The ongoing writers' strike has seen Americans turn to online alternatives. According to Nielsen some online video sites have seen their audience double since the strike began at the end of October last year. Clearly Americans are spending more time on YouTube and other similar destinations. A study released by Pew Internet and American Life Project finds the number of web users who watch video online grew 45% between late 2006 and 2007. Forty eight percent of web users now visit video sharing web sites.
Contributing to the rise is the spread of broadband and the increasing volume and range of content on these sites. The internet has clearly become a medium of diversion, entertainment and education as well, apart from its utility function.
Men are more likely to use video sharing sites-53% compared to 43% for women. The increase in traffic is driven by youngsters with 70% of those under 30 using such sites.About 22% of Americans now shoot their own videos with 14% of them posting it online.Now that many cellphones have video capabilities, making videos is now an almost spontaneous act. Video sharing sites are working closely with news channels to promote interactive content. The Democratic presidential debate hosted on YouTube along with CNN is an example.
Dailynation is perhaps the world's largest independent video entertainment website.Every day, over 15,000 new videos are uploaded onto Dailynation's global network of localized video entertainment sites. It claims to receive about 32.3 million unique users every month.
One of the pioneers in the field Metcafe which boasts 19 million unique users every month has created a 'producer rewards' program that gives $5 to video creators for every 1000 visitors they get. With competition between rival sites rising, both content and rewards for users are bound to increase.
Spears and Angel: One Nasty Love Story
Nothing could be finer with a greasy haired boy hooking up with an often drunk girl. It really is a beautiful story. She pays people to be her friend and he’s slept with everything in Hollywood but Paris and the kitchen sink (though he may as soon as he learns to get that drain open). I suppose it really was just a matter of time.
While this hookup doesn’t really surprise me, I cannot help but be mildly grossed out. Criss Angel is just frighteningly not sexy. Maybe it’s just me but every time I see him it looks like he needs to wash his hair. I hear he makes a lot of money doing that magic thing, but if he doesn’t handle it soon I am going to suggest that his fans send him some Pantene for Christmas. Anyway, back on topic…Britney and Criss hooking up…
According to reports, Angel, 39, has been linked to Lindsay Lohan and Cameron Diaz (not necessarily in that order). Now he’s moved on to Britney. Next stop, the duo will be visiting the clinic for a nice (and necessary) health check. On a side note, if this magic thing doesn’t work out, Angel could always become a gigolo or he can become a poster child for condoms.
The reports claim that Angel escorted Spears into the Tower Beverly Hills Hotel last night. The two were even seen holding hands as they headed to the suite on the 11th floor.
Isn’t that sweet? Although, I can’t help but hope they washed their hands first.
Amy Winehouse: Screw Rehab, I’m Going to the Bar!
Amy Winehouse quit rehab after three days and proceeded to immediately belly up to the bar.
Her junkie hubby, Blake Fielder-Civil, had a helicopter pick Amy up at The Causeway clinic in Essex. How romantic. Then, like a knight in shining armor, he whisked her away to their favorite pub, The Old Eagle in Camden.
Winehouse was supposed to stay in rehab for a few weeks to get well and healthy again after collapsing during a three day drug and drinking binge. They say after Amy got some sleep and ate some food that she insisted she was fine to leave.
Blake’s dad, Giles Civil, says he was hoping she would stick out the rehab stint.
“We were praying they wouldn’t bail out early. We don’t want them to go back into their vicious cycle. Amy has had five days away from drugs and her confidence is slowly coming back. I hope she and Blake can take control of their lives.”
Amy’s parent’s however, wish the rehab singer would stay far, far away from her enabling husband.
J.K. Rowling turns the page on Harry Potter
British author J.K. Rowling , who a week ago published the final Harry Potter book, said in an interview out Thursday that she is already back at work.
The British author says she's sad the Harry Potter series has ended, but will not stop writing.
"I'm sort of writing two things at the moment," she told USA Today. "One is for children and the other is not for children.
"The weird thing is that this is exactly the way I started writing Harry. I was writing two things simultaneously for a year before Harry took over. So one will oust the other in due course, and I'll know that's my next thing," she told the national daily.
Rowling admitted to being angered that the last of the seven-novel series had been posted on a website prior to the official release.
"I was angry," she told USA Today, for her young fans, the "10-11-year-olds who really wanted not to know" how the book ended, until they had a chance to read it.
However, she was heartened that rumored endings included the death of the boy-wizard.
"I was very proud that people thought Harry's death was a genuine possibility. I wanted the reader to feel that anyone might die, as in life," she said.
The books themselves will live on, the 41-year-old billionaire said.
"Do I think they'll last? Honestly, yes."
"In 50 years' time, if people are still reading them, they deserve to be read, and if they're not, then that's OK."
" Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows " sold an estimated 8.3 million copies within 24 hours of its release, according to its US publisher.
Some 325 million copies of the first six volumes have been sold worldwide, and the books have been translated into 64 languages.
The British author says she's sad the Harry Potter series has ended, but will not stop writing.
"I'm sort of writing two things at the moment," she told USA Today. "One is for children and the other is not for children.
"The weird thing is that this is exactly the way I started writing Harry. I was writing two things simultaneously for a year before Harry took over. So one will oust the other in due course, and I'll know that's my next thing," she told the national daily.
Rowling admitted to being angered that the last of the seven-novel series had been posted on a website prior to the official release.
"I was angry," she told USA Today, for her young fans, the "10-11-year-olds who really wanted not to know" how the book ended, until they had a chance to read it.
However, she was heartened that rumored endings included the death of the boy-wizard.
"I was very proud that people thought Harry's death was a genuine possibility. I wanted the reader to feel that anyone might die, as in life," she said.
The books themselves will live on, the 41-year-old billionaire said.
"Do I think they'll last? Honestly, yes."
"In 50 years' time, if people are still reading them, they deserve to be read, and if they're not, then that's OK."
" Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows " sold an estimated 8.3 million copies within 24 hours of its release, according to its US publisher.
Some 325 million copies of the first six volumes have been sold worldwide, and the books have been translated into 64 languages.
Experts: Lohan Could Get 180 Days in Jail
Lindsay Lohan's best bet for avoiding jail time is to go back into rehab yet again and remove herself from a high-flying party lifestyle, if not, she could be facing up to six months behind bars, legal observers said Wednesday.
Lohan, 21, was less than two weeks out of a recovery program and was voluntarily wearing an alcohol-monitoring device when she was arrested Tuesday in Santa Monica for investigation of misdemeanor driving both under the influence and with a suspended license, and felony cocaine possession.
Her lawyer, Blair Berk, has said she had a "relapse" and was receiving medical care at an undisclosed location.
A call to Lohan's publicist was not returned Wednesday.
The actress completed more than six weeks in rehab less than two weeks ago, and had checked into another recovery clinic in January.
Over the weekend, she was photographed at a party in a pink bikini, with the monitoring device on her ankle.
That behavior won't cut it anymore and neither will spa-style clinics, said Barry Gerald Sands, a Century City defense attorney who's also a certified drug and alcohol counselor.
"Whatever you have done in the past, do a 360-degree turn and go the other way," Sands said Wednesday. "She has to change her alleged friends, people sharing or selling her drugs. She has to lead a clean and sober life.
"Silk-sheet recovery homes don't do the job."
If Lohan is charged with a crime, she could ask a judge to order her to remain in rehabilitation while she awaits trial, Sands said.
A "recovery team" should be in place that includes doctors and addiction specialists who can give the judge alternatives to jail.
And if she is convicted, the rehab time would count against whatever jail sentence is issued, Sands said.
Lohan has never been convicted of a drug or alcohol crime and judges routinely place first-time DUI offenders on probation rather than behind bars. However, Lohan's case could be complicated because she also was arrested for investigation of felony DUI in Beverly Hills on Memorial Day after her Mercedes-Benz crashed into a curb.
That case was submitted to the Los Angeles County district attorney's office last week and is being reviewed, spokeswoman Jane Robison said.
If she is convicted of two felonies in the two cases, she might be eligible for 18 months or more in state prison but such a sentence is unlikely, said Lawrence Taylor, a former Los Angeles prosecutor who runs one of the nation's top DUI defense law firms.
"Our prisons are packed already," he said. "We don't need some recreational (drug) users with a small amount of coke with a clean record."
On the other hand, Lohan probably will have to do some time in county jail simply because prosecutors and judges saw the backlash when Paris Hilton was briefly allowed to serve her DUI sentence at home instead of jail.
"They're going to see how sensitive everything was ... Everything was being looked at with a microscope and broadcast to the entire world, literally," Taylor said. "They saw what happened and judges do run for re-election, and deputy DAs are aware that their bosses run for re-election."
Both sides would be interested in stalling a court case until the media frenzy ebbs but that is unlikely if the continued scrutiny of Paris Hilton is any signpost, Taylor said.
"Entertainment has become more important than information and the media is looking ... for money. They're looking for audience, they're looking to give the public what they want," he said.
That scrutiny means that Lohan, if convicted, probably will get some jail time regardless of whether it is warranted in her case, Taylor said.
"I would say this woman's going to be doing at least 30 days" and perhaps as long as 180 days if she is convicted of two DUIs along with drug possession, Taylor said.
However, virtually all DUI cases are settled by plea agreements.
If he were running the defense, Taylor said, his team of experts would reconstruct the traffic accident; seek out witnesses, videotapes and audio of the traffic stops; examine repair and usage records for police breath analysis machines; and look into any blood tests Lohan was given to detect drugs and check the qualifications of the officers who stopped her. Medical experts also would check to see if Lohan had some medical condition, say, diabetes, that can affect the tests.
"After a few months of hard work, you can find where all the cracks are, and there will be some," Taylor said.
Then, "I would strongly suggest ... that perhaps this woman needs rehab rather than a long stretch in jail."
A prosecutor faced with possibly losing a case might agree, otherwise, Taylor said, "your much-cherished conviction rate is going to go down and your chances of promotion are going to go down."
Taylor concedes that the type of defense that celebrities can afford is off-limits to the average DUI defendant. and that affects the severity of their sentencing.
"Are you saying does justice have a price? Absolutely? But the same is true of heart surgery," Taylor said. "It's not going to be the same cost and it's not going to be the same result."
Lohan, 21, was less than two weeks out of a recovery program and was voluntarily wearing an alcohol-monitoring device when she was arrested Tuesday in Santa Monica for investigation of misdemeanor driving both under the influence and with a suspended license, and felony cocaine possession.
Her lawyer, Blair Berk, has said she had a "relapse" and was receiving medical care at an undisclosed location.
A call to Lohan's publicist was not returned Wednesday.
The actress completed more than six weeks in rehab less than two weeks ago, and had checked into another recovery clinic in January.
Over the weekend, she was photographed at a party in a pink bikini, with the monitoring device on her ankle.
That behavior won't cut it anymore and neither will spa-style clinics, said Barry Gerald Sands, a Century City defense attorney who's also a certified drug and alcohol counselor.
"Whatever you have done in the past, do a 360-degree turn and go the other way," Sands said Wednesday. "She has to change her alleged friends, people sharing or selling her drugs. She has to lead a clean and sober life.
"Silk-sheet recovery homes don't do the job."
If Lohan is charged with a crime, she could ask a judge to order her to remain in rehabilitation while she awaits trial, Sands said.
A "recovery team" should be in place that includes doctors and addiction specialists who can give the judge alternatives to jail.
And if she is convicted, the rehab time would count against whatever jail sentence is issued, Sands said.
Lohan has never been convicted of a drug or alcohol crime and judges routinely place first-time DUI offenders on probation rather than behind bars. However, Lohan's case could be complicated because she also was arrested for investigation of felony DUI in Beverly Hills on Memorial Day after her Mercedes-Benz crashed into a curb.
That case was submitted to the Los Angeles County district attorney's office last week and is being reviewed, spokeswoman Jane Robison said.
If she is convicted of two felonies in the two cases, she might be eligible for 18 months or more in state prison but such a sentence is unlikely, said Lawrence Taylor, a former Los Angeles prosecutor who runs one of the nation's top DUI defense law firms.
"Our prisons are packed already," he said. "We don't need some recreational (drug) users with a small amount of coke with a clean record."
On the other hand, Lohan probably will have to do some time in county jail simply because prosecutors and judges saw the backlash when Paris Hilton was briefly allowed to serve her DUI sentence at home instead of jail.
"They're going to see how sensitive everything was ... Everything was being looked at with a microscope and broadcast to the entire world, literally," Taylor said. "They saw what happened and judges do run for re-election, and deputy DAs are aware that their bosses run for re-election."
Both sides would be interested in stalling a court case until the media frenzy ebbs but that is unlikely if the continued scrutiny of Paris Hilton is any signpost, Taylor said.
"Entertainment has become more important than information and the media is looking ... for money. They're looking for audience, they're looking to give the public what they want," he said.
That scrutiny means that Lohan, if convicted, probably will get some jail time regardless of whether it is warranted in her case, Taylor said.
"I would say this woman's going to be doing at least 30 days" and perhaps as long as 180 days if she is convicted of two DUIs along with drug possession, Taylor said.
However, virtually all DUI cases are settled by plea agreements.
If he were running the defense, Taylor said, his team of experts would reconstruct the traffic accident; seek out witnesses, videotapes and audio of the traffic stops; examine repair and usage records for police breath analysis machines; and look into any blood tests Lohan was given to detect drugs and check the qualifications of the officers who stopped her. Medical experts also would check to see if Lohan had some medical condition, say, diabetes, that can affect the tests.
"After a few months of hard work, you can find where all the cracks are, and there will be some," Taylor said.
Then, "I would strongly suggest ... that perhaps this woman needs rehab rather than a long stretch in jail."
A prosecutor faced with possibly losing a case might agree, otherwise, Taylor said, "your much-cherished conviction rate is going to go down and your chances of promotion are going to go down."
Taylor concedes that the type of defense that celebrities can afford is off-limits to the average DUI defendant. and that affects the severity of their sentencing.
"Are you saying does justice have a price? Absolutely? But the same is true of heart surgery," Taylor said. "It's not going to be the same cost and it's not going to be the same result."
Potter publisher sues over breach
 Publishers have placed a strict embargo on the book's publication |
Scholastic sued online retailer DeepDiscount.com for breaking the strict midnight Saturday embargo.
In court papers filed in Illinois, the publisher also named its distributor Levy Entertainment for failing to ensure books were not sent out.
It said that only a tiny fraction of its 12m copies had been distributed.
"The number of copies shipped is around one one-hundredth of one per cent," said Scholastic in a statement.
'Please ignore'
The company added that they had a list of customers who had ordered the book from DeepDiscount.com and were asking them to put it to one side if they have already received it by mistake.
A report in The Baltimore Sun newspaper about a customer who had already received his copy prompted Scholastic to take action.
They are seeking unspecified damages from the two companies in question.
A spokesman for Infinity Resources, who own DeepDiscount.com, said: "We take the situation very seriously and are conducting an internal investigation."
JK Rowling has called on fans to dismiss speculation
Levy Entertainment declined to comment.
Scholastic has also asked "everyone, especially in the media, to preserve the fun and excitement for fans everywhere".
Harry Potter author JK Rowling has also posted an appeal on her official website, stating: "Let's all, please, ignore the misinformation popping up on the web and in the press.
"I'd like to ask everyone who calls themselves a Harry Potter fan to help preserve the secrecy of the plot for all those who are looking forward to reading the book at the same time on publication day.
"In a very short time you will know everything!" the statement concluded.
Earlier this week, pictures of what appeared to be pages from the new novel were circulating on the internet.
Minna Fry, marketing director of the book's UK publisher Bloomsbury said: "There have been so many fake books going up on the internet over the past four to six weeks. We have no reason to believe that these are anything other than fake either."US critics pan Beckham TV show
Victoria Beckham's debut on US television as the subject of a spoof fly-on-the-wall documentary has not been well received by critics.
The New York Post said the NBC show was "an orgy of self-indulgence".
As Beckham is shown setting up her new home in Los Angeles, she utters: "It's exhausting being fabulous."
Her husband David has had his first training session with his new team, LA Galaxy, but injury may force him out of a friendly against Chelsea on Saturday.
In the programme, Victoria Beckham Coming to America, she is shown dishing out orders to a new personal assistant, who she insists should not be too good-looking.
"It's got to be all about me," she says.
She is also shown tottering in high heels as she is taught how to pitch the first ball at a Los Angeles Dodgers baseball game.
However, newspaper critics were not impressed with the programme, which "smacks of too much fame, too much money and too much time spent believing the hype for all concerned", according to the New York Post. 
Beckham's husband David is a LA Galaxy player
The New York Times described the Spice Girls singer as apparently "pleasant and not without a sense of humour".
But it said that this was not enough "to carry viewers through an hour of house-hunting, sunbathing and applying for a driver's licence".
Patt Morrison of the Los Angeles Times said that people in the United States had been "underwhelmed" by Beckham.
"If you're looking for a bad driver, we have Lindsay Lohan, who does it better," she told BBC One's Breakfast.
"If you're looking for rich, we've got Paris Hilton, and if you're looking for thin blondes, if you fire a cannon in Beverly Hills, you hit 100 of them.
"It's a very competitive market, even for a Beckham."
The programme is due to be broadcast on ITV1 at 2100 BST on Tuesday.
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