Audio and video

Netflix has endured an exceedingly difficult year. But things will only get worse in the coming months, says Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter.

Writing to investors in a research note today, Pachter said that Netflix "is broken," and its decision earlier this year to raise prices on customers who want to both rent DVDs and stream video content proved to be the catalyst that brought those flaws to light.

"It is clear that a price increase was necessary, and equally clear in hindsight that a 60 percent increase on the hybrid customer was too much," Pachter wrote … Read more

YouTube users can now tap into a new analytics feature that lets them see just how popular their videos really are.

Detailed in a blog post today, the new YouTube Analytics feature will replace the site's current Insight page in providing reports and stats on uploaded videos.

As a step up from Insight, YouTube Analytics is designed to offer data in a more user-friendly format and make it easier to find and view specific information. Borrowing a trick or two from Google Analytics, the YouTube Analytics page begins with a quick overview of the basic stats on your videos … Read more

Spotify now has 2.5 million paying subscribers, the music service said today.

Spotify didn't say in its blog post how the subscribers break down by country, but it appears that its expansion to the U.S. has been a significant factor in its growth. In March, the company hit 1 million paying subscribers before it had launched its service in the U.S. Last month, Reuters reported that Spotify had 250,000 paying subscribers in the U.S.

Spotify currently offers two paid plans. Its "unlimited" option costs customers $4.99 per month to listen to … Read more

Microsoft has acquired video search engine VideoSurf, several reports claim.

According to Israel-based news outlet Globes, Microsoft has acquired VideoSurf for "tens of millions of dollars." In a follow-up report, TechCrunch Europe cited an anonymous source who claimed Microsoft acquired the company for $70 million.

Neither Microsoft nor VideoSurf immediately responded to CNET's request for confirmation of the deal.

If Microsoft did, in fact, acquire VideoSurf, the company will likely be used to improve Bing. VideoSurf allows users to search for video content around the Web from a host of sources, including Hulu, Dailymotion, Comedy Central, and … Read more

Porn bigwig Manwin Licensing International has filed a lawsuit arguing that the new .xxx top-level domain arises from a monopoly aimed at hurting the adult film industry.

According to the Wall Street Journal, which obtained the lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court of the Central District of California, Manwin specifically targets the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names & Numbers (ICANN), as well as ICM Registry, the company that is managing the domain. In the suit, Manwin argues that those companies have engaged in "monopolistic conduct, price gouging, and anticompetitive and unfair practices," according to the Journal.… Read more

After Netflix announced key partnerships for its U.K. and Ireland streaming service earlier this week, its chief competitor in those countries has fired back with one of its own.

Lovefilm announced today that it has inked a streaming deal with Warner Bros. that will make its service the exclusive provider of the studio's films in the "second window." In other words, after the films are made available on pay TV in the first window, they will exclusively come to Lovefilm next.

According to the companies, the deal will go into effect in December, and will initially … Read more

I used to be a slave to iTunes.

It's where I put my music and where I managed my podcast subscriptions. But times change, and Apple's apps don't change fast enough. For managing podcasts, there is a far better solution than sticking with the combo of iTunes and the Music app on your iOS device. Downcast is an upbeat little app that smokes Apple's own app in the podcast department.

First of all, it's an integrated podcast player and manager. It's easy to find a podcast, subscribe to it, and play it all from … Read more

Netflix has notched another key deal with a movie studio to bolster its streaming service when it launches in the U.K. and Ireland next year.

Earlier today, Miramax and Netflix announced a multiyear licensing agreement that will bring many of the studio's top films, including "Pulp Fiction," "Good Will Hunting," and "Gangs of New York," to the streaming service.

This is the second movie deal Netflix has announced this week for its European streaming service. On Monday, Lionsgate said that Netflix will be the exclusive provider of its first-run films streaming in … Read more

Netflix now has a key partner it can count on as the company prepares to enter the European market.

Lionsgate today announced that it has signed an agreement with Netflix that will make the rental company the exclusive provider of its first-run films streaming in the U.K. and Ireland. However, as with previous deals Netflix has signed with studios, Lionsgate won't immediately provide the films to the streaming provider. Instead, Lionsgate's new and upcoming titles, including "The Hunger Games" and "The Expendables 2," will make their debut on Netflix "within one year … Read more