streaming media

Membership in Amazon Prime, the subscription service that offers rapid shipping as well as streaming movies, now tops 10 million, according to a new report from Morningstar.

Amazon doesn't disclose subscription numbers for the service. But Morningstar analyst R.J. Hottovy arrived at the number using a survey of Amazon shoppers conducted by market-research firm Consumer Intelligence Research Partners last November. Hottovy, whose report was first covered by Business Intelligence, also wrote that Amazon Prime now accounts for about a third of Amazon's operating income.

As Geekwire reports, it's a particularly startling number given that just a … Read more

Pandora Media, the company behind the Web radio service, posted big fourth-quarter revenue gains as advertising revenue jumped 51 percent from the year-ago period.

At the same time, the company's losses widened 78 percent to $14.6 million.

"Pandora has been hiring top talent in local radio markets to further increase our share of the $15 billion radio ad market," Pandora Chief Executive Joe Kennedy said in a statement. "We are now effectively the largest radio station in almost every major market and begin fiscal year 2014 with extraordinary momentum."

Separately, Kennedy announced that he'… Read more

Maybe it's not as streamlined as Apple's AirPlay, but Samsung's AllShare system is an often-overlooked feature that lets you wirelessly beam content like music, videos, and photos among your devices at a moment's notice.

So, you find a video you shot on your phone, tap a few buttons, and voila -- there it is on your TV screen.

Though AllShare lets you share media among your phone, TV, computer, and tablet, its most practical use can be harnessed by those who own both a Galaxy smartphone (like an S2 or S3), and a Samsung Smart TV. … Read more

There are two kinds of TVs in the world: smart and dumb. The smart ones have Netflix, Hulu, and other streaming-service apps built right in. The dumb ones, well, they need a little help.

Arguably the best help you can get comes in the form of a Roku box, which brings pretty much every streaming service known to man (except, annoyingly, YouTube) to your TV.

Today only, and while supplies last, 1SaleADay has the refurbished Roku 2 XS for $64.99 shipped. The same model sells new for $99.99.

This is the premium Roku model, the one with every … Read more

Every time there's a significant update to either product, the e-mails start filling up my inbox: so now which is better, the Apple TV or Roku?

It's an understandable question, and one that only gets harder to answer now that Apple TV has recently added two, significant features: AirPlay Mirroring via Mountain Lion and a dedicated Hulu Plus app. While it used to be easy to give the Roku LT the edge for costing half as much and offering more streaming services, it's a much closer call with the Apple TV's standout features.

Let's take a look at the strengths and weaknesses of both boxes.… Read more

In Slacker Radio, curated stations that are organized by musical genre meet algorithmically generated playlists based on artists you pick (a la Pandora). As with Slacker Radio on other mobile platforms, the Android app lets you stream music from preprogrammed genres and stations, or from stations you set up yourself. As you listen, you can view album art and bios, block a song or vote it a favorite, and skip ahead (limited for free users). If you like what you hear, you can share a link to that station on SlackerRadio.com via e-mail, text message, or Twitter.

Over the … Read more

Just like the bigger Web-based version of Pandora, the Android app lets you create stations based on artists or songs, browse through its genre-based stations, or fire up a Quick Mix. If you're already a Pandora listener, you can enter your log-in credentials, or you can create a new account right from the app.

As you listen, Pandora lets you rate tracks up or down, or skip tracks at will. Your ratings here will help Pandora home in on exactly the types of music you like, so its important to be an active listener. If you're a lazier … Read more

Cloud Engines' Pogoplug devices have evolved from basic network-attached-storage tools into full-fledged streaming, backup, and sharing systems. Pretty cool ones, too.

Want a state-of-the-art model for a standard-edition price? While supplies last, Best Buy has the Pogoplug Series 4 for $49.99 plus sales tax. That's half off the list price, and about $30 less than you'll find it elsewhere.

The only catch? It appears to be sold out online. You'll have to hit your local Best Buy store. (Call or check online first to make sure they're still in stock.)

The Pogoplug works like … Read more

This is an update of a deal I posted last year.

Google TV: doomed product or stealth Apple TV/Roku competitor? Probably the former, given that the set-top box never really caught on, even after Logitech slashed the price from $299 to $99.

And now it's even less. Newegg has the refurbished Logitech Revue With Google TV for $73.99 shipped. That's the lowest price I've seen on this Internet-meets-TV appliance. Doomed? Maybe. Deal? Definitely!

In case you're not familiar with the Revue, it goes above and beyond Apple TV- and Roku-style media streaming by offering … Read more