film

3M see-through solar films stick onto windows

MAKUHARI, Japan--What if every window of your home or office could generate power? See-through solar films developed by 3M also make your windows shatter-resistant.

At the Ceatec 2011 electronics trade show outside Tokyo, the company was showing off its green-tinged, flexible transparent photovoltaic films on regular and curved glass surfaces.

It was the second time the tech was being displayed, following a brief showing that unfortunately coincided with the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

The films stick onto windows, making them less susceptible to breaking in quake-prone Japan. They consist of five layered sheets and an organic photovoltaic substance.

They also help keep interiors cooler by absorbing more than 90 percent of infrared light, reducing the need for air conditioning in summer. At the 3M booth at Ceatec, there was a 13-degree C difference on one side of a window compared to the other, which was heated by powerful lamps but plastered with the sheets. … Read more

Who stole Netflix's mojo?

Even if you believe that splitting Netflix into two services and raising prices is the right plan for the company in the long term, the moves in the near term have many subscribers asking whether managers value them.

Many Netflix users are outraged for the second time in the past three months. CEO Reed Hastings offered an apology last night in a letter to customers as well as in a video message for the way the company announced a price increase in July. He didn't say he was sorry for the actual price hike, and more importantly, he also said Netflix was splitting itself into two separate services. The new Netflix will be involved in streaming video over the Web exclusively, while the other service, called Qwikster, will oversee DVD by mail.

Some analysts and customers argue that Netflix has made plenty of other missteps in the past several months. The company couldn't close a licensing agreement with Starz, the pay-TV service that owns Web distribution rights to content from Sony Pictures and Disney. That means Netflix's streaming library will offer even fewer films from the top Hollywood studios. Much of Hollywood is lukewarm about Netflix's business model and the company has struggled to acquire streaming rights for popular films. … Read more

Solyndra bankruptcy was disaster waiting to happen

news analysis Solar manufacturer Solyndra filed for bankruptcy protection today, capping a stunning reversal for the government-backed company in a drama that's raising questions about U.S. industrial policy in green technology.

The Chapter 11 filing follows Solyndra's decision last week to shut down its Fremont, Calif., factory and lay off about 1,100 employees and contractors, saying it could not compete with low-cost manufacturers in other countries.

Solyndra is being held up as a case of the federal government not doing its homework picking companies to back in an effort to create jobs.

But is there some … Read more

Samsung cites Kubrick film in Apple patent spat

In its ongoing legal battle with Apple, Samsung has returned fire against Apple's motion for a preliminary injunction that aims to bar some of its phones and Galaxy Tab in the United States.

In a new filing, picked up by intellectual-property tracking blog Foss Patents, Samsung has opposed the preliminary injunction Apple filed for in early July. While the document is sealed at the moment, Foss points to one of the non-sealed exhibits Samsung is using to go up against Apple, which cites Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film "2001: A Space Odyssey" as clear evidence that tablets … Read more

Harsh lessons from Evergreen Solar flame-out

If there's a lesson to be had in the wrenching downfall of Evergreen Solar, it's this: Even Apple doesn't try to do everything itself.

For two days now, the green-tech industry--and more than a few politicians who had put their credibility on the line to support it--have been wringing their hands over Evergreen, which on Monday announced it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and will seek to sell off its assets to pay off hundreds of millions of dollars to creditors. Today Evergreen said that Nasdaq informed the company that its stock will be delisted next week. … Read more

Hulu expanding to Japan

Hulu is going international for the first time with plans to expand its subscription service to Japan later this year.

The company didn't give too many specifics in yesterday's blog announcing the move. But it sounds like Japanese consumers will be getting their own version of Hulu Plus with access to films and TV shows across PCs, TVs, smartphones, and tablets, all for one monthly price.

Why Japan? The company cited a few reasons for expanding its service to Japanese customers.

Noting that Japanese audiences are "passionate" about video content, Hulu said it sees an "… Read more

Federal court to order film service Zediva shut down

Zediva, the video service that attempted to build a business by exploiting loopholes in copyright law, suffered a serious setback today when a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction against the service.

U.S. District Judge John Walter has ruled that Zediva violates copyright law and granted a preliminary injunction motion made by the Motion Picture Association of America for Zediva to be shut down. The judge is waiting a week for a legal technicality before officially issuing the injunction, but Zediva's fate is sealed.

Zediva billed itself as a DVD rental service that enabled users to rent physical … Read more

Wave goodbye to free Internet TV

They said Hulu was going to save the film studios and television networks from repeating the mistakes of the music industry.

They said the video portal would help turn the Internet into a new means of distributing the most popular TV shows and movies for less money than cable and offer viewers much more control over where and when they watch.

But the latest news out of Hollywood seems to indicate that enthusiasm was misplaced, premature, or both. The most recent and most dramatic sign of this came yesterday, when the Fox Network, owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., … Read more

Win an iPad 2: The Original iPhone Film Festival taking submissions

If you've got cinematographic chops and an iOS device, you could win yourself (or someone you love) an iPad 2 or other prizes by submitting your best film creations made entirely on your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad 2.

The Original iPhone Film Festival has four categories: Fiction, Brand Film, Nonfiction, or Music Videos. Submissions will be judged by a variety of film, TV, and music professionals including members of popular pop group Maroon 5, New York Times technology writer David Pogue, Macworld Senior Associate Editor Heather Kelly, and Director of Television Production at BBDO New York Regina Ebel. … Read more

Freaky fake-outs

Whether you're dressing up for Halloween, putting on a play, or doing something else that involves creepy appearances, there are plenty of ways to achieve gruesome effects with common household items. Makeup FX is an e-book that details some techniques for simulating injuries and all kinds of other yucky stuff. It's definitely not a comprehensive guide, but it's not bad if you need some basic tips.

Makeup FX is really just a set of HTML files that can be viewed with any browser; it's like a Web site that's hosted on your own computer instead … Read more