• Practical - the 3G+ M6 mobile key is ready to use - no need for a subscription,
• Easy to use - with automatic installation as soon as you go online,
• Economic - with two hours browsing time included in the purchase price,
• Tailored to its public - available in bright colours and complete with a memory card to store files.

With the 3G+ M6 mobile key, young people now have a special offer to access the Internet from any computer anytime without taking out a subscription and with no risk of exceeding pre-paid offers. Activation of the 3G+ M6 Mobile key is instantaneous. All you have to do is plug it into a computer. As soon as you are connected to the network you benefit from 2 hours of Internet browsing.

The 3G+ M6 mobile key is available(1) from 13 November, at the recommended retail price of €39 (€69 minus €30 reimbursed), in France Telecom sales branches, Orange stores, at orange.fr and m6mobile.fr, as well as in supermarket IT departments. From 16 November, it will also be on sale in tobacconists and newsagents.

Customers who already have an M6 mobile blocked subscription can purchase the 3G+ M6 Mobile key for the recommended special offer price of € 19(2).

Until 31 March 2009, the 3G+ M6 mobile key offers you unlimited(3) browsing on a selection of M6 web sites:

M6.fr, W9.fr, teva.fr, wideo.fr, m6mobile.fr, jeuxvideos.fr, ozap.com, M6info.fr, 100%foot.fr, deco.fr, turbo.fr, achetezfacile.com. To browse the Internet, users have a choice of four passes available from the M6 online store:

• €3 20-minute pass (valid 24 hours)
• €8 1-hour pass at (valid two weeks)
• €10 1-hour + 1-hour evening (8pm to 8am) pass (valid two weeks)
• €10 limited edition day pass available until 31 March 2009 (valid 24 hours and up to 75 Mb).

For Nicolas de Tavernost, Chairman of the M6 Executive Board, “This development marks the beginning of a new phase in our partnership with Orange, and is a testament to its strength and longevity. With this launch, M6 Group wants to make the Internet available to everyone, wherever they are.”

For Louis-Pierre Wenes, Executive Director of Orange in France: “This new 3G+ key is 100% dedicated to young people and complements existing Orange offers, whilst adding the dynamism and attractiveness of the M6 mobile by Orange universe. The simplicity and accessibility of this offer will make accessing the Internet easier”.

The launch of the M6 mobile key by Orange will be supported by a TV, Internet, and poster campaign aimed at students, and via a partnership with the CGR and Allociné cinema networks.

About M6 Mobile by Orange
M6 mobile combines marketing power and expertise in mobile telephony to devise solutions specially tailored for a young audience. The M6 mobile range has been extended to meet the needs of the 15-25 yr age group, with the first blocked subscription packages starting at €19.99, with 4 unlimited usages : unlimited calls, SMS, all Internet and TV, depending on the chosen subscription.
With M6 mobile, subscribers have unlimited access 24/7 to the M6 group channels, live on their mobiles via the Inside M6 mobile portal.
M6 mobile is also a pre-paid card and a 3G+ key.

About M6 Group
In just 20 years, M6 has become a major media player and has established a multimedia group.
In addition to M6, the second most popular general TV channel among the under-50s, the group has 9 digital channels, including W9, France’s number one DTT channel, Paris Première, Teva and numerous diversification activities: publishing, trademark licences, records, videos, magazines, shows, collections, derivatives, Internet, mobile telephony, cinema, mail order, first division football club.
Its multimedia subsidiary, M6 Web, handles Internet activities, programme interactivity and mobile telephony, with M6 mobile by Orange, the leading alternative operator for 15-25 year olds.
Information about M6 Group is available at http://www.m6groupe.fr

About Orange
Orange is the key brand of France Telecom, one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators. France Telecom serves more than 177 million customers in five continents as of September 30, 2008, of which two thirds are Orange customers. The Group had consolidated sales of 52.9 billion euros in 2007 and 39.9 billion euros for the nine first months of 2008. As of September 30, 2008, the Group had 117.6 million mobile customers and 12.4 million broadband Internet (ADSL) customers.
Launched in June 2005, the NExT program (New Experience in Telecommunications) will enable the Group to pursue its transformation as an integrated operator and make France Telecom the benchmark for new telecommunications services in Europe. In 2006, Orange became the Group’s single brand for Internet, television and mobile services in the majority of countries where the company operates, and Orange Business Services the banner for services offered to businesses worldwide. France Telecom is the number three mobile operator and the number one provider of broadband Internet services in Europe and one of the world leaders in providing telecommunication services to multinational companies.
France Telecom (NYSE:FTE) is listed on Euronext Paris (compartiment A) and on the New York Stock Exchange.

Google launched on November 11 Gmail voice and video chat, making it simple for people around the world to chat in high-quality video for free right within Gmail. All you need is a webcam and a small web browser plugin, and you can start video chatting with your friends, family, and coworkers on Gmail and Google Apps. Gmail voice and video chat lets you start a video chat without switching to another application or signing up for another account. And if you don’t have a webcam, you can simply chat by voice. We’ve made it easy enough that your mom — or your employees — will actually use it.

The launch comes as video communication grows in popularity; many of the latest lines of laptops, for example, come with built-in webcams. Businesses stretched across continents and timezones want more face-to-face collaboration among their employees, but in this economic climate, they’re looking for ways to cut travel and IT expenses. Having a meeting with a colleague over video allows communications to continue in person without the expense of traveling there. Whether it’s a coworker demoing a new product, or a first-time grandmother saying hello to her new grandson, sometimes there’s no substitute for speaking to and seeing someone. Google is offering browser-based voice and video chat as a natural extension to webmail and instant messaging, allowing people to choose how they want to communicate at each moment — by email, instant message, voice, or video.

To get started, open a Gmail chat window, click on the “Options” menu at the bottom, and choose “Add voice/video chat,” which will walk you through a one-time installation of a free plugin (a quick 2 MB download). When you re-open Gmail you’ll notice your “Options” link in your chat window has changed to “Video & more”. Open this menu and click “Start video chat” to see and hear your partner in high-quality video. You can pop out the video and change its size and position, or switch to full screen.

Gmail is the first leading webmail service to include video chat. Gmail voice and video chat is being rolled out over the next day or so on PCs and on Macs. Google Apps customers get this service as well, at no extra charge, and can voice or video chat with any other Gmail or Apps users.

Gmail has always been about more than just email — it’s increasingly a communications hub, always pushing the limits of browser-based applications. Video chat is the latest in a weekly stream of Gmail features that includes, most recently, Gmail Labs (a public testing ground for experimental features like embeddable gadgets, the Forgotten Attachment Detector, and Mail Goggles ), a mobile client for Android phones, animated emoticons, and more.

To use voice and video chat, your PC must have Windows XP or a more recent version, or an Intel-Based Mac with Mac OS X v10.4 or later. It works in browsers that support the latest version of Gmail (Google Chrome, Firefox 2.0+, Internet Explorer 7.0, and Safari 3.0).

Microsoft Research teamed up with Disney•Pixar to create a virtual tour of the universe hosted by none other than WALL•E, the animated robot from Disney•Pixar’s latest film, “WALL•E,” which is available in stores today on DVD and Blu-ray Disc. Anyone with a computer and an Internet connection can take the tour and view the universe from WALL•E’s perspective by visiting http://www.worldwidetelescope.org. A teaser for the tour can also be seen on the DVD and Blu-ray Disc.Along for the adventure with WALL•E, Academy-Award-winning director Andrew Stanton narrates the tour. “Using Microsoft’s WorldWide Telescope, WALL•E takes you on a real ride through space,” Stanton said. “After watching the movie on DVD, the whole family will be inspired to learn more about the world in which we live and the universe beyond.”

WorldWide Telescope is a rich Web application that brings together imagery from the best ground- and space-based observatories across the world to allow people to easily explore the night sky through their computers. WorldWide Telescope has been embraced by the astronomical and education communities as a compelling, astronomical resource for students and lifelong learners.

“WorldWide Telescope is about making science fun for everyone,” said Curtis Wong, manager of Microsoft’s Next Media Research Group. “By working with Disney•Pixar, we’re enabling kids and families to discover the magic of the universe for themselves in an even more engaging way. What could be more fun than exploring space with a famous robot?”

About Microsoft Research

Founded in 1991, Microsoft Research is dedicated to conducting both basic and applied research in computer science and software engineering. Its goals are to enhance the user experience on computing devices, reduce the cost of writing and maintaining software, and invent novel computing technologies. Researchers focus on more than 55 areas of computing and collaborate with leading academic, government and industry researchers to advance the state of the art in such areas as graphics, speech recognition, user-interface research, natural language processing, programming tools and methodologies, operating systems and networking, and the mathematical sciences. Microsoft Research currently employs more than 800 people in six labs located in Redmond, Wash.; Cambridge, Mass.; Silicon Valley, Calif.; Cambridge, England; Beijing, China; and Bangalore, India. Microsoft Research collaborates openly with colleges and universities worldwide to enhance the teaching and learning experience, inspire technological innovation, and broadly advance the field of computer science. More information can be found at http://www.research.microsoft.com.

About Pixar Animation Studios

Pixar Animation Studios, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is an Academy Award^®-winning film studio with world-renowned technical, creative and production capabilities in the art of computer animation. Creator of some of the most successful and beloved animated films of all time, including Toy Story, Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Cars, Ratatouille, and most recently, WALL•E. The Northern California studio has won 21 Academy Awards^® and its nine films have grossed more than $4.5 billion at the worldwide box office to date. The next film release from Disney•Pixar is Up (May 29, 2009).

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass on Microsoft’s corporate information pages. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft’s Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/contactpr.mspx.

Zune, Microsoft Corp.’s digital music and entertainment service, announced on November 19 landmark agreements with major and independent music labels to bring significant new value to the subscription music model. The Zune Pass subscription service currently gives consumers on-demand access to millions of tracks for $14.99 per month. Starting today subscribers will also get to select 10 tracks per month to keep and add them to their permanent collection (an estimated $10 value).Agreements have been signed between Microsoft and EMI Music, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group (UMG) and Warner Music Group, as well as independent distributors INgrooves, Independent Online Distribution Alliance and The Orchard. The Orchard delivers digital music, video and brand services globally, and represents labels including Barsuk Records (Nada Surf) and Fania Records (Hector Lavoe, Celia Cruz). IODA represents labels including Arts & Crafts (Broken Social Scene, The Stills) and Ghostly International (Matthew Dear, School of Seven Bells). The new enhanced subscription model came about as a result of close collaboration with all of these companies.

Zune Pass subscribers will have the added benefit of retaining digital rights management (DRM)-free MP3 tracks from Sony BMG and UMG, in addition to MP3 tracks from EMI Music, Warner Music Group and a large portion of the independent music labels. With the addition of tracks from UMG and Sony BMG, Zune will soon offer over 90 percent of its music in the MP3 format.

“The way people consume music has changed. With the shift to digital from CDs, it is more challenging than ever to offer the right mix of deep content, music discovery and economic value,” said Chris Stephenson, general manager of global marketing for Zune at Microsoft. “People want the freedom to listen to whatever they want across millions of songs, combined with the confidence that they can keep their favorite tracks forever.”

From its inception, Zune has bet on the power of subscription, not only as a consumption model but also as a way to highlight the music discovery features central to the Zune experience and the PC platform. The Zune service gives consumers convenient and unlimited access to the music they want, and also connects them to other music fans and expert sources to help them find the music they will love. The new enhancements to the Zune Pass subscription service offer unprecedented value for all music fans.

“The subscription model continues to redefine the digital music landscape, and today’s announcement is great news for consumers, artists and labels,” said Simon Renshaw, chief executive officer of Strategic Artist Management (representing Dixie Chicks, Miranda Lambert, Everclear, Tila Tequila and Aly & AJ). “This breakthrough offer makes it easier than ever for consumers to discover new music and will encourage deeper engagement in the digital music space, and that is good for the entire industry.”

A Zune Pass gives a subscriber access to millions of tracks that can be streamed or downloaded from a PC or directly from a Zune device when in a wireless hot spot.¹ Downloaded music can be shared among up to three PCs and three Zune devices. In addition to unlimited downloads, consumers now also get to select 10 free tracks per month to keep and add to their permanent collection. These tracks can be burned to a CD or moved to other devices even if their subscription ends.

Since the launch of the Zune portable media player and music service two years ago, Zune has invested in improving the subscription model and the discovery experience it brings to life. With the recent launch of Zune 3.0, Microsoft built additional value into the Zune Pass offering by adding new features focused on music discovery and personalizing the music experience for each user:

To give people a chance to experience the Zune Pass subscription, Zune is offering a free, 14-day trial to all new customers.² More information is available at http://www.zune.net/free.

About Zune

Zune is Microsoft’s music and entertainment brand that provides an integrated digital entertainment experience. The Zune platform includes a line of portable digital media players, the Zune Marketplace online store, and the Zune Social online music community, created to help people discover music. Zune is part of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices Division and supports the company’s software-based services vision to help drive innovation in the digital entertainment space. More information can be found online at http://www.zune.net/en-us/press.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

¹ Zune is a monthly music subscription service. DRM-free MP3s, videos, and some songs aren’t available via Zune Pass. Available content may vary over time.

² Keep 10 tracks capability is not available with the free trial.

Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass on Microsoft’s corporate information pages. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft’s Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/contactpr.mspx.

• Gulli’s audience share increased among all audiences over the last year, particularly among parents: the channel doubled its audience share in France (1.6%) with an increase of 71% among homemakers with children.
• Gulli also held onto its position among the Top 3 in DTT, achieving 3.3% audience share among DTT-only channels.

October’s Top 3 evening broadcasts in the age four-and-up demographic:

• Fort Boyard (game show): 269,000 viewers (Saturday 25 Oct. 8:55 pm)
• Le Parfum du succès (made-for-TV film): 241,000 viewers (Friday 3 Oct. 8:45 pm)
• Télé Grenadine (animation evening): 229,000 viewers (Tuesday 30 Sept. 8:45 pm)

October’s Top 3 audiences in the age four-and-up demographic:

• Famille Pirate (cartoon): 584,000 viewers (Friday 3 Oct. 5:30 pm)
• Inspector Gadget (cartoon): 565,000 viewers (Wednesday 15 Oct. 6:20 pm)
• La Panthère Rose (cartoon): 561,000 viewers (Friday 3 Oct. 5:20 pm)

Source: Médiamétrie – Médiamat survey (29 September to 2 November 2008)

With 8% growth, the month’s excellent results confirm the drawing power of the new programming strategy introduced at the start of the 2008 autumn season.

• In October, VIRGIN 17 registered the strongest growth among DTT-only channels in the age four-and-up demographic, with an increase of 8% compared to September 2008. Its nationwide audience share in France doubled over a one-year period.
• Virgin 17 continues to draw more viewers: each week: the channel is watched by 17,422,000 people over age four, representing growth of 67% versus October 2007.
• In October 2008, Virgin 17 registered a 25% increase in audience share in the 25-49 demographic with access to Virgin 17 versus the previous month.

October’s positive results confirm the success of the new prime-time programming policy introduced in September 2008:

• +20% in the age four-and-up demographic with access to Virgin 17 vs. September 2008.
• +11% in the 15-34 demographic with V17 access vs. September 2008.
• +33% in the 25-49 demographic with V17 access vs. September 2008.
• +25% in the DTT-only age four-and-up demographic vs. September 2008.

Broadcasts with the best audience figures included:

• The movies Universal Soldier and Lake Placid.
• The made-for-TV movies Prisonnières de l’ouragan and Le piège.
• The new magazine show Paparanews, which was among the channel’s Top 5 most-watched shows as of its broadcast première on 31 October.

Source: October 2008 Mediametrie-Mediamat survey, average audiences Monday-Sunday, 3 a.m.-2:59 a.m.

• With 15.4 million unique visitors, all points of connection combined at the end of September (up 7.5%), Lagardère Active reaches 47.5% of active Internet users (source: Mediametrie/NetRatings);
• The leading French media group in terms of audience ratings (all connection points);
• The Web’s 8th largest player in terms of unique audience (all groups combined).

Focus :

The leader in the “Women’s” segment

• In the rapidly growing women’s segment, Lagardère Active’s website, doctissimo.fr, posted a 6% increase, thus confirming its leadership position (as the No. 1 website targeted at women), while elle.fr registered a 60% increase, infobebes.com a 47% increase and psychologies.com a 6% increase;

Exceeds the symbolic threshold of one million unique visitors in the “Children’s” segment

• With the “Children, games and toys” category expanding on a global scale (increase of one million unique visitors between August and September), the “Lagardère Children’s offer”* exceeded the one million unique visitors mark, remaining the leader in its competitive universe (excluding e-commerce).
  * The “Lagardère Children’s offer” includes the websites Gulli, Canal J and TiJi.

Strong growth in the “News” segment

• In the “News” segment, le jdd.fr, with nearly 1.6 million unique visitors, posted strong growth and Europe1.fr stabilized its audience rating above the one million unique visitors mark.

Main audience figures – Source: Nielsen Netratings
Unique visitors all points of connection combined (in thousands) September 2008

(SEPTEMBER 2008 NIELSEN NETRATINGS SURVEY, ALL CONNECTION POINTS)

Sony/MGM’s Quantum Of Solace scored the best launch in James Bond franchise history at the weekend with a thunderous $70.4m that far exceeded predictions and dwarfed the competition.

The result beat the previous franchise record of $47.1m set by Die Another Day in 2002 and combined with 007’s continued international domination to propel the global tally past $322m in just over two weeks.

For the record Daniel Craig and Co easily surpassed the $40.8m launch of Casino Royale almost exactly two years ago to the day. Sony/MGM chiefs will have derived much pleasure from the fact that Quantum Of Solace beat the best ever Jason Bourne launch of $69.3m set by The Bourne Ultimatum in August 2007.

According to exit polls the film exits drew a 54% male and 46% female crowd while 58% of the total audience was aged 25 and over.

With no other new titles in the mix, almost every remaining top ten film comedy moved down one place. DreamWorks Animation’s Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa added $36.1m for $118m and Universal’s Role Models grossed $11.7m for $38.1m. Both releases were in their second weekend.

In fourth place Buena Vista’s High School Musical 3: Senior Year drew a further $5.9m out of the tween demographic for $84.4m after four while Universal’s Changeling in fifth place continued to thrive on excellent word of mouth and added $4.2m for $27.6m after four. The period drama can expect a box office boost in January, when it is likely to figure among the Oscar nominees.

DreamWorks-Paramount’s thriller Eagle Eye ranks 12th after eight weeks and continues to inch its way towards $100m on $98.8m.

Fox Searchlight’s Slumdog Millionaire will be one to watch as it expands in the coming weeks and launched in 23rd place on an excellent $418,000 from 10 venues.

Samuel Goldwyn Film’s Christian drama Fireproof has reached $30m after eight as $1.3m from 905 screens raised the tally to $30.2m.

Meanwhile Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure became one of the fastest giant screen films to hit the $30m since opening on October 5 through National Geographic Cinema Ventures.

Next weekend’s wide releases are: Buena Vista’s 3D animated family tale Bolt voiced by John Travolta and Miley Cyrus, among others, and Summit Entertainment’s vampire romance Twilight with Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson.

Estimated Top 10 North America Nov 14-16, 2008
Film (Dist)/Int’l dist/Est wkd gross/Est total to date

1 (-) Quantum Of Solace (Sony/MGM) SPRI $70.4m –
2 (1) Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (DreamWorks-Paramount) PPI $36.1m $118m
3 (2) Role Models (Universal) UPI $11.7m $38.1m
4 (3) High School Musical 3: Senior Year (Buena Vista) WDSMPI $5.9m $84.4m
5 (4) Changeling (Universal) UPI $4.2m $27.6m
6 (5) Zack And Miri Make A Porno (TWC) TWC Int’l $3.2m $26.5m
7 (6) Soul Men (MGM/TWC) $2.43m $9.4m
8 (9) The Secret Life Of Bees (Fox Searchlight) Fox Int’l $2.40m $33.7m
9 (7) Saw V (Lionsgate) Mandate Int’l $1.8m $55.4m
10 (8) The Haunting Of Molly Hartley (Freestyle Releasing) Odd Lot
Int’l $1.6m $12.7m

Source : Screen Daily, Jeremy Kay

IMAX and Disney will finally work together after signing a five-film deal that kicks off with Robert Zemeckis’ 3D retelling of the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol starring Jim Carrey in November 2009.

According to Disney sources close to the deal the roster may include films from Tim Burton and producer Jerry Bruckheimer, which would suggest Alice In Wonderland and The Prince Of Persia: Sands Of Time, both of which are scheduled to open in the first half of 2010. Release dates for additional titles will be announced in the near future.

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Group president Mark Zoradi said IMAX experience took cinema-going to “a whole new level of excitement.”

He added that A Christmas Carol would be followed by “an incredible slate of new Disney Digital 3D motion pictures from some of the industry’s most accomplished and innovative film-makers, and we know audiences are going to love being immersed in these great fantasies and adventures in IMAX’s format.”

IMAX co-chairmen and co-CEOs Richard L Gelfond and Bradley J Wechsler said the deal with Disney ensured “an outstanding slate of movies going forward”, adding: “We’re delighted to enter this new partnership with one of the greatest brands in the industry, especially at a time when we’re expanding to reach even more IMAX moviegoers.”

Source : Screen Daily, Jeremy Kay

Germany and France are planning to launch a $376,000 (Euros 300,000) co-development fund from next year as part of their existing bilateral mini co-production agreement.

The news was announced at this year’s Franco-German Film Rendez-Vous in Hamburg. 300 German and French producers, distributors and film funders attended the three-day annual event which alternates between France and Germany.

Christine Berg of the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF) explained that the fund should promote the “cultural and economical potential for the German and French market.”

Individual funding will be awarded up to $63,000 (Euros 50,000) and the fund would be open to a producer’s first or second feature film.

Also speaking at the event, Olivier Wotling of France’s CNC suggested that the initiative would benefit new producers and enable them to build up a network. “It is very important that one can start very early with cooperation. This dimension must be supported,” Wotling said.

The new fund would be part of the “mini-traité” agreement which was signed by the CNC and Germany’s German Federal Film Board (FFA) in May 2001 and has supported 50 Franco-German co-productions.

These include Tom Tykwer’s Perfume - The Story of a Murderer, Werner Schroeter’s Deux, Claire Denis’ 35 Rhums, and Julie Delpy’s The Countess.

It was revealed that in 2007 Germany became the second most important co-production partner for France after Belgium.

Germany participated in 10 French majority co-productions compared to 18 by Belgian companies. In 2006, Germany had been third place with involvement in six French productions behind Italy (nine) and Belgium (11).

Berg reported that a third of the 30 international co-productions supported by the DFFF so far this year are German-French co-productions with total production costs of $158m (Euros 126m), compared to $100m (Euros 80m) for the 12 German-French co-productions in 2007.

Source: Screen Daily, Martin Blaney