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MoviePass owner sells Moviefone for a fraction of its original worth
Moviefone is far from its glory days. The defunct owner of MoviePass, Helios Matheson & Analytics, has sold the once-legendary movie listing service for just $1.075 million as part of bankruptcy proceedings. That's just a fraction of the $388 million AOL (subsumed into Engadget's parent company Verizon Media) bought it for in 1999. It's not clear what winning bidder Born in Cleveland LLC intends to do with Moviefone, but it's safe to say Moviefone's heyday isn't coming back.
MoviePass is dying, but its former leader wants to resurrect it
Just days after MoviePass shut down, one of the key players behind its initial success and subsequent failure wants to purchase it. Ted Farnsworth announced today that he's made an offer to acquire MoviePass -- along with related assets belonging to its parent company Helios and Matheson Analytics Inc. In a press release, Farnsworth said he's proud of MoviePass and has no intention of walking away now.
You've selected Mad Men? Moviefone redesign tacks on TV listings
Earlier this year, AOL shuttered Moviefone's call-in directory service. The brand lives on though, and today it outed a new look, with a retooled web site and mobile apps in tow. Chief amongst the changes? The addition of TV. Now, episode listings, cast info, curated Watch Lists and other details are baked in alongside a handy list of viewing options -- if you're itching to stream a selection right this second. There's an emphasis on search, too. A query box now appears at the top of every page you'll swipe or click to, and the results now include those Watch Lists -- allowing for theme- or occasion-based title hunting. Moviefone has also ditched its iconic red paint scheme for blue as a part of the UI makeover. What's more, the outfit is looking for a new voice, so if you've ever wanted to follow in Kramer's footsteps, now could be you chance to do so. Perhaps now the only thing left to do is to come up with more accurate name for the service. "Videofone" gets our vote.
Moviefone's phone service shutting down after 25 years
When your service is more fondly remembered as a Seinfeld plot than as something people use, it's probably time to drop the mic. After a quarter-century, Moviefone's movie-times hotline is winding down, as users abandon the phone in favor of sites like Fandango. The AOL-owned company isn't fading quietly into the night, however, as Moviefone's mobile app and website will still live on in their current form -- for now, at least.
AOL strikes deal with YouTube to start streaming content from various brands
AOL's continuing push to boost its video presence on as many internet places as possible has just secured many of the company's brands a spotlight inside one of the world's biggest sites. According to AllThingsD, AOL and YouTube have inked a deal that will bring "branded channels" with content from sites such as Huffington Post, TechCrunch, Moviefone and even clips from the recently launched HuffPost Live over to the video streaming platform. And while AOL did previously offer some tidbits on YouTube, this move is expected to better solidify and highlight the vid work from properties like the ones mentioned above -- which, of course, could only be accomplished by reaching a new "everyone wins" type of revenue sharing agreement. [Disclosure: Engadget is part of the AOL family]
Editorial: Apple's smart Maps maneuver
More Info Nokia stacks up its maps next to Apple's and Google's, politely suggests it comes out on top (update: more detail) Apple says it's 'just getting started' on Maps for iOS 6, are you willing to wait? (poll) MapQuest picks TomTom Maps to power iPhone and Android turn-by-turn navigation apps It might seem as if Apple chose its iOS 6 release last week to practice the biblical directive to love one's enemy. For, by ejecting Google Maps from updated iPads and iPhones, Apple hath caused glorious comparisons to shine upon its foe. If most people were unaware of comparative feature sets and quality aspects that distinguish Google Maps from Apple Maps, every tech-loving person on God's earth is an expert now. The media love a bloodbath, and Joe Nocera led the rhetorical pack by calling Apple Maps an "unmitigated disaster" in a NY Times piece. He wondered whether such calamity would have ensued if Steve Jobs (who called the 1998 "hockey puck" mouse the world's best pointing device) were guiding the company's product evolution. Mr. Nocera argues the Maps replacement as an indicator that Apple has peaked. I argue that replacing Google Maps with Apple Maps was shrewd, inevitable and an indicator that Apple understands the true battle it wages.
