From big to giant: Behemoth TVs start to take off
By Anne D’Innocenzio, Retail Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — Supersized isn’t just for french fries.

Americans increasingly are replacing their once-enviable 50-inch TVs with even bigger screens. Think: 65-inches and up.

People are snagging big screens — pushing sales of them up 50 percent in the past year while overall TV sales have faltered. As prices fall, hardcore TV watchers and video gamers are finding sets affordable that a few years ago would have been playthings for wealthier people.

Jarvis Jackson, for instance, plans to spend up to $1,500 for a 65-inch TV with Internet capability. Jackson, who lives in Birmingham, Ala., says he’ll scale back on dining out and postpone other purchases to make room in his budget.

“You definitely can tell the difference between a 55-inch and a larger size TV,” says Jackson. “To get the right TV is important, especially when football season is coming up.”

Shoppers like Jackson are being enticed by new technologies like Internet capability that allows Netflix streaming, and Ultra HD screens, which offer a sharper picture.

Falling prices have also made big screens more accessible to the average person: TV prices overall have fallen 9 to 11 percent, and the average price of a 50-inch TV is down $75 from two years ago to $573, according to research firm NPD Group.

“TVs are more affordable than they’ve ever been, so a ‘supersized’ TV today is still far less expensive than smaller screens were three or four years ago,” says Jamie Bastian, a spokeswoman for Target, which expanded its selection of big-screen TVs to include 70-inch versions this year, up from last year’s 60 inches.

Although TVs 65 inches or bigger account for just 2 percent of sets sold, they’re the bright spot in a market that has been slumping in part because more people are using tablets and cellphones to stream movies and TV shows.

Overall, TVs 50 inches and bigger accounted for 25 percent of the sets sold in the past 12 months, up from 14 percent in 2012. NPD expects the figure to reach 30 percent this year.

The advent of flat screens and high-definition television prompted a rush to upgrade a decade ago, but things like 3-D TVs have failed to entice buyers in recent years. But experts say Ultra HD is a simple enough upgrade to gain widespread adoption in the next few years.

While overall TV sales have dropped as much as 10 percent annually since 2010, big-screen TVs have become the fastest-growing category. During the year that ended April, 800,000 65-inch TVs or larger were sold, a 69 percent jump. That equated to a 50 percent increase to $1.6 billion in sales in a TV market totaling an estimated $18 billion.

Lower-income shoppers are accounting for a larger share of the supersized TVs. In the year that ended in April, 61 percent of TVs 60 inches or larger were purchased by shoppers with household incomes of $75,000 or less, up from 45 percent a year earlier, according to NPD.

Retailers are taking advantage of the demand. Amazon.com plans to feature some 100-inch models this year, while Chicago-based electronics store Abt is expanding its warehouse space by nearly 30 percent, in part to accommodate bigger TVs.

Best Buy is increasing its selection of 55-inch-plus TVs by 20 percent. But big-screen TVs come with hassles: Best Buy delivery people sometimes have to open the box on the customer’s front lawn or go through a patio door because the box won’t fit through a regular door. Best Buy says a 55-inch Samsung TV weighs 37 pounds whereas a 75-inch Samsung TV weighs 83 pounds.

“I don’t think anyone would have estimated the appetite for the size of these TVs,” says Luke Motschenbacher, director of Best Buy’s TV business.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s largest retailer, is also beefing up its big-screens because of increasing customer demand. The retailer is allocating half of its TV wall to 50- to 60-inch TVs this year, up from about a third last year. It’s also offering 80-inch TVs, including a $2,998 Vizio, in some stores. And Walmart.com is increasing its selection of stands to accommodate TVs over 60 inches.

This year, at Wal-Mart’s Sam’s Clubs, nearly half of the TVs will be at least 55 inches, up from about 30 percent last year. Last year, the biggest TV that Sam’s Club sold in its stores was 80 inches. This year, it will sell 90-inch TVs in some locations.

Sam’s Club CEO Rosalind Brewer says the trend is “counterintuitive” to the overall frugality it’s seeing from members, who are switching to cheaper chicken from more expensive cuts of beef.

Google adds more musical chops with Songza deal
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google is fine-tuning its digital music strategy with the acquisition of Songza, a service that creates soundtracks tailored for people’s changing moods.

Financial terms of the deal announced Tuesday were not disclosed. That means the price is considered to be too small to affect Google Inc., which ended March with $59 billion in cash.

The acquisition highlights the growing importance of services that customize playlists as more people listen to music through Internet connections on their smartphones, tablets and personal computers.

Apple Inc. is buying headphone maker Beats Electronics for $3 billion largely because it prizes the song-picking prowess of a digital music service that Beats has been building. The music service combines automated formulas with the expertise of a team led by Beats’ co-founders, longtime recording industry executive Jimmy Iovine and hip-hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre.

Amazon.com Inc. also recently rolled out a music-streaming service that is part the company’s $99-per-year Prime package.

Those two technology powerhouses, along with Google, are trying to topple the early leaders in music streaming, Pandora Media Inc. and Spotify.

No immediate changes will occur at Songza, which makes applications for Apple’s iPhone, iPad and devices running on Google’s Android software.

“We can’t think of a better company to join in our quest to provide the perfect soundtrack for everything you do,” Songza said in a post announcing its sale.

Google plans to blend Songza’s technology into its own music-streaming service, which costs $10 per month. Songza’s tools also might be used to recommend musical videos at Google’s YouTube site, which is preparing to introduce a subscription option, too.

Simian releases ipdated iPhone app 
LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif.–Simian, which specializes in creative workflow and evolutionary media management solutions, has released the latest version of its groundbreaking iPhone app, Simian Go!, that makes it even easier for users to manage media assets while on the move. Users can now access any file in their media library through their iPhone or iOS 7 device and share them instantly with others using Apple’s streaming protocol Airplay. Simian Go! is available as a free download through Apple’s App Store.

Simian released Simian Go! last fall to address the needs of an industry that is increasingly reliant on smartphones and tablets to conduct business on the go. The app has been widely embraced by Simian users and drawn effusive praise for its ability to improve productivity, reduce costs, enhance communications and increase sales.

“Simian Go! is a great sales tool!” said Patrick Knight, post producer, Aero Film. “It allows us to send reels from anywhere at any time. It makes working on the go a possibility and that’s great as our team is constantly traveling.”

Simian Go! users have instant access to their media libraries even when out of the country. “It gives us the ability to work wherever we happen to be, from a soundstage in Los Angeles to a city in Spain or a village in Brazil,” noted Cortez Brothers media manager Jason Durdon. “We have embraced Simian Go! and have already seen significant improvement in our response time with clients.”

The latest version of Simian Go! Includes a number of powerful new features. Users can browse their complete media libraries without having to create a reel and download files to their iPhones for offline viewing. In addition, media files can be sent to other IOS devices using Airdrop. Stored reels can now be deleted and sent reels expired and Simian Go!’s search function now includes a “Sort By” option that can be used to sort media by title, brand/client and newest/oldest.  “Simian Go! puts the power of Simian’s complete browser-based functionality in the palm of your hand!” said Simian’s Brian Atton.

Front Porch Digital promotes Phil Jackson to Chief Strategy Officer
LAFAYETTE, Colo.–Front Porch Digital, a provider of cloud and premises-based content storage management (CSM) solutions, has promoted Phil Jackson from chief operations officer to chief strategy officer. In his new position, Jackson is responsible for driving innovation and strategy for Front Porch Digital.

“Phil was the brains behind our LYNX cloud CSM service and our newest product, DISTILL, both of which were the first of their kind and approach long-standing industry challenges in innovative ways. That inventive thinking is immeasurably valuable to Front Porch Digital,” said Mike Knaisch, president and CEO of Front Porch Digital. “This newly created role will provide Phil with the time and resources necessary to accelerate Front Porch Digital’s exceptional growth trajectory in media and entertainment and beyond.”

Jackson is assembling a core team from within Front Porch Digital, coupled with project-based virtual teams and a short list of key technology partners, to spur innovation on several fronts —through rapid prototyping, light-agile development methodology, and direct customer engagement in the innovation process.

“This isn’t just an R&D function that looks at the latest buzzwords or IT trends in an isolated manner. This is a serious attempt to collaborate with our customers to understand their principal pain points, and, in solving those problems, bring new thinking and techniques to market. We want to build on the capabilities of the LYNX, DIVA, and SAMMA systems, which are the foundation of Front Porch Digital’s success,” said Jackson who is based in Lafayette and reports to Knaisch. Jackson joined Front Porch Digital four years ago after serving in enterprise IT with BT Group, developing new markets at Level 3 Communications and managing service product development with AT&T. Before that, he built a strong background in software and services. Jackson specializes in pioneering development of new products and markets and leading the associated organizational change for commercial success.

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