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Feb 05, `08 — This Slashdot article highlights future of the Internet in the US. “Time-Warner is now mulling a plan to charge a per-gigabyte fee for internet service. A leaked memo reveals they’re now watching how many gigabytes customers use in a ‘consumption-based’ pricing experiment in Texas, which we discussed early last month. The announced plan was that they were considering a tier-based approach, as opposed to per-gigabyte fees.”

Steven Levy of Washington Post reports, “If you are an Internet-crazy movie lover in Beaumont, Tex., life may soon take a miserable turn for you.

Time Warner Cable, which also sells broadband via its Road Runner service, has chosen your city for a pricing experiment.”

Mr. Levy further adds, “Time Warner’s move illuminates some of the troubling issues facing the United States in the Internet era, where, in terms of penetration, we are in 24th place — behind Estonia — in the international broadband competition.

The news broke about Time Warner’s plan from a leaked internal memo that company spokesman Alex Dudley confirms as genuine.”

More at Slashdot, WashingtonPost.

Los Angeles, Calif — Feb 04, `08 — Yahoo will cease operating its online music subscription service and switch its customers to RealNetworks’ Rhapsody music service as part of a new deal between the companies that calls for Yahoo to promote Rhapsody on its site, the AP reports.

Terms of the deal, to be formally announced later today, were not disclosed. The move is part of Yahoo’s overhaul of its online music offerings.

Yahoo Music Unlimited lets users download an unlimited number of tracks that are playable as long as their plan is active.

Under the Yahoo-RealNetworks partnership, subscribers to Yahoo Music Unlimited will be shifted to the Rhapsody service sometime in the first half of this year. Yahoo subscribers’ music library and payment plans will remain the same for a limited time after the switch, but those wishing to remain on Rhapsody eventually will be required to sign up at Rhapsody’s rates.

Yahoo’s subscription rates range from $5.99 a month, if users pay for a full year in advance, or $8.99 a month. Rhapsody memberships start at $12.99 a month. More at AP.

Feb 03, `08 — Thousands of sailors on U.S. ships across the Pacific Ocean can thank Waltham’s Raytheon Co. for piping in live broadcasts of today’s Super Bowl showdown between the New England Patriots and New York Giants.

Under an agreement with the Armed Forces Network, Raytheon is opening up its highly secured “Global Broadcast Services” system - similar to the satellite-based GPS system - so that those on U.S. Navy ships and even in submarines can watch today’s championship game.

Reston, VA — Feb 01, `08 /PRNewswire/ — US sailors and Marines aboard ships in the Pacific will be able to experience the thrill of the
National Football League’s Super Bowl this Sunday while at sea. Troops deployed will feel like they’re right at home on game day, thanks to the
latest technology developed, maintained and operated by Raytheon.

For more than 10 years, the Raytheon-developed Global Broadcasting Service (GBS) military satellite communications system has provided
high-speed, multimedia broadcasts of mission critical information to military and government decision makers. But this weekend, in coordination with the Navy and the American Forces Radio and Television Service, GBS will broadcast Super Bowl XLII to military service men and women stationed away from home who would otherwise not be able to enjoy this celebrated American event. More at Raytheon.

Feb 03, `08 — As Swedish prosecutors fixed their sights last week on The Pirate Bay, an Internet file-sharing service that is a scourge of the movie and music industries, the operators of the site responded by hoisting a defiant, digital Jolly Roger, reports the IHT.

The Pirate Bay, on its blog, called for a celebration saying, “This week we’ve hit some magic numbers. We’re tracking over 1 million torrents. We have had over 10 million simultaneous peers on the trackers. We’re at 2.5 million registered users (and they are active as well).”

The 100th post on the Pirate Bay blog further adds, “In case we lose the pending trial (yeah right) there will still not be any changes to the site. The Pirate Bay will keep operating just as always. We’ve been here for years and we will be here many more.”

The Wires writes, “Peter Sunde Kolmisoppi, one of the four Swedes charged in Sweden on Thursday, said in a telephone interview that the site has set up a clandestine, double-blind operation with its servers spread throughout the world — and out of reach of the Swedish authorities.

“The Pirate Bay is not in Sweden,” the 29-year-old Kolmisoppi said. Where are the servers?

“It’s a distributed system. We don’t know where the servers are. We gave them to people we trust and they don’t know it’s The Pirate Bay,” Kolmisoppi said. “They then rent locations and space for them somewhere else. It could be three countries. It could be six countries. We don’t want to know because then you’ll have a problem shutting them down.” More at IHT, theWired.

Los Angeles, Calif — Feb 03, `08 — A breakthrough in contract talks has been reached between Hollywood studios and striking writers and could lead to a tentative deal as early as next week, a person close to the ongoing negotiations said Saturday, the AP reports.

The report further said, “The two sides breached the gap Friday on the thorniest issues, those concerning compensation for projects distributed via the Internet, said the person, who requested anonymity because he were not authorized to speak publicly.

A second person familiar with the talks, also speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to comment publicly, said that significant progress had been made and a deal might be announced within a week.”

The Reuters reported, “Any deal would have to be endorsed by the governing boards of the WGA’s East and West Coast branches and ratified by the union’s rank and file.

The chief sticking point in the labor dispute has been the question of how much writers should be compensated for work distributed over the Internet and other digital media.

According to the New York Times, Friday’s breakthrough was an agreement on payment of “residual” fees for the advertising-supported online streaming of television shows.”

The last major strike to hit Hollywood, a walkout by screenwriters in 1988, lasted 22 weeks and delayed the start of that year’s fall television season. More at AP and Reuters.

HD DVD player sales in the US during a week from Jan 6 to 12, 2008, declined 88% to 1,758 units compared with the previous week, Tech-On! is reporting citing research company NPD Group.

Tech-On! further reports, “The period measured was immediately after US movie studio Warner Bros Entertainment had announced that it had shifted its support from HD DVD to Blu-ray Disc Jan 4, 2008.

Meanwhile, BD player sales grew 42% compared with the preceding week to 21,770 units, NPD said. An NPD analyst said Warner’s announcement might have impacted HD DVD player sales.

HD DVD supporter Toshiba Corp announced price reductions for its HD DVD players targeting the North American market following Warner’s announcement.” More at Tech-On!

Related:

HD DVD is ‘Missing the Boat’ in Australia

In the Battle of Formats Blu-ray Outsells HD-DVD in Europe

Feb 01, `08 — Four men who run one of the most popular file-sharing sites in the world have been charged with conspiracy to break copyright law in Sweden, the BBC reported on Thursday.

Pirate Bay does not store music and video files on its own servers, but instead helps users share them on the internet. The website acts as a directory of the files used by the BitTorrent file-transfer protocol.

“It’s not merely a search engine. It’s an active part of an action that aims at, and also leads to, making copyright protected material available,” public prosecutor Hakan Roswall told Reuters. “It’s a classic example of accessory — to act as intermediary between people who commit crimes, whether it’s in the physical or the virtual world.”

Pirate Bay told the news agency that the people running the site cannot be held responsible for how its directory services are used. The website is said to have between 10 and 15 million users around the world and is supported by online advertising.

Police seized computers in May 2006, temporarily shutting down the website.

Prosecutor Hakan Roswall said the website was commercially exploiting copyright-protected work because it was financed through advertising revenues. According to the Pirate Bay website, its users are currently downloading close to a million files.

On the site, a statement says: “In case we lose the pending trial (yeah right) there will still not be any changes to the site.

“The Pirate Bay will keep operating just as always. We’ve been here for years and we will be here many more.”

In an interview with the BBC’s technology programme Click last year Pirate Bay co-founder Peter Sunde said: “I think it’s okay to copy. They get their money from so many places that the sales is just one small part.”

The other three men facing charges are Carl Lundstrom, Frederik Neij and Gottfrid Svartholm Warg. If convicted, the four men could face a maximum of two years in prison.

The website had up until 2006 based its servers in Stockholm, but moved some to the Netherlands after a raid in May of that year by Swedish police, who seized equipment and held three people for questioning “on suspicion of breaking copyright law or abetting the breaking of copyright law,” authorities said. The site was taken down for a day, but was soon up and running again.

Moves against the site have been backed by entertainment industry groups, including the Motion Picture Association of America and the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. More at BBC News.

Jan 01, `08 — Nathan Ramella explains his ARCwelder Project at Google code:

Through a technique dubbed “Go Fighting Tabby!”, or GFT for short, you can gain root access on an Archos 605 wi-fi running 1.7.13 firmware and execute arbitrary programs in its embedded Linux environment.

This is the first step to gain access to the running Linux operating system, which until now has not been possible.

Using the GFT technique, you can install the ‘ARCwelder’ package which will allow you to ssh into the Archos 605 wi-fi and run unix commands from a shell.

Currently ARCwelder only provides an ssh package, however in time more packages may be included as they are tested and verified as working, some customization is necessary to ensure that they work on the embedded system, so the term ‘hack’ is definitely applicable.

More at ARCwelder Project.

Little Rock, AR — The world’s biggest retailer, Wal-Mart, has closed its video downloading service less than a year after it started selling films online.

The retreat for Wal-Mart, which accounts for about 40 percent of all DVD sales, follows the company’s 2005 decision to abandoned efforts to build an online DVD rental service. The world’s largest retailer instead turned its rental service over to Netflix.

It stopped the service on Dec 21, according to a message on the discount chain’s video download website. Wal-Mart said the decision had been forced by Hewlett-Packard withdrawing the software running the site.

The move ends a challenge to Apple’s iTunes store, Amazon and Netflix to win customers who rent films over the web.

The market for online video downloads has become very competitive with video rental chain Blockbuster buying Movielink over the summer to expand into this area.

LAS VEGAS, Dec 24, `07 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Harrah’s Entertainment today announced that the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) notified Harrah’s that it will allow the consummation of the proposed acquisition of Harrah’s by affiliates of Apollo Global Management, L.P. and TPG Capital to proceed while the NIGC finalizes its review.

There are no remaining regulatory approvals needed to close the transaction.

Harrah’s and the buyers received the go-ahead for the deal last week from the Nevada Gaming Commission, capping a 10-week campaign to obtain approvals from state gambling regulators in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Mississippi.

Harrah’s, which had nearly $10 billion in revenue last year, operates more than 50 casinos including Caesars and the Imperial Palace in Las Vegas and Bally’s in Atlantic City. Indian Gaming Commission approval is needed because Harrah’s operates several tribal casinos as well. More at Harrah’s.

NEW YORK, Dec 19, `07 /PRNewswire/ — MTV Games, a division of Viacom’s MTV Networks, today announced an exclusive deal with internationally renowned motion picture and television producer Jerry Bruckheimer to develop and create new and original video games, marking his first official foray into the gaming world.

As part of this landmark agreement, Bruckheimer will build a game incubation studio with MTV Games, where a team of experienced video game experts, artists and storytellers will seek out and deliver new game concepts and intellectual property.

By joining MTV Games with Bruckheimer’s blockbuster track record for creating successful entertainment properties in film and television, both new and experienced gamers can expect what promises to be some of the most entertaining, challenging, and unique games.

MTV Networks will support this venture across all its broadcast and digital platforms including CMT, MTV, Spike and VH1. Gaming is a focal point of MTV Networks’ overall vertical entertainment strategy of super-serving its core audiences with engaging experiences across multiple platforms.

In August of 2007, the company announced that it will invest more than $500 million over the next two years in the development and distribution of its Interactive Entertainment and Video Game business. MTV Games’ recently released Rock Band from developers, Harmonix, which MTV Networks acquired in 2006. More at Viacom.

Companies sign landmark multi-year deal to collaborate on content distribution, advertising, event promotions and gaming

Microsoft’s Atlas to become exclusive ad serving platform for Viacom US web sites

NEW YORK and REDMOND, Wash — Dec 19, `07 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Viacom and Microsoft today announced a broad-based, strategic alliance under which major divisions of both companies will collaborate on advertising, content distribution, event promotions and games over the next several years.

The comprehensive agreement spans across the two companies and includes a number of significant components. Among them:

– Microsoft will license, on a non-exclusive basis, long and short-form television and theatrical content from across Viacom’s cable network
and motion picture businesses, including MTV, Comedy Central, BET and Paramount Pictures for use on Microsoft properties such as MSN and Xbox 360.

– Microsoft’s Atlas division will become the ad server for Viacom’s US websites and Microsoft will have the exclusive right to sell remnant
display advertising inventory on Viacom’s US websites.

– Microsoft will buy advertising on Viacom broadcast and online networks over a five-year period and the companies will work together on
promotions and sponsorships for MTV Networks and BET Networks award shows;

– Viacom will work with Microsoft on opportunities to become a preferred publishing partner across Microsoft’s casual gaming platforms.

Detailed financial terms were not disclosed, but the deal has a projected base value of approximately $500 million in financial considerations and business services between the two companies over the initial five-year length of the agreement.

The deal includes a combination of revenue sharing provisions, guarantees and content licensing agreements.More at Viacom.

DENVER, CO –Marketwire– Dec 17, `07 — Consumers who long to transfer their favorite movies and TV programs from their DISH Network receivers to their ARCHOS Portable Media Players (PMPs) can now do so in record time through a simple plug-in download.

The plug-in is offered exclusively to DISH Network subscribers with a VIP722 or VIP622 high-definition receiver, and is compatible with the ARCHOS 705 WiFi and 605 WiFi players. The plug-in is available today at Archos.com. Beginning in January, the Archos 605 and 705 models will also be available at retail outlets where DISH Network satellite TV service is sold.

“The DISH Network plug-in will allow consumers to transfer content faster than real-time from their DISH Network receiver to an Archos PMP. A two-hour movie can be transferred in just a few minutes,” said Henri Crohas, founder and chief executive officer at ARCHOS. “Now DISH Network subscribers with a VIP622 or VIP722 receiver can experience the fastest transfer times to their ARCHOS players, getting them out of the house faster and enjoying their favorite TV shows anywhere and anytime.”

The exclusive ARCHOS plug-in for DISH Network customers is part of a larger strategic alliance between parent company EchoStar and ARCHOS that has been in place for almost three years.

ARCHOS 605 WiFi and 705 WiFi demonstrations, including the high-speed content transfer from DISH Network’s receivers, will be on display in the EchoStar booth — Central Hall #9020 — at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, January 7-10, 2008.

New-Generation XSPAN Delivers 11n Performance at Price Points To Enable Broad Deployment of Triple-Play Gateways.

SANTA CLARA, Calif — Dec 17, `07 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Atheros today announced two single-chip 802.11n solutions developed expressly for the carrier gateway market.

The new dual-band, 2.4GHz/5GHz, AR9220 and single-band, 2.4GHz AR9223 PCI designs join the comprehensive Atheros XSPAN family, the world’s most widely adopted draft 802.11n Wi-Fi solutions.

These latest 802.11n designs provide reliable, market-proven performance at price points that allow carriers to broadly deploy home gateways capable of supporting data, voice and video on a single wireless network.

The AR9220 dual-band, 2×2 MIMO, PCI design is ideal for high-end, multiplay gateways and set-top boxes, which must robustly support multimedia applications requiring uninterrupted throughput — IPTV, HD video streaming, VoIP calls and multi-player online gaming on the 5GHz channel-while using the 2.4GHz band for simple data networking.

This solution provides leading 802.11a/g/n performance, supporting up to 300 Mbps physical data rates and 200 Mbps of actual user throughput on both the uplink and the downlink. With the dual-band design, users will enjoy universal connectivity to any 802.11 device through their gateway or set-top box. More at Atheros.

SAN DIEGO & SEOUL, Korea –BUSINESS WIRE– Dec 17, `07 — DivX and LG today announced the launch of two additional models in the DivX Certified Time Machine TV Series specifically targeted for South America.

The two new models of LG’s DivX Certified Time Machine TV Series join millions of DivX Certified devices on the market today that play back high-quality DivX video content.

The two additional models, the 42LB9RT and 32LB9RT, are LCD offerings that deliver high image and audio quality for digital content using much less bandwidth than regular analog devices. These devices boast a simultaneous watch-and-record function and the ability to transfer high-quality DivX content directly to the TV through the USB port.

Maintaining the exceptional standards of the Time Machine TV Series, these models include a built-in 80 gigabyte hard disc drive for Time Shift function and recording as well as a USB 2.0 port, for backing up recorded content and enabling the direct playback of MP3, JPEG and DivX formats. More here.

San Antonio, Texas — Dec 17, `07 –Meeting the growing demand from TV viewers for quality High Definition (HD) programming, AT&T today announced the addition of eight HD channels to its AT&T U-verse TV channel lineup.

U-verse TV now offers Animal Planet HD, CNN HD, Discovery HD, Science Channel HD, Starz Kids & Family HD, Superstation WGN in HD, TLC HD, VERSUS and GOLF CHANNEL HD.

With these additions, AT&T U-verse TV subscribers with the HD service option have access to a lineup of more than 40 HD channels in most markets, which is more HD programming than local cable providers in current U-verse markets.

HD service is available for $10 a month with any U-verse TV programming package. All U-verse TV packages include HD-ready equipment, and most include an HD-capable DVR. More at AT&T.

WASHINGTON, Dec 05, ‘07 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Frank Sinatra, one of the most iconic entertainers of the 20th century, will be commemorated on a postage stamp next spring, Postmaster General John Potter announced today.

Sinatra’s three children — Nancy, Frank, Jr. and Tina Sinatra — will preview the stamp image during a special ceremony in Beverly Hills, CA, on
Sinatra’s birthday, Wed., Dec. 12.

“Frank Sinatra was an extraordinary entertainer whose life and work left an indelible impression on American culture,” said Potter. “His recordings, concert performances and film work place him among America’s top artists, and his legendary gift for transforming popular song into art is a rare feat that few have been able to replicate. The Postal Service is proud to honor his achievements.”

“On behalf of our family, we are honored that the United States Postal Service has recognized our Dad’s achievements with a stamp,” said Tina
Sinatra, speaking on behalf of her siblings, Nancy and Frank Sinatra, Jr. “Of all the awards he has received, this one would have been very special to him.”

A 10-ft. image of the stamp will be unveiled at the Beverly Hilton’s Wilshire room at 10 a.m. PT, Dec. 12.

In a career studded with accolades, Sinatra won an Oscar, several Grammy awards, received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1971, and was recognized at the Kennedy Center Honors in 1983.

Sinatra also gave generously to many charities. President Reagan awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1985. He was born in Hoboken, NJ, in 1915 and died in 1998. The Hoboken Post Office was renamed in his honor in 2002.

NEW YORK, Dec 05, ‘07 /PRNewswire/ — Just in time for the holiday season, Verizon is unwrapping high-definition video-on-demand in many of its FiOS TV markets.

HD VOD is now available over the FiOS TV systems in Richmond and Virginia Beach, Va.; Tampa, Fla.; Fort Wayne, Ind.; and Pittsburgh. It is coming soon to the FiOS systems in the Washington, D.C., metro area, Massachusetts and Rhode Island; and to Verizon’s remaining FiOS TV markets next year.

Verizon last month said it expects to have more than 150 HD channels by the end of 2008 as it continues to add to its HD lineup, and programmerslaunch new channels. It also said that it would increase its HD VOD titles to more than 1,000 in 2008.

Verizon’s initial HD VOD offering contains around 75 HD titles including a mix of free programs and recently released blockbuster movies such as “Transformers;” “The Hoax,” starring Richard Gere; “Mr. Brooks,” with Kevin Costner and Demi Moore; and the animated “Surf’s Up.” In the coming months, the company will continue to add HD titles to its VOD library, which now totals more than 10,000 titles.

Customers access video-on-demand simply by pressing the “VOD” or “On Demand” button on their remote control, through a menu on FiOS TV’s
interactive media guide, or by tuning into channel 900. Customers need an HDTV and an HD set-top box to view the on-demand titles in high definition. More at PRNewsWire.

MUMBAI, India — Nov 28, ‘07  — Sony Online Entertainment is all set to open a game development studio in India, Vice President Business Development & International Operations, David Christensen, said on Wednesday.

The company is talking to developers and aims to set up the studio early next year, likely in the city of Bangalore, David Christensen, the company’s business development and international operations vice president, said Wednesday.

“We need to have Indian content for our games and we are looking for local partners,” Christensen said on the sidelines of a gaming conference in Mumbai, India’s finance and entertainment hub.

“We will contribute our technology to the joint venture,” he said. The local partner would be expected to provide the creative talent for the games and chip in toward setting up the studio.

Sony recently teamed with Virgin Comics, a Bangalore-based collaboration of self-help guru Deepak Chopra, filmmaker Shekhar Kapur and Sir Richard Branson of Virgin Group Ltd. With Sony, Virgin Comics is developing a multiplayer online game based on “Ramayan 3329,” a comic book written by Chopra and Kapur and inspired by a famous Indian epic about a battle against demons.

Online gaming is just catching on in India with about 2.8 million devotees. Developers expect the market to explode as broadband penetration grows. Analyst firm Pearl Research expects the country’s online game market to reach $200 million by 2010, up from $4 million now.

The Ramayan comic was released in the United States last year, and Virgin is in talks on a movie version.

“If the game is successful in India, we will take it to Europe and North America,” said Christensen. “It is a fresh international story and if it is created into a movie it could be a big global property.”

Virgin’s president, Suresh Seetharamanin, said the company was in the process of adding to the creative team that would work on the game with Sony.

Sony Online is a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the principal businesses of Sony Corp of America, the U.S. subsidiary of Tokyo-headquartered Sony.

Seoul, S Korea — Universal Parks & Resorts and South Korea’s Gyeonggi province said Tuesday, Nov 27, that they had agreed on plans for a $3.1-billion theme park to be built south of Seoul, its largest project in terms of investment size, as it seeks to expand in Asia’s burgeoning entertainment market.

The park, in Hwaseong City in Gyeonggi province, about 18.5 miles (30 km) southwest of the capital Seoul, set to open in 2012 and will lead to the creation of more than 58,000 jobs, is expected to draw 10 million people annually from South Korea, China and Southeast Asia, said Kim Moon-soo, governor of Gyeonggi province.

The theme park, spanning 4.7 million square meters (50.59 million sq ft) and featuring hotels, golf courses and rides based on popular movies and TV shows, would be similar in scale to the Universal Orlando Resort in Florida in the United States.

“This is certainly going to be much larger than the other projects that have been announced,” Frank Stanek, who spearheaded the development of Tokyo Disneyland and is in charge of developing Universal Studios Korea, told a news conference.

Universal Parks & Resorts is also developing two other parks Singapore’s Sentosa Island and the Gulf emirate of Dubai.

Universal Studios, operated by NBC Universal Inc., a unit of General Electric Co., is joining forces with POSCO Engineering and Construction, a unit of South Korean steel giant POSCO, and state-run Korea Development Bank, among other partners.

Shinhan Bank, a unit of Shinhan Financial Group, and Korea Investment & Securities, a unit of Korea Investment Holdings are also part of the consortium.

London — Nov 27, ‘07 — The BBC, ITV and Channel 4 are to launch a joint on-demand service, which will bring together hundreds of hours of television programmes in one place, BBC News said on Tuesday.

The service is set to go live in 2008 and will offer viewers access to current shows and archive material. Plans will have to be approved by the BBC Trust and the other broadcasters’ boards, and a name for the service will be unveiled ahead of its launch.

The three broadcasters currently offer their own separate on-demand services.

The BBC’s iPlayer, ITV’s catch-up service and Channel 4oD will continue to exist along the new online “aggregator”, which will provide a complement to the established providers.

Programming from all three broadcasters will be available for free download, streaming, rental and purchase via the internet, with expansion on to other platforms planned.

John Smith, the chief executive of BBC Worldwide, said the venture was a “historic partnership” between the BBC, ITV and Channel 4.

“The new service will contain some of the very best of the UK’s content for consumers to view in one place, which will be both easy to use and great fun,” he added.

The BBC and ITV’s on-demand services launched earlier this year, with the commerical broadcaster initially concentrating on soap opera catch-ups.

Channel 4’s service offers hundreds of hours of programming from current series such as Ugly Betty to classic shows including Father Ted. Other on-demand services are offered by other providers including Five, Sky, BT Vision and Tiscali.

Nov 24, ‘07 — With some of America’s favourite television programs pushed off the air and high-profile film projects biting the dust, Hollywood’s studio bosses and network chiefs will return to talks this week to try to end a two-week writers’ strike that has hit them harder and faster than they anticipated.

The studio brass initially said they would not consider a return to talks as long as the strike persisted, but they changed their tune when it became clear that Hollywood’s 5,000-odd writers in regular work were standing firm to shut down late-night chat shows, dramas, comedies, daytime soap operas and – if the dispute is not resolved soon – the next round of new shows that would ordinarily start to shoot in January. More at TheIndependent.

LOS ANGELES – Nov 21, ‘07 –Big-screen casualties from the Hollywood writers strike mounted further on Tuesday as movie studios reported postponing two more films, one starring Johnny Depp and another with Penelope Cruz and Sophia Loren, according to Reuters.

Warner Bros. said Depp’s adventure drama “Shantaram,” which was slated to begin shooting in India in February 2008, has been put on hold due to “strike-related script issues.”

The Time Warner -owned studio said the inability to guarantee a February start date threatened to push production of the film into India’s monsoon season.

Another high-profile feature production delayed by the 15-day-old strike is Weinstein Co.’s “Nine,” a musical adaptation of the Frederico Fellini classic “8 1/2″ to be directed and choreographed by Rob Marshall and starring Cruz, Loren, Javier Bardem and Marion Cotillard.

The delays bring to at least four the number of feature film projects derailed by the strike, which began Nov. 5 after contract talks between the Writers Guild of America and major film and TV studios collapsed.

Columbia Pictures announced last Friday it was delaying production on “Angels & Demons,” a sequel to last year’s box-office hit “The Da Vinci Code.”

The two sides agreed last Friday to return to the bargaining table on Nov. 26, but the union’s 12,000 members remain on picket lines for now, with a major rally and march down Hollywood Boulevard planned for later on Tuesday. More at Reuters.

Nov 20, ‘07 — Speaking exclusively with High-Def Digest, Jim Noonan, SVP of Strategic Promotion and Communication for Warner Home Entertainment Group says its previously announced Blu-ray / HD DVD hybrid disc won’t be hitting stores anytime soon.

High-Def Digest further explains, “roughly six months after unveiling “Total HD” plans, Warner announced it was delaying its plans for Total HD until early 2008, but said it remained committed to the concept, promising ten to twenty launch titles upon the format’s eventual release.

Though the studio had since remained mum on the status of its plans for the hybrid format, a Warner exec has now confirmed to High-Def Digest that all current plans for Total HD have been shelved in response to a perceived shift in retailer needs following Paramount’s move to HD DVD exclusivity. “The short answer is, for the moment, it [Total HD] is on hold,” said Noonan citing reason that, they were the only studio producing content in both formats.

More at High-Def Digest.

BURBANK, Calif – Nov 19, ‘07 /PRNewswire/ — Disney/Pixar’s “Ratatouille,” the best reviewed movie of 2007, raced past the $600 million mark at the worldwide box office over the weekend, and now stands as the second biggest international release of all-time for a Disney/Pixar production, it was announced today by Mark Zoradi, president, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Group.

The film’s worldwide cume climbed to $602.6 million over the latest three-day period (11/16-18/07). With its international gross-to-date of
$396.5 million, “Ratatouille” now stands as the fifth most popular film released this year and the top grossing non-sequel.

The film ranks as the #1 animated release in 17 international territories and is the #1 film of the year (including all categories) in France. The film is expected to pass the $400 million international plateau sometime during the week, making it the sixth release from Disney (live-action or animated) to achieve this milestone.

Amongst all animated titles ever released in industry history, “Ratatouille” is only the third non-sequel to cross this threshold. “Ratatouille” also becomes the ninth release from Disney to pass the $600 million global mark, an achievement unmatched by any other Studio. Domestically, “Ratatouille” has posted an impressive gross-to-date of $206.1 million.