One of UK's biggest supermarket chains ASDA could be on the verge of buying the troubled retailer HMV.

According to The Sun's unnamed source in the City a deal is on the cards but must be made within the next two weeks.

ASDA, of course already sells entertainment products within its stores, but owning HMV would give it tremendous presence in the entertainment sector. Recently ASDA launched Disney concessions within three of its supermarkets. if this deal went through, could we see a similar thing happening with HTMV concessions springing up in stores? It's just rumour and speculation at the moment.

A lot has happened to HMV since the beginning of the year, with Canadian restructuring firm Hilco stepping in to save the company from bankruptcy back in January by acquiring its debt and store closures being announced in February.

Former GAME boss Ian Sheperd remains sceptical over the story. He thinks it might be misinformation to drum up interest in the company:

Today's big retail story: "administrator tries to create illusion of bidding competition shortly before rent deadline"
— Ian Shepherd (@IanAShepherd) March 12, 2013

Asda· Games· gaming· General· HMV· News· Supermarket· The Sun

ASDA Interested in Buying HMV?

One of UK's biggest supermarket chains ASDA could be on the verge of buying the troubled retailer HMV.

According to The Sun's unnamed source in the City a deal is on the cards but must be made within the next two weeks.

ASDA, of course already sells entertainment products within its stores, but owning HMV would give it tremendous presence in the entertainment sector. Recently ASDA launched Disney concessions within three of its supermarkets. if this deal went through, could we see a similar thing happening with HTMV concessions springing up in stores? It's just rumour and speculation at the moment.

A lot has happened to HMV since the beginning of the year, with Canadian restructuring firm Hilco stepping in to save the company from bankruptcy back in January by acquiring its debt and store closures being announced in February.

Former GAME boss Ian Sheperd remains sceptical over the story. He thinks it might be misinformation to drum up interest in the company:

Today's big retail story: "administrator tries to create illusion of bidding competition shortly before rent deadline"
— Ian Shepherd (@IanAShepherd) March 12, 2013

TalkTalk have had a number of complaints throughout the years but in the last quarter of 2011, it has been more than ever for them. More than three times the number of customer complains.

For every thousand subscribers to its fixed-line telephone service, 0.78 complained in the last three months of 2011, up from 0.77 the previous quarter. The figures look small but compared to BSkyB which have (0.24) complaints every thousand, BT 0.23 and Virgin Media (0.18).

This also comes back to TalkTalk's broadband service. For their broadband service, the complaints rised from 0.55 to 0.61 per thousand customers in the last three months of 2011. (Which is more than their rivals.)

TalkTalk have been investing heavily in developing its call centers in an effort to revise this poor customer service.

General· Technology

TalkTalk complaints

TalkTalk have had a number of complaints throughout the years but in the last quarter of 2011, it has been more than ever for them. More than three times the number of customer complains.

For every thousand subscribers to its fixed-line telephone service, 0.78 complained in the last three months of 2011, up from 0.77 the previous quarter. The figures look small but compared to BSkyB which have (0.24) complaints every thousand, BT 0.23 and Virgin Media (0.18).

This also comes back to TalkTalk's broadband service. For their broadband service, the complaints rised from 0.55 to 0.61 per thousand customers in the last three months of 2011. (Which is more than their rivals.)

TalkTalk have been investing heavily in developing its call centers in an effort to revise this poor customer service.

Samsung, a gargantuan company which is recognised the world over (for TV's, Fridges, Laptops, etc.) have created something ingenious. They have created something called the Samsung Smart Window. If you watch some of the videos that have already been released on YouTube, you can clearly see that there is something revolutionary occurring ('Click here for preview'). When I watched the preview on this fantastic piece of engineering I was in awe! I still cannot comprehend the technology that is used in the window, quite frankly it boggles my mind.

The transparent LCD touchscreen can fit into a window frame of any size up to 46 inches, and it is capable of delivering a resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels. It allows you to connect to the Internet via your home broadband connection, and would not take any more bandwidth than a standard computer. One of the major USP's (Unique Selling Points) of this is the fact that whilst you are able to see out of the window, people from the outside will not be able to see into your house, this is a brilliant idea! the fact that you would not even need to shut the blinds to bask yourself in privacy. 

Another fantastic idea that the developers have spawned is the use of this smart window as a car windscreen. Samsung said that it is extremely possible that it could be used to display all of the readouts that you would usually see in front of the steering wheel (Petrol gauge, Speedometer, Rev-counter, Oil pressure gauge, etc.) would be on the screen. Obviously for this feature to be used, there would be a vigorous amount of testing that would be carried out to ensure that it is safe to use in cars, because the obvious argument that there is is the distraction that it could cause to the driver.

I can imagine waking up half heartedly on dull, degrading, demoralising Monday morning, realising that I have over-slept and I am in a rush to complete all of the tasks that need to be done first thing in the morning (brushing of the teeth, breakfast, etc.). And whilst I am downstairs consuming my breakfast, I feel the urge to check the weather, or update my Twitter, and all I would have to do is swipe my finger across the window to update any of my social networking pleasures. There has been no definite price for the product, but Samsung anticipate that they will have a smart window out before the end of 2012.

2012· General· Reviews· Samsung· Smart Window· Technology· Twitter· Weather· Windscreen

Samsung's Clear Future?

Samsung, a gargantuan company which is recognised the world over (for TV's, Fridges, Laptops, etc.) have created something ingenious. They have created something called the Samsung Smart Window. If you watch some of the videos that have already been released on YouTube, you can clearly see that there is something revolutionary occurring ('Click here for preview'). When I watched the preview on this fantastic piece of engineering I was in awe! I still cannot comprehend the technology that is used in the window, quite frankly it boggles my mind.

The transparent LCD touchscreen can fit into a window frame of any size up to 46 inches, and it is capable of delivering a resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels. It allows you to connect to the Internet via your home broadband connection, and would not take any more bandwidth than a standard computer. One of the major USP's (Unique Selling Points) of this is the fact that whilst you are able to see out of the window, people from the outside will not be able to see into your house, this is a brilliant idea! the fact that you would not even need to shut the blinds to bask yourself in privacy. 

Another fantastic idea that the developers have spawned is the use of this smart window as a car windscreen. Samsung said that it is extremely possible that it could be used to display all of the readouts that you would usually see in front of the steering wheel (Petrol gauge, Speedometer, Rev-counter, Oil pressure gauge, etc.) would be on the screen. Obviously for this feature to be used, there would be a vigorous amount of testing that would be carried out to ensure that it is safe to use in cars, because the obvious argument that there is is the distraction that it could cause to the driver.

I can imagine waking up half heartedly on dull, degrading, demoralising Monday morning, realising that I have over-slept and I am in a rush to complete all of the tasks that need to be done first thing in the morning (brushing of the teeth, breakfast, etc.). And whilst I am downstairs consuming my breakfast, I feel the urge to check the weather, or update my Twitter, and all I would have to do is swipe my finger across the window to update any of my social networking pleasures. There has been no definite price for the product, but Samsung anticipate that they will have a smart window out before the end of 2012.

'YouTube is the 3rd most
 popular website in the world'

As technology advances, and we become more dependant on the Internet, you really do have to question if in the years to come 'will TV become redundant?' Even now, in the year 2012 there are so many alternatives to watching programs on the TV. For example, some people do not have a favourite TV show anymore, they have a favourite channel on YouTube. RayWilliamJohnson, is the most subscribed person on YouTube (when you subscribe to a channel, it means that you will receive e-mails every time they post a video) he earns millions of dollars a year!

'WattieTV Logo'

YouTube is used for many things, tutorials, vlogs, gaming, reviews, etc. I have a friend who has a gaming channel (WattieTV) and I believe that his channel is coming along extremely well, and for anyone reading that wishes to view Alex's channel 'Click Here'. I believe that this is the future of media, not just this channel but the idea of being able to view a TV series online, where anybody can create and upload their own videos allows for their to be more variety out there. The reason I say this is because on TV is restricted in many ways, because the broadcasting companies (BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Sky, etc.) only have on the TV what they think will get the most views. So they are basing all of their judgments not on the quality of the program, but whether it will 'speak' to a wide audience. Although there are some disadvantages,  such as the fact that you will need at least a bandwidth speed of 2 MB/s to ensure that you could watch a video from YouTube without it having to buffer half way through the video, and also it is not as reliable as TV because you are relying on a channel to provide you with entertainment, and if they cannot upload for whatever reason, then you will not be provided with your entertainment. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, but overall I think that Internet channels, blogs, etc, (not just YouTube) will become the future of our viewing pleasure, where you can just simply subscribe to somebody who is providing you with something that you want to watch, and not just making do with some of the catastrophic programs that currently grace our televisions!

2012· bbc· Channel 4· gaming· General· ITV· RWJ· sky· Television· WattieTV· YouTube

Is YouTube the future dominant media?

'YouTube is the 3rd most
 popular website in the world'

As technology advances, and we become more dependant on the Internet, you really do have to question if in the years to come 'will TV become redundant?' Even now, in the year 2012 there are so many alternatives to watching programs on the TV. For example, some people do not have a favourite TV show anymore, they have a favourite channel on YouTube. RayWilliamJohnson, is the most subscribed person on YouTube (when you subscribe to a channel, it means that you will receive e-mails every time they post a video) he earns millions of dollars a year!

'WattieTV Logo'

YouTube is used for many things, tutorials, vlogs, gaming, reviews, etc. I have a friend who has a gaming channel (WattieTV) and I believe that his channel is coming along extremely well, and for anyone reading that wishes to view Alex's channel 'Click Here'. I believe that this is the future of media, not just this channel but the idea of being able to view a TV series online, where anybody can create and upload their own videos allows for their to be more variety out there. The reason I say this is because on TV is restricted in many ways, because the broadcasting companies (BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Sky, etc.) only have on the TV what they think will get the most views. So they are basing all of their judgments not on the quality of the program, but whether it will 'speak' to a wide audience. Although there are some disadvantages,  such as the fact that you will need at least a bandwidth speed of 2 MB/s to ensure that you could watch a video from YouTube without it having to buffer half way through the video, and also it is not as reliable as TV because you are relying on a channel to provide you with entertainment, and if they cannot upload for whatever reason, then you will not be provided with your entertainment. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, but overall I think that Internet channels, blogs, etc, (not just YouTube) will become the future of our viewing pleasure, where you can just simply subscribe to somebody who is providing you with something that you want to watch, and not just making do with some of the catastrophic programs that currently grace our televisions!