Inside Digital Media

TiVo on Tuesday set out to reinvent itself with DVRs that blend television and Internet viewing experiences. The TiVo Premiere and TV Premiere XL combine access to cable programming, movies, web videos, and music.

On the heels of Amazon.com taking its Kindle to international markets, Barnes & Noble is venturing into the increasingly popular e-reader market. The Wall Street Journal reported the giant book retailer could roll out an e-reader as early as next month in the U.S.

In what the Journal described as setting the stage for a showdown between Barnes & Noble, Amazon and Sony, the retail chain may launch an e-reader with a six-inch screen from E Ink, which also supplies displays to Amazon and Sony. The device is said to have touch input and a virtual keyboard.

Apple managed a price increase for music Tuesday under the veil of a variable pricing model for its iTunes Store. Now Amazon, Lala, Wal-Mart and Rhapsody are adopting the tiered pricing scheme.

In the variable pricing model, new releases and top tracks are now selling for $1.29 instead of 99 cents. Wal-Mart is the exception, offering new releases for a market-leading $1.24. Apple and others are selling recent songs for 99 cents and older selections for 69 cents.

In a move to compete with Netflix, Blockbuster on Wednesday announced a partnership with TiVo to deliver its library of digital-movie titles direct to the television set.

Essentially, Blockbuster is integrating its OnDemand service, which offers content to buy and rent, into TiVo Series2, Series3, TiVo HD, and TiVo HD XL DVRs. The partnership aims to make it easier for broadband-connected TiVo subscribers to download Blockbuster's content through a single remote control.

Could YouTube be the next MTV? If it inks a deal with Universal that's being widely rumored, it would be a strong first step. Negotiations are reportedly under way between the music giant and the video-sharing site to launch a premium online music destination.

Major studios have put an end to watching Hulu on a television through Boxee software. Boxee lets consumers convert computers into media centers.

Boxee reports Hulu said its content partners asked it to end their informal relationship. Boxee said it tried to plead the case for keeping Hulu on Boxee, but failed to convince the studios. Boxee removed Hulu on Friday.

YouTube and the William Morris Agency are nearing a deal that would put the Hollywood talent broker's clients in made-for-YouTube productions, according to a report in The New York Times.

The YouTube deal would reportedly give William Morris clients an ownership stake in the videos they create for the popular video Web site. William Morris represents the likes of actors Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe and producers Michael Bay and J.J. Abrams.

In what could be the final nail in the coffin of digital-rights management for music tracks, Apple on Tuesday announced a deal with Universal Music Group, Sony BMG, Warner Music Group, and EMI, along with thousands of independent labels, to offer music files on its iTunes Store without DRM protection.

The DRM-free music is available through iTunes Plus with higher-quality 256 Kbps Advanced Audio Coding for high-quality audio. The music can be downloaded from a computer or to the iPhone 3G.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is putting an end to its lawsuit strategy, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

The RIAA has sued thousands of people over the years for allegedly stealing music on the Internet -- about 35,000 people since 2003 -- but the group is reportedly looking for better ways to protect its members from online piracy.

YouTube made two announcements Thursday for Web surfers who want high-definition videos. The company has expanded its HD player and is testing three new landing pages that aim to help the video-watching masses find news, music and movies on the site.

"People are beginning to watch more Internet video on their television and they are beginning to watch more long-form video, so it's inevitable that they are going to want to see higher quality than YouTube has normally provided," said Phil Leigh, a senior analyst at Inside Digital Media.

A Significant Difference