Sharp is partnering with AMIMON — who I believe was the god of thin crust pizza in ancient Roman mythology — to offer wireless HD streaming to its ultra-thin TVs. The X-series TVs come in 37-, 42-, and 46-inch screen models and work with an optional transmitter unit.

We’re taking a meeting with these folks to figure out what exactly this technology will and will not do. Apparently it sends uncompressed signals wirelessly over an unlicensed channel.

WHDI™ - Wireless High Definition Interface sets a new standard for wireless high-definition video connectivity. It provides a high-quality, uncompressed wireless link which can support delivery of equivalent video data rates of up to 3Gbps (including uncompressed 1080p) in a 40MHz channel in the 5GHz unlicensed band, conforming to FCC regulations. Equivalent video data rates of up to 1.5Gbps (including uncompressed 1080i and 720p) can be delivered on a single 20MHz channel in the 5GHz unlicensed band, conforming to worldwide 5GHz spectrum regulations. Range is beyond 100 feet, through walls, and latency is less than one millisecond.

These technologies have been brewing for years now and for Sharp to pick just one is pretty big news.

What it does

Coupa specializes in e-procurement software. It caters to small and mid-sized businesses and has been successful enough to have recently raised $6 million in venture capitalist funding. Coupa has revolutionized the e-procurement model. Its Coupa On Demand software-as-a-service model is web based so no downloads or installations are required. Coupa has an Amazon-like interface where employees can find and order products, rate suppliers and share their experience with others. It cuts costs, is quick and affordable, and allows for easy inventory and invoicing. The entire purchasing process is automated using Web 2.0 technologies.

In their own words

“Coupa On Demand combines best-in-class purchasing control and management into a product so simple that employees actually prefer using it for their business purchasing needs. Coupa purchasing software spans the entire procurement lifecycle, from employee requisitions for goods or services, through approval workflow, catalog and contract pricing, purchase order automation, receipt, inventory, and delivery. Coupa merges the most advanced e-procurement functionality with the latest in intuitive and collaborative design”

Why it might be a killer

Coupa provides an innovative solution to e-procurement. This is important as businesses are increasingly use the internet as a business tool. Coupa On Demand’s technologies are completely automated for ease of use and efficiency.

Some questions

Will businesses be willing to pay the steep price for the unlimited software? Even the basic service is not cheap and only provides a few services. Is this the e-procurement model of the future?

Updates


 » original news

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has invested $3 million into user-generated casual gaming site Kongregate through Bezos Expeditions, his personal investment vehicle. Kongregate CEO calls it a “super angel round,” although technically it is a B1 round (the startup raised $5 million in a round led by Greylock). Bezos Expeditions won’t be taking a board seat. Greer says:

If we had done another venture round, we would have had to raise $12 million to $15 million [to satisfy current investors]. We don’t need that to get to profitability. We still have $6 million in the bank of what we’ve raised so far, including Bezos’ money.

He really didn’t need the money, but when Jeff Bezos wants to invest in your a startup on good terms, you’d be crazy to say no. (LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, also an investor in Kongregate, made the introduction to Bezos). Greer says the process was very efficient. He flew up to Seattle and had one meeting with Bezos and his investment team. Greer explains why he thinks Bezos invested:

He looked at it the way he looks at the Amazon seller business. Amazon is a better place to sell your stuff than on your own site, and Kongregate is a better place to host your games. Community is really important. He said you should really consider developers your customers to the same extent that you consider players your customers. That was his big emphasis.

Kongregate lets anyone create their own Flash video games and splits revenues with game creators, starting at 25 percent of any associated advertising, up to 50 percent. ComScore shows 1.7 million global unique visitors in March (see chart below), with the average user spending 82 minutes per month on the site. (The company claims 3 million worldwide uniques and 349,000 registered hardcore users). The video above is one we shot of Greer at the Crunchies awards earlier this year, explaining what Kongregate does. (The figures he cites at the end of video of 2800 games and 1.5 million visitors are outdated, and now would be 4,200 and 3 million respectively, on an apples-to-apples basis. And only 63 million games have been played in total, not the half a billion he states in the video).

Greer also has a Facebook strategy up his sleeve which he plans to unveil next month. Kongregate will start launching the most popular games as standalone Facebook apps, starting with Dolphin Olympics, Jump Cat, Super Crazy Guitar Maniac, Ragdoll Avalanche, M.A.D, and Filler. (See exclusive screen shots below).

Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.

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What it does

Wigix which stands for Want It Got It eXchange, is prepared to be what eBay is not. It’s an online marketplace that does away with hidden fees. The setup is inspired by financial market price matching—buyers and sellers can list the prices they want to see, thus eliminating auction scams and giving sellers a competitive edge. The fees charged are as follows: items sold for $25 or below aren’t charged a cent, above that and up to $100 $1.50 is charged to both seller and buyer. For items above $100 there is an added 2% tacked on. Eventually the site will add a ticker showing recent transactions along with charts showing the movement of prices. Even if you don’t sell anything Wigix is giving away cash to so called homesteaders—those who help build the site’s catalog, earning 5% of the revenue. Users may also become category experts, keeping items in one’s category accurate, thus earning you 1% of that category’s revenue. Soon to come are persona storefronts. In the meantime, Wigix is homing to become the next eBay, in fact users can already import their eBay catalogues.

In their own words

“About Wigix, the Want It Got It eXchange.

Wigix.com brings a new, smarter way to buy and sell online.

Keeping Fees at Bay

There are no hidden fees for Wigix community members.

For items sold between $25 and $100, $1.50 is charged both to the buyer and to the seller. There is an additional 2% of the portion above $100 from the seller if the price goes over $100. There is an additional 1% of the portion above $1000 from the seller if the price goes over $1000.

For items below $25, there is no transaction fee.”

Why it might be a killer

Wigix is offering a remarkably extensive and viable alternative to eBay. The setup has been well thought out by those behind the marketplace. It’s more user friendly and transparent than its competitor. It’s a sound way of selling goods at a lower cost to the seller and at a better rate for the buyer.

Some questions

One problem with Wigix is eBay itself. eBay is a huge competitor with an entrenched user base. It’s got the infrastructure to deal with disputes, frauds, international sales, etc. Wigix is starting out and will have to build up its own reputation. Also Wigix doesn’t really give users enough information about a product besides the SKU.

Updates


 » original news

There’s a company in the UK called SuperMario Plumbing and Heating. The owner, Mariusz “Mario” Gruzka, though likely not Italian, could perhaps pass as a real life version of the Mario that most of us know and love. He’s no Captain Lou Albano from The Super Mario Bros. Super Show (remember Zelda Fridays?), but he’ll do.

There’s some loose talk going around the ‘net as to the legalities of a company called SuperMario Plumbing and Heating, but here’s to hoping that everyone can just have a nice, healthy chuckle and move forward without too much trouble.

via Geekologie

If reports are to be believed, YouTube may be launching a regional site specific to Indian viewers. Because India is one of the most populated countries and one with a good deal of technological advancements among the consumer class, such a launch could help push the Google-owned video trove into reasonable profitability, a goal which the company’s chief executive highlighted in a television interview today on CNBC as one of his primary focuses at the moment.

According to Nikhil Pahwa at ContentSutra, multiple sources are reporting that the video site will be launching on May 7th there, but no official word has come out of Google as of yet. If the launch does happen, it is expected to be attended by multiple content partners. (A journey to ‘youtube.in‘ offers naught but the company’s favicon and a blank page. We here at Mashable first heard of such plans for an India-specific portal in July 2007.)

It will be interesting to see how YouTube India performs, if it indeed proceeds to launch as predicted. The well-known site may not have an easy time establishing itself as the market is already rife with India-centric competitors such as Videodubba and iShare, but with the clout the brand name carries, it certainly won’t be hurting for watching eyeballs either.

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When Elizabeth Mateo (cnnmoney.com) put three ultraportables through their paces, only one stole her heart. MacBook Air. “Using the Air,” she says, “is like Christmas, your birthday, and Valentine’s Day all rolled into one.” In fact, Mateo was so impressed with its looks, size, weight, and performance that the 20-year PC users says “I now lust for this laptop and will switch to a Mac as soon as possible.”

Oh my. The latest words from Radiohead’s quirky frontman Thom Yorke aren’t about how much money they earned by giving away their music. (Sounds weird, but that’s how things work in this crazy 2.0 world.) It’s about how they don’t plan to do that again.

A somewhat vague quote from The Hollywood Reporter goes as follows:

“I think it was a one-off response to a particular situation. It was one of those things where we were in the position of everyone asking us what we were going to do. I don’t think it would have the same significance now anyway, if we chose to give something away again. It was a moment in time.”

On one hand, it’s only logical. No one really expects them to let people choose what they’re going to pay for their music till the end of eternity. However, it raises certain concerns, depending on what exactly Yorke meant, whether Radiohead really gets this thing or not.

Radiohead was criticized once already by Trent Reznor, who also gave away parts of Nine Inch Nails’ new album, Ghosts I-IV, but in a slightly different fashion. Reznor called Radiohead’s effort a “marketing gimmick,” and Yorke’s latest statement does nothing to disprove it. Reznor did it right. He set out his plan very clearly, and he’s doing well, earning 1.6 million dollars from album sales in the first couple of weeks, according to him.

There’s a number of opinions on how bands should distribute (and profit from) their music; here’s mine. A band should:

a) charge very little or even nothing for the actual digital copies of their music, especially if it’s quality is lossy (MP3). Digital copies of music can be infinitely copied at zero cost, and therefore their actual value is inherently very small.

b) make sure to offer a variety of choices for purchasing their music, including some added value - CDs, LPs, limited editions, signatures, t-shirts, stickers, concert tickets, vouchers - for the more expensive versions.

c) cut out any middlemen which don’t really provide value to the customer.

It’s very simple. Nine Inch Nails did exactly that, and it worked. Hopefully, Radiohead will do some version of this with their next album. It would be a huge disappointment to see them go back to the “traditional” ways of selling music for their next album. There are other models, too. Einsturzende Neubauten, for example, have let fans that paid a subscription to their web site create their music together with them.

What matters, ultimately, is that people will not and should not pay for something that’s free anyway. Instead of decreasing value of music with DRM (the era of which is, hopefully, behind us), the value should be increased, and users should stop being harassed for sharing. Radiohead and NiN helped pave the way; hopefully they’ll stay on the right track.

Read more of my ramblings about the music industry, distribution of music, and piracy here:
Wanna Beat Piracy? You Have to Do Better Than Them!
RSS and Giving Away Music - What’s The Difference?
Preemptive Piracy Tax: Will Everyone Have To Pay?

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