Category Archives: Variety (Print)

Apple ups showbiz-friendly features in iPad

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As Hollywood continues to expand its options for how and where auds access its content, Apple is amping up the capabilities of the devices on which they consume that content, announcing Wednesday the forthcoming release of a 4G-compatible iPad, a high-def version of its Apple TV device and the expansion of its iCloud storage service to include movies.

Following much speculation regarding what innovations the next-generation iPad would feature, the company revealed that the new tablets will harness the next generation of 4G networks of Verizon, AT&T and other carriers worldwide and feature the Retina display that’s now part of the iPhone.

Read more at Daily Variety

LulzSec hackers face federal charges

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LulzSec, the hacker group that focused its attacks on entertainment studios during the summer of 2011 before vanishing as quickly as it appeared, has been caught.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday that it had charged five people with computer hacking and other crimes, and that a sixth — Hector Xavier Monsegur, better known as alleged LulzSec leader “Sabu” — had pled guilty to those charges.

Read more at Daily Variety

Durkin joins Activision as CFO

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Activision has lured a long-term senior Microsoft executive away from Redmond to become its new chief financial officer.

Dennis Durkin, a former corporate vice president and chief operating and financial officer at Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment Business, has joined the developer of “Call of Duty” and “World of Warcraft” — leaving Microsoft after a 12-year stint.

Read more at Daily Variety

Pirate Bay switches to tougher tech

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While news that the Pirate Bay, the biggest hub of online pirated content, has taken down all of its torrent links might seem like a reason for celebration in Hollywood, studios may want to keep the champagne corked for a while longer.

The infamous website, which has been a haven for people to download copyrighted content for years, stopped serving torrent files late Tuesday — but immediately switched to a new file-sharing system that will make it harder, Pirate Bay believes, for officials to determine who has downloaded a file using the site.

Read more at Daily Variety

Blizzard to shed 600 staffers

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“World of Warcraft” creator Blizzard Entertainment, which had been immune from broad staff cuts throughout its 20-plus-year existence, announced plans Wednesday to slash 600 positions from its payroll.

Roughly 60 of those jobs will be game developers, with the rest coming from other divisions. While the company did not specify precisely where it will trim the extra workers, industry observers expect the majority to come from the customer-service unit.

Read more at Daily Variety

iPhone brings cinematography to masses

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As studios continue the transition from film to digital, the indie filmmaking community is going through a metamorphosis of its own.

The introduction of video recording options on Digital SLR cameras opened a lot of doors for budding auteurs on a budget, but advances to the camera quality of the latest iPhone could bring a flood of new offerings from people who haven’t previously been able to afford quality video equipment.

Read more at Daily Variety

Adult fare missing from CES

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There’s something missing from this year’s CES: porn stars.

While TVs and tablets dominate the world’s largest tech confab, CES attendees often save some attention for the nearby Adult Entertainment Expo. This year, though, the two shows don’t coincide and it’s like the loss of a familiar, if slightly sketchy, cousin at a family dinner.

Read more at Daily Variety

Falling prices may unlock 3D

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The prosumer and mass market audiences don’t tend to run in parallel — especially when it comes to cameras. But when it comes to 3D, they seem to agree on one thing: Price is king.

3D capture technology is certainly intriguing to both groups, but few view it as essential — and the cost of entry has, thus far, been rather prohibitive. As the field continues to evolve, though, that might be changing.

Read more at Daily Variety