Apple- Microsoft - CBS - Landmark - MediaBytes March 6, 2008

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 Silverlight. Move’s software adjusts video quality in real-time to match a user’s Internet connection speed. It is already at work on sites for ABC, ESPN, FOX and more. The deal is a major boost for Move. Its plug-in software will be distributed with every copy of Silverlight, which Microsoft is expected to push aggressively. CBS is streaming the most online video of the major networks, according to comScore’s latest data. In December, the network streamed 104 million minutes of content. NBC streamed 62 million minutes, ABC streamed 28 million and FOX did a lowly 2 million minutes. In related news, NBC released data showing that 77% of online NBC Rewind viewers use the service to complement regular television viewing. The network also claims it is seeing an increase in brand recall rates and that viewers find the online video ads less disruptive than traditional TV ads. LANDMARK COMMUNICATIONS is accepting preliminary bids for The Weather Channel and interested buyers reportedly include NBC, CBS, Disney, Time Warner, Comcast and Liberty Media. Landmark has previously said it is seeking $5 billion for the property, which includes weather.com — one of the top 20 sites with over 30 million users. The first round of non-binding bids ends tomorrow. ZIFF DAVIS has filed for bankruptcy protection, citing problems stemming from the declining print business. Read more at http://www.ShellyPalmer.com

Blip | March 6, 2008

Tags:. .content. .already. .allowing. .related. .less