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Carrot Creative's Daniel Love, Mike Germano and Robert Gaafar are launching a new nightlife text messaging service called VIPTXT. The Brooklyn-based startup is planning a big launch party sometime in June, but Daniel Love will unveil VIPTXT at the Web2NewYork networking party at Gallery Bar.
News Corp. plans to wrap up an agreement to buy Newsday from Tribune Co. in the next seven days according to statements made by Chairman Rupert Murdoch on a conference call to discuss the company's third-quarter results. Murdoch added that the purchase of Newsday would improve News Corp.'s cash flow by $100 million a year and offer "great savings" in combining printing and distribution with the New York Post.
> Cablevision Doesn't Need Newsday
NBC Universal is revamping its Manhattan operations and by 2009, some units will be moving to a new facility. NBC's headquarters, NBC Sports, NBC News and two NBC Entertainment programs, Late Night With Conan O'Brien and Saturday Night Live will remain at 30 Rock. The new facility, either a new building or a remodeled existing one, will house 2,000 to 3,000 employees, be environmentally sound, and have a conference center, fitness center, commissary, and a childcare and health center. The new facility will be in addition to NBC's existing offices on Madison Avenue, Park Avenue, and Chelsea Market.
MediaPost's Online Media Daily
The parents of a Connecticut teen are suing Verizon Wireless for an assault on their daughter by a man whom she met after accessing the Web on the phone which they purchased for her in 2005. They allege that Verizon Wireless failed to provide adequate warning of the phone's ability to connect to the Web and allow their daughter access to mobile social networking Web sites.
A new Dept. of Education policy that bans employees from linking to Web logs in their e-mail signatures has drawn criticism from Lisa Nielsen, author of the Innovative Educator, a blog about using technology to improve teaching, and an instructional technology office staffer. She maintains the blog from home and in it, regularly refers to her work with teachers and principals. The new policy also requires employees' blog posts to disavow any connection to the Dept. of Education.
The Bethpage, LI-based company plans to expand high-speed Wi-Fi Internet service over its local coverage area beyond the 15 metropolitan area communities- five of them on Long Island- where it is now offered. The service will be available without charge to Cablevision customers who have Optimum Online service and it will be rolled out over the next two years at a cost of about $100 per customer.
Cablevision's LI Wi-Fi communities are Long Beach, Sag Harbor, Merrick, Northport and Huntington. Its service is also available in three communities in New Jersey, two in Connecticut, three in Westchester, one in the Bronx and along the Bridgeport-Port Jefferson ferry lines. Cablevision began offering Wi-Fi several years ago.
> Dolan Committing To Wi-Fi For New York (New York Post)
The Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
In order to meet its goal of cutting 100 positions, The New York Times will be laying off some newsroom staffers. According to a memo published on the Poynter Institute's Web site, Executive Editor Bill Keller noted that volunteer acceptance of buyout offers had reduced the number of layoffs necessary to meet this goal.
> Guild Protests Layoff Methodology (Romenesko)
> Previous: Times to Cut 100 Newsroom Jobs (The New York Times)
NBC Universal plans to announce the launch of New York's Newschannel, a NY1-style 24-hour local news channel today. The identity of WNBC, Channel 4, the NBC network's existing flagship station here, will be de-emphasized. Channel 4's newsroom will be rebuilt as a "content center", the Web site will be redesigned to include the channel's new name, and Channel 4 will also disappear from out-of-home video locations like gas pumps and the back seats of cabs. The new channel will be shown on the digital tier of cable systems in the New York area and is expected to air beginning in November.
> NBC Local Media Builds Out New York Hub (TelevisionWeek)
> WNBC To Launch 24-Hour Local News Channel (TV Newsday)
> NBC To Launch 24/7 All-News Channel (Crain's New York Business)
Previously scheduled to be held at IAC, May's NY Tech Meetup is returning to Cooper Union's Great Hall on Tuesday, May 13. Currently full, additional seats will be made available on May 9.
Currently filmed entirely in Los Angeles, TV Guide's Ausiello Scoop reports that ABC plans to move Ugly Betty's entire production to the city next season. According to a source, ABC executives feel that shooting on location will both cut costs and "give the show an authentic New York feel."
> How Blogs Helped New York TV (Gawker)
> ABC Sees N.Y. Savings Too Attractive To Keep 'Betty' in L.A. (Los Angeles Times)
Under a new initiative instituted in January, rookie cops' profiles on social networking sites are now being regularly reviewed by the NYPD for inappropriate content and illegal behavior. An Internal Affairs investigation recently uncovered a MySpace profile which highlighted the criminal activities of one officer and led to his arrest for robbery.
KidSpirit Magazine, a 100% ad-free spirituality magazine which a group of kids began in Brooklyn Heights over two years ago, is launching nationally this month. Through an open submission process, it will feature the work of kids from New York and around the country and focus on a broad range of spiritual issues they encounter in their daily lives.
NY Atty. Gen. Cuomo has proposed strengthening New York's anti-film-piracy laws. Joined by actress Tina Fey, NBC Universal President Jeff Zucker and Dan Glickman, chief executive of the Motion Picture Assn. of America at a news conference, Cuomo proposed a new bill under which first-time offenders would face up to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine, offenses would be elevated from violation status to class A misdemeanor, and repeat offenders would be charged as felons.
> New York Introduces Anti-Piracy Bill (The Hollywood Reporter)
While Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. and Mortimer Zuckerman's Daily News could see financial benefits to acquiring the Long-Island daily, Fortune's Devin Leonard finds Cablevision's bid "the most puzzling of the three." The Dolans' background is in cable and they own five local television stations. They're not newspaper publishers. Unlike News Corp. and the Daily News, there are fewer opportunities for back-office integration and no savings from combined printing operations.
> Sources Say Murdoch Won't Raise Bid for Newsday
Launched last month by two Brooklyn brothers, Beermenus.com provides a guide to beers on tap and available by the bottle in Manhattan bars. The Web site currently allows users to search 1,280 varieties of beer sold in 186 bars and they plan to add other boroughs in the coming months.
Verizon has started taking orders for FiOS TV in Roslyn Harbor on Long Island and Wappingers Falls in Dutchess County. The service has also been expanded to include the village of Plattekill, portions of the Village of Wallkill, and the Town of Newburgh in Orange County. FiOS TV is already being offered in approximately 200 New York communities through 108 cable franchises across the state.
On the heels of the launch of its iGoogle Artist Themes, Google executive Marissa Meyer hosted a celebration and discussion on the Internet's effect on the art industry at One nightclub. Arrivals in nearby Gansevoort Square were greeted by video animations projected on buildings, "trippy" progressive music, and a white tent emblazoned with the Google logo. Meyer moderated the discussion with participating artists, including architect Michael Graves, photographer Anne Geddes, artist Jeff Koons, designer Marc Ecko, and New Yorker cartoon editor Robert Mankoff.
Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. will not be raising its bid for the Long-Island based newspaper according to a person familiar with the matter. Cablevision recently raised its offer for Newsday to $650 million, besting Murdoch's $580 million price and the Daily News' Mortimer Zuckerman's offer.
LB's Rambles
[Editor's Note: NY:MIEG is a current client of Trylon SMR.]
At the monthly New York: Media Information Exchange Group (NY:MIEG) breakfast in New York City, Quantel's David Dever presented sample 3D videos on their HDTV system. Participants watched the sample videos wearing special 3D glasses and heard from the panel about the 3D process and its possibilities, including the presence of 3D capable HDTV sets in consumers' homes now.
The lawsuit challenges the law's provision which will force the online retailer to collect sales tax on shipments to the state's residents. Amazon.com filed the complaint in Manhattan's State Supreme Court objecting to the law, part of Gov. Paterson's state budget signed last week.
> NY Gov. Paterson Resurrects Tax on Internet Sales
