Audio Video News

Proposed legislation in Congress would curb the digital-download taxes, or "iTaxes," currently levied by 23 states and the District of Columbia.

Sony is about to launch two movie channels. One, Sony Pictures Movies HD, would be the first channel completely under Sony ownership. The other, FearNet, is a joint venture with Lionsgate and Comcast.

Look out, HDMI. There's a new cable kid on the block.

At a press event last week in Beverly Hills, California, Sony announced three new receivers and a Blu-ray player in the company's premium ES (Elevated Standard) line. Also new this year is a revised policy for ES sales. Unlike Sony's standard models, the ES series will be marketed exclusively through specialty retail outlets. These will include the Magnolia division of Best Buy and independent sellers. Sony feels that only such stores are fully qualified to properly demonstrate these products to consumers, allowing buyers to appreciate and take full advantage of the features they offer. Such limited distribution will also allow Sony to better enforce its minimum advertised pricing structure. The ES products will no longer be available online, nor will they be sold in Sony Style stores.

Hulu Plus, long rumored and now launching, is a paid version of the popular streaming video site. While the free version of the site will continue to offer fresh TV episodes, the paid version will offer full seasons of current shows plus seasons of shows no longer aired. The cost will be $9.99/month.

Samsung is adding SRS TheaterSound to its entire TV line.

A federal judge has thrown a major copyright lawsuit against YouTube out of court. It's a big win for Google, which owns the video streaming site, and a big loss for Viacom, which brought the suit.