Several weeks ago, I was approached by Big Honcho Media about running a Semi-Pro promotion on SportsWrap. I've been approached by many media / marketing companies - but Big Honcho Media was really terrific.
I was impressed with every interaction and exchange - from emails to the logo-stamped deliveries. In addition to the iPod Shuffles they provided as prizes, Big Honcho sent over a series of unique Semi-Pro gifts (socks, t-shirt, head band) and a hand written thank you card.
Very impressed!
Exciting news for coffee and internet addicts like me: Starbucks has decided to ditch T-Mobile for AT&T and offer two free hours of usage a day (an extra two hours costs $3.99). Brilliant move for a few reasons:
* I always believed that it was in Starbucks benefit to keep customers in the store * This should increase sales of high priced, high margin foods (in addition to their coffees) * An AT&T deal makes a lot more sense considering Starbuck's ties with Apple and iTunes * The T-Mobile internet service package is lousy (slow, logs you out, never remember passwords, etc)
Now I just need Starbucks to offer those free-refills in cities outside of Seattle...
I've written about Blu-Ray's domination over HD-DVD and this latest development is even more telling. When I purchased my Sony PS3 for Blu-Ray movies, I immediately signed up with Netflix as I didn't own a single title. At the time, Netflix offered Blu-Ray and HD-DVD movies - but today, Netflix is announcing that they will only carry Blu-Ray movies going forward.
Stunning move. For a company with such rich user data and popular trends, Netflix must realize that HD-DVD is simply dying (or dead):
With the industry now having picked a winner in the face-off between the two competing high- definition DVD formats, Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) , the world's largest online movie rental service, today said that it will move toward stocking high-def DVDs exclusively in the Blu-ray format.
Citing the decision by four of the six major movie studios to publish high-def DVD titles only in the Sony-developed Blu-ray format, Netflix said that as of now it will purchase only Blu-ray discs and will phase out by roughly year's end the alternative high-def format, HD DVD, developed by Toshiba.
Since the first high-definition DVDs came on the market in early 2006, Netflix has stocked both formats. But the company said that in recent months the industry has stated its clear preference for Blu-ray and that it now makes sense for the company to initiate the transition to a single format.
"The prolonged period of competition between two formats has prevented clear communication to the consumer regarding the richness of the high-def experience versus standard definition," said Ted Sarandos, chief content officer for Netflix. "We're now at the point where the industry can pursue the migration to a single format, bring clarity to the consumer and accelerate the adoption of high-def. Going forward, we expect that all of the studios will publish in the Blu-ray format and that the price points of high-def DVD players will come down significantly. These factors could well lead to another decade of disc-based movie watching as the consumer's preferred means."
More also at Silicon Alley Insider and Engadget
I purchased a Playstation 3 to go along with my new 1080p-capable television specifically to play Blu-Ray movies. In fact, I've had the system for a couple months now and don't own a single game for it. I am not a big video game player as: 1) I don't have the patience to make play games that require hours and hours to complete 2) I don't have the cleverness to beat non-sports games (even Mario Galaxy is too complex for me) 3) I'm just not very good at first-person games (which really started with N64's GoldenEye and is now nearly every non-sports title)
But my Andrew Machado loaned Uncharted: Drakes Fortune to me and convinced me that I had to try it - if for no reason other than to demonstrate the PS3's capabilities.
Simply put - it's stunning. Uncharted looks and moves like a movie. Graphically, it's astonishing. The game moves seamlessly without scene-by-scene loading delays. The audio is terrific and the game movements are fluid and natural.
While I likely won't beat Uncharted (for the reasons stated above) - I am incredibly impressed by the machine and the game.
Need yet another reason to buy a PS3 and convert to Blu Ray? Here is more proof that Blu Ray has won the HD format and that HD DVD is just about dead. Here is the latest list of recently-released-movies from High Def Digest, a terrific site that reviews both formats of high def movies as they release. Here are the last 20 releases. Only four titles arrived on HD DVD and only three of those were unique to that format. One of those includes the Method Man concert... so really, it's only two titles.
High-Def Disc Reviews - High-Def Digest Blu-ray Review: Me, Myself & Irene Blu-ray Review: Celine Dion: A New Day... Live in Las Vegas Blu-ray Review: Damages: The Complete First Season HD DVD Review: Elizabeth: The Golden Age Blu-ray Review: The Brave One. Blu-ray Review: Underdog (2007) Blu-ray Review: Suburban Girl HD DVD Review: King of California Blu-ray Review: King of California HD DVD Review: Method Man: Live from the Sunset Strip Blu-ray Review: The Invasion Blu-ray Review: Wall Street Blu-ray Review: 30 Days of Night Blu-ray Review: Resident Evil - The High Definition Trilogy HD DVD Review: Freedom: 3 Blu-ray Review: Monty Python's Life of Brian Blu-ray Review: Across the Universe Blu-ray Review: Dragon Ball Z - Broly Double Feature Blu-ray Review: Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
When the Burger King "The King" got wildly popular last Halloween and, while moving some stuff around the house today, I came by the mask and found out what the real Whopper Freak out is. (By the way, if you haven't seen the Whopper Freak out commercials - they are hysterical)
Videos after the jump
It can't be a good thing when AMC is forced to put a sign warning movie-goers that they are likely to get ill while watching Cloverfield... I opted for Rambo IV today and it must rank as the bloodiest, most action-filled movie ever. The entire theater applauded when it ended (I certainly didn't expect that):
"The movie does have its own kind of blockheaded poetry." Read the full NY Times review here - but what else would you need to know?!
Did I mention that I will be seeing this? Did I mention that is gorier than all other Rambos *combined*?
Just last week, the San Jose Mercury News (a far cry from the Washington Post and Boston Globe that I am used to...) had a picture of McDonald's Coffee as their front-page article. McDonalds remains the largest seller of coffee in the US and their new 'premium' coffees are much richer and must improved. And they have now released espresso drinks in all of their San Francisco locations - trying to steal some of Starbucks' market (the focus on the story).
That apparently has Starbucks scared enough to start testing lower prices for drip coffees - and that has me very excited. In Seattle stores, Starbucks is now offering tall drips for $1.00 (about $0.50 cheaper than normal) with free refills. I am hoping this makes its way down into California, but I am quite doubtful it will... after all, Starbucks has made it an annual tradition to increase coffee prices across the board. But I can hope.
An aside: I still believe that two things:
1) Starbucks drip coffees are still the best chain around. Their espresso-based drinks often are too 'burnt' tasting, but their drip coffees are vastly underrated and all that I now order. In order, these are their three best roasts: 1. Sumatra 2. Gold Cast 3. Komodo Dragon
2) There is still a massive business opportunity to bring Dunkin Donuts to California. There isn't a single DD, yet there are millions of east coast transplants. Dunkin still makes the best iced coffees and, believe it or not, iced coffees make more sense out here than they do in Boston. I do not like having to order my Dunkin Donuts beans online and am waiting for the revolution to begin.
