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

Subscribe to our FREE weekly newsletter Print this article

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.

Featured Audio-Video News

Are AV Retailers To Blame For Lofty High End AV Prices? -

The audio video has been in a state of flux or some time, splitting sales up between specialty dealers, big box stores, and online sellers. However, the dealers may have had more to do with this than they think.

Latest Blu-ray Software News

Joe Satriani Concert Film First to Feature 3D and 7.1 Surround Sound -

Joe Satriani has a new concert film coming to movie theaters as well as Blu-ray. The concert film is in 3D, but what makes it truly unique is the Dolby 7.1 surround sound mix featured in the film.

JVC Joins Blu-ray Patent Collective -

JVC Kenwood has made move to help the company play a part in the innovation and the future of Blu-ray Disc technology, by joining a Blu-ray technology patent pool know as One-Blue.

X-Men: First Class Comes to Blu-ray -

X-Men: First Class sets the stage for the other movies in the franchise with style and very well executed action, directed by Matthew Vaughn and starring James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender

Star Wars Blu-ray App Released -

Star Wars is coming to Blu-ray. In September. But to hold fans over until then, Lucasfilm has come up with an App that will give fans an advance look at the Blu-ray before it comes out.

Even Facing Doom Borders Missed The Boat on AV Software Value -

You might think that in the middle of a "store chain closing - gigantic discounts" sale that it would be easy to move something as desirable as Blu-ray discs. You might think that, but you'd be wrong, at least in the case of how Borders handled the discs in the chain's final days.

Blu-ray Replication in Jeopardy? -

Supply and demand for Blu-ray discs may be hitting a novel problem, according to Home Media Magazine. It seems that the distributors' need to manufacture discs may overwhelm their physical capacity to do so by the end of 2011.

Is Blu-ray Better Than Streaming or Pay-Per-View For Your Hard Earned Home Video Budget? -

Depressingly enough for those of us who value artistry in both our hardware and our software, market forces are often dictated by those who want things that come quickly and easily, even if these things are not as good as products that may call for a little more time and effort.

Movie Studios Are Thinking Of Asking Consumers What Blu-ray To Put Out Next -

Rather than mass-producing Blu-ray discs for every theatrical film title released, whether the film hits, gets a cult following or outright bombs, there is now some thought being given to trying to gauge how a disc will sell via presales or early commitments before copies are made.

Can The Adult Industry Continue To Call The Shots For Consumer Electronics Going Forward? -

Is it a coincidence that the Consumer Electronics Show and the AVN Show occur at the same time, in the same city, each year? There has long been an interesting link between these two industries, but it looks like the ties that bind may be loosening.

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment to Release Piranha 3D and Resident Evil: Afterlife on 3D Blu-ray -

Two of 2010's horror hits, the ecstatically cheesy Piranha 3D and the zombies vs. kickass heroine sequel Resident Evil: Afterlife, both of which were released theatrically in 3D, are coming to Blu-ray in that format, courtesy of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.