Mark Fleischmann

Movies get torrented. However illegal that may be, it's just a fact of life. Now get ready for the curveball: An Australian horror film is about to be legally distributed by BitTorrent as a means of getting people interested in the Paramount DVD release.

The film in question is The Tunnel, produced by Distracted Media. It will be released as both BitTorrent and Paramount DVD on May 19. The disc will have two hours of content not found in the torrent including an alternative ending and a making-of documentary.

Netflix distributes a huge amount of video programming and a rapidly increasing percentage of it via streaming. But in the race for hot new titles, it tends to lag behind cable/satellite VOD and disc release. Now Netflix is looking to improve its game by licensing original content and streaming it ahead of competitors.

The first property Netflix is eyeing is House of Cards, a remake of a BBC thriller of the same name, this time starring Kevin Spacey and directed by David Fincher, who directed The Social Network. Netflix is bidding $100 million for two seasons of the series in the hope that it may do for Netflix what The Sopranos did for HBO and Mad Men did for AMC.

The A/V receiver is your home theater’s central nervous system. All cables and connections to and from your other components are likely to run through your AVR. It will manage and switch the A/V signals from all of your sources, and it will power at least five of your loudspeakers. Making the right choice in an AVR can feel like a science exam, but once you make the perfect match, the rewards are huge. The right AVR will be a pleasure to use and will make your speakers and other components perform their best. Helping you make the best choice is where Home Theater’s AVR Buyer’s Guide comes in.

While human misery is the most horrifying outcome of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, the natural disaster also has implications for the manufacturing of consumer electronics.

Japan makes finished CE products like TVs as well as components such as LCD panels and chips, which it supplies to manufacturers all over the world. The disruption may result in shortages and higher pricing for these products and parts.