Are Magazines Going Digital?

With the creation of the nook, specialized to read books digitally, now magazines are similarly producing the same thing. Only two magazines had made their way into the digital world. "Esquire and GQ — have developed iPhone versions, while Wired and Sports Illustrated have made mockups of tablet versions of their print editions, months before any such tablets come to market". In result, some magazine companies are creating models of how they would look on the tablets. Sports illustrated for one, has created their model of how the magazine would look digitally.

Thomas J. Wallace, the editorial director of Condé Nast, said that he expected the design of using magazines on tablets to evolve among consumers who will use it; making it more conveinent in how people are going to accept and use it. besides GQ and esquire, other magazines are thinking about creating Iphone apps for their magazines as well. Everything that is happening with technology is only going to evolve even more. Radio, music, television, and now magazines are all in the future for more technology upgrades.

I think that magazines on tablets is not my kind of thing. I mean it's okay for anybody who is really interested in the whole digital magazine" thing. but I rather do it the old fashion way and buy or subscribe to magazines as MAGAZINES, not tablet magazines. In other words, if it is going to sell fast, then it is gong to be popular among the consumers.

Comcast Introduces Their Streaming Television Service

Comcast, who is considered the largest cable company, is now allowing customers who can stream television online. They made it is useful for those who wanted to catch tv programs that were previously not available. " It said the new service, “Fancast Xfinity TV,” was a major step toward what it calls “anytime, anywhere media.” They declared that this will make it more easier for cable programming anywhere and everywhere. This was the first time that a cable company had actually produced something like this; and it is only available to those who have tv, telephone, and internet combined.

However, the internet cable tv will determine what shows will be premiering online. Not every channel that you receive on regular cable will be broadcasted online. Hulu, the leading Web site for free TV viewing, will not be available. It was said that comcast had this idea of streaming television online since last summer; they called it 'testing the waters' and now they have decided to go along with it.

In my oppinion, I think this only makes comcast more popular than it already is. However other cable companies may try to do the same thing, since it is all about competition. Just like how every cable company is offering the triple package with tv, phone, and internet all in one. Other companies doesnt want to look bad, so they decide to try and make their package better than the other competitions. I use to have comcast, and I have to say that their quality for tv is excellent, in comparision to direct tv; which is another popular cable company as well. So I think it is up to the custmers and how well they use this streaming idea.

is Apple Heading Into the Music Business?

With all of Apple's success, one may think, "what are they going to do next?" Well Apple just may be branching off into the music business. Yes, with ipods and iphones who are specifically made ofr music and a thousand other things, and a better way to do that is to buy and own a music company. they had bought a web music company called, "LaLa', which cost them roughly $80 million to do so. It was predicted that in the future, "the digital music files on people’s computers could possibly join vinyl records, cassette tapes and CDs in the dusty vault of fading music formats."

More than a decade ago, the recording industry was grossing approximately $40 million in annual sales, recently, it is only grossing in half that amount; and the total sales of digital downloading has faced a tremendous decrease. I think this could be a good idea because even though many people may have a collection of artists on their ipods or iphones, they rather stream music instead and find their favorite aritsts more rapidly. However, in order to stream their music, consumers may be asked to pay a small fee in subscription, in order to listen to music unlimitedly.

Another radio service that is widely popular among the iphones is pandora. Pandora, is a free Internet radio service, that offers an applications for iPhone, and the company says that 30 percent of its listeners connect over cellphones. in my oppinion, I havent used the internet on my ipod touch yet, but I would really interested in using the streaming of music apple has to offer.

AT&T quits on Verizon

It was said that AT&T was fed up with how verizon was supposedly stealing their catch-phrases in advertising apps. There 'We have an app for that' is verizons "We have a map for that" is what really caused this big feud among the companies. Therefore AT&T had planned to take their case to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia in their attempt to sue verizion. AT&T had wanted temporary restraining order on using their advettising techniques because they felt that it was diminishing their sales, in result to the commercials. "Two weeks ago, a judge tossed out AT&T's request for a temporary restraining order and a permanent injunction to stop the ads, but scheduled a hearing to give the AT&T attorneys another chance to make their case."

In result, on wednesday, dec 2nd, 2009, AT&T decided to drop their lawsuit against verizon and decided to sign a joint agreement to dismiss the case alltogether. I think that this was a waste on both parties time because the lawsuit was dropped in the end. I mean AT&T did have a point because verizon did seem like they were taking shots at AT&T for the app commercial. But I dont think they would've won the case because verizon was is a phone company just like t-mobile and sprint, so they're all competitors with each other. I just think that cosumers are going to go with whom ever they think serves their needs properly. It may be AT&T or verizon, or neither.

Both companies are doing successfully well in what they're trying to do....sell products. For me, I have at&t, so I dont think I will be switching over to a different carrier just because the commericial looks good. Theres more to that than just one commercial in order to sell somebody. However its like the old saying goes, " to each his own".

Is Google a Worthy Competitor To Apple?

Finally, it seems that apple has met a worthy competitor among them...Google. So far, nobody couldn't beat what apple was offering year after year; with Iphones and ipods, new features was added every year to make them even more high-tech. Now google comes forth with their on smartphone in the works, which is scheduled to hit the market early next year. The new "Android" is said to be touch-screen and enables any consumer to use any carrier that they have.

I think google does have an edge over other carriers with this one because many carriers have nice phones that you can only use for that specific carrier. For example, the sidekicks were very popular and everybody wanted one; however t-mobile was the only carrier that you can get it from. According to the New York Times, "The apparent shift underscores the fact that mobile phones are quickly becoming the biggest technology battleground of the future, as consumers increasingly rely on their phones to browse the Internet and perform other computing tasks."

I think that is true because more and more people are beginning to use their phones for the internet. Not saying that computers are going to diminish, because phones may enable people to use the internet, but they can't DO everything. Although google is very successful, analysts say that with Google's success on the internet, there is no guarantee that it will carry on into it's design, marketing, and distribution of hardware. The new android could earn google some success depending on how the price the phone "Most Americans buy phones that are subsidized by wireless carriers, which recoup that cost by locking customers into contracts.

IPhones that cost consumers $199 actually cost AT&T about $550, analysts say." In my opinion, I really think this is going to be some good competition for both companies because they're both successful in what they bring to the entertainment/media world.

Are DVDs and Blue Ray Discs Slowly Diminishing?

Back in the old days, way before dvds were even mentioned to be created, there were cassette tapes. All of our favorite movies to buy, were solely recorded and sold in thst type of form. Now since it's a new generation, and things have gotten more digital, many movie studios [mainly] in Los Angeles] have gotten a little about the future of DVDs and blue ray discs. What will become the post-DVD era? It is true that digital entertainment is widely the most popular in getting movies and television shows; especially since they can be streamed and downloaded on computers, internet-enabled televisions, and mobile devices. However, since Dvds and blue ray discs are still somewhat popular, no one wouldn't want to put a permanent stop on these sales, in such retail stores like Wal-mart.

The profits of dvds and blue ray discs have took a slight shift in sales within this year. Due to the recession and other important details, there is some speculation that dvds and blue ray disc will never regain the power they once had. According the Disney headquarters, they have announced that they will be launching their own system to track digital ownership. This system was developed so people will be able to stream and download their favorite programs on many different devices, instead of buying the same program on different devices.

There are countless problems that need to be resolved, in the battle between digital entertainment vs. dvd and blue ray discs. The industry believes that consumers will be more reluctant to buy these programs, until there is a way of watching them on different devices. Home entertainment divisions had decreased about 3.2 percent, leaving with only $4billion from a year ago. Although the digital contribution racked in approximately $420 million, with an increase of 18 percent. Since Walt Disney seems to be the head company in creating this portable, yet digital entertainment, I would like to see how people would respond to it. In my opinion, it seems like a very good idea; to stream movies and television shows on several different devices. However, I am still into buying dvds as well. So who really knows how far this new idea will go.

How Effective Will The Nook Actually Be?

There are many electronic devices that are able to read to read the newspaper, documents, etc. So what makes the Nook so much better than the rest? Barnes & Noble, one of the nations largest bookstores, had created such a device, that it enables you to download reading books onto it. The Nook, is priced at a lengthy $259, and is expected to ship out late November. While Amazon is dubbed to be the largest electronic market for readers, Barnes & Nobles were on step ahead in opening there e-bookstore in July, and many editions are available on epub, and adobe pdf versions as well. These versions can also be downloaded to an iphone, blackberry, macs, and pcs.

The Nook is somewhat of a sleek device. It features a six-inch gray and white reading screen, along with a color touch screen control panel. Those that are eager to download ebooks, can do so by using the wi-fi network in any of the Barnes & Noble locations. Those who are AT&T carriers, can also access and download books by using the 3G network. In my oppinion, the Nook seems like an electronic library for reading. It also has similar rules and policies of an actual library. Those who take out books, can use them for a limited time of 14 days. However, the downside is, you cannot read the book on your own nook while it is in possession of someone else.

It seems like a clever idea in putting reading books onto an electronic device, but I don't think I will be buying this one. I still like the fact of going to an actual library and checking out books physically, then just downloading them onto an electronic book reader. Like the old saying goes, "To each, his own".

The White House Gives Off Some "Latin Flavor" During Hispanic Heritage Month

Aside from the previous events that the white house has held in the past, this was the first time something of the hispanic orgin, was celebrated. During the month of september, the 15th to be exact, was the beginning of hispanic heritage month; it had lasted all the way up till october 15th. A month long countless people coming together in unision, celebrating there hispanic bacground. What better way to end it, by inviting the biggest latinos and latinas in the entertainment, to share their latin culture with the Obamas? Now thats awesome!

The event, "Fiesta Latina" was held tuesday, october 6th, in a tent on the South Lawn of the White House. Stars like, Gloria Estefan, Marc Anthony, Jennifer Lopez, Jose Feliciano, the Bachata Group, Aventura, and more. However, most of the performers were Americans, but shared their musical roots of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Dominican Republic. The evening turned out to be quite a success; and President Obama had this to say, in regards to the event: " Although Latin Music takes many forms, the spirit of diversity also unifies us; Even though it's constantly evolving, Latin music speaks to us all in a language we can understand about hope and joy, sorrow and pain, friendship, and love." Clearly the Obama family were surely enjoying themselves, bobbing their heads and singing along to these catchy tunes.

Among the crowd, were Hispanic legislators, the cabinet secretaries of Labor (Hilda Solis), the interior (Ken Salazar), and the Bronx-bred herself, the first hispanic supreme court justice, Sonia Sotomayor. The concert had ended with all the musicians performing "Mi Tierra" (My Land"), which was a tribute to all immigrants. My Obama, along with his family, joined the musicians onstage, and widely participated in the closing performance. In relation to it being hispanic heritage month, Eva longoria had stated, " One day we will have a Latino president". With the nations first black president in Barack Obama, who knows what the future will hold in presidency.

Tablet PCs, Are They More High-Tech Than Laptops?

For decades, many types of computers were invented. However, year after year, they seem to become more or less efficient; it would solely be based upon the people who purchase them. Therefore, the first electronic PC computer, the "701" was invented through IBM in 1953, and the the first laptop computer was also invented through IBM in 1984. After years and years of these electronic devices, you would think that they would contain all of the things people wished they could do.

Now it's 2009 and we have re-discovered the tablet PCs...only better? According to the New York Times, " Tablet PCs have been around for more than two decades, but they couldn't perform as much as the new-improved ones that are one the market now. They have also caught the attention of tech executives, bloggers, and gadget hounds". It is possible that they will produce more cons than pros to the publishing industries. Nonetheless, for many years, microsoft has been producing different software products for previous tablet-like devices in the past. Unfortunately, they had failed in their attempts, when Bill Gates had declared in 2001, that the tablets would become one of the hottest electronic devices within five years into the future.

There are more than several companies who are willing to test the waters, in selling these keyboard free, touch-screen machines. Therefore Apple, and Microsoft are the top two companies, who are competing to sell. In my opinion, I am impartial on how I feel about these new tablet pcs. I guess people would have to get more information about them and wait and see how they sell, once they enter the market.

Is Spanglish Music Becoming More Popular?

How is it that someone's favorite spanish artists and english artists come together in collaboration and make hits? That's awesome! That is why it's "spanglish" people! Of course not many people are hip to the genre that is re-inventing it's self. The music industry is no doubt about it, "fickle", but once good music is made, you can't help but bob your head to the beat-flowing sound it gives off. Although Spanglish music has been around for quite some time, it wasn;t truly given its recognition until recently. This past summer, 50 cent had collaborated with reggeaton's top duo " El Duo Del Dynamico",in english,"The Dynamic Duo"; and yes for all my hispanic people, it's Wisin Y yandel. They had collaborated with 50 cent for their single, "Mujeres en el club". According to mtv.com, 50 cent may have re-created the trend, as more urban artists seem to be hooking up with spanish-language artists. Now shifting into another spanish genre is bachata. The seductive, spanish r&b counterpart to regular r&b. It was orginated in santo domingo, dominican republic during the late 70s. In those times it was considered the "classic bachata". However when bachata's hottest group, Aventura hit the seen in 2001, they had forever changed the genre. Also this urban-spanglish group had hooked up with another hot mainstream artist, akon. After 50 cent's success with wisin y yandel, akon decided to also transfer his talents into the spanish world. This summer, he had joined the bachata stars, "Aventura" to shoot their video, "All Up to You" in Miami; along with Wisin y Yandel. Anthony "Romeo" Santos, lead singer of aventura, had this to say to mtv news about collaborating with Akon: " Working with Akon, it was an experience. We've never worked with an artist this huge". Of course I can't lie, I am a HUGE fan of aventura and wisin y yandel. What better is to join two powerful forces of spanish music, alongside a talented mainstream artist like akon, and creat something hot? It's the rebirth of spanglish music. However there were more collaborations in the works for other spanish and english artists as well. Calle 13, another grammy-winning reggaeton group, has possibly put into works of hooking up with Nas for their new album. As I see it, spanglish is growing even bigger, and it's not going nowhere anytime soon!

Akon Works With Latino Stars Aventura, Wisin Y Yandel

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