MediaBytes

AOL will pay $850 million to acquire BEBO, the third-ranked social networking site in the US with a worldwide user base of 22 million monthly users. AOL plans to integrate the site with its instant-messaging platform, growing its total audience to 80 million users. Bebo reportedly generated $20 million in revenue and earned $5 million Continue Reading →

DIRECTV will launch a new video on-demand service in the second quarter. To overcome the technical limitations of satellite, the service will use a dual strategy to deliver content. Certain films will simply be broadcast and recorded to a customer’s DVR behind the scenes, where they can be purchased later for instant playback. Other titles Continue Reading →

HULU is now open for business, offering a wide selection of ad-supported television shows and films. The site appears to have dropped registration requirements, allowing users to quickly and easily begin watching content. Creating an account enables advanced features, such as subscribing to specific shows and creating an online queue of episodes. CEO Jason Kilar Continue Reading →

HULU will officially launch on Wednesday, offering full-length episodes of 250 television series, 100 feature-length films and some of the top online video content. The News Corp – NBC U venture has gone all-out, adding new programming from Lionsgate, Warner Bros. TV Group, the NBA, the NHL, the Onion News Network and more. Of course, Continue Reading →

SHELLY PALMER reveals what really caused Oprah’s online video meltdown. PROJECT CANOE continues to develop as the major cable companies host monthly meetings in New York and Philadelphia. The targeted and interactive advertising initiative is bringing together Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cablevision, Cox, Charter and Bright house Networks. The companies are expected to fund a Continue Reading →

APPLE unveiled an impressive suite of iPhone developer tools and demoed iPhone applications created by major software companies. EA showed the game Spore running on an iPhone, displaying impressive graphics. Salesforce.com, Sega and AOL also showed off new iPhone applications. Starting in June, iPhone apps will be sold through iTunes as well as through a Continue Reading →

APPLE will host its iPhone special event this morning at the company’s Town Hall. Steve Jobs is expected to reveal plans for allowing third-party applications to be installed on the iPhone. Apple’s invitations for the event also promised “some exciting new enterprise features.” MICROSOFT has decided to use the video player of MOVE NETWORKS in Continue Reading →

TIME WARNER is expected to propose a merger of AOL and YAHOO. TW would receive a signifiant equity stake in the combined entity, which would benefit from $1 billion in annual cost savings. NEWS CORP has been considering a similar setup for combining MySpace with Yahoo and taking a major stake in the company. Yahoo Continue Reading →

KEVIN MARTIN said he is willing to conduct testing of the digital transition in a few markets before taking the switch national next February. The FCC chairman had formerly claimed there was not enough time for testing. However, FCC member Michael Copps has continued to push hard for the tests and appears to have persuaded Continue Reading →

SHELLY PALMER offers up some alternative theories for the OSCAR‘s incredibly low ratings this year. It could be that the films were dark and the actors were foreign, but it could also have to do with something much less variable. SAG‘s New York board is urging the Guild to begin contract negotiations with the AMPTP Continue Reading →