Entertainment

Netflix: More work to do to rebuild customer relationship

Netflix still has some work to do to rebuild its relationship with customers, the company's financial chief said Wednesday.

David Wells, speaking at the J.P. Morgan tech conference, said Netflix expected the process to regain customers' trust would take about three years, and that's likely still the case. The company in 2011 angered users and lost nearly a million subscribers in four months after hiking prices and taking steps to separate Netflix's DVD operations from its streaming video business.

Wells noted at the tech conference, which offered a live feed of the conversation, that Netflix continues … Read more

Ticketfly lets venues, promoters customize loyalty programs

Ticketfly, a ticketing and marketing service, has launched an initiative aimed at giving venues and event promoters the ability to direct targeted rewards at their most loyal customers.

The impetus behind the Fanbase initiative, announced Wednesday, is that while 7 percent of ticket buyers generate 30 percent of the revenue brought in at the gate of events utilizing Ticketfly tickets, there has previously been no way to adequately identify, reward, and motivate those people.

While other ticketing and marketing services have rolled out other loyalty programs, San Francisco-based Ticketfly said its new program is the industry's most sophisticated effort … Read more

Video streaming is on the rise with Netflix dominating

While it appears Netflix is continuing to grow as the dominant video streaming service in the U.S., its competitors are also growing, according to Internet research firm Sandvine.

What gives?

Video streaming, or "real-time entertainment," is on the rise overall and those companies involved are seeing their businesses grow. However, their market share has remained static. According to a survey (pdf) released Tuesday by Sandvine, Netflix has 32.3 percent of the market share, while YouTube has 17.1 percent, Hulu has 2.4 percent, and Amazon has 1.31 percent. And, those numbers haven't changed … Read more

Netflix cuts back on expiration dates after 'streamaggedon'

In the wake of disappointment and confusion caused by Netflix's "streamaggedon" movie purge, the rental service has made changes to its API that will make it harder for third-party tools to determine when titles will expire.

The revelation late last month that hundreds of classic movies, including Woody Allen's "Stardust Memories" and the James Bond hits "Dr. No" and "Goldfinger," would soon vanish from movie fans' instant streaming queues caused a minor uproar that some in the media dubbed "streamaggedon." A Netflix spokesperson said that both the number … Read more

MIT to turn sky into dancing-umbrella light show

Forget the Umbrellas of Cherbourg. MIT presents the Umbrellas of Cambridge.

This Sunday evening, participants in a large-scale interactive performance will hoist programmable umbrellas outfitted with LED lights skyward in a shimmering spectacle of red, green, and blue.

The project, called "UP: The Umbrella Project," is part of a collaboration between MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) and the Connecticut-based Pilobolus modern-dance company.

Using hand controllers designed by researchers at CSAIL's Distributed Robotics Lab, hundreds of MIT students, faculty, and staff will be able to independently change the color of their umbrellas, thus spontaneously choreographing a kind of umbrella dance that will then be projected onto a giant screen so everyone can see the aggregate moving image. … Read more

Google Glass Explorer Edition teardown reveals hits and misses on repairability

Not since the iPhone or iPad has a gadget generated more buzz than Google Glass. So of course I wanted to take it apart and explore its internal hardware. Unfortunately, as I'll show you, this version of Google Glass wasn't built to be easily dissected or repaired.

According to Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt, Glass is still "probably a yearish away" from hitting store shelves. But true to the company's iterative development style, Google is shipping 10,000 or so Explorer Edition units to developers, beta testers, and winners of Google's "If I Had Glass" contest. And while the company might make a few tweaks to the product before launch, these test units still give us a good idea of what to expect in terms of overall design and hardware.… Read more

Designer: Mirror API for Glass 'awfully prohibited and closed'

As Google chugs forward with Glass, there's a feeling in the air that we're on the cusp of a major revolution in wearable technology. However, Google's limited Mirror app-programming interface (API) for Glass leaves much to be desired, according to one Canadian design firm.

In a conversation with CNET, a rep with Toronto-based creative agency Playground said that the limited architecture of the Mirror API was "surprising" because it's "awfully prohibited and closed." To be sure, Google announced the API as a preview offering, even going as far as to ask developers to "come dream with us." However, the Canadian design company -- and surely many other developers -- want deeper access to Glass.

… Read more

Pucker up! Kissing machine rates your smooches

On a scale of 1 to 8, how are your kisses? You could check in with whomever you're smooching these days -- or you could consult the Kissing Evaluator.

The electronic contraption, built by a team of San Francisco makers, reacts to a couple's canoodles with LED lights and woob woob and bleb bleb noises (a method that's been officially certified by the International Association of Kissing Metrics).

The team built the whimsical device for Red Bull Creation, a national competition that challenges contestants to invent something creative around a piece of hardware -- and then display it in public. Red Bull sent this year's participants a "Turbull Encabulator" circuit board that it designed as a tool for making LED light art, along with RGB LED lights and instructions to "make something awesome." … Read more

The next Angry Birds? Third-party game developers hope Rovio's backing gets them there

Rovio announced on Tuesday its intent to publish the titles of third-party developers, using the marketing success of its top game, Angry Birds, to lure more game makers.

The new program, called Rovio Stars, lets Rovio publish games under its name while promising developers Angry Birds franchise-like glory. Once a gaming company, the now rebranded entertainment company will kick off its program with the launch of Icebreaker: A Viking Voyage by Nitrome, a puzzle game that utilizes slicing motions similar to Cut-the-Rope, and Tiny Thief by 5 Ants, a medieval-themed game featuring stealth-based puzzles.

"These are the sorts of … Read more