Apple TV’s new iPhone remote control app talks to Siri
As promised, you no longer need to use the new Apple TV’s standard remote control to take advantage of all the media hub’s features. Apple has released a brand new Apple TV Remote app that drags its iOS interface into the modern era. You can not only use the same touch-based control as on the hardware remote, but talk to Siri — handy if you lost the physical controller between the couch cushions. It also supports motion controls for games, and there’s even a Game Mode that strips things down.
The new Remote app works with every Apple TV from the second-generation model onward, and you should only miss Siri and other hardware-specific features on those previous devices. It’s just as well, too. While the old app is still hanging around (at least for now), this is an entirely separate download. Apple appears to be making a clean break with this release, and you’ll only really want the original Remote if you use it to control iTunes on your computer.
Via: Bloomberg
Source: App Store
Washington state sues Comcast over its ‘deceptive’ service plan
Comcast doesn’t have a stellar reputation for delivering what you pay for, and Washington state is taking the cable giant to task for that shoddy service… if not quite in the way you expect. It just filed a lawsuit against Comcast demanding more than $100 million over the allegedly “deceptive” nature of the provider’s Service Protection Plan. The $5 monthly package ostensibly saves you from technician fees when you ask for a non-essential house call, but the company conveniently didn’t tell most customers that the plan doesn’t cover cable wiring inside your walls — you know, the most common wiring there is. Customers reportedly lost “at least” $73 million in wasted subscription fees as a result.
It doesn’t end there. The state’s Attorney General office is also accusing Comcast of charging customers when they asked for necessary fixes that are supposed to be free (such as faulty cable cards and signal amplifiers). To top it off, Comcast conducted botched credit checks where it either hurt someone’s credit (through an unnecessary check) or made them pay a deposit even when they had an exceptional score.
Comcast defends itself by noting that it partnered with the Attorney General’s office to “address every issue they raised.” It was “committed” to further work, too. However, Washington says it filed the lawsuit because Comcast wasn’t acting quickly enough. While officials drew attention to the issues “over a year ago,” Comcast waited until just recently to do something about them.
The lawsuit is billed as the first of the kind in the US, and that could have significant repercussions for Comcast. If Washington state emerges victorious, it might encourage other states to act when telecoms tell customers one thing and charge them for another.
Via: The Verge
Source: Washington State Attorney General
HBO’s ‘Westworld’ sci-fi series arrives October 2nd
JJ Abrams’ and Jonathan Nolan’s TV adaptation of Westworld hit its share of snags on the way to release (it was originally supposed to debut in 2015), but it’s nearly here. HBO has confirmed that the robot-theme-park-gone-wrong show will debut on October 2nd at 9PM (both Eastern and Pacific). As before, the TV series isn’t really a thriller in the vein of Michael Crichton’s 1973 movie. Instead, it’s more of a philosophical investigation into both simulated experiences and artificial intelligence. If you can do anything you want in a robotic world, what does that say about you? And how does AI grapple with questions of consciousness and self-awareness?
It’s far from certain that the show will be a hit. However, it will at least have well-known producers and a big-name cast that includes Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, Evan Rachel Wood and Thandie Newton, among others. More importantly, it’s clear that Abrams, Nolan and HBO are taking the concept seriously — it’s a high-minded drama, not just an excuse to remake a classic sci-fi story.
Via: AV Club, The Verge, Vulture
Source: HBO (Medium)
Apple’s negotiation tactics might be hurting its TV plans
We’re nearly a year into the era of the newest Apple TV, which packs plenty of power, access to apps and a reworked remote with Siri voice control. Despite the new hardware, rumors of a big Apple push into TV still haven’t turned into anything real. A report from the Wall Street Journal may help explain why by claiming negotiations with companies like Comcast and Time Warner Cable fell apart over things like how much the cable companies would pay Apple and how they would share customer information.
Attempts to bypass cable companies and negotiate directly with studios are said to have fallen apart in a similar fashion. The sides couldn’t work out which channels to include, if rates would increase annually the way they do with cable, or on implementing features customers want like a cloud DVR and the ability to skip ads. The studios are also leery of ceding too much control to Apple, aware of the influence it has gained in industries like music and books. Instead, Apple’s strategy — for now– seems to revolve around incremental improvements to the experience on Apple TV and picking up content like Carpool Karaoke to fill out its Apple Music package.
As I wrote in 2012 (when Apple television rumors were still a thing) despite the obvious reasons why Apple would want to be in the TV market, it has to deal with incumbents who are currently raking in massive amounts of money under the current setup. They have little incentive to make the special kinds of deals Apple wants so that it can control the customer experience to its liking. The only thing that may change that is if the business changes dramatically or regulations somehow force the industry into a new deal, and so far, neither has occurred.
At the moment, TV companies have dug into their positions deeper than ever. Dish is pushing Sling TV, AT&T purchased DirecTV and Hulu is… still trying. Comcast failed in an attempt to buy Time Warner Cable, launched a streaming TV service that it’s failed to expand beyond a couple of cities, and is pushing its next-gen X1 cable boxes. Time Warner’s HBO finally launched an internet-only version of its channel (that was initially exclusive to Apple products), while CBS has already signed up millions of customers for its apps — the list could go on and I haven’t even mentioned worldwide TV provider Netflix or Amazon Prime.
Apple CEO Tim Cook:
On the Apple TV question…you shouldn’t look at what’s there today and think we’ve done what we want to do. We’ve built a foundation that we can do something bigger off of.
It seems inevitable that someday, Apple will get to show and prove its vision for the future of TV. While the TV industry reacts to shrinking subscriber and sales numbers, Apple’s latest earnings report showed lower sales numbers that could make it more eager to strike a deal and CEO Tim Cook suggested on the earnings call that his company would do more with TV in the future. The only problem? We’ve heard that before, back in 2012, and with SVP Eddie Cue reportedly telling people “time is on my side” it’s hard to say who will blink first, if ever.
Source: Wall Street Journal
The new ‘Gilmore Girls’ series comes to Netflix on November 25th
You either love Gilmore Girls or you can’t stand it, but those that are fans are very excited the show is coming back on Netflix. Now, some nine months after the show was first rumored to be revived, we have a release date and the first proper sneak preview of the show. The nostalgia-ridden clip shows off various points around the town of Stars Hollow and then cuts to Lorelai and Rory sitting at the kitchen table, talking nonsense. Yeah it’s a bit more modern because they’re discussing Amy Schumer and Rory Googles something with her iPhone, but the vibe is still there.
As expected, Gilmore Girls is returning as a four-part “event” rather than a traditional season with a dozen episodes. Each part will focus on a particular season and be about 90 minutes in length. That’ll make it a relatively brief entry in the series’ catalog, given its earlier seasons had 20-plus episodes, each over 40 minutes in length — but for fans who thought they’d never see the Gilmore girls again, it’s more than enough.
LG Display invests $1.75 billion for flexible OLED demand
The South Korean-based LG Display announced it will be investing $1.75 billion in an attempt to meet the growing demand for flexible OLED displays, which are expected to replace LCDs for smartphones and other similar tech in the future.
Flexible OLEDs are already being utilized in several different pieces of tech, and LG is the largest creator of LCDs in the world. It’s been actively working on creating additional OLED screens for TVs and mobile phones, though it’s fallen behind Samsung Display Co Ltd., which happens to be the largest creator of OLEDs for phones. In response to this, LG Display is creating a new production line for small and medium flexible OLED screens in South Korea.
The new production line, E6, is scheduled to begin mass production in the second half of 2018 and is set to produce 15,000 inupt sheets per month. It looks like we’ll be seeing a lot more out of LG Display in the future as far as flexible OLEDs go, however this is an intriguing turn of events as the company announced Wednesday that its second-quarter operating profit had fallen a whopping 91 percent from the previous year.
Source: LG Display
BBC to reboot game-powered TV show ‘Time Commanders’
Ready for some more BBC nostalgia? Following the carnage of last weekend’s Robot Wars (a great reboot, in my opinion) the broadcaster is turning its attention to Time Commanders. The game show, which simulated historical battles, originally aired on BBC Two — first in 2003 with a 16-episode run, then with a shorter 8-episode series in 2005. Four contestants would band together and take on different roles; one pair would act as generals while the other co-ordinated troops on the ground. Throughout the show, a group of historians would analyse the team’s moves and compare the outcome to what happened in real life.
Each simulation was based on Rome: Total War, a strategy role-playing game developed by The Creative Assembly. The British studio will be returning to help with the new series — it confirmed as much on Twitter — although it’s not clear exactly which game will be adapted. (Probably not Total War: Warhammer.) The new series will be produced by Lion Television and shown on BBC Four. The premiere date is a mystery, however you can apply to be a contestant up until September 1st, indicating that the show is still in a pre-production stage.
The return of Time Commanders! Think you have the strategic expertise to redefine history in front of a TV audience? https://t.co/ooTNnMTu05
— Total War (@totalwar) July 26, 2016
Given its long hiatus, the BBC is tweaking the show’s format slightly. Two teams of three will now appear in each episode, taking on a simulation pre-programmed by the show’s historical experts. They’ll then face each other in “one of history’s biggest battles,” presumably crowing some kind of victor each week. Honestly, we can’t wait. Time Commanders was a refreshing blend of historical documentary and game show, with Total War serving as a solid foundation. The RTS franchise has, of course, evolved since then, meaning new episodes should look and feel more immersive.
Via: Videogamer
Source: BBC, Total War (Twitter)
NFL Network and RedZone are coming to PlayStation Vue
PlayStation Vue just became much more enticing if you’re a fan of American football. Sony has announced that both NFL Network and NFL RedZone will be available by the time the regular NFL season kicks off this fall. It’s not clear what packages will include the channels, but you will get typical Vue features (such as a cloud DVR and simultaneous streams) and access through the NFL’s dedicated apps and websites. Combined with ESPN and other sports coverage on Vue, you may not have much reason to hold on to a conventional TV subscription if you’re all about the gridiron.
Source: PlayStation Blog
‘Star Trek: Discovery’ gets its first teaser at Comic-Con
At last, CBS is offering a glimpse of what its streaming-oriented Star Trek series will be like… if only just. The broadcaster used its San Diego Comic-Con panel to reveal that the show will be titled Star Trek: Discovery, and will revolve around the adventures of the crew of its namesake, the USS Discovery (no doubt inspired by the Space Shuttle of the same name). While the teaser trailer below shows only the starship in question, it’s enough to confirm that the visual language of Star Trek will remain intact when Discovery premieres in January.
Executive Producer Bryan Fuller didn’t dive into the specifics of the show at the panel. However, he noted that it’ll maintain the Star Trek legacy of optimistic, socially conscious tales while shifting to a more novel-like format. Don’t expect the classic formula where nearly every crisis is resolved by the end of an episode — as with many modern shows (especially online-only shows), there will strong incentives to go on a viewing spree. This is very much a Star Trek built for streaming services like CBS All Access and Netflix, where stories aren’t dictated by the limitations of conventional TV.
Witness the test flight of #StarTrekDiscovery, coming to #CBSAllAccess & CBS in January 2017 https://t.co/qLYrEF4ed7https://t.co/sROKlnAyXl
— Star Trek: Discovery (@startrekcbs) July 23, 2016
Via: Hollywood Reporter
Source: StarTrek.com, CBS
Sky+ gains a Top Picks section and more binge-watching features
As the viewing habits of its customers change, Sky has overhauled its programme guide and planner to better serve shows that people want to watch. The company’s new box, Sky Q, built on that by introducing Top Picks, a human-curated catalogue of programmes and movies that are too hot to miss. Now it’s rolling out to more customers as part of a new Sky+ update that makes it even easier to go on a binge-watching spree.
The rollout will see Top Picks placed at the bottom of the Sky+ homepage and will serve content from premium channels like Sky Atlantic and Sky Movies. But that’s not all. Sky customers can also enjoy the new “Download Next” feature, which automatically downloads and queues up the next episode of a series viewed via Catch Up, Sky Box Sets, Top Picks, Kids or Sports. Sky says the feature will be enabled by default but can be switched off via the Sky+ Customise menu.
Continuing on the binge-viewing theme, Sky will enable its “Continue Watching” feature that lets customers pick up from where the left, much in the same way as dedicated streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Video. Sky hopes that with its wide array of Box Sets and other exclusive content, you won’t want to binge on content offered by its rivals. The new features roll out from today and are expected to be available in millions of Sky+HD homes by the end of August.
AIVAnet 