TiVo HD goes on sale for $300

TiVo has debuted a new high-definition DVR, and it’s a hell of a lot cheaper than the $799 Series 3. The $299 TiVo HD can record 20 hours in HD (180 in SD), can records two shows at once, but it’s not compatible with TiVoToGo. (Thanks, Eric!)

8 comments July 23rd, 2007

SI buys stake in Takkle.com

With all the activity surrounding the high school sports space, it’s no surprise that Sports Illustrated is making a minority investment in Takkle.com. The two companies already have a content-sharing partnership surrounding SI’s “Faces in a Crowd” feature.

Add comment July 23rd, 2007

Hearst buys UGO Networks

In the latest media acquisition of a technology company, Hearst has purchased UGO Networks for around $100 million, reports Forbes. UGO is a network of young male-targeted websites that brings in 11 million uniques a month. “CEO J. Moses has been trying to sell his company for more than two years,” writes Erika Brown in Forbes. “Just about every media giant out there has taken a look at the deal, and then taken a pass.” But for UGO, persistence has paid off. (Via PaidContent)

Add comment July 23rd, 2007

Reactions to the new NFL rules

If you work for a local TV station, let us know how you’re dealing with the new NFL rules in comments below (you can be anonymous.) Training camps are getting underway, and I’m curious how far stations will go to fight the NFL’s mafia-like restrictions…

3 comments July 23rd, 2007

Your impressions of CNN-YouTube debate?

So, how did it go? There are a billion reaction stories online, among them…

-   NY Times: “Yet while there was a new format for the debate, which was sponsored by CNN and the video-sharing Web site YouTube, the change went only so far: Candidates frequently lapsed into their talking points, and there was little actual debate among them.”

-   Tom Shales in the Washington Post: “The major flaw looming over the two-hour telecast was that it wasn’t a very good telecast. CNN put the videos up in a relatively tiny window within a giant onstage screen.”

-   Joe Garofoli in the S.F. Chronicle: “Videos conveyed a poignancy that e-mailed questions often cannot…. Questions were asked by atheists and a melting animated snowman as well as by a man who asked the candidates what they’d do to protect his baby — a large rifle laid across his lap.”

So what do you think? A great concept or a failed experiment?

11 comments July 23rd, 2007

iPhone could be vulnerable to attack

Apple’s Macintosh is renowned for its nearly virus-proof operating system. But a report in today’s New York Times suggest that the company’s iPhone (built on that same operating system) might not be quite as secure. A former employee with the NSA had his iPhone log on to a custom-built website. The site then “injected a bit of code into the iPhone that then took over the phone.” The phone sent off a raft of recent text message and other files. The story notes that the exploit could even turn the phone into a “portable bugging device.” The New York Times pointed its readers to a detailed site — with a name that speaks for itself: ExploitingTheiPhone.com.

3 comments July 23rd, 2007

Briefs: Carey, TV about TV news, ‘Ghetto Mess’ cleaned up

Lots of interesting items on the AP wire today…

-      Drew Carey to snag Bob Barker’s skinny mic at The Price is Right
-      If you like TV shows about your job making TV shows, Fox has your back
-      BET’s ‘Hot Ghetto Mess’ now has a new title, for obvious reasons

1 comment July 23rd, 2007

YouTube’s home page outdated after debate

It’s a big night for YouTube and CNN - as the two banded together to hold a democratic candidate debate. I just dialed up YouTube.com - nearly an hour after the debate, and found a link to “submit your question” right on the home page. The debate’s over, and TVNewser says they had all the questions picked early this morning. The resulting page actually shows all the user submitted questions, but you wouldn’t know that from the link on the home page.

5 comments July 23rd, 2007

NBC digital employees moving to N.J.

As expected, NBC is shifting about 1,000 staffers from 30 Rock across the Hudson to Englewood Cliffs, N.J., already the home of CNBC. NBC’s digital staffers as well as the folks from the stations division are among those making the move.

Add comment July 23rd, 2007

Sirius CEO: Merged satellite radio would offer ala carte

So I had the privilege of lunching today with Mel Karmazin (CEO of Sirius Satellite Radio), Gary Parsons (CEO of XM Radio), and several dozen others at the National Press Club. Mel talked about the proposed merger of the two companies and how horrible life is with competition from terrestrial radio to Internet radio to the HAM operators. His big announcement was that the merged company would be offering ala carte packages to subscribers, which is a first among subscription services. He blasted back hard at the NAB, who earlier today were applauding NPR, who recently voiced their opposition to the merger. Honestly, I came away from the event thinking that terrestrial broadcasters really don’t have anything to gripe about, but not because of anything that Karmazin said outright. Why? Well, follow me to the jump, intrepid LostRemoters!

Read the full post 3 comments July 23rd, 2007