Internet

Amazon has scored the rights to stream a new CBS TV series called "Under the Dome."

Based on a Stephen King novel and produced by CBS and Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television, the new show will air on CBS TV starting June 24. And just four days after that, the series will be available for streaming to Amazon Prime members.

The deal between Amazon and CBS (which is also the parent company of CNET) means that Amazon Prime Instant Video will be the exclusive online home for "Under the Dome." Amazon Prime subscribers will be able … Read more

Netflix users who want to tune int o the new "House of Cards" series can watch all 13 episodes as of today.

Based on a BBC miniseries, "House of Cards" is a drama that takes place in the political underbelly of Washington, D.C., with all the elements designed to lure viewers -- sex, greed, and corruption. The series stars Kevin Spacey as a Washington congressmen with Robin Wright as his wife. They will "stop at nothing to conquer everything," according to the show's description.

Co-produced by Spacey and Oscar-nominated director David Fincher, … Read more

A couple of senators in Washington want to make sure people in the U.S. never have to pay taxes for Internet access.

Passed in 1998, the Internet Tax Freedom Act prevents federal, state, and local governments from collecting sales taxes on the use of e-mail and other types of Internet access. The bill is due to expire November of next year.

New legislation introduced yesterday by Republican Sens. Kelly Ayotte (N.H.) and Dean Heller (Nev.) is designed to extend the ban indefinitely. The Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act would stop governments from imposing new taxes on Internet access.… Read more

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

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey calls Vine an all-new art form. Maybe he's right (though the six-second video clips created with Twitter's new app owe a debt to animated GIFs, home movies, YouTube, TV commercials, stop-motion animation, filmmaking in general, and other forms of visual storytelling). Regardless, it's true that Vine has suddenly thrust something new into the hands of a great mass of people, and made it supereasy for everyone to get into the act of saying something quickly with moving images (and then sharing what they've said with, perhaps, millions). And that's bound to lead to some exciting discoveries. … Read more

I have been barely able to sleep for concern about Laura Safe.

She is the radio newscaster who, last week, was so enamored of texting her lover, that she walked down some shopping mall steps and plunged into a canal.

As this happened in my hometown of Birmingham, England, I have been contacting those I still know there concerned that, perhaps, her radio voice might have become a little garbled or nervy after the escapade. … Read more

Fredik Neij, Gottfrid Svartholm Warg, and Peter Sunde, founders of popular file-sharing site The Pirate Bay, are about to hit the big screen.

A documentary on the notorious site, titled "TPB AFK" (The Pirate Bay Away From Keyboard), will debut February 8 at the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival.

The filmmakers will also release the documentary online under a Creative Commons license, allowing others to share and use the film in their own works for free. A date has yet to be announced for the online release. … Read more

Justin Bieber has wowed his way to the top of the Twitter ranks.

The teen singer now has the highest number of followers in the Twittersphere, according to data from Web site Twitter Counter. Wooing 33.38 million fans to follow his every tweet, Bieber has shot past fellow singer Lady Gaga with 33.36 million followers.

Gaga's reign as the queen of Twitter lasted two and a half years, a spokesman for Twitter Counter told Reuters yesterday.

Bieber is also high on the list for the sheer number of tweets posted at 20,545 so far, an average … Read more

Those of you who play games from Amazon on your computer or over the Web will now be able to buy virtual items directly in the game.

Unveiled today, the new in-app purchasing service allows developers to set up their games so players can pay for virtual goods and currencies using their Amazon accounts. Previously, only Android and Kindle games in the Android Appstore were able to offer the in-app buying option. Now the feature extends to Amazon games for Windows PCs, Macs, and the Web.

Gamers wil find titles for the PC and Mac at Amazon's Digital Games store. … Read more