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Amherst Bytes #33: News Updates for 10/15/06

A lot has happened over the past two weeks, so much so that I figured that this issue would be best spent catching up on some of the more interesting developments. First off, we have Google’s $1.65 billion purchase of Youtube. For Youtube, this acquisition makes complete sense. With reported monthly bandwidth bills in the millions, and seemingly no revenue plan in sight, technology analysts have been predicting that Youtube will crash and burn for months now. Add to that Youtube’s constant threat of litigation by copyright holders and you have a cocktail for yet another tech startup gone belly-up. Google’s purchase most likely saved Youtube from certain doom: Along with financial stability, Google has also promised the Youtube founders an efficient method for sorting out its innumerable copyright violations.

But what does Google get out of this? After all they have their own online video site with Google Video (http://video.google.com), so how exactly is Youtube different? On the surface, both sites seem to offer the same service: They both stream video in your web browser in cruddy Flash-based quality. Almost inexplicably though, Youtube ended up being the standard for web based video over the past few years. Google won’t be abandoning Google Video anytime soon, strangely enough, although they may eventually allow Google Video search results to show up in Youtube and vice versa. The purchase of Youtube, in addition to more deals with content providers, will most likely cement Youtube as the leader of the internet video revolution.

In the console gaming realm, preorders for the Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii finally began this week at major gaming retailers. Many stores saw gamers lining up before their doors opened with preorders selling out in minutes. Those who haven’t yet preordered a PS3 can pretty much forget about finding a system until after the holiday season given Sony’s ridiculously low availability. On the other hand, those without a Wii preorder will most likely be able to find a system on launch day with a decent amount of searching. As astute readers will remember, Nintendo plans to have at least four times as many new systems available in 2006 when compared to Sony.

In response to the impending approach of the PS3 and Wii, Microsoft is preparing to launch new peripherals and high-profile games for the 360. They plan to release an HD-DVD expansion drive for the 360 in November for playing HD-DVD movies. Retailing at $200, the drive will offer current 360 owners a convenient gateway into the world of high-definition discs. While they haven’t announced anything yet, I expect that MS will offer some sort of special deal for purchasing the HD-DVD drive and 360 console at the same time.

The drive will only play HD-DVD movies, so 360 owners who just care about games won’t be forced to upgrade. Strangely enough, I find Microsoft’s method of adding high-definition movie support much more elegant than Sony’s, which doesn’t require an expansion drive at all. The key difference between with is that they are offering their users choice, something Sony has clearly lost sight of.

360 users are waiting eagerly for “Gears of War”, which is set for launch a week before the PS3 and Wii. Game journalists have complained for the past year about the Xbox 360’s lack of a “killer application”, but I think they were just waiting for “Gears” to be released. It’s yet another dystopian sci-fi game where you’re fighting for the fate of humanity, but as with anything cut from a traditional mold, it’s the implementation that matters, and “Gears” promises to break new ground. It also gives every gamer something they’ve always wanted: Assault rifles with chainsaws. Brilliant!


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