channel

YouTube code refers to paid channel subscriptions

Paid channel subscriptions on YouTube may be closer than previously thought.

After reports last month that YouTube was considering offering channels that would require a fee to access them, code has now appeared that suggests Google is already laying the software foundation for subscription channels.

According to the Android Police site, the latest version of YouTube for Android includes two lines of code that refer to paid channel subscriptions. The code, apparently intended to generate messages on users' screens, say:

You can only subscribe to this paid channel on your computer. You can only unsubscribe from this paid channel on … Read more

Do separate components sound better than AV receivers?

There's no doubt that the best of today's receivers sound great and come jam-packed with a vast range of features. Even entry-level models paired with a decent 5.1 speaker/subwoofer system can do a fine job, but some buyers aim higher. They may have invested in a 65-inch or larger display, or maybe a video projector and a 120-inch screen. They crave a sound that matches the grandeur of the picture, and they can get that only with separate components like the Outlaw Audio Model 975 Surround Processor and Model 7125 Power Amp.

The Model 975 Surround … Read more

Google to nab e-commerce firm Channel Intelligence for $125M

Google has signed a deal to acquire e-commerce-solutions company Channel Intelligence for $125 million in cash.

Channel's parent company, ICG, announced the deal today.

Channel's technologies are designed to boost the sale of products online. The company offers a Facebook platform, product search engines, and other services created for companies looking to improve product sales. Channel, based near Orlando, Fla., claims that it "drives $2 billion in sales annually in referred sales online in computing products, home improvement products, appliances, consumer electronics, toys and a variety of other consumer packaged goods."

Google is obviously no stranger … Read more

YouTube to try out paid channel subscriptions, says AdAge

Would you pay to watch a YouTube channel?

The company is aiming to introduce paid channel subscriptions this year, according to a story out today from AdAge.

Citing "multiple people familiar with the plans," AdAge reports that YouTube has already talked to a small selection of producers about developing channels that would require a fee. The first such channels would reportedly cost users between $1 and $5 a month, according to two of the sources.

The paid channels would likely be created by large media outfits, such as Machinima, Maker Studios, and Fullscreen, whose current channels have already … Read more

Sony said to be developing online TV service

Word on the street is that Sony is creating a Net-connected multichannel television service that could roll out as soon as this year, according to Variety. Purportedly, the company is in talks with at least two big content companies about channel licensing.

Such a service would put Sony in direct competition with both satellite and cable TV, as well as other tech companies that are branching out into the television market, such as Intel; Google, with Google Fiber; and Dish.

This isn't the first time rumors have floated that Sony has been looking to develop a TV service. In … Read more

YouTube makes it easier to link to Google+

YouTube began gently prodding all users operating under nicknames like cutepuppies99 and origamiboys1981 to start using their real names last July. It did this by urging them to hook their Google Plus profiles up with their YouTube channel and therefore, by default, they'd have to use their real names.

Now, the video service is letting users keep their anonymous name but is still giving them the option of linking to their Google+ page. It's even giving people the option of changing their Google+ name to match their YouTube channel identity.

"While using a full name from a … Read more

The 404 1,165: Where we roll into flavor town (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- NY Times posts violent takedown review of Guy Fieri's new restaurant in Times Square, New York.

- Travel Channel's Anthony Bourdain rips into Guy Fieri.

- Guy Fieri's last name isn't really Fieri.

- How Sony is turning into a ghost in Japan and around the world.

- Seriously though, how cool is this vintage Sony Sports transistor radio?

- Head to Sonyvintage.com for more photos and specs on vintage Sony hi-fi products.

- Japanese photo booth 3D prints mini models of an entire human being.

Bathroom break video: Grand Theft Auto V gets a new trailer and screenshots.… Read more

BlackBerry 10 gets launch date

CNET Update starts the countdown:

Mark the calendar on January 30. That's when Research in Motion will launch the next BlackBerry phones. Also in Monday's tech news roundup:

- Facebook is testing out new features. Some users can reply directly to someone's comment on a post, according to Mashable. And VentureBeat reports Facebook is also testing notification sounds.

- A preview of the Skype app for Windows Phone 8 is now available to download.

- YouTube will cut funding to about half of the original shows it backed last year, according to Ad Age.

- Apple and … Read more

Half of YouTube's original video content partners won't make cut

Just like programming in the traditional TV world, many YouTube-backed channels providing original programming won't be back for another season.

About a year after the video-sharing site launched an ambitious program to challenge the cable industry by investing $100 million into the development of dozens of new YouTube channels, many of those channels will not receive a second round of funding.

YouTube plans to provide funding to only 30 percent to 40 percent of its original content providers, with programming partners learning their fate over the next couple of weeks, Ad Age reports.

"Our biggest objective was to … Read more