July 2007 Archives

Netflix recently announced that its customers have watched movies and TV episodes five million times on their personal computers (PCs) since an instant watching feature was introduced in January.

"Netflix DVD delivery is fast and, with watching on the PC, it's virtually instant," said Netflix CEO Reed Hastings. "Netflix continues to raise the bar to connect people with movies they love with great convenience, selection and value," Mr. Hastings said.

In January, Netflix introduced the new feature that allows subscribers to start watching a movie or TV episode on their PCs in as little as 30 seconds. Netflix subscribers can choose from a growing library of 2,000 titles that are available for instant watching. Among the most popular titles for instant watching are the American TV series The Office and the films The Matrix, The Prince and Me, Super Size Me, The Sum of All Fears, Jackass: The Movie and Sherrybaby. Netflix says it is adding more titles every day with the goal of providing 5,000 titles for instant watching by the end of the year.

As with the Netflix DVD catalog, members can browse movies available for instant watching by title, genre or star rating. Personalized recommendations, based on an individual's historical preferences, also appear at the top of the member's page tabbed "Watch Now."

The hours available for instant watching vary based on subscribers' monthly plans. For example, subscribers on the $4.99 plan get two DVDs each month with one DVD out a time plus the ability to watch 5 hours of movies and TV episodes instantly on a PC for no additional charge. The popular $17.99 plan gives unlimited DVD rentals with three DVDs out at a time and the ability to watch 18 hours of movies and TV episodes instantly on a PC for no additional charge. Subscribers are assessed by the minute, not the movie, so for 18 hours, subscribers can enjoy about nine full-length movies, or about 36 half-hour TV episodes, or a combination of both.

For more information, check out the Netflix press release.

High temperatures have been forecasted this weekend for Chicago and Northern Illinois. To prepare for the heavy electricity demand, ComEd is taking additional measures to ensure service reliability.

Part of the preparation includes postponing scheduled work that would require equipment to be out of service and scheduling extra work crews, where appropriate, to handle any problems that may occur. They will also be putting work crews in the field to monitor the system and respond quickly to any problems.

ComEd says it will closely monitor its electric system throughout the weekend and remain in contact with area public officials should any potential problems arise.

To help customers stay comfortable, conserve energy and manage electricity bills during the weekend heat wave, ComEd also offers the following energy-saving steps that they say can save up to 15 percent on home energy costs:

• Keep thermostats at a constant, comfortable level (75 - 78 degrees) when at home. Lowering the thermostat setting below the desired temperature will not cool the home faster.
• To reduce heat and moisture during the warmest part of the day, run appliances such as ovens, washing machines, dryers and dishwashers in the early morning or evening hours when it's generally cooler outside. Also, use a microwave to cook, or barbecue outside, if possible.
• Keep shades, blinds and curtains closed. About 40 percent of unwanted heat comes through windows. Simply drawing blinds and curtains, which act as a layer of insulation, can reduce heat gain to your home. Awnings are even better, and can reduce heat gain by up to 75 percent. Window coatings and window film can reflect as much as 80 percent of direct rays from the sun.
• Turn off all unnecessary lighting and appliances, which add heat to the home.
• Keep doors to the outside, garage or attic firmly closed to keep cool air in and hot air out.
• Use fans to evenly distribute cool air and reduce the air conditioners "on" time.

For more energy-saving ideas, visit www.ComEdCARE.com.

Verizon recently announced it is introducing Verizon FiOS TV's interactive media guide that the company says will help customers quickly and easily find and enjoy content from TV listings, video-on-demand catalogs and digital video recorders as well as personal music and photos from the home network. Verizon also says that future versions of the guide will add Internet radio, videos, podcasts and games to the FiOS TV multimedia platform.

FiOS TV's interactive media guide is currently deployed to customers in Indiana, Rhode Island and parts of New Jersey, and Verizon now is rolling out the new guide to other markets.

"Our new interactive media guide is the latest exciting development from FiOS TV," said Shawn Strickland, Verizon vice president of video solutions. "We've capitalized on our investment in an ultra-fast, highly responsive fiber-optic network to deliver a customer experience that marries the best interactivity of the Web with the highest-quality programming experience in the marketplace. The interactive media guide erases the lines between TV, Internet and personal media and makes it easy for customers to personalize and enjoy media throughout their homes."

Through a network download, FiOS TV customers will be upgraded to the new guide automatically at no additional cost, and they will continue to use their existing set-top boxes and universal remote controls. In the days leading up to the launch in each market, customers will receive a "driver's manual" and other communications about the guide's cool new features.

For more information, check out the Verizon press release.

Are you thinking about upgrading to a more energy-efficient home? Depending on what state you live in, finding one might be easier than ever before. In 2006, the percentage of newly constructed single family homes earning the government's ENERGY STAR for superior energy efficiency exceeded 12 percent in 15 states. The 15 leading states are: Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Texas, Utah and Vermont.

"Consumers don't have to limit their smart energy choices to energy-efficient cars and appliances," said Bob Meyers, EPA's principal deputy assistant administrator for Air & Radiation. "EPA is pleased to see builders in so many states leading the effort to offer their customers high-efficiency, low-emission choices in new homes."

The EPA says that nearly 200,000 new homes nationwide earned the ENERGY STAR in 2006, bringing the total number of ENERGY STAR qualified homes across the nation to almost 750,000. They also estimate that these homes have provided an annual savings of more than $180 million for homeowners by saving over 1 billion kWh of electricity and 100 million therms of natural gas.

To earn the ENERGY STAR, homes must be independently verified as meeting EPA's strict guidelines for energy efficiency. At least 15 percent more energy efficient than homes built to the 2004 International Residential Code, ENERGY STAR homes include additional energy-saving features that typically make them 20 to 30 percent more efficient than standard homes.

Home energy use accounts for nearly 17 percent of the total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and 21 percent of energy consumption nationwide. In 2006, Americans, with the help of ENERGY STAR, saved $14 billion and prevented greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 25 million vehicles.

To see if there are ENERGY STAR homes available near you, check out the ENERGY STAR Qualified New Homes Market Indices for States.

Does giving out your credit card online fill you with dread? Two of the largest players in e-commerce have come up with something that might give you a little extra peace-of-mind. Last month at the sixth annual eBay Live! Conference, eBay and PayPal announced the availability of the PayPal Security Key for its customers.

The small electronic token generates a unique security code approximately every 30 seconds. The companies say that members can use this code, along with their user name and password, to sign into both their eBay and PayPal accounts, helping to prevent unauthorized users from accessing them.

This type of additional security, known as two-factor authentication, is used by financial institutions as additional means to protect consumers and reduce losses from online fraud such as phishing attacks.

"We???ve had a tremendously positive response to the PayPal Security Key beta program and are excited to make the device generally available," said Michael Barrett, chief information security officer at PayPal. "While PayPal.com remains a trusted and secure environment, the PayPal Security Key allows customers to take their privacy and security into their own hands to help protect their eBay and PayPal accounts against unauthorized access."

The PayPal Security Key is part of the VeriSign Identity Protection (VIP) Network. As part of this network, consumers use the PayPal Security Key to protect themselves on a variety of financial services and e-commerce websites.

"As founding members of the VIP network, eBay and PayPal are leading the way in giving millions of consumers the tools they need to add an extra layer of protection when online," said Fran Rosch, vice president, Authentication Services, VeriSign. "Through the VIP Network, eBay and PayPal members will be able to use their PayPal Security Key to protect their account data at other participating sites and thereby reduce online fraud and cyber crime."

The PayPal Security Key has a promotional one-time fee of $5.00 for PayPal and eBay account holders in the U.S. The PayPal Security Key will also become generally available in Germany and Australia with more countries to follow.

For more information, check out https://www.paypal.com/securitykey or http://www.ebay.com/securitykey.

Gentle Giant Moving Company, a residential mover in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Virginia, recently announced the return of its "Pack Like the Pros" summer season packing seminar on July 21, 2007. The company also published an updated advisory on common packing pitfalls and offered tips for anyone planning to pack their own belongings for an upcoming residential move.

The free "Pack Like the Pros" seminar will be held on Saturday, July 21 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., at the Gentle Giant headquarters in Somerville, Massachusetts. A complimentary sampling of professional packing materials will be provided to each guest at the seminar, where experts will demonstrate hands-on packing techniques, offer tips, and provide advice on preventing damage during a move.

"We want to share important information that many people may not know about safe and effective packing," said Larry O'Toole President and founder of Gentle Giant Moving Company. "Based on years of experience with common moving challenges as well as the knowledge we have regarding how to pack newer electronics and high-tech equipment, we feel that we have the ability to help people, whether they move with us or not. Our goal is to improve the process of moving for everyone by reducing packing stress."

According to Gentle Giant's Quality Control Director Ayanna McKinnon, "Customers are often surprised when we show them how to pack certain items or tell them which items are most susceptible to damage while moving." McKinnon offers the following advice on preparing for a move:

• Wrap mattresses and box springs, and never drag them. "Many people end up with dirty or ripped mattresses because they leave them unprotected, or they drag them on the floor and they become snagged," said McKinnon. She urges everyone to carefully wrap mattresses and box springs in special plastic bags. "If you use a mover, make sure they use a new mattress bag because bed bugs are a potential problem you want to avoid."
• Move flat panel televisions in their original packages or have a crate professionally made. "It's important to know what you're doing with plasmas and LCD TVs," McKinnon said. "Plasma TVs should never be laid flat, and LCDs have problems with changing altitude over long drives." She also advises against turning on any TV right away. "They should to return to room temperature or they will be more susceptible to internal damage."
• Pack plates and dishes vertically, and wrap them individually. "A dish that is hit on its edge is much less likely to break than one that lands flat," explained McKinnon. "And if they're not separately wrapped they rattle during transit, and that could cause them to crack."
• Pay special attention to keepsakes or special items related to personal hobbies. "Think about moving those things yourself, or simply point out those special boxes to your movers. Items like those are impossible to replace because their monetary value doesn't compare with their personal value."
• Pack lamp shades separately from lamps. "Lamp shades can all go into one box, separated and cushioned with paper, but watch out for silk shades," she said. "Silk has a 'memory,' so any indentation caused by the pressure of wrapping material can cause a permanent mark."

For more information on the free seminar and how to get more moving tips from Gentle Giant, check out the press release Gentle Giant Moving Company Helps Consumers 'Pack Like the Pros' with Live Summer Packing Seminar.

With the possibility of another summer of record-breaking electricity use, Verizon Wireless is assuring customers that the company prepared to keep its wireless network up and running during power outages that can result from summer storms and increased electricity usage due to high temperatures and humidity.

"Verizon Wireless is committed to providing reliable wireless communication for our customers during the dog days of summer and any type of summer weather emergency," said Dick Lynch, executive vice president and chief technical officer for Verizon Wireless. "Our year-round focus on improving and maintaining our network ensures that we are prepared to operate when our customers are most in need."

Verizon Wireless says its network is built for reliability in emergencies—such as power blackouts and extreme weather conditions—with redundancy capabilities in place to maintain services for customers.

The company says all facilities have battery back-up power and generators installed at all switching facilities, and many cell site locations. Verizon Wireless also a fleet of portable generators that can be deployed to provide emergency power during extended power outages to those cell sites without permanent generators. In addition, the company operates "Cell on Wheels" (COW), which are fully functional, generator-powered mobile cell sites that enhance coverage and capacity in a given area. A COW can accommodate both voice and CDMA data services.

Verizon Communications' national wireline network of central office switching systems also have back-up power in the form of batteries and back-up generators that automatically keep the switch running when commercial electrical power is lost. Verizon monitors traffic on the network around the clock, and says it can quickly manage calling and data traffic around problem areas. Much of Verizon's national inter-city network contains redundant and diverse routing so that customers can still make calls if one part of the network is damaged.

For more on how Verizon is preparing for the summer, check out the Verizon Wireless press release.

The National Hockey League and XM recently announced that XM is now the exclusive satellite radio home of the NHL. XM currently broadcasts more than 1,100 NHL games per season to hockey fans across the U.S. and Canada. XM also offers the first and only 24-hour nationwide hockey radio channel, Home Ice—featuring news, commentary, interviews and play-by-play analysis from hockey experts such as Phil Esposito, Bill Clement, Denis Potvin and Gary Green.

XM's first day as the exclusive satellite radio home of the NHL, July 1, fell on the same day as Free Agency Day, the annual start of the free-agency period for NHL players. Home Ice provided round-the-clock coverage of the latest signings and negotiations.

"We are proud and excited about our exclusive partnership with the NHL," said Eric Logan, Executive Vice President, Programming for XM Satellite Radio. "Being able to provide our fans with full access to games, analysis, and overall coverage truly establishes XM as the premier satellite radio destination for hockey fans."

The 2007-08 NHL season will mark XM's third season of NHL coverage and its first season as the exclusive satellite radio provider of the League. XM and the NHL have a long-term broadcast partnership, through 2015. As the exclusive satellite radio partner of the NHL, XM is officially rebranding the Home Ice channel to NHL Home Ice.

"This is a great opportunity for the NHL to reach hockey fans by using this exciting outlet," said John Collins, Senior Executive Vice President, Business and Media, NHL. "Through this partnership, we can take advantage of XM's extensive network coverage to give fans across North America the ability to follow their favorite team and players."

Through its coverage, XM provides hockey fans exclusive access to the action, from the first drop of the puck to the hoisting of the Stanley Cup. XM's year-round carriage of hockey programming includes special events such as the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the NHL All-Star Game and the NHL Awards.

"We are excited with this new partnership, and as the only satellite radio provider to air NHL games, XM will continue to be the premier destination for hockey fans across Canada," said John Bitove, Chairman and CEO of XM Canada. "Not only do we cover the games, but we also deliver up-to-the-second highlights and analysis. No matter where you live, you can catch your favourite team face-off against your rival—know I'll never miss a Battle of Alberta or a Leafs-Habs game again!"

For more information, check out the XM press release.

According to a recent survey released by 1E and the Alliance to Save Energy, nearly half of all corporate PCs in the United States are not regularly switched off at night. This means a conservative estimate of 31.2 million work PCs are being left on overnight; wasting energy, putting carbon emissions into the air, and costing US businesses $1.72 billion to supply power to machines that are not even in use.

All these PCs being left on overnight is also pumping 14.4 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. According to recently released PC Energy Awareness report, preventing that amount of CO2 from reaching the atmosphere would have roughly the same impact as taking 2.58 million passenger cars entirely off the road—more cars than exist in the entire State of Maryland (2.48 million cars).

The recent report combines statistics on energy usage and CO2 emissions, alongside research on behavior in the American workplace—such as whether employees are turning their PCs off at the end of the day (why or why not).

1E, a provider of power management software, and the Alliance to Save Energy, a coalition of businesses, government, environmental and consumer leaders who promote the efficient and clean use of energy around the world, commissioned the survey with market research firm Harris Interactive, to examine PC power usage in the American workplace.

For more information, check out the 1E Energy Awareness Campaign Web site.