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Sony Pictures to smarten up Blu-ray with MovieIQ, the "killer app for BD-Live"


Are you one of the more than 4,000 people (86%) that answered our poll saying you thought BD-Live was a waste of time, or didn't see any reason to give it a shot? We talked to Sony Pictures recently and were promised that more useful reasons for hooking the internet to Blu-ray discs & players were on the way, and today at a press event it showed why it thinks that will come true. Check out the gallery for a few pics of its new MovieIQ app, quickly described as a "wiki for movies" that can tie into your discs and provide information from Gracenote on demand on nearly anything in the movie or even specific scene being watched, from actors & directors to background music. The first BD-Live discs with it should be available in September, we'll be back with more details shortly, for now just let the images do the talking.

Update: Official press release is included after the break


Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Partners with Gracenote To Deliver First Live, In-Movie Film Information with movieIQ

BD-Live™ Enabled Technology to be Featured on Upcoming Blu-ray Disc™ Titles Including Angels & Demons and Easy Rider


San Francisco, CA (June 18, 2009) - Sony Pictures Home Entertainment today announced the launch of MovieIQ, a new Blu-ray Disc feature powered by Gracenote® that offers viewers access to a real-time movie database. With a movieIQ-enabled Blu-ray Disc and an internet-connected Blu-ray™ player, movie fans can immediately access continuously-updated information on cast and crew and explore relevant trivia such as production facts, music and soundtrack information all tied to scenes within the movie. SPHE will feature movieIQ on upcoming Blu-ray Disc titles starting in September and will offer it on all major catalog titles and new releases including Angels & Demons, Easy Rider, Punch Drunk Love, The Quick and the Dead, Silverado and sex, lies, and videotape.

"It has always been our goal at Sony Pictures to offer fans the ability to truly connect with their favorite movies using BD-Live," said Lexine Wong, Senior Executive Vice President of Worldwide Marketing at Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. "We know many people interrupt their movie-watching experience to look up the filmography of an actor or to find out more about a song playing in the background. Now through movieIQ, movie lovers can dive into constantly-updated information about the movie they are watching without leaving their sofa, further enhancing the experience of watching movies in this always-connected age."

movieIQ takes advantage of Gracenote's Video Explore solution, which brings powerful search and navigation capabilities to connected consumer electronic devices. Video Explore allows users to search the online Gracenote video database, linking together related cast, crew, movies, TV episodes, franchises, seasons, DVDs, and Blu-rays. Gracenote's global Video database contains rich video information for North America, Europe, and Japan, including factual metadata, synopses, credits, and detailed descriptive elements.

"We are thrilled to be partnering with Sony Pictures to deliver movieIQ, a feature that takes full advantage of the Blu-ray format's internet connectivity and truly demonstrates that Blu-ray is the future of home entertainment," said Ross Blanchard, VP of Business Development at Gracenote. "Now, movie lovers will have access to an incredible new service where they can explore and discover all the rich details on their favorite actors, directors and movies."

The movieIQ feature is the latest addition to SPHE's BD-Live portfolio, which also includes social networking through cinechat, multiplayer games, and a customizable music video editor, as well as soundtrack playlists, e-movie cash, downloadable featurettes, and more, available on over 100 Sony Pictures Blu-ray titles worldwide since the technology launched in spring of 2008.