Media

Amazon adds NBC shows like 'Grimm' to streaming catalog

Amazon on Thursday added several NBCUniversal titles to its Prime Instant Video streaming catalog, including "Grimm" and "Suits."

Prior seasons of "Grimm," an NBC fantasy drama based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tales, are available Thursday on Amazon, as is USA Network's "Suits" and "Covert Affairs." NBC's "Hannibal" psychological thriller will be available later this year, and Syfy's "Defiance" will be available early next year. USA Networks and Syfy are both owned by NBCUniversal.

All previous seasons are exclusive to Amazon, and Prime … Read more

'Star Wars' and 'Doctor Who' fans in altercation at sci-fi convention

I had always imagined that attendees at sci-fi conventions were peaceable sorts.

I know they turn up waving lightsabers and other implements of war, but I imagined that these served no greater threat to society than an elongated ball-finder at a golf course.

And yet word reaches me that fans of "Star Wars" were embroiled in a confrontation with aficionados of "Doctor Who" at a sci-fi convention in the U.K.

Alright, that word initially came from my religious reading of the Sun. But it is supported by reports from august organizations like the BBC.

It … Read more

Charges dropped against teen in science experiment 'bomb'

It's more enjoyable when sense doesn't prevail.

It allows for so much more humor and head-shaking.

However, Kiera Wilmot has probably shaken her head enough lately and will now be grateful for a little stillness.

Should you have been unaccountably arrested for expectorating in your high school cafeteria recently, you might not have heard about Wilmot.

One morning at Bartow High School in Florida, she put toilet cleaner and aluminum foil in a water bottle to see what might happen. It was just, she said, an experiment.

Even her school principal admitted that it merely sounded like a … Read more

Police accused of erasing cell phone footage of fatal beating

Cell phones seem to be causing the police increasing unease.

It's quite easy for ordinary people to film officers in the line of duty, and sometimes that duty can seem to be excessively dutiful.

This seems to be the view of Maria Melendez, who says she used her phone to film a case of what appeared to be fatal police brutality, only to have it confiscated without a warrant. Worse, reports are now emerging that some of the footage may have been deleted by the police.

As The New York Times reports, Melendez was leaving the Kern Medical Center … Read more

TV bakery enjoys astonishing Facebook melt down

"You people are all s***. Yelp s***, Reddits s***. Every s***. Come to here, I will f***ing show you all."

On reading these words in isolation, you might imagine they were written by someone whose senses had departed for chillier climes. Or perhaps merely by an exposed politician, contemplating a loss of fame and privileges.

But, no. These words actually adorn the Facebook page of Amy's Baking Company Bakery Boutique & Bistro in Scottsdale, Ariz.

The name is something of a mouthful, but the sentiments expressed by its management (yes, these words are from the management) … Read more

Watch ABC app arrives with live TV for iOS, Web

ABC's new live TV video service Watch ABC has arrived on smartphones, tablets, and the Web, though its availability is highly limited for now.

Disney/ABC on Tuesday announced the availability of the live programming feature in its mobile app in New York City as well as Philadelphia though local respective networks WABC-TV and WPVI. The update adds a "live" button to ABC's newly renamed Watch ABC software for iOS devices that lets users in those markets watch live streams of those two stations, just like they would on a TV.

News of the feature came over the weekend … Read more

Do Not Track fine-tuning in Firefox 21

A more granular approach to how Firefox has implemented the controversial "Do Not Track" setting leads off the changes to Firefox 21, which updated on Tuesday. Also in the browser is support for more social networks including MSN Now and a "Firefox Health Report."

More options for the Social API, which debuted at the end of last year with Facebook Messenger integration, allows Firefox 21 (download for Windows | Mac | Linux) to work with MSN Now, Cliqz, China's Weibo, and the Japan-only Mixi. While there's no doubt that they're not even on a scale … Read more

Square unveils Stand for Register merchants

SAN FRANCISCO--Aiming to help Square Register merchants who have had no standard hardware, Square today unveiled a stand meant to hold an iPad and make for an easy and common point-of-sale experience.

At a press event across the street from Square's office, the mobile payment company's CEO, Jack Dorsey, and Jesse Dorogusker, who leads the Square Register team, showed off Stand, its new hardware intended to give merchants a streamlined way, and a single aesthetic, to accept payments.

The problem, said Dorsey, is that merchants have had no single method to take payments using Square Register. Around the … Read more

Twitter going deeper with ESPN

If you like sports highlights but spend more time on social networks than watching TV, Twitter and ESPN are going to do their best to meet your needs.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Twitter and ESPN plan to announce tomorrow a deepening of their existing relationship, agreeing on a pact under which the leading sports channel will unveil a wide variety of highlight clips in its tweets. The videos would be available on Twitter "shortly after" they take place live.

Naturally, the new arrangement -- which expands on a pact signed in December under which ESPN began … Read more