Nothing shocking here as a judge has dismissed a lawsuit against cable companies for not offering cable channels a la carte. We always find this whole a la carte issue interesting because in reality customers aren't really asking for less channels as much as they're asking for lower prices. So while we're usually against new laws to regulate businesses, we do think that something should be done to reign in on all the tying that content providers do, as well as other restrictions. So what customers should really be doing is asking congress to prevent ESPN (for example) from holding back on the main offering in order to force programmers to carry the completely useless ESPNews or ESPN Classic. Or maybe, the entire you can't carry our channel unless its on the basic tier silliness. No, no, la carte channels aren't the answer, but real competition is.

[Via TechDirt]

We're hearing that the PC version of this here software still beats out the Mac counterpart, but equality is slowly but surely becoming a reality. The main new feature over on the OS X side, however, is a good one: the ability to stream iPhone and iTunes media directly to your TV via your FiOS TV DVR. Fire up an iTunes playlist and watch the fun roll by on your home TV, and there's even support for photo slideshows and the like. It's available to download right now from the read link, and those still skeptical can catch a demonstration vid just past the break.

[Via Zatz Not Funny]

Right on schedule, the linear version of the three-screen focused EpixHD service will go live for FiOS TV subscribers starting at 8 p.m. Already VOD and internet accessible, launch weekend (and subsequent weekends) will spread high definition streaming cheer beyond just the fiber-connected as anyone can grab a 72 hour access pass to stream some movies (we don't recommend Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, but pretty much everything else mentioned in the launch lineup or the official PR after the break seems good.) Chief Digital Officer Emil Rensing let us know what the trip from beta to reality has been like, and while there won't be many tweaks in the experience from our largely positive preview experience, expect additional features like movie extras, behind the scenes peeks and more to roll out across the site over time. EpixHD.com/invite has the 72 hour passes, while we hear the company Twitter isn't a bad spot to check for extended access while waiting for its "movies anywhere" strategy to become officially available in your neck of the woods.

The only thing we love more than analysts and surveys is content providers bickering over each other's ridiculous PR claims and none are as fun as when Comcast is involved. Avid readers are all too familiar with Comcast's strategy to give up on the linear channel race and instead focus on VOD "options" no matter how silly it makes them look to those in the know. What really makes this particular situation interesting is that Comcast doesn't appreciate it when another provider, like Verizon FiOS, gets in on the action when it recently claimed it offered 3 times as many VOD offerings a month as the nation's largest provider. Comcast claims this is just not true and there are actually at least 17,000 VOD titles available in most markets. If that is news to you, then you aren't the only one as Verizon blasts back with "I'm surprised that Comcast wouldn't talk about these numbers in their PR and advertising. We make sure to let our customers know when we're adding more to their service." Too true, Verizon, too true. Honestly we couldn't care less about VOD because we're in the small group of CableCARD users, but there's no way we could turn away from a train wreck like this.

You know who's missing from the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (or DECE) consortium? A group bent on redefining the way we buy, access, and play digital content with a membership roster that includes Best Buy, Cisco, Comcast, Fox, HP, Intel, Lions Gate, Microsoft, NBC Universal, Paramount Pictures, Philips, Sony, Toshiba, VeriSign, and Warner Bros? Right, Apple and Disney, the latter landing a lengthy piece in the Wall Street Journal describing Disney's own distributed content ownership scheme that goes by the code-name, "Keychest;" a DRM solution that instantly provides access to content on any participating service (digital download store, mobile-phone provider, or on-demand cable for example) when a purchase is made. Keychest does this though a system of unique keys that are issued when a movie is purchased. The keys are then stored in a central repository (aka, chest) that participants would query. In this scenario, the movies would reside with each delivery company on their respective systems -- movies would not be downloaded. On the bright side, if a content provider went out of business you would still have access to your films elsewhere. The proposed solution would work with Blu-ray disc purchases too, since BD players are internet-enabled by design -- DVD keys would have to be manually typed in by the user. So in effect, you'd now be paying once for ownership rights to the film, not to the physical media. If it sounds similar to DECE it is, but Disney claims that its approach is more streamlined and you know, better.

Disney has been quietly courting other movie studios with Keychest and intends to go public with its technology next month. Of course, with Steve Jobs listed as Disney's largest stockholder and the rumored Apple tablet being a media-redefining device that will single-handedly save newspapers while ridding the world of hunger and ignorance, well, you can see where the speculation is headed.

[Thanks, Demopublican]

At this point we know what you are thinking and we can say that you are wrong, we aren't about to rename the site to Engadget 3D -- not yet at least -- but we are getting excited about 3D and there isn't much more exciting then the idea of broadcast 3D. We say that because although we love movies, we're not crazy about 3D movies, but we are very very crazy about 3D sports which obviously requires broadcast 3D. So while we have a long way to go until we can enjoy our favorite sport at home in 3D, a demo by CableLabs at the Cable-Tec Expo next week is a great first step. The demo will be on a real cable plant and will fit on a single existing size cable channel. That's about all the details we know right now, but we'd assume it's using H.264 instead of MPEG-2, and we can only hope it is 1080p30, or better, to each eye. One other nuget in the article is that the broadcast will work with both circular polarized and active shutter glasses, which is something we've wondered about. Also on display will be 3D TVs from LG, Hyundai, Sony and Panasonic.

Possible more notable than the Broncos 5-0 start (okay, not really, did anyone see this coming after that seemingly terrible offseason?) is the announcement from Level 3 Communications that its home games at Invesco Field are the first to have their video sent back to the broadcaster completely uncompressed. Thanks to its fiber connection laid in preparation for the 2008 Democratic National Convention, the company sends a 1.5 Gbps stream directly to the broadcaster's home studio, as an alternative to the usual (and still in place while this new delivery is evaluated) method of compressing at the site on a production truck. VP Mark Taylor claims this allows them to get the absolute highest quality signal possible, but we'll wait until it's installed at more than one professional stadium to proclaim end to end uncompressed video delivery as the way of the future.

Epix HD has locked down a launch date and lineup, confirmed for Verion FiOS subscribers so far, the festivities will kick off October 30th with television and online premieres of Iron Man, Madonna "Sticky & Sweet: Live from Buenos Aires," and Eddie Izzard: Live From Wembley. Other titles set for launch weekend are The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Madea Goes to Jail, Pink Panther 2, the Indiana Jones movie that sucked, Cloverfield, The Duchess and more. Epix has previously stated a goal to build the largest stable of movies online with a planned 3,000 titles available in the Epix Megaplex, you'll see if this whole new way of delivering a premium movie experience is all it's appeared to be very soon.

Update: Epix just passed along the launch weekend schedule so check after the break for all the times (EST)

The technology exists, or will soon, the only question is how or if it should be used. We know it won't require a huge stretch for your provider to deliver 1080p broadcasts, and CableLabs is right in step with others trying to figure out how to bring 3D home, but as a viewer which one would you rather see? As always, write-in votes are allowed so don't be afraid of the comments section.

The constant dance card shuffling with DirecTV's ownership and AT&T's satellite dealings fueled rumors of a sale earlier this year, now rekindled with Verizon and its FiOS TV unit listed as a potential partner. The idea, as described by the Wall Street Journal, is that Verizon's desire to expand its video business would manifest by buying a satellite company (DirecTV over DISH based on its performance and current restructuring by Liberty Media) and overnight going from number 8 to number 2 among cable and satellite operators. Whether the two telephone companies will actually battle it out over satellite remains to be seen, we're just wondering if this could give U-Verse or FiOS subs a crack at NFL Sunday Ticket.

[Via Barrons]

Everyone knows the holy grail of video today is 1080p60, but not many realize there is almost no 1080p60 to be found. Almost all Blu-ray Discs are 1080p at 24fps or maybe 1080p at 30 and most broadcast TV is 1080i60, which when properly de-interlaced is equivalent to 1080p30. What most don't know is why not, and the reason probably isn't what you think. Most would say it is the bandwidth, there simply isn't enough of it for 1080i, how could you possible do 1080p? But that isn't really the case and the new Motorola SE-6000 Multi-Encoder proves why (SE-5100 pictured above). This new piece of gear -- that you need to start praying your favorite channel buys -- can actually enable a broadcaster to send out honestest to goodness 1080p using the same number of bits as 1080i60 by using H.264 instead of MPEG-2. So in other words, assuming all the equipment in between this new guy and your TV or set-top can handle it, it is technologically possible for us to get true 1080p60 at home. We can dream, right?

Chalk this one up as a total rumor, but you can imagine our surprise today when we saw all of these NFL Sunday Ticket channels show up on our CableCARD equipped Windows 7 Media Center connected to Verizon's FiOS. Unfortunately the channels didn't actually tune in when we selected 'em and this could very well be another case of bad guide data, but no way we could pass up the chance to share this one.

**UPDATE** As expected, this was confirmed by the NFL as just a glitch in the guide data, but it was fun to dream even if it was only for a day.

Obviously Verizon is all about delivering a whole home DVR solution, so it's no shocker that something like the RVU Alliance is right up its alley. But we are glad to see the fiber to the home provider doesn't shy away from adopting someone else's technology -- we say this because we all know how much Verizon loves, tru2way -- and ask much as we want to be able to have access to the same content in every room of our house, we're not big on the current Verizon solution. The bottom line is that we are on the same page with Verizon here are glad to hear the CTO say that Verizon wants to "lead the industry to an ever-simpler process for integrating consumer electronics." What we hope he means though, is that Verizon will be bring an RVU server to the party so we can enjoy all those HD channels on a Samsung HDTV without a STB.

We'll let the analysts make sense of TiVo's new projection that it will lose $8 to $10 million in the third quarter, larger than Wall Street expectations while projected revenues are lower -- we're too busy adding Verizon and AT&T to the patent battlemap. Today it filed complaints against both for violating three of its DVR-related patents -- Nos. 6,233,389 B1 ("Multimedia Time Warping System"), 7,529,465 B2 ("System for Time Shifting Multimedia Content Streams"), and 7,493,015 B1 ("Automatic Playback Overshoot Correction System") if you must know -- seeking damages for past infringement and a permanent injunction. We'd assumed it would wait until settling things with DISH to push forward against other companies, but it looks like we're not the only ones getting impatient. Beyond the legal slapfight there's a few nuggets for the bleep bloop faithful, with the Comcast TiVo on-line scheduler beginning to roll out in Boston plus further expansions on the way and the due-in-2010 DirecTV HD TiVo still on track -- we'll need a few seasons of Law & Order queued up before this mess ever gets resolved.

Read - TiVo Swings to Loss, Files Infringement Suits
Read - TiVo Reports Results for the Second Quarter Fiscal Year 2010 Ended July 31, 2009
Read - TiVo Files Complaints for Patent Infringement Against AT&T and Verizon Communications in United States District Court, Eastern District of Texas; Seeking Damages and Injunction