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After targeting Web sites for copyright infringement for years, Hollywood is now setting its sights on mobile apps, according to Reuters.

Time Warner, Walt Disney, Sony, Viacom, and Twentieth Century Fox have all recently sent app "take down" notices to Google. Citing copyright infringement, these studios are demanding that the Web giant remove apps that use the likeness of characters in their movies or TV shows.

One of the offending apps is "Hobbit 3D Wallpaper HD," which has images from the popular movie, according to Reuters. Other apps are from movies like "Clash of the … Read more

Google today pushed out a new update to its YouTube app for iOS that lets users push videos to game consoles, certain TV sets, and other set-top boxes.

A new "send to TV" feature lets users pair the mobile app with a compatible set-top box or TV set. Those videos then show up on the TV, and the controls and other information are displayed on the mobile device as a remote of sorts.

Google introduced the feature for Android and its Google TV devices last November. iOS users with the YouTube app (iTunes), and other video applications have … Read more

Google recently rolled out Google sign-ins affording Web and app developers the ability to have users sign in with Google credentials. Once an app is integrated with Google sign-in, data from the app can then be shared to Google+ much like sharing data with Facebook has occurred for a while now.

In order for the apps on your Android device to be compatible with the new system, an update to Google Play Services is required. There's nothing you need to do for the update to happen, it all takes place in the background and normally you wouldn't notice … Read more

Sony's PlayStation 4 is a major step forward for the games industry, according to an Electronic Arts executive.

Speaking yesterday at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media, and Telecom Conference, EA Chief Technical Officer Rajat Taneja said that the PlayStation 4 has "8 to 10 times the power" of current-generation consoles, making it a "gigantic leap for the industry."

Polygon, a PlayStation news site, attended the event and reported on Taneja's comments.

Sony unveiled its PlayStation 4 last week. The company said the console will offer a gaming experience superior to current-generation devices, thanks to … Read more

Sony PlayStation 4 The current hot topic in console gaming, the just-announced PlayStation 4, is still largely an enigma. We don't know how much the PS4 will cost, when it's being released (beyond "holiday 2013"), or even what it looks like.

For now, it's still the next-gen hardware to beat, and what little we do know sounds impressive, with an entirely new system architecture based on an X86 AMD CPU/GPU that should make the PS4 easier to develop for and more flexible (and, frankly, more PC-like).

But 2013 will take the traditional three-way console … Read more

DoubleTwist, maker of the popular eponymous music player software, has teamed up with chip maker Qualcomm in an attempt to make wireless streaming easier for Android users. The fruit of their collaboration is dubbed MagicPlay, a new open-source wireless streaming platform that the two companies hope OEMs will integrate into present and future devices.

Built atop Qualcomm's already existing AllJoyn platform, DoubleTwist's MagicPlay can stream to wireless speakers, headphones, televisions, and other devices. Since MagicPlay is open-source, any number of devices or apps could potentially integrate its code and stream to hardware that has a Qualcomm chip and … Read more

It sounds ideal. Take all those DVDs and Blu-rays you own and, from the comfort of your own home, effortlessly gain digital copies for a low price. That's the promise of Vudu's new "In-Home Disc to Digital" service. Vudu delivers on that promise in some cases but disappoints in other ways.

Last year, Walmart-owned Vudu launched its Disc to Digital service that required people to go into Walmart stores for the conversion. Who wants to do that? This is where the "In-Home" version of Disc to Digital comes … Read more

Editor's note: It's official. Microsoft has announced the future of Xbox (and the next console) will be revealed at an event in Redmond, Washington on May 21.

Press events are a tricky beast. No one ever said they were easy to pull off. But with Sony casting the first stone in the next-generation console gaming war, Microsoft can learn a lot from what worked and what didn't.

When the lights went up, Sony execs were shaking hands and congratulating each other. But the packed house at … Read more