• 5 Items of Interest for the Week of Sept. 13th

    It's Friday and that means once again VideoNuze is featuring 5-6 interesting online/mobile video industry stories that we weren't able to cover this week. Read them now or take them with you for the weekend. Enjoy!

    Meet YouTube's Most In-Demand Brand Stars
    A fascinating look at how major brands are hiring amateurs who have gained large followings on YouTube to pitch their products. The concept of "celebrity spokesperson" is getting redefined in the online video era.

    Logitech Revue with Google TV Coming 9/29 for $299, Dish Network Offering Discounts?
    We may be less than 2 weeks away from Logitech's "Revue," the first implementation of Google TV, hitting the market, with Dish Network subscribers possibly getting a deeply discounted $179 offer. The connected device space is increasingly crowded and there's high anticipation to see how Google TV stacks up.

    Pre-order a Boxee Box Now
    Speaking of connected devices, Boxee announced this week that pre-ordering is available from Amazon for its Boxee Box connected device, manufactured by D-Link. Like Google TV, but unlike Apple TV or Roku, Boxee offers the prospect of browsing the full Internet for video, not just what's been integrated with the device.

    Samsung Reveals Tablet Launch Plans
    Meanwhile the strongest potential competitor to the iPad, Samsung's "Tab" will begin shipping in just a few weeks, with availability from all 4 major U.S. wireless carriers. The Tab is very focused on mobile video, running Android 2.2 which supports Flash 10.1. That means Hulu and all other Flash-based video should work, significantly expanding the universe of choices beyond what is available on the iPad. No pricing yet, but the Tab looks like a meaningful iPad alternative.

    Ivi Seeks to Become an Online Cable System
    Can an online service retransmit network TV through the Internet, and charge for it without having any underlying agreements in place with the networks themselves? That's what Ivi, which unveiled its software this week, is attempting to do, pointing to U.S. copyright law as making its offer legit. We'll see; with TV networks gaining no new revenue coming in plus the risk of cannibalization we should expect them to raise vigorous legal challenges.