Hulu, the popular online site for watching television shows, plans to begin testing a subscription service as soon as May 24, according to people with knowledge of the plans.
Under the proposal, Hulu would continue to provide for free the five most recent episodes of shows like Fox's "Glee," "ABC's "Lost" or NBC's "Saturday Night Live." But viewers who want to see additional episodes would pay $9.95 a month to access a more comprehensive selection, called Hulu Plus, these people said.
Hulu, which ranks second only to Google's YouTube in terms of monthly video streams in the U.S., said it turned an operating profit in its two most recent quarters. The 2-year-old service, which is owned by media giants News Corp., NBC Universal and the Walt Disney Co., generated more than $100 million in revenue from advertising.
Still, that doesn't come close to matching the revenue that these companies are accustomed to raking in from their more established businesses. That's why Hulu is under pressure from its owners to collect a subscription fee to both bolster revenue and train viewers to pay for online access to professionally produced content.
Television executives don't want to suffer the same fate as music industry or newspapers, which saw users flock to free access to songs, stories and classified ads online -- and revenues plummet.
In the past, Hulu primarily offered shows that were broadcast over the air for free. But now, as the major networks are trying to extract payments from cable operators and television station groups, they can no longer justify offering the same shows online for free. Shows on Hulu also carry commercials, however there are fewer spots there than on regular television. Ultimately, Hulu is expected to adopt the same commercial loads as network television.
Hulu did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
--Dawn C. Chmielewski and Meg James The Hulu video player displays a scene from "Arrested Development." Credit: Twentieth Century Fox and Imagine Entertainment.
From: http://techvert.com/
The U.S. Treasury refreshes its currency every once in a while to stay a step ahead of counterfeiters, and this time they’re refreshing the new $100 bill. The new bill will contain a security feature called Motion, where each bill will contain up to 650,000 microlenses embedded in the printing which will allow for an underlying image to shift when the bill is moved. Yep, good old Benjamin Franklin is getting a facelift and here it is (we’ll add more pics as they become available):
Highlights of the new bill:
- 3-D Security Ribbon
- Bell in the inkwell. When you move the note, the bell changes color from copper to green.
- Portrait watermark
- Security Thread
- Color-shifting “100″
- The new note will be issued on February 10, 2011
Some facts about the U.S. $100 bill:
- There are about 6.5 billion in circulation. That’s $650,000,000,000
- The average $100 bill is replaced every 5 years due to wear
- It is one of only two banknotes that do not feature a president
- The first $100 bill was issued in 1862
- The time on the clock on Independence Hall on the back side of the bill reads 4:10
From: http://wildammo.com/
Ever want a crossbow but don’t want to go out and actually spend hundreds on a dangerous weapon? Now you can make one with everyday household items using these simple steps!
From John Austin’s book: Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction.
5th Grade Baller Jaylin Fleming is from Chicago. Since Fleming is only 5′1″ tall, and he generally plays with kids up to nearly twice his age, he needs to be quick, and he needs to have handles. Mad handles. Who better for a 5th grader to look up to than Derrick Rose from his hometown Chicago Bulls. I hear Derrick Rose has a decent handle of his own, right?
The ‘mini-me’ comparisons are bound to happen between Rose and Fleming, especially after Rose recently agreed to meet and shoot around with the little fella.
But Fleming is nothing like an average kid his age. He is puttin’ in work on the hardwood. He lives, breathes, sleeps, and eats nothing but hoops. We thought we were hoop heads here at The Hoop Doctors, but we got nothing on this kids love for the game. And it’s starting to pay off already for him.
Aside from already being a YouTube sensation for the following video giving you a sneak peek into his lifestyle and work ethic, Jaylin is rated by many scouts as the top player for his age in the entire country. I wouldn’t be surprised if college programs already have this kid on their radar a whopping 8 years shy of when Jaylin will be ready to sign a letter of intent.
youtube.com — Watch this small little girl sing amazing grace better than anyone I have ever heard. This is truly inspiring and amazing. You won't believe your ears!
8track.taylorhawkins.com —Taylor Hawkins (Foo Fighters) is streaming his new album in 8-Track quality. Compete with tape compression, hissing, and clicks. Drag the tape to the slot!
The yacht's three pools include a high-powered jet pool for laps that can be switched from salt to fresh water.
BARBADOS—At the top of a spiral staircase lined with scalloped, silver-leaf walls (the banister cost $60,000) is a door accessible by a fingerprint security system. It opens to an all-white, 2,583-square-foot master suite wrapped in bomb-proof, 44-milimeter glass. There, a king-sized bed sits on a giant platter that rotates with the press of a silver button. Another set of buttons rotates the bed itself. The combination of the rotating bed and the rotating platter allows limitless angles for watching the sunset, sunrise or the 60-inch plasma TV, which retracts from the ceiling.
Designed by Philippe Starck, the "A" has quickly become the most loved and loathed ship on the sea. WSJ's Robert Frank takes an exclusive tour of Andrey Melnichenko's 394-foot mega-yacht.
And of course, everything's afloat.
In the battle among Russia's billionaires for yacht supremacy, Roman Abramovich's upcoming 540-foot Eclipse may soon become the biggest, but Andrey Melnichenko's 394-foot "A" has become the most talked-about yacht on the seas.
With its radical shape—more sleek submarine than boxy pleasure boat—and reams of custom parts and finishes (including bath knobs costing $40,000 apiece), "A" is a conspicuous marker of an ocean-going plutocracy that's largely been untouched by the recession. The boat, designed by Philippe Starck and completed in mid-2008 for more than $300 million, has spawned a flotilla of copycats emulating its low-slung hull and design scheme. Numerous companies involved in its construction went bankrupt, done in by the novelty of the project and the level of customization required.
For all its fame, "A" remains a bit mysterious. Its owner, a 38-year-old banking, steel and fertilizer czar, is intensely private and requires all his construction crew and staff to sign strict confidentiality agreements (he declined comment for this article). He and his wife only rarely entertain on board, and few public images of the boat's interior exist.
Dirk Kloosterman, "A"'s project manager and a veteran of the world's largest yachts, recently provided an exclusive tour of the boat's 23,600 square feet of living space.
The boat's interior departs dramatically from most conventions of yacht design. Instead of the usual overstuffed couches and mahogany walls, there are Baccarat-crystal tables, shiny white finishes and polished silver, a kind of Manhattan-loft-meets-Vegas aesthetic. Many of the rooms have floor-to-ceiling mirrors, which Mr. Starck says have a built-in "mathematical beauty" that also refer to the "mathematical genius" of Mr. Melnichenko.
A look at some of the world's largest and most ostentatious yachts.
The walls of one room are covered in white sting-ray hides, while another is covered in hand-stitched calf's leather. The main deck features two Michel Haillard chairs made from alligator hides and Kudo horns. Known for his mischievous streak, Mr. Starck outfitted "A" with risqué touches like the suite dubbed the "nookie room" by the crew, with its white circular bed with padded walls and a ceiling-mounted TV.
Mr. Starck says that while most megayachts are "vulgar" statements of wealth and power, "A" was designed to be in harmony with the sea and nature. "This boat has elegance and intelligence, it is not trying to show the money," he adds.
As with many Russian-owned yachts, "A" is highly secure. Its rounded exterior and knife-like hull make it difficult for intruders to board. It has 44 security cameras and more than a dozen exterior cameras fitted with motion-detection systems and a night-vision infrared system.
It is also designed to outrun threats: Twin, high-speed diesel engines deliver 24,000 horsepower and push the 5,959-gross-ton ship to 24 knots, roughly a third faster than most boats its size. The boat, which is stabilized by fiber-optic gyroscopes and four giant motorized flaps, is rumored to also be equipped with a pod-like escape system, but the staff declined to comment.
A transom door in the rear of the boat, which swings with open to become a swim deck, is fitted with so many hydraulics, locking pins, rotating stairs and electronics that it cost around $25 million to build. The company that made it eventually went bankrupt, along with the company that made the bomb-proof wrap-around glass encasing the master suite and the company that built the hydraulic gangways. The ship's two main landing boats are mini-yachts themselves, stretching to 36 feet, boasting plush interiors and costing more than $1 million each.
There's little sign that the billionaire boat boom is ending. The recession has certainly hit the "middle-class" yacht market, as banks cut back on boat loans and mere millionaires struggle to rebuild their fortunes. Orders for boats of more than 80 feet fell to 753 last year from 992 in 2008, according to Showboats International magazine. Yet orders for superyachts, or those more than 250 feet, were actually up more than 20% in 2009, according to Showboats.
'A' has an unusual, swoopy design, a low-slung hull and twin engines that deliver 24,000 horsepower.
"A" has a crew of between 35 to 37 people, including stewards and stewardesses, mechanical engineers, security staff, housekeepers, deck hands, galley crew and chefs. The crew also has specialists for surfing, jet skiing, water skiing and cycling. All of the crew wear Starck-designed uniforms—crisp white dress shirts and white pants for daytime, and tight, black T-shirts and slacks for evening. The boat costs over $20 million a year to maintain; Filling the gas tank costs more than $500,000.
There are many discussion groups and forums about "A" online, with titles like "The Ugliest Yacht in the World" and "Should Philippe Starck Design Boats?" Debates can get heated: On the "Insider's Guide to St. Bart's"—a Web site frequented by vacationers on the upscale Caribbean island—dozens of "A" spotters tracked the boat's daily movements.
"That's pretty Cool!," wrote one St. Bart's vacationer. "Finally a real designer yacht!".
Added another: "Who would call their Yacht 'The A'? Seems like you're setting yourself up big time." ("A" stands for both Andrey and Aleksandra, Mr. Melnichenko's Serbian-born supermodel wife).
Some yacht designers and brokers describe "A" as too futuristic and aggressive for the leisurely world of yachting. "Initially I was very skeptical," says Jonathan Beckett, chief executive of London-based Burgess, the yacht broker. "When you just see photos, it's a very strange-looking boat. But when I saw it cruising in the Caribbean this year, I have to say I was impressed. It's a very exciting boat to watch. It's simply unlike anything that's ever been done before."
Crew members often joke about the Melnichenkos' penchant for the spontaneous, with frequent changes in itinerary or travel. The boat doesn't spend much time in any one port, since Mr. Melnichenko prefers to roam the seas for weeks at a time. Last year he spent several months in the Mediterranean; this year he's mainly in the Caribbean.
"The fun thing about working on 'A' is you never know what the next hour will bring," says Mr. Kloosterman, "A's" project manager. "This boat is all about the unexpected."
random804 — December 10, 2009 — Australian comedy group 'Axis Of Awesome' perform a sketch from the 2009 Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Footage courtesy of Network Ten Australia.
See http://www.axisofawesome.net/ for more details of the comedy trio including Jordan Raskopoulos, Lee Naimo, & Benny Davis.
Red pandas are just about the cutest thing ever. These guys are native to the forests in the Himalayas, and there are only 10,000 to 20,000 of them worldwide. In the past they had been misclassified as being in the same families as raccoons and bears, but have recently been reclassified in a family all their own; they are considered “living fossils”, which means they’re more closely related to animals found in fossils than any living species. The people native to the red panda’s region call them “Wha” after the sound they make. They are slightly bigger than a house cat and eat a diet of mostly bamboo shoots and leaves. They spend most of the day time napping in the tree tops, and are most active at dusk and dawn.
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All you art collectors out there. Here is a chance to get a Giclee copy of some of Ian M Sherwin work. Ian is planning on doing a whole series of Marblehead, Massachusetts paintings. His work is amazing.
![[HOMEFRONT1]](http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/WK-AT583_HOMEFR_F_20100415170210.jpg)
![[SB10001424052702304510004575186111286405430]](http://s.wsj.net/public/resources/images/OB-IE301_yacht1_D_20100415172407.jpg)
![[SB10001424052702304510004575186312885614620]](http://s.wsj.net/public/resources/images/OB-IE232_yachtp_D_20100415160159.jpg)
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