52841fb4c562a
I have always felt that the most natural way to control electronics functions is the human voice. Speak and it happens, this is especially important in smart homes where the smart kitchen alone will be a $10B industry in the coming years.
I just spoke to Saleel Awsare, Conexant’s Senior Vice President and General Manager and we talked about some new audio solutions, two hardware-related and one software innovation just introduced at CES 2016.
The first, and the one I would rank first among the three in my estimation, is the RoomAware OptimizerTM, a processing solution to enhance the listener experience with TV speakers. The new software is a part of Conexant’s AudioSmartTM family and has been snatched up by LG to provide a customized audio experience.
The first, and the one I would rank first among the three in my estimation, is the RoomAware OptimizerTM, a processing solution to enhance the listener experience with TV speakers. The new software is a part of Conexant’s AudioSmartTM family and has been snatched up by LG to provide a customized audio experience.
CX20926: Low power audio/sensor for voice control of portables/wearables
The second most important, in my mind, is the CN20926 chip, a new low power, audio/sensor System-on-chip (SoC) which enables voice control in battery-operated devices. Can you say, “Voice control for wearables! And portable products”? How about your battery powered TV remote? Or what about your gaming headset?
Powered by an integrated ARM® Cortex® M0+ 32 bit microprocessor, this IC includes a direct sensor interface that allows for the combining of contextual information from motion sensors with audio information from microphones for a greatly enhanced audio experience.
Tomi Engdahl says:
BBC Confirms 50% Bitrate Savings For H.265/HEVC Vs H.264/AVC
http://news.slashdot.org/story/16/01/12/2152257/bbc-confirms-50-bitrate-savings-for-h265hevc-vs-h264avc
A research team from the BBC has done a series of tests to confirm earlier computations showing a ~50% savings in bit rate for H.265/HEVC compared to video using H.264/AVC at comparable quality.
H.265/HEVC vs H.264/AVC: 50% bit rate savings verified
http://www.bbc.co.uk/rd/blog/2016/01/h-dot-265-slash-hevc-vs-h-dot-264-slash-avc-50-percent-bit-rate-savings-verified
The results and an extensive analysis of the formal subjective verification tests of the H.265/HEVC video compression standard are published in the IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems for Video Technology (TCSVT), January 2016. BBC R&D video coding research team focused on evaluations of UHD content and definition of analytics as part of standardisation process and presented in this paper.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Akin Oyedele / Business Insider:
GoPro to cut 7% of staff, will take restructuring charge of $5M-$10M, reports weak Q4 revenue guidance for 2015; stock down over 22% after hours — GoPro cuts jobs and warns its sales are a disaster — GoPro shares are crashing to all-time lows after the company said it is cutting about 7% of its staff and sales are not great.
GoPro cuts jobs and warns its sales are a disaster
http://uk.businessinsider.com/gopro-cutting-7-of-jobs-2016-1?op=1?r=US&IR=T
GoPro shares are crashing to all-time lows after the company said it is cutting about 7% of its staff and sales are not great.
It said that it expects Q4 revenue to be about $435 million ($511 million expected, according to Bloomberg) and $1.6 billion for 2015 — worse than forecast due to lower-than-anticipated sales.
GoPro’s performance in the fourth quarter was also affected by the unspectacular launch of its compact Hero4 model.
Several analysts have expressed concern about the potential for GoPro’s point-of-view cameras to gain mass appeal beyond the core group of extreme-sports enthusiasts and the like.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Stuart Dredge / Music Ally:
SoundCloud strikes licensing deal with Universal Music that includes tracks from labels and artists, and also user-generated content and remixes — SoundCloud strikes licensing deal with Universal Music — The deal was announced this afternoon (although leaked in the New York Post yesterday) …
http://musically.com/2016/01/13/soundcloud-licensing-deal-universal-music/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Bang & Olufsen BeoLab 90 active speakers on test
Is it the world’s smartest speaker? It may well be.
On the table is, probably coincidentally, presented the book to impressive Bang & Olufsen BeoLab 90.
the speaker frame made of aluminum is 65 kilograms is probably a world record.
All speaker drivers are reputed Danish high-end manufacturer of the element Scan-Speak preparation. And, of course, they are top end models. First of all seven tall 30-millimeter treble and another seven 8.5-per cent response midrange elements. Ten inches bassoelemettejä is a housing site for three and then one 12-inch straight-ahead pointing on. A quick from the bill, I understand that the bass elements, combined surface area is far greater than one 18-inch.
Each treble and middle voice of its own 300-watt B & O ICEpower amplifier, 14 pieces, therefore they are per speaker. Bass is for each own-kilowatt heliox AM1000 power amplifier. There is, nevertheless, a rich eight-kilowatt co-amplifier to enhance per speaker
BeoLab 90′s main task is not singe melting fuses in power distribution board. Manufactured recommends that a pair of speakers left and right individuals are behind the different fuses, if they want to take the resources out of the sound pressure.
Then it’s the most unique thing. BeoLab 90 of the speaker element 18 is used cleverly to the fact that the speaker transmits as little as possible state in which it is. In other words, it will play as well as possible even the most difficult rooms. Intelligent processing of the sound beam may be the width direction and the weather, depending on the room provide the optimum sound. Hard-surfaced areas in a narrow beam is considered accurate stereo image (ie hard surfaces will be strong sound reflections are minimized) and the corresponding soft materials clad premises of the beam can be widened
Well, the fact that this speaker sits perfectly to the tasteful and adequately implemented in assets under premises. But what BeoLab 90 improved sound quality worthy, is the professionalism, experience and sufficiently integrated investment position of the listening room. A place where visual solutions primarily serving the acoustics and even food for the eyes is taken into account, it will never step ahead of the functioning of the vocal.
BeoLab 90 deserve a state in which it can be placed in a purely acoustic principles at the tip of the spear. Yes, this speaker makes it really a lot of to get rid of room acoustically disadvantageous characteristics.
PS. All of this even if the speakers are not even yet quite ready. According to the future of measurement microphones was not yet, and I could not even see what all the adjustments the user can make.
In short: The cold ripples and hot cheeks for a long time after you play.
Price: 69 990 EUR a couple
Manufacturer: Bang & Olufsen
Source: http://audiovideo.fi/testi/bang-olufsen-beolab-90-aktiivikaiuttimet-testissa
- See more at: https://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&hl=fi&ie=UTF8&prev=_t&rurl=translate.google.fi&sl=fi&tl=en&u=http://audiovideo.fi/testi/bang-olufsen-beolab-90-aktiivikaiuttimet-testissa&usg=ALkJrhgQ1__FBIAP4tyL_SRNfGM9teK9mQ#sthash.FAnEvtO9.dpuf
Tomi Engdahl says:
Netflix Executive Admits a VPN-Blocking Policy Might Be Impossible To Enforce
http://yro.slashdot.org/story/16/01/13/1757230/netflix-executive-admits-a-vpn-blocking-policy-might-be-impossible-to-enforce
Netflix’s chief product officer Neil Hunt has admitted that the company has ‘no magic solution’ to subscribers who use VPNs to access content not licensed for their geographical region, commenting that ‘It’s likely to always be a cat-and-mouse game’. Hunt notes that Netflix can only rely on lists of VPN IP addresses, and that these can easily be changed.
Netflix’s liberal VPN policies are not entirely voluntary, executive admits
https://thestack.com/cloud/2016/01/13/netflixs-liberal-vpn-policies-are-not-entirely-voluntary-executive-admits/
Global streaming behemoth Netflix has earned reputation points with customers in recent years for its non-judgemental approach to customers’ use of Virtual Private Network (VPN) software to circumvent the region-locking of its content in various countries. In fact the company has now admitted that blocking VPNs as policy might be impossible in any case
Netflix’s chief product officer Neil Hunt has admitted in an interview that although Netflix does use industry standard technologies to limit the use of proxies, there is no magic solution to VPN geography spoofing. “Since the goal of the proxy guys is to hide the source it’s not obvious how to make that work well.” says Hunt. “It’s likely to always be a cat-and-mouse game. [We] continue to rely on blacklists of VPN exit points maintained by companies that make it their job. Once [VPN providers] are on the blacklist, it’s trivial for them to move to a new IP address and evade.”
This has just become a critical issue for the company; on 6th of January Netflix added 130 countries to its consumer portfolio, and it hasn’t given up on establishing a Chinese presence yet either.
“People who are using a VPN to access our service from outside of the area will find that it still works exactly as it has always done.”
The language was neutral in terms of how Netflix feels about the practice, which is, to be sure, conflicted. If it instituted more rigid geographic protection of licensed shows, it would have more – possibly even cheaper – high-quality content to attract new customers and maintain its current position as the leading streamer and subscription-based content producer, since content licensers would have greater confidence, justified or not, that they are retaining control over distribution.
On the other hand truly effective geo-blocking would cost Netflix a worryingly unknown proportion of the existing user-base which has brought it to its current prominence. Prior to Netflix’s official presence in Australia, over 200,000 Australians were unofficially estimated to be using the service via VPNs.
Since Netflix subscribers pay for the service by geographically-linked credit or debit cards, the company – unlikely to believe that such a large percentage of its user-base is constantly itinerant or in migration – can presumably make a very accurate guess as to the number of customers who are using VPNs.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Netflix says it will block proxy and VPN access, used to bypass country restrictions, in the coming weeks citing content-licensing restrictions — Netflix Vows to Shut Down Proxy Users Who Bypass Country Restrictions — Netflix, which now offers streaming service in some 190 nations …
Netflix Vows to Shut Down Proxy Users Who Bypass Country Restrictions
http://variety.com/2016/digital/news/netflix-shuts-down-proxy-access-1201680010/
Netflix, which now offers streaming service in some 190 nations, says it’s going to bring the hammer down on people who circumvent country-based content licensing restrictions using proxies or “unblockers.”
Within the next few weeks, Netflix subscribers using proxies and unblockers will only be able to access the service in the country where they are currently located, VP of content delivery architecture David Fullagar wrote in a blog post.
Fullagar acknowledged that people use such tools because Netflix doesn’t offer the same content in globally.
“We are making progress in licensing content across the world… but we have a ways to go before we can offer people the same films and TV series everywhere,” he wrote. “For now, given the historic practice of licensing content by geographic territories, the TV shows and movies we offer differ, to varying degrees, by territory. In the meantime, we will continue to respect and enforce content licensing by geographic location.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mumbai police enforcing “no selfie” zones
http://www.techeye.net/mobile/mumbai-police-enforcing-no-selfie-zones
Mumbai police have had enough of people getting practically killed while taking selfie and are starting to enforce “no-selfie” zones in parts of the city.
Inspector Knacker of the Mumbai Yard is mapping out areas in the city where it might be dangerous to take a selfie, and will mark those areas as no selfie zones.
Nevertheless the Interent is full of narissitic types doing their best to snap the perfect selfy. If Mumbai police do arrest those for trying to enter themselves in the darwin awards chances are they will try to take a picture of the event. – See more at: http://www.techeye.net/mobile/mumbai-police-enforcing-no-selfie-zones#sthash.FPIQSBa9.dpuf
Tomi Engdahl says:
Check Out Google’s 360-Degree View From Trump’s Debate Podium
http://www.wired.com/2016/01/check-out-googles-360-degree-view-from-trumps-debate-podium/
If you’ve ever wondered what it must be like to see the world through Donald Trump’s eyes, here’s your chance.
Google, which is partnering with the Republican National Committee for tonight’s Republican Debate, provided WIRED with a nifty little tool that lets you to take a 360-degree sneak peek of the debate hall from the perspective of Trump’s podium
virtual reality demos, 360-degree cameras, and overhead screens broadcasting Google data on the top trending searches for candidates
Tomi Engdahl says:
Meet OTTO – The Hackable GIF Camera
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1598272670/meet-otto-the-hackable-gif-camera
A customizable digital camera powered by Raspberry Pi. See your unique vision through pictures, videos, GIFs + more!
Tomi Engdahl says:
More people died taking selfies in India last year than anywhere else in the world
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/01/14/more-people-die-taking-selfies-in-india-than-anywhere-else-in-the-world/
India may have a selfie-loving prime minister, Narendra Modi, but Indians in general seem to be bad at selfie safety.
Of at least 27 “selfie related” deaths around the world last year, about half occurred in India, reports show.
Last year, no-selfie zones were also established in certain areas
Tomi Engdahl says:
Geoffrey A. Fowler / Wall Street Journal:
Truly wireless $300 earbuds from Bragi and Earin are available now, but suffer from bluetooth connectivity issues and poor sound quality — Review: Truly Wireless Headphones Arrive, But With a Few Strings Attached — Bragi Dash and Earin earbuds may usher in an era of ‘hearable’ computers, but they’re also works in progress
Review: Truly Wireless Headphones Arrive, But With a Few Strings Attached
Bragi Dash and Earin earbuds may usher in an era of ‘hearable’ computers, but they’re also works in progress
http://www.wsj.com/article_email/review-truly-wireless-headphones-arrive-but-with-a-few-strings-attached-1452709660-lMyQjAxMTI2NjE3MzcxMjMyWj
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Smallest Google Street View in Miniatur Wunderland
http://hackaday.com/2016/01/17/the-smallest-google-street-view-in-miniatur-wunderland/
The world’s largest model railway exhibit — on display in Germany of course — is quite the attraction. The huge Miniatur Wunderland features towns and trains from Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and even a little America. And it’s all on Google Maps.
[Frank] accepted the challenge to build a tiny Google Streetview train, capable of traversing the entire Wunderland. It features a fish-eye camera on both the front and rear car, and is powered by an Arduino — the Wattuino Nanite 85. He upgraded the train to use tiny stepper motors to allow for precise movement along the tracks to get all the shots in perfect Streetview fashion.
http://www.google.com/maps/about/behind-the-scenes/streetview/treks/miniatur-wunderland/#sections
Tomi Engdahl says:
35 Million People Didn’t Notice When Zynq Took Over Their Radio
http://hackaday.com/2016/01/23/35-million-people-didnt-when-zynq-took-over-their-radio/
What happens when part of a radio transmitting service listened to by over half the country needs to be replaced? That was a recent challenge for the BBC’s Research and Development team last year, and if you’re from the UK — you wouldn’t have noticed a single thing.
[Justin Mitchell] is a principle engineer in R&D at BBC, and just this past year had to transition the audio coding system installed in 1983 to new hardware due to failing circuit boards and obsolete components.
The new module called the NICAM Codec takes care of data combination, RDS data transmission (this is what displays song names on your car radio), the 6-channel audio coder, CRC inserters & checkers, decoding, and data splitting. It’s all based off of a Xilinx Zynq chip which uses both an FPGA and ARM processor, which had to comply with all European directives to be CE marked.
http://www.xilinx.com/products/silicon-devices/soc/zynq-7000.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Using RealSense Cameras With OS X and Linux
http://hackaday.com/2016/01/23/using-realsense-cameras-with-os-x-and-linux/
The original Microsoft Kinect was a revolution in computer vision. For less than one hundred dollars, the Kinect gave everyone a webcam with a depth sensor. If you’re doing anything with robots, 3D scanning, or anything else where a computer needs to know where it is in 3D space, it’s awesome. These depth-mapping cameras have improved over the years, with the latest and most capable hardware being Intel’s RealSense 3D camera.
Despite being a very capable depth camera, support for Linux and OS X doesn’t exist. Researchers, roboticists and IoT developers are slightly miffed about this, and it seems like Intel doesn’t care about people using their hardware on platforms that aren’t Windows.
Now, finally, that’s changed. A few developers have taken it upon themselves to build a cross-platform library for the F200, SR300, and R200 Intel RealSense depth cameras.
The librealsense library features proper RealSense camera support for Linux, OS X, and Windows and provides all the functionality of the official Intel SDK. This functionality includes native depth, color, and infrared streams, synthetic streams for rectified images, calibration information, and the most interesting feature: multi-camera capture
Cross-platform camera capture for Intel® RealSense™ F200, SR300 and R200
https://github.com/IntelRealSense/librealsense
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hollywood Turning Against Digital Effects
http://entertainment.slashdot.org/story/16/01/25/163242/hollywood-turning-against-digital-effects
One of the easiest complaints to lob at a modern film is that the special effects look bad. It’s been over two decades since Jurassic Park; the novelty is finally wearing off. The New Yorker puts it this way: “It’s as if directors—especially the reboot generation—have finally become self-conscious about CGI; 2015 was the year they got embarrassed by the digital miracles of the movies.” Both the new Star Wars film and Mad Max: Fury Road were lauded for their use of “practical effects” — not abandoning CGI entirely, but using it to embellish scenes, rather than creating them from whole cloth.
Hollywood’s Turn Against Digital Effects
http://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/the-turn-against-digital-effects
Scroll through this year’s Oscar nominations. Find the category for visual effects. There, you’ll see two colonic reboots: “Mad Max: Fury Road” and “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.” They make for pretty interesting nominees. To hear it from their directors, the special effects of “Fury Road” and “The Force Awakens” are notable for being old-fashioned rather than innovative, earthbound rather than gravity-defying. Put another way: they’ve been rewarded for sticking a bunch of practical effects onto a canvas of computer-generated imagery, or C.G.I.
Critics and fanboys have grumbled about C.G.I.’s excesses—whole cities collapsing, superheroes zooming into the stratosphere—for years. Those grumbles are now as likely to come from the directors themselves. “2015 is the year of Hollywood’s practical effects comeback,” the Web site The Verge announced in August. I think you could push this a step further. It’s as if directors—especially the reboot generation—have finally become self-conscious about C.G.I.; 2015 was the year they got embarrassed by the digital miracles of the movies.
You could hear boasting about “real” sets and practical effects in the hype around nearly every one of last year’s non-Marvel blockbusters.
Last April, at Star Wars Celebration, J. J. Abrams, the director of “The Force Awakens,” got his loudest ovation when he was asked about his “retro” approach. In a pre-release documentary, his colleagues showed a message discipline that the candidates trudging through Iowa would envy. “Real sets,” the actor Mark Hamill crowed. “Practical effects.” The movie’s production designer, Rick Carter, concurred: “J. J.’s trying to make sure these movies have a physicality to them. We truly are out in a desert. A real desert.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Smallest Google Street View in Miniatur Wunderland
http://hackaday.com/2016/01/17/the-smallest-google-street-view-in-miniatur-wunderland/
The world’s largest model railway exhibit — on display in Germany of course — is quite the attraction. The huge Miniatur Wunderland features towns and trains from Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and even a little America. And it’s all on Google Maps.
[Frank] accepted the challenge to build a tiny Google Streetview train, capable of traversing the entire Wunderland. It features a fish-eye camera on both the front and rear car, and is powered by an Arduino — the Wattuino Nanite 85. He upgraded the train to use tiny stepper motors to allow for precise movement along the tracks to get all the shots in perfect Streetview fashion.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Casey Newton / The Verge:
Periscope integrates with GoPro to bring live streaming to action cameras — Periscope just took its first steps away from the smartphone. The Twitter-owned live-streaming app announced an integration with GoPro that will let users broadcast to their followers from an action camera for the first time.
Periscope integrates with GoPro to bring live streaming to action cameras
Let the dronecasts begin
http://www.theverge.com/2016/1/26/10830280/periscope-twitter-integration
Periscope just took its first steps away from the smartphone. The Twitter-owned live-streaming app announced an integration with GoPro that will let users broadcast to their followers from an action camera for the first time. The integration, which currently works on iOS with the GoPro Hero 4 Black and Hero 4 Silver, allows Periscope to recognize a GoPro whenever one is connected to an iPhone. Once connected, the app gives users the option of broadcasting from the camera.
The integration raises interesting possibilities for surfers, skiers, snowboarders, and other athletes, as well as anyone who enjoys filming with a GoPro mounted on a drone. Indeed, the company teased some upcoming broadcasts from the X Games, which begin this week in Aspen, CO.
Periscope users can toggle the camera back and forth between the iPhone view and the GoPro view, while continuing to see the on-screen chat on their phones.
The move comes two weeks after Periscope integrated with Twitter, livening up the timeline with real-time broadcasts.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Frederic Lardinois / TechCrunch:
YouTube now lets video creators use Donation Cards, which overlay the page, to help raise money for charities directly — YouTube’s New Donation Cards Help Video Creators Raise Money For Charities — YouTube just made it a lot easier for its users in the U.S. to use their videos to drive donations to nonprofit organizations.
YouTube’s New Donation Cards Help Video Creators Raise Money For Charities
http://techcrunch.com/2016/01/26/donate-your-car-to-youtube/
Tomi Engdahl says:
ST Exits Set-Top Box Chip Biz, Plans Layoffs
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1328795&
LONDON—STMicroelectronics NV has said it will stop developing products for the set-top box and home gateway markets and plans to lay off up to 1,400 workers out of its total headcount of more than 43,000.
In 2016 that workforce “re-alignment” is expected to affect about 1,000 employees of which about 150 are based in France. Going forward ST intends to focus on automotive and industrial applications and the Internet of Things including such areas as smart home and smart city applications.
Tomi Engdahl says:
I Built Myself a 16×20-Inch Camera in 10 Hours
http://hackaday.com/2016/01/27/i-built-myself-a-16×20-inch-camera-in-10-hours/
[Giles Clement] was avoiding work in a bar, nursing a pint, and doodling a sketch for a camera. He looked at his sketch, thought, “gee, that looks better than answering emails,” and called his friend. An hour later they were at home depot buying supplies, and ten hours of furious work later, they had a camera. Nothing gets a project done like avoiding work!
The camera is built around a 500mm f/4.5 Goerz Dogmar lens from around 1918 and was apparently used for aerial recon out of blimps. The frame of the camera is pine and plywood. [Giles] had heard that building the bellows for these cameras had taken other hobbyists months and thousands of dollars. Rather than elaborately folded fabric, he supported his 6 mil plastic bellows on telescoping rigid rods. To view the image while he’s focusing it, he sanded a plate of glass with 100 grit sandpaper to serve as a view screen.
Once the camera was completed, they prepared the plates and exposed photos.
I Built Myself a 16×20-Inch Camera in 10 Hours
http://petapixel.com/2016/01/19/i-built-myself-a-16×20-inch-camera-in-10-hours/
Tomi Engdahl says:
FCC opens the game: the digital terminal will die out
If you want to get your hands on one of the operator’s pay-TV offerings, consider buying a set-top box. In general, it must be bought myself operator, because the device is tuned precisely for these services. Federal Communications Commission considers that the set-top-box is over. It plans to open the contents of all types of devices.
Now the FCC has published on its website an open proposal, which it wants to virtually liberate distribution of video content, so that it is successful indeed anyone else with the manufacturer of the device, on any device, for example, and tablet applications.
Above all, the consumer can access the pay-TV content, so when he sees the best candidate. There’s no need to upgrade to a new device, if your service provider changes. Service interfaces are likely to develop rapidly, when the experience must be the same on all devices.
The aim of the FCC to keep some kind of like mobile phone.
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3914:fcc-avaa-pelin-digipaate-kuolee-pois&catid=13&Itemid=101
Tomi Engdahl says:
Nilay Patel / The Verge:
How FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler’s plan to open the cable box could affect strategies of tech firms like Apple, Google, Microsoft, and others
Inside the FCC’s audacious plan to blow up the cable box
All the answers are probably right
http://www.theverge.com/2016/1/28/10858658/fcc-unlock-the-box-open-cable-plan
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler dropped a bomb on the cable television1 industry yesterday with his proposal to allow any manufacturer to create cable boxes that can access pay-TV service. (The FCC is calling this plan #unlockthebox, because 1. “competitive head-end navigation” is a terrible name and 2. it learned from the net neutrality fight that no telecom company can apparently withstand the power of social media.)
I am not kidding that this was basically a bomb — there have been rumbles about this sort of thing for a few weeks, but basically no one knew it was coming as fast and as furiously as it did. Most of the companies we talked to about it yesterday were still in no-comment mode while they tried to sort things out — even tech companies that should be reflexively cheering any idea that gives them access to the linear TV services that have eluded them for almost a decade now. The industry is going to take a while to figure out where it stands.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Illegal football streams are ‘dangerous’, study says
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-35434765
Football fans who access free streams of top matches are putting their devices, and personal privacy, at great risk, according to a study.
It says the most popular sites are attracting upwards of eight million visits per month.
Like many free services, the pirate sites rely on advertising.
But with few reputable brands willing to attach their name to illegal distribution, the sites turn to malicious ads to pull in profits.
Of the thousands of streams studied, the researchers said that as many as half planted malicious software on the users’ machine through forced ads and other deceptive techniques.
The researchers examined how the sites are run and from where.
As well as pop-up and overlay advertising, they observed an increase in sites demanding users install browser plug-ins in order to watch a free stream.
“[To watch the stream] you have to install the extension, and once the user installs the extensions, it can infect any website the user is visiting,” lead researcher Zubair Rafique told the BBC.
The study analysed over 5,000 aggregator domains – that is, sites which collate free streams for visitors to browse and watch.
Because of that separation between the aggregator sites and media streaming services, it’s difficult for authorities to effectively stamp out football piracy.
Though several aggregator sites have been shut down, the video streams are quickly moved to a different site, and the cycle continues. Aggregator sites will usually offer several different streams for the same match.
“We discovered that nearly 25% of live streams originate from the servers hosted in Belize,” the study noted.
“More than 60% of analyzed streams originate from the media servers provided by only five companies located in Belize, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Canada.
It’s Free for a Reason: Exploring the Ecosystem of Free Live Streaming Services
https://zubairrafique.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/flis_ndss16.pdf
Tomi Engdahl says:
Dee Lockett / Vulture:
Recording Industry Association of America starts counting on-demand streaming audio and video toward certifying albums as gold or platinum sellers
The RIAA Finally Bows to Streaming, Making 17 Artists’ Albums Go Gold and Platinum
http://www.vulture.com/2016/02/riaa-certifications-will-now-count-streaming.html
Call it the Anti effect, or just call it getting hip to the times. The Recording Industry Association of America just announced one of the biggest rule-changes in its history: As of Monday, the RIAA will now count streaming sales as part of its singles and albums certification process, making 17 albums automatically certified gold (500,000) or platinum (1 million) with the news. The rule change means both on-demand video and audio streams will be calculated in the RIAA’s certifications, with 1,500 streams counting as the equivalent of ten track sales or one album sale. And now 150 streams will equal one download, rather than the previous 100.
The rule restructuring comes at a time when some artists are beginning to demand that streaming count toward their overall sales. Last year, Nicki Minaj argued that her latest album, The Pinkprint, would already be at least triple platinum were all her streaming numbers factored in.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Michel G. / SamMobile:
Report says Samsung Gear 360 VR spherical camera with two 180 degree fisheye lenses to debut February 21 alongside Galaxy S7
Exclusive: Gear 360 virtual reality camera is real, to accompany the Galaxy S7
http://www.sammobile.com/2016/02/01/exclusive-gear-360-virtual-reality-camera-is-real-accompany-galaxy-s7/
Only a few weeks ago, the first hints pointing to a new 360 degree camera named Gear 360 surfaced. Now, with only a few weeks until Samsung’s next big Unpacked event, we can exclusively confirm the Gear 360 VR camera is real, and coming soon.
The Gear 360, likely an offshoot of Samsung’s Project Beyond, is a compact spherical camera capable of capturing 360 degree imagery using two 180 degree fisheye lenses. It can pair with a phone via Bluetooth, through the Gear 360 Connect application. The device might work with recent Galaxy flagship devices, though for now we can only confirm Galaxy S7 compatibility.
The Gear 360 (SM-C200) has its own battery, so it does not need to be connected to an external power source. Also, the device packs an unknown amount of onboard storage.
It is possible to watch the Gear 360′s video feed live on a connected phone, though we can not confirm the possibility to stream video to other devices. Whether streaming directly to a phone that is docked in a Gear VR is possible remains unconfirmed for now.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Torrents Time lets anyone launch their own web version of Popcorn Time
http://venturebeat.com/2016/02/02/torrents-time-lets-anyone-launch-their-own-web-version-of-popcorn-time/
Popcorn Time, an app for streaming video torrents, just got a new web version: Popcorn Time Online. Unlike other attempts to bring Popcorn Time into the browser, this one is powered by a tool called Torrents Time, which delivers the movies and TV shows via an embedded torrent client. Oh, and the developers have released the code so that anyone can create their own version.
If Popcorn Time is Hollywood’s worst nightmare, Torrents Time is trying to make sure Hollywood can’t wake up.
But Popcorn Time is still an app. The web-based Popcorn Time Online aims to bring everything directly into the browser.
Aside from adding support for browsers, the creators claim Popcorn Time Online can play “almost every video format.” The existing Popcorn Time versions can’t do this because “many torrents contain unstreamable video formats.”
The quality level of the stream (720p and 1080p are both supported) is indicated on a per-torrent basis. The team expects that the availability of content “will considerably increase from now on.”
New features aside, the real big news is that anyone can now set up a fully functioning version of Popcorn Time Online. Because the code is available on GitHub, anyone can simply download the Popcorn Time Online files, upload them to their web directory, and launch their own version.
The developers see this as “a new era in which, for the first time, any developer could instantly produce a full functioning streaming site enabling all the features Popcorn Time enables as an application, but directly from a browser, with minimal bandwidth requirements.”
http://popcorntime-online.io/
https://github.com/PopcornRepos/PopcornTimeOnline
Tomi Engdahl says:
Lillehammer Winter Youth Olympic Games in just over a week to get to the track Samsung virtual gralles. Viewers have access to the means of the opening ceremonies of the atmosphere and get a 360 degree experience of the opening ceremonies
Lillehammer Winter Youth Olympics will be the first time possible to experience the Olympic events in the virtual reality of Samsung’s Gear VR glasses. Samsung Gear VR -virtuaalilaseilla offers streaming broadcasts of the Olympic Games opening ceremony of the show and events.
Lillehammer race, guests can experience the Olympic VR highlights different parts of the city located at the Samsung Galaxy Studios feature.
Source: http://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2016/02/03/olympiamakeen-virtuaalilasit-paassa/
Tomi Engdahl says:
YouTube’s first original programming will arrive on February 10th
PewDiePie’s new show and three movies from YouTube creators are ready to go.
http://www.engadget.com/2016/02/03/youtube-red-original-content-february-10-launch/
A big part of last fall’s YouTube Red launch was the promise of original content for those subscribers shelling out $10 every month. We still have no idea if YouTube’s first slate of originals will be any good, but at least we know when we can find out. On February 10th, three films and one series will make their debut; all of the content will come from YouTube creators who’ve already racked up millions of subscribers and views.