Filed under: Action, Casting, Deals, Fandom, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, George Clooney, Comic/Superhero/Geek

Well, only 24 hours after that nutty George Clooney rumor, it seems Paramount is targeting another actor to lead the live-action G.I. Joe project: Sam Worthington. While he’s not a big time A-list name, Worthington is also starring in James Cameron’s Avatar, so between that film and this one, he could be eying a spot on the Hot Up-and-Comers List. Variety doesn’t say which character Worthington is in talks for, only that he is in talks to star, but they do say that the studio is doing their best to work around his Avatar shooting schedule — and so, to me, that appears to be the only sticking point. G.I. Joe will begin production on February 13; it will be directed by Stephen Sommers, off a script written by Skip Woods and Stuart Beattie.

The Variety article also goes into much detail regarding the other projects rushing to finalize scripts and production schedules. At Paramount, there’s G.I. Joe, another Friday the 13th, Morning Glory and Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island (starring Leonardo DiCaprio). Fox is set to go on Wolverine (with rewrites coming from James Vanderbilt and Scott Silver up until the final minute before a potential strike), as well as The Day the Earth Stood Still remake, starring Keanu Reeves, which currently has a December 18, 2008 release date. The article continues to run through each studio, naming the films gearing up for winter or spring production, so head on over there to get a taste of the most buzzed-about pics heading our way in 2008 and 2009.

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Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio

MadCatz may be best known for its video game accessories, but it looks like the company isn’t about to let the iPhone bandwagon pass it by, with it now announcing that it’ll soon release an iPhone-compatible version of its AirDrives “interactive headphones.” Helping the phones earn that distinction, it seems, is their use of MadCatz’s trademark InAir technology, which lets wearers still hear what’s going on around them. New to the iPhone-friendly model (that’s the non-iPhone version up above) is an integrated microphone, and the always-useful one-touch music-to-phone capability. Of course, there’s nothing to stop you from using them with something other than an iPhone, although if you don’t need the headset functionality, you may want to opt for the standard $100 models, as these’ll drive a slight premium of $120 when they’re released early next year.

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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

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Filed under: Audio/Video

In the war of Blu-ray vs. HD-DVD, each of the opposing camps seems to think that having an exclusivity deal is a powerful weapon.

It started in June, with Blockbuster making a big deal about going exclusive for Blu-ray in its brick-and-mortar stores (despite still offering both formats in its Netflix-like online rental service). Most recently, it was Paramount going exclusive to HD-DVD, meaning that, at least for the moment, the only place to get ‘Transformers‘ in high definition is with that format.

Now comes an intriguing new twist. According to BetaNews, It looks like Kmart has chosen to stop selling Blu-ray players. The discount retailer cited the high cost of Blu-ray players (compared to HD-DVD players), which doesn’t end up being a good value for its customers.

As we reported earlier this week, you can currently buy an HD-DVD player for under $200, and before the end of the year, they should be available for under $170 (you can get one for $100 tomorrow only at select Wal-marts). By comparison, the cheapest Blu-ray player currently clocks in at around $375.

Given that both formats offer the same video quality, Kmart is of the opinion that Blu-ray just doesn’t make sense. Of course, given that this announcement is being made by the HD-DVD Promotion Group also suggests that some of this might be spin. Also, when it comes to influencing the minds of many shoppers, the name “Kmart” doesn’t exactly have quite the ring it used to.

What is clear is that this war, if it can be called that, is destined to rage on for quite some time yet. HD-DVD players are definitely taking the value route while Blu-ray advertising seems to be targeting higher-end customers. Still, with Blu-ray players finally adding the ability to have tricks like picture-in-picture and other next-gen extras, which HD-DVD players have long-since offered, it looks like these formats are only getting more alike. With that in mind, the question of cost may be the deciding factor for many in the long run.

From BetaNews

Related Links:

• HD-DVD Players Drop to Sub-$200 Price Tag
• Xbox 360 With Built-In HD-DVD Capability On Its Way?
• Headaches for Blu-ray Owners

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Filed under: Newspapers, Magazines, Google (GOOG), Sprint Nextel Corp (S), Merrill Lynch (MER), Verizon Communications (VZ)

MAJOR PAPERS:

• In a potential breakthrough for Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) , Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) and Vodaphone Group’s (NYSE: VOD) Verizon Wireless, and Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE: S) are both in talks about Google’s new mobile phone operating system, reported the Wall Street Journal (subscription required).
• Congress approved a seven year extension of ban on Internet tax, voting 402-0, and President Bush is expected to sign the bill, according to the Wall Street Journal.
• Stan O’Neal may be gone, but the SEC’s enforcement staff is now looking at how Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER) informed investors about its $8.4B write-down that forced O’Neal out, reported the Wall Street Journal.
• CLP Holdings (OTC: CLPHY), Hong Kong’s largest power company, is planning to bid for electricity assets in Australia, India, Singapore and other countries in Southeast Asia, reported the Financial Times (subscription required).

OTHER PAPERS:

• The Star reported that life insurance company Manulife Financial Corporation (NYSE: MFC) is open to making acquisitions in Malaysia if suitable opportunities in the country arise, according to Manulife’s senior executive vice-president and general manager for Asia, Robert A. Cook.
• The U.K. Times reported that British Airways’ (OTC: BAIRY) plans to create a new airline offering flights between Europe and New York have been thrown into disarray after the Federal Aviation Administration threatened to block any increase of air traffic into New York’s chronically congested JFK Airport.

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Filed under: News

If you were planning to set up shop with a few of your friends and make a pseudo-band, courtesy of Rock Band, you may want to inform your friends that securing a pre-order or some other method of purchasing would be a good idea. Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello said the game will be in short supply, rather, they will be unable to keep up with demand for the game. Verbatim, he said: “If I were you, on the nineteenth of November, I would get in line outside your favourite retailer, because we’ve got one hot product.” Is he being a little cocky, or offering friendly advice? Perhaps a little of both.

In addition to add-on songs “every week”, the other SKU’s to net you another instrument and other such things, Rock Band really is going to be a hot item. If you want to get the PS2 version in December, that’s your call, but getting to do all the online stuff with the PS3 and 360 versions is a lot more tempting. But, lining up? That’s what people do for console launches and the Halo games. It’s your call, but if you’ve pre-ordered, you should be fine.

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Casio has just released a mouse that doubles up as a label printer - a first of its kind, I believe. This Casio USB Label Mouse Printer works great for those who absolutely have the need to label just about everything in sight, but do take note that the thermal roll paper isn’t exactly cheap, retailing for $14 for a pack of 3. As for the mouse itself, it will cost you $29. Truly an interesting addition to your desktop if you are trying to kill two birds with a single stone.

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