Tuning In
Gary Arlen is president of Arlen Communications Inc., a Bethesda, Md. research firm that has tracked the convergence, emergence and divergence of media technology since the days of two-inch videotape.
Syndicaster, YouNewsTV Offer Online Alternatives
by Gary Arlen, 12.03.2008
After countless exhortations to re-think "mass" media in a "class" media environment, broadcasters are finding their place in online video, and making money in the process. More...
Finicky Young Viewers, Funky Online Video Data
by Gary Arlen, 10.01.2008
In the National Retail Federation's annual survey of back-to-college spending, college students collectively shelled out more than $11 billion for electronics gear, compared to $7 billion for clothing. More...
What’s With Ultra-Wideband?
by Gary Arlen, 07.23.2008
The aesthetic appeal of wireless delivery is growing as families hang flat-panel displays on their walls and don’t want to see dangling wires and cables. More...
Where Are They Watching? And Who Are ‘They’?
by Gary Arlen, 06.25.2008
Far more teenagers watch video on TV sets than on computers—for now. More...
Format War Over, Home Video’s Future Uncertain
by Gary Arlen, 04.02.2008
The implications of the HD DVD format demise go well beyond the role of distributing shrink-wrapped high-definition movies. More...
Rearranged Screens—Big Deals and Small Gleams
by Gary Arlen, 01.23.2008
The U.S. retail market is already heavily skewed toward LCDs, which represented about 77 percent of flat-panel TV set sales (by units) during 2007, versus about 23 percent for plasma monitors. That skew in part reflects the lower More...
‘Second Life’ Or ‘Get a Life’?
by Gary Arlen, 11.21.2007
Is it the kiss of death when primetime shows deal with avant-garde themes? Does network TV validation have the same effect on cutting edge concepts as the Sports Illustrated cover “curse” puts on teams and athletes—a prelude to More...
As Internet TV Dawns, Visions Evolve, Conflict
by Gary Arlen, 09.19.2007
The only thing more mystifying than online video’s future is interpreting the contradictory forecasts about how it will arrive. More...
Herding Dinosaurs Towards Convergence
by Gary Arlen, 04.02.2007
No one in the television business refers to TV sets and other home reception and viewing devices as "CPE." More...
Beyond B&W and Read All Over
by Gary Arlen, 01.24.2007
As America's newspapers reinvent themselves, broadband video--including high definition--is part of their arsenal, raising the prospects of newspapers becoming significant local online HDTV purveyors. More...
'GooTube' Raises Video Search Stakes
by Gary Arlen, 11.15.2006
Few of us give a moment's thought when a local TV news department fetches video clips of the mayor's speech from last year or a decade-old historic storm. Same thing when a reporter quickly inserts footage of a memorable More...
HSN's Remote Shopping Sparks New Interactivity
by Gary Arlen, 09.20.2006
When Time Warner Cable launched "Shop by Remote" on its Hawaiian system last month, momentum picked up for the next wave of interactive TV. More...
Feature Creep Impedes Digital Appeal
by Gary Arlen, 07.26.2006
Consumers are fickle, and electronics shoppers are poster children for that problem your mom warned you about: "Your eyes are bigger than your stomach." More...
Experiencing TV Campaign Fatigue
by Gary Arlen, 05.24.2006
Lucky you! If you live beyond the reach of Washington, DC, television stations, you may have avoided this spring's bombastic barrage of TV commercials about the future of TV. More...