Give GO!VIEW a go!

PSP™ owners to beat boredom this winter with a free trial of the fully launched GO!VIEW service

From today, GO!VIEW (www.goview.tv), the portable Video-On-Demand Service for the PlayStation®Portable (PSP™), officially launches in the UK and Ireland giving PSP ™ owners the opportunity to access TV Shows, Movies and Sports on-demand and on the move. Following its Beta release in July, GO!VIEW has now been fully updated to bring PSP™ users the ultimate in on-demand content – exactly how they want it, when they want it. What’s more, a free 30 day trial of all three subscription packs is available to all PSP™ users so they can try GO!VIEW for themselves before signing up.



There’s no excuse for any PSP™ owner to be bored this winter with the wide range of TV shows, movies and sports that can be easily transferred to the PSP™ via an internet enabled PC. From top entertainment shows including Heroes, Desperate Housewives and The Mighty Boosh, through to sporting highlights such as Barclays Premier League football from Sky Sports, and a wide selection of top movies, there’s content to suit every PSP™ owner’s tastes. With a full range of programming that is frequently updated, GO!VIEW provides a constant source of entertainment for PSP™ owners to use wherever they want, whenever they want. And all PSP™ owners can enjoy a free trial for one month with no commitment.



From beating boredom during the commute to preventing arguments about what to watch on TV, every PSP™ user will benefit from GO!VIEW this winter!

www.goview.tv

GO!VIEW is a joint venture between Sony Computer Entertainment Europe and BSkyB who have established the joint venture ‘GO!VIEW Entertainment UK’. This is being used to bring the PSP video-on-demand to market in the UK, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Channel Islands & the Isle of Man. Sky is providing their expertise in building successful video-on-demand platforms as well as content acquisition. Sony Computer Entertainment is providing the marketing for the service.

Download MTV's The Hills on iTunes

The Hills is back for season 4, and the girls are beginning to make some big decisions that will set the course for the rest of their lives.

While Lauren struggles to balance the tension between her roommates, Audrina and Lo, she starts dating Doug, an old flame from Laguna Beach. Meanwhile, Brody, Audrina and just about everyone else warn Lauren not to trust her new friend, Stephanie Pratt (Spencer's sister). And when Lauren makes a surprising discovery about Stephanie and Doug, she realizes that her friends might be right.

Just as Audrina thinks it's time to let her boyfriend Justin go and begins dating Colin, Justin turns up the heat in their relationship, leaving her torn. Whitney rises up the ranks at People's Revolution much faster than she expected and meets a model in New York who could possibly sweep her off her feet. And Heidi deals with the consequences of moving back in with Spencer, including putting her job at risk. As if that wasn't enough, Heidi's sister Holly comes from Colorado for an indefinite visit, putting some serious pressure on her renewed relationship with Spencer.

During season 4 of The Hills, life in Los Angeles only gets more complicated as friendships, relationships and loyalties are tested like never before.

Series 4 of The Hills started last Sunday night on MTV and to get yourself in the mood, download an exclusive free clip which goes behind the scenes at The Hills UK aftershow party and gives you an idea of what to expect from Series 4.

Download FIFA 09 demo on PSN

Start practising your skills today with the all new FIFA 09 demo available for download from PLAYSTATION®Network

Geneva, Switzerland and London, UK, 11 September 2008 – FIFA, the world’s governing body of football, Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ: ERTS) and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) today announced the new season of the FIFA Interactive World Cup (FIWC), the world’s only official FIFA global football gaming competition. The FIWC is a season-long tournament mirroring the real world of football in which competitors from all around the world can participate playing EA SPORTS™ FIFA 09 on the PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™).

This year marks the fifth FIWC season, which will kick off with the launch of FIFA 09 on 3 October. Players will be able to compete at one of 19 physical FIWC 09 Qualifier Events across the globe, kicking off in New Zealand on 25 October and covering countries all over the world, including Australia, Brazil, Czech Republic, France, Italy, South Africa and the US[BM1] . Players will also be able to compete for the 13 places available in the final for the best online players via the PLAYSTATION®Network. The 32 finalists will compete to be crowned FIFA Interactive World Player of the Year, rewarded with an invitation to the FIFA World Player Gala along with a USD 20,000 cash prize and an all new KIA ‘Soul’. For the first time in the tournament’s history, the runner up will receive USD 5,000, while the player coming third will be awarded USD 1,000.

Hopeful competitors can get a head start and practise their skills for the tournament from today by playing the official FIFA 09 PS3 demo available for download worldwide now via PLAYSTATION®Network. Registration for participating in the online leg of the FIWC 09 tournament will take place directly inside the retail version of FIFA 09 on the PS3 in early October.

“The FIFA Interactive World Cup has established itself as a premier gaming tournament, and the only one under the FIFA banner. Over the last years I have witnessed incredible virtual football action which promises thrilling games and excitement at the upcoming interactive season. I am really looking forward to the kick-off of the 5th edition where everyone has the unique chance to become a real FIFA World Cup champion,” said FIFA Executive Member Chuck Blazer, himself an avid gamer.

“Over the last four years, the FIFA Interactive World Cup has become the gaming competition for football fans and gamers. It’s the only tournament in which competitors can play as their football heroes and have their virtual skills recognised by FIFA, the real life world governing body of football,” said Matt Bilbey, Senior Director, Sports Marketing, EA. “With our partners at FIFA and PlayStation, we’re excited for this year’s season to kick off when FIFA 09 launches in early October. The development team has done an incredible job in making FIFA 09 even more authentic and fun to play, so make sure you get a taste of it now and start practicing with the demo on PLAYSTATION Network.”

”This year is PlayStation’s second season involved in the FIWC and we are very excited to see the tournament grow and evolve to establish itself as the biggest online football tournament in the world,” said Darren Carter, VP for Brand and Consumer Marketing, SCEE. “This season players will be able to truly understand the unique experience FIFA 09 on PLAYSTATION 3 and PLAYSTATION Network offers and we look forward to seeing players from around the world go onto the PLAYSTATION Network and get practising immediately.”

During last year’s tournament, players spanning the globe from New Zealand to South Africa, Brazil to Korea to the USA and Italy dribbled and scored their way through the tournament’s 20 live qualifiers, while over 25,000 players competed in the online leg. In the end, it was Alfonso Ramos from Spain who emerged victoriously from the Grand Final in Berlin. He will join his real life football heroes on the 12th of January 2009 at the FIFA World Player Gala in Zurich to accept his trophy.

EA SPORTS™ FIFA 09 for the PlayStation®3 is now powered with dynamic real-world data and analytics, lifting the game to new heights of authenticity for football fans and gamers connected online. The adidas Live Season* service is based on how real players performed in the most recent real-world matches. Gameplay will change dynamically as the performance of players and football teams in the real world experience the highs and lows during their campaigns. Additionally over 250 gameplay additions and enhancements, Custom Team Tactics, 10v10* Online Team Play and the enhanced Be A Pro: Seasons will offer players a unique football experience that matches the complexity, finesse and beauty of the real-world game. To learn more about FIFA 09 visit www.FIFA09.ea.com.

Details about the live qualifier events near you will be made available over the coming weeks at www.FIFA.com/FIWC, so check in regularly to keep your fingers on the pulse of the FIFA Interactive World Cup 2009.

Footage and photography of the FIWC 08 is accessible on the FIFA Media Channel** now: http://mediachannel.extranets.fifa.com/regproc.aspx

* Feature not active in FIWC tournament settings

** Requires registration at http://mediachannel.extranets.fifa.com/RegProc.aspx

Previewing PlayTV

Sony launches its much delayed and maligned PlayTV Freeview tuner add-on for the PS3 on September 19th!

At the beginning of August I cancelled my sky+ subscription, following unresolvable technical issues, and am in the market for an inexpensive HDD PVR!

PlayTV plugs directly into the PS3 via USB (no additional power supply required) and is a space saving solution: it is no larger than a SIXAXIS controller.

The following key features of PlayTV are yet to be confirmed:

* Record and view your favourite programmes at the same time - PlayTV enables you to record both Standard Definition as well as High Definition

* Personal Video Recorder functionality - watch live TV, pause, fast forward and rewind

* Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) to show what's on, now and next - up to 7 days in advance in certain countries

* Mobile TV functionality - export content easily from PS3 HDD to PSP - watch TV on the go! Thanks to live streaming, you can watch your favourite show whilst abroad

* Channel surf with either your BD remote or your SIXAXIS

PlayTV is available for pre-order from Amazon.co.uk at the very reasonable price of £59.99! I'll be reviewing PlayTV soon!

The O2 Arena

The halo of geek chic is in full effect and WWDC enjoys a public profile comparable to Macworld!

The buzz surrounding next week's WWDC 2008 is bordering on the feverish! Only a brand with Apple's mindshare could garner such frenetic excitement, from the mainstream mass media, for what is, arguably, exclusively a 'developers delight'!

Not only is there incessant talk of the iPhone 2/3G, there's Mac OS X 10.5.4 (didn't we all just download 10.5.3 last week?), Mac OS X 10.6 codenamed 'Snow Leopard', and a much-needed .mac makeover! The latter holds the most compelling secrets, and may convince me to renew my subscription in October!

Everything hinges on the iPhone 2 and whether or not O2, the exclusive UK network carrier, offers Apple's second generation mobile device at a compelling price point alongside pay-as-you-go deals! If so, I'm sold and it'll be goodbye Orange! Readers who watch Channel Four's Dispatches series will appreciate the pay-as-you-go bias!

Further to the iPhone and .mac refresh, I'm predicting that there'll be an announcement regarding a new portable device called Mac nano...

Twitter adores ASUS Eee PC

Last night (GMT) Twitter was awash with excitement regarding the award-winning ASUS Eee PC range of portables! Of particular note was the all-new Eee PC 900; the latest weapon of choice for discerning bloggers-on-the-go everywhere (and that includes Mac Users too)!

A few weeks ago The Gadget Show, shown on five (a UK-based commercial television network), tested the Apple MacBook Air, Sony VAIO TZ31 and ASUS Eee PC, to ascertain which product offered the best value for money in terms of both ease of use and wireless blogging for all members of the family.

Inevitably the MacBook Air achieved merit for its eye-catching beauty and build quality. The ASUS Eee PC was victorious due to its multimedia flexibility (an aspect woefully overlooked in the MacBook Air), ease of use and compelling price point! What blogging-on-the-go consumer would bemoan £200+ against a bank-breaking £1000+ for either the MacBook Air or Sony VAIO TZ31? Unless you need to undertake any heavy lifting...

I've yet to play with an ASUS Eee PC (sponsored review machine anyone?)! But, many of my Twitter (direct link to my profile) peeps own, or loan, an ASUS Eee PC and can't recommend the brand highly enough!

"Sontar-Ha!"

It's May 1st and I need to select a winner for the mimico-sponsored 'give-away' competition! There can only be 1 mimobot Boba Fett winner! The tension is mounting, but I'll announce the winner on May 4th!

Missed out? Don't worry! I'll be running further 'give-away' contests throughout the spring and summer! Fancy winning a copy of AVPR: Aliens Vs Predator - Requiem on DVD? Then enter this competition over at horrorshare.co.uk (unless otherwise stated, I accept no responsibility for the content of any other web site, including any site which may link to or from this site).

The month of May heralds the fourth anniversary of my blogging career! And I can't think of a more auspicious way to mark this milestone than with the most recent Google PageRank algorithm update! This blog is now the beneficiary of a PR5! Absolutely awesome.

Did you enjoy Saturday's Sontaran yarn? It was good fun, and most humorous to see the diminutive potato-headed clones back in full force! The tech noir trappings of The Sontaran Stratagem were most becoming! Can't wait for the action figures!

Temposhark 'give-away' competition

Temposhark are an English electronic rock band, formed in London by singer and songwriter Robert Diament with programmer Luke Busby. Temposhark are best known for their songs Joy, It’s Better To Have Loved and Not That Big, a duet with singer Imogen Heap, which features on their 2008 debut album The Invisible Line.

Here's what the press has to say about Temposhark:

“The excellent Temposhark have been causing a stir with their gritty synth lyrics in electrotrashy nights across town. Ace newcomers.” – Time Out London

“The Invisible Line fades back and forth between interesting and extraordinary.”
– Rhadish.com / The Y! Radish

“Hipsters will be sinking their teeth into UK electronic act Temposhark.” – Next

“The group delivers its material with precision and passion and Diament's crystal clear voice effortlessly segues from a pleading quiver to an angry snarl” – Textura

A torrent of accolades has rained down on Temposhark's new album The Invisible Line:

- Came in at #16 most added on CMJ’s in their first week
- Debuted in their second week at #172 on CMJ’s Top 200
- Got 7 out of 10 stars in an NME review “…they could be your favorite band” – NME
- Hit number 20 on iTunes top 100 electronic albums
- Had prominent placement in it’s first week of release on iTunes, Zune, MSN, Spinner, Rhapsody, Napster, Walmart (I know, they aren’t so cool, but…) and InSound.

Robert from Temposhark was invited by iTunes USA to create his very own 'artist playlist', 18 of his favourite songs that have inspired him including artists like Tori Amos, The Cardigans, Pet Shop Boys and Kate Bush. Check it out now to find out more about the artists that influenced the Temposhark sound.

On April 16th Temposhark embarked on a US tour! To celebrate this momentous event I'm running another 'give-away' contest that includes t-shirts, stickers, buttons, and albums!

To enter for a chance of winning these really cool prizes, please leave a comment on this post. The competition closes May 31st 2008 and 5 winners will be randomly selected by me. My decision will be final! Good luck.

Special thanks to Two Sheps That Pass for supplying the competition prizes.

You can buy The Invisible Line from iTunes, Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com today.

For further information:

www.temposhark.com
www.myspace.com/temposhark
www.bebo.com/Temposhark
www.last.fm/music/Temposhark
“Crime” (download link)

If you enjoyed reading this post subscribe by RSS! I'll be running further 'give-away' contests throughout the spring and summer.

"...Doctor Why Bother."

**This post may contain spoilers for new Doctor Who**

For those readers who watch The Big Bang Theory, you'll appreciate the title of this post (a quote from The Dumpling Paradox)! And if you haven't watched The Big Bang Theory, you are missing one of the funniest US sitcoms since Friends! Get yourself acquainted with the lives of Leonard, Sheldon, Howard, Rajnesh and Penny pronto! And remember, if you don't go out dancing every Wednesday night, then it isn't dance night!

Tomorrow sees the triumphant return of Doctor Who on UK television screens! Rumours are rife that, alongside the heavily publicised return of the Sontarans, Davros, creator of the Daleks, will be resurrected in the series finale and a Time Lord will fall!

Stay tuned for more Doctor Who coverage during the coming weeks! And, in the meantime, if you're new to Doctor Who and unfamiliar with the Sontarans, may I suggest The Time Warrior (DVD); the first and best Sontaran story to date?

Super Glau

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles is to be renewed!

The Sarah Connor Chronicles mines the rich seams of Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (eschewing Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, which is notable for its brave Planet of the Apes ending).

Although the series, currently airing on Virgin 1 in the UK, has yet to truly capitivate me in the manner of Lost or The Big Bang Theory. The ever-enigmatic Summer Glau (best known as River from Firefly/Serenity) is a revelation as a Terminator! Her otherworldy performance, as Cameron, is pitch perfect and scene stealing! The fight scenes are more than a match for the franchises big screen origins!

The intrinsic potential is there, but in the absence of James Cameron and Linda Hamilton...

Kindle

Today's Sunday Times Culture section spurred me into researching Amazon's Kindle and establishing another dedicated aStore!

Obviously, as I'm a UK-based blogger, Kindle is out of my reach (unless someone at Amazon would kindly send me review hardware prior to a Pan-European launch)! Have you used Kindle? What's the end user experience like? Is it a viable portable platform when Apple dominates this space?

The Kindle Shop currently carries more than 100,000 books plus newspapers, magazines, and blogs. For your convenience, you can shop the Kindle Shop directly on Kindle or on your PC via Amazon.com. Either way, all titles are wirelessly delivered right to your Kindle for free. Amazon pays for the wireless delivery charges so you don’t have to. Buy a book and Amazon will auto-deliver it to you wirelessly in one minute.

The Kindle Shop provides the same Amazon shopping experience you're used to, including customer reviews, personalized recommendations, 1-Click purchasing, and everyday low prices. Check the store often; we're adding new titles every day.

Books
Whether you prefer biographies, classics, investment guides, thrillers, or sci-fi, thousands of your favorite books are available. The Kindle Shop offers more than 90 of 112 books currently found on the New York Times® Best Seller list and we’re adding more all the time. New York Times Best Sellers are $9.99, and you'll find many books for less. Can't decide what to buy? Kindle lets you download and read the beginning of any book for free. This way, you can try it out—if you like it, simply buy and download with 1-Click, right from your Kindle, and continue reading.

Digging Duffy's Dimples!

Sitting pretty at number one in the Official UK Charts! The girl to watch in 2008 hit the stage at the Apple Store in London recently and knocked the onlookers nearly three decades back into soul heaven.

Duffy's sassy, love-starved "Mercy" kicks off this four-track EP with her voice spiraling and rising up like a candy-coated Aretha Franklin. The meditative, nostalgic powerhouse of "Rockferry" finds a new vitality, moving beyond the loaded Phil Spector-isms of the studio version and firmly into the here and now.

Duffy - Live from London (iTunes Exclusive) - EP

"Rockferry" is the debut album from Duffy. Written and produced in collaboration with Bernard Butler, the album is a stunning showcase for her voice, which brings to mind such great singers as Dusty Springfield, Lulu and Sandie Shaw. Includes the singles "Rockferry" and 'Mercy".

OneRepublic covered "Mercy" during a recent BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge session! Well worth listening to.

The Future is Blu

It's "game over" for Toshiba's HD DVD format, thereby leaving 100,000 standalone HD DVD player owners (in the UK) with obsolete hardware. Conversely for those of us who've invested in Blu-ray, the future is most bright indeed! Put your Ray-Bans on...

Sony's triumph illustrates that lessons were learnt, by the company, during the infamous Betamax Vs VHS war, which witnessed VHS' victory despite the superiority of Betamax! Admittedly the technological playing field was much more even, this time around, and Sony's marketing made all the difference. Lets face it, Blu-ray sounds so much cooler doesn't it?

If you haven't made a decision on what Blu-ray hardware to purchase, it maybe worth noting the following, Sony's PlayStation 3 is the most future-proof Blu-ray player on the market! You might also consider a Samsung BD-P1400. Both of these machines come highly recommended.

Knight Rider

Knight Rider was a pop culture phenomenon in the early eighties. Can Glen A. Larson reboot his original series in the way Ronald D. Moore rebooted Battlestar Galactica for a new generation?

Nick Smith, our US-based stellar scribe, takes new KITT for a drive.

Guest post by Nick Smith

I was looking forward to seeing the revamp of Knight Rider on NBC last night. I love driving my Ford Mustang, so I was quite happy with the make and model being used for the Knight Industries Three Thousand car (“KITT”). I was even willing to give Val Kilmer a go as the voice of KITT, and I thought a cameo by David Hasselhoff (from the original series) would be fun. The director had worked on Rome and Deadwood – he had to be a smart cookie.

I must confess, the hairs on the back of my neck prickled when the old Knight Rider theme began to play. But it was replaced within seconds by generic rock and from then on, the TV movie resembled a 2-hour car commercial: lots of shots of the tires, the windshield, the grille etc. No amount of fast cutting allowed for the fact that the director Steve Shill had forgotten to make the car chases exciting.

Worse, the storyline was dull, formulaic American TV stuff; the leads were bland, with no interesting lines to test their acting chops; and the dialogue was often drowned out by the rock music.

It’s a shame that executive producer Glen A. Larson couldn’t have taken a cue from a revamp of another of his shows, Battlestar Galactica, and added some more engaging, believable characters. The new Knight Rider was so vacuous that I didn’t stick around long enough for the Hasselhoff cameo, and Steve Shill should stay away from car porn in future...

NICK SMITH BIO
Nick Smith is a filmmaker, writer and actor. He has written screenplays (The Terror Game, Cold Soldiers); dramas and documentaries for the BBC, Sky and all other major UK networks. He wrote a year's full content for "The Property Channel" on cable and contributed to "The Medical Channel" on satellite.

Other work includes novels (the bestselling Milk Treading, The Kitty Killer Cult and Undead on Arrival), stage plays (Crime School, Foodfellas), comedy sketches, articles (The Scotsman, Charleston Magazine), radio plays and comic books. He founded and ran a production company and The Film School Scotland before moving to Charleston, South Carolina where he’s currently directing feature film and teaching writing, acting and filmmaking.

Inside the Bloggers' Studio

‘Inside the Actors' Studio’ attracts the top film and TV actors, and interviews them in a one on one situation in front of a studio audience of drama students.

For more than twelve years, James Lipton, presenter and drama teacher, has sat down with more than 200 of the world's most accomplished artists – ranging from actors and directors to musicians and comedians — for penetrating, fascinating interviews. Lipton's studious research and enlightened curiosity has inspired his guests to open up and confess their deepest thoughts about their craft.

Each programme features the same 10 questions from James Lipton:

What is your favourite word?
What is your least favourite word?
What turns you on?
What turns you off?
What sound or noise do you love?
What sound or noise do you hate?
What is your favourite curse word?
What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
What profession would you not like to do?
If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?

Seb, from artsWOM (the latest in word of mouth conversation on the arts - sponsored by Sky Arts), asked me those same 10 questions as part of their now well-established line of ‘Inside the Actors’ Studio’ homages, showcasing selected UK film and TV bloggers.

Read my answers in the Inside the Bloggers’ Studio part 5 article.

Wii Raincheck

Nintendo has decided to pull all UK television advertising spots for its most sought after Wii due to serious stock shortages! Perhaps Nintendo of Europe should take a leaf out of their counterpart's book across the pond?

To help assuage consumers' complaints that they can't find a Wii, Nintendo of America announced this morning that they will begin a 'Wii Raincheck' program. If you pay in full for a Wii before Christmas, you can get a raincheck that you'll be able to redeem for a Wii in January.

Fils-Aime said that the program will be run entirely through retailer GameStop, who he says has "many tens of thousands" of certificates.

The program, says Fils-Aime, is for people who want "something to put under the tree."

"A certificate needs to be matched to a specific Wii which needs to be matched to a specific store. Only this retailer has the ability to pull off such a program," said Fils-Aime in regards to why GameStop will be the exclusive partner for this initiative.

Reggie Fils-Aime also said this morning that Wii will be available this weekend in many stores, advertised in circulars for Best Buy, Circuit City, etc.

The 'Wii Raincheck' program recalls Kenner's Early Bird Certificate Package for Star Wars! Kenner, blindsided by the success of Star Wars, was unable to produce enough action figures for the lucrative Christmas market! So, in an inspired move, Kenner offered shoppers in 1977 empty boxes which contained a certificate promising a set of action figures, including Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and R2-D2, in the New Year! Thirty years later and Nintendo of America is doing the same thing!

I Do Blu

Since Sony's PS3 opened my eyes to the joie de vivre known as Blu-ray, I've been smitten!

Whether it's watching Spider-Man scale the heights of a New York skyline or Spielberg's majestic encounter with visitors from a distant star, Blu-ray excels.

Now a proponent of Blu-ray, here are my aStores, which feature my recommendations:

I Do Blu Shop UK
I Do Blu Shop USA
I Do Blu Shop Canada

Sensing the need to step up promotional efforts behind the Blu-ray Disc format heading into the critical holiday selling season, a group of hardware manufacturers and studios have pooled their resources on a "multimillion-dollar" television, print and online advertising campaign, billed as the largest for the format so far.

The effort, called "I Do Blu," quietly kicked off its prime-time TV portion with a spot on "Dancing With The Stars," and will continue through the Super Bowl.

Companies backing the project include hardware manufacturers Sony, Panasonic and Philips, and Blu-ray-backing studios include Walt Disney Studio Home Entertainment, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, Lions Gate and Warner Home Video. While they declined to reveal the exact size of the budget, they say it is the largest to date for the Blu-ray Disc format.

"Before we were really targeting the early adopter [with Blu-ray] but now the time is right to really go broad," said Rich Marty, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment new business development VP. "The [PlayStation3] is coming out at $399 now, and while some of purchasers will be into games, we believe a lot more of them will also really be into movies."

"There are 35 million HDTV sets out there in U.S. homes now, and they need to be informed that if they want to maximize their high-definition movie playback, they really need a Blu-ray player," said Lexine Wong, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment marketing VP.

The ads don't focus on any particular brand to remain fair to the three supporting equipment manufactures.

"It was agreed that we can get a bigger and better message out there if we all do this together," Marty told TWICE. He added that some companies were invited to participate but opted out at this time.

Movies featured in the 30-second TV spot include some of the biggest releases of the fall, including "Spiderman 3," "Fantastic Four: Rise of The Silver Surfer," "Live Free or Die Hard," "Ratatouille," "Wedding Crashers," the "Harry Potter" series, "300" and others.

HD-what?

Christmas on Exeter Street

If it wasn't enough that Exeter, my birthplace, garnered pride of place on Monopoly Here and Now UK Edition! Apple has finally announced that the Apple Store, Princesshay, opens on Saturday November 24th!

Here's the official announcement:

Come to the new Apple Store, Princesshay, and bring your curiosity. It's the place to test-drive any Mac or iPod, experience iPhone, and catch free workshops for all the latest Mac tips and tricks. When you get there, find our Concierge in the blue shirt. They're your guide to everything, from checking in for an appointment to instant checkout. This Saturday, you can enter our Grand Opening Sweepstakes* to win a Mac and loads of accessories to go with it. And if you're one of the first 1,000 visitors, you'll get a free Apple T-shirt.

Discover what makes the Apple Retail Store everyone's favourite neighbour.

Store Address:
24 Princesshay,
Exeter,
Devon
EX1 1GE

Telephone number: 01392 31 66 00

Reluctant Spice World

When I began my tenure at Reuters in 1996, the Spice Girls appeared on the pop scene and, mentored by their manager Simon Fuller, sold the ideological premise of "Girl Power!" wholesale to the masses.

This equated to a license to print money and, whatever you may think of the Spice Girls musical oeuvre, there's no denying Fuller's conquest of the retail aisles! From CDs to posters and toys to sweets, the Spice Girls foreshadowed the arrival of Bratz and the brand dilution of Barbie!

Incidentally, Victoria Beckham (then Adams) AKA Posh Spice, allegedly auditioned for a Bournemouth University BAMP production prior to the Spice Girls! Please don't ask me for details as I don't have any further information!

In anticipation of their upcoming tour...

I’M RELUCTANT SPICE, MEL C TELLS GRAHAM NORTON THE GRAHAM NORTON SHOW

10.00 pm, Thursday 25 October 2007 (repeated Sunday), BBC TWO

MELANIE ‘Sporty Spice’ CHISHOLM confirms she was slow to sign up for the Spice Girls’ forthcoming world tour when she joins GRAHAM NORTON this week.

‘I was Reluctant Spice’ she says, ‘I was the last to make my decision because it was a hard decision to make .. I was scared we couldn’t do it again. It was a weird time of my life, I had a lot of personal s**t to get over after the Spice Girls.’ But she denies press rumours that she was bullied; ‘I never said that. How can they quote you? I wasn’t bullied at all. .. I just love the British tabloids, they’re so imaginative! In America they’re more of a joke.’

About the forthcoming single she says they all share the singing honours; ‘We all sing the chorus, we all have an equal part in the song .. it’s a very ‘Spicey’ ballad, it’s lovely to hear all our voices again, I love doing that kind of stuff.’

Mel also comes out in support of troubled Britney Spears. ‘Poor Britney, I feel bad for her. She used to be looked after. Obviously she’s not happy, she really needs someone to step in.’

And she also reveals she’s been round to the Princes’ for tea; ‘I met them a while ago. We [the Spice Girls] were invited to Highgrove for high tea. Some of us didn’t like cucumber sandwiches and we made this known to our hosts, and we were made peanut-butter on toast by Prince William (but) the kitchen was rubbish, like MFI!’ she said.

Graham is also joined by Hollywood royalty JOSH HARTNETT whose latest blockbuster 30 Days of Night is released in the UK next week; and RUFUS WAINWRIGHT performs his new single Tiergarten live in the studio.

Watch the interview clip (iTunes required).

The Graham Norton Show is a So Television production for BBC TWO.

Vanquishing Vista

Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard is released to retail on Friday October 26th and Amazon.co.uk is offering 6% off the pre-order price for both client versions:

Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard (Single-user license)
Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard Family Pack (5-user license)

*Introduces over 300 new and enhanced features to OS X, including a new desktop and updated finder enabling easy browsing and sharing between multiple Macs
*Take advantage of the latest developments in processor hardware with full native 64-bit support, multi-core optimization, and new Core animation
*Preview files without opening an application using Quick Look
*Easily and automatically back up and restore lost files or a complete Mac with Time Machine
*Create groups of applications and instantly switch between them with Spaces

Will Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard be worth the wait? Of course it will! And pre-orders are more than double that of Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger! Various online forums are positing that the increase is related to the advent of Boot Camp and native Microsoft Windows OS support! Certainly PC-based games, such as the stunning Half-Life 2: The Orange Box, can now be played with a copy of Windows Vista Home Premium installed! And, in fairness, I've experienced no problems with running Windows Vista on my Intel-based Mac!

I'll post my Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard review in short order!