Apple shakes up online video plan

Apple has overhauled key elements of its online video strategy following an admission by Steve Jobs on Tuesday that the company’s early efforts had been a disappointment. The changes involve a new online rental service for movies, which was first reported in the FT last month, and a revamp of the Apple TV set-top box so that viewers can stream movies direct from the internet, without the need for a computer. In a rare admission that Apple’s first attempts had failed, Mr Jobs conceded that customers had not taken to watching online video the way Apple had expected. (Financial Times)

Sony, DivX pact for online downloads

After years of knocking on Hollywood's door, DivX finally got an answer from Sony Pictures. Although DivX is generally considered to be the highest quality way to encode video online, is broadly used online and has been installed on over 100 million electronics devices, like DVD players and computers? most studios have thus far resisted partnering because its software is very widely used for piracy; Sony Pictures is the first to change course, signing a deal that lets online retailers offer downloads of the studio's films and skeins using DivX encoding and digital rights management. (Variety)