Remember a few weeks back, when damn near everyone on the planet was seething, in a very vocal way, about the Netflix price hike? Well, it turns that the suits at the company weren't so offended by the countless "F*CK YOU!!!"s hurled their way, after all—they think it could have been worse. more ›

"Having the streaming only plan would not be so bad if ALL the movies were available but they are not! So your forced to get the DVD... This was my only luxury I COULD afford being on unemployment... no cable, just reg TV and wireless where I could find it. So I would watch movies at McDonald's or something or at the library. I can't afford $16 a month not on unemployment... Thank You netflix for taking the one little piece of entertainment I had!" more ›

Your days of enjoying a combo plan of getting a disc or two via those red envelopes in the mail and streaming content from Netflix are numbered, kids. Starting September 1, the popular site is implementing separate plans for streaming and physical disc borrowing. more ›

Did you lose your 1953 debut issue of Playboy magazine, the one with Marilyn Monroe on the cover? Well good news, the company has just launched a new web-based subscription service that will allow you to see every single page of every issue... ever, and forever. more ›

Facebook friend additions must be navigated very carefully, and once you've gotten past who you do and don't want spying on your online life, you then have to worry about not annoying those people... because: you will! A new study has arrived, tackling how women really feel about their Facebook friends, and of the 400 women surveyed, 83% are simply annoyed. On top of that: more ›

Tomorrow morning, it's expected that Newsweek and The Daily Beast will announce they are merging their operations. The Observer reports, "It will be a 50-50 merger of the two companies. The editorial staffs will combine under the editorship of [The Daily Beast founder] Tina Brown, who will again run a high-profile glossy. Newsweek owner Sidney Harman, 92, and IAC chairman Barry Diller had for weeks disagreed over an operating structure for the hybrid publication. The deal reached today establishes a daily role for Mr. Harman and strong editorial independence for Ms. Brown." more ›

The Wall Street Journal's "NY Times-killing" New York section launched today. Online, the "Greater New York" offering has a mix of free and paywall articles. For instance, the lead story, about subway bomb plotter Najibullah Zazi getting waved through the George Washington Bridge checkpoint by Port Authority cops, is free, but the story on NY State considering emergency borrowing is subscriber content. And the WSJ apparently thinks its readers take the subway but are confounded by Metrocard swiping, hence an article on Metrocard swiping (free). more ›

Attention journalism fans: The New York Times Co. actually made money last year. And that's even before everyone started refreshing nytimes.com every five minutes in hopes the "bombshell" Paterson story would drop. The Times reports that a slight fourth quarter uptick allowed the company to turn a "modest profit" of $19.9 million in 2009, after losing $57.8 million in 2008. more ›

Another video game-loving thief was caught online! Police nabbed a careless electronics thief whose used a stolen Xbox for online play — allowing investigators to uncover a stockpile of pilfered goods he had allegedly stowed away in his grandmother's house. more ›

It's common for boring female grownups to dress up as slutty nurses/schoolgirls/nuns or whatever on Halloween, but now pre-teens are mimicking their airhead elders, and there's a whole range of sexually provocative costumes on sale for pre-pubescent girls. The retail chain Party City is well-stocked with everything to make this Halloween a happy one for pedophiles, from a pirate costume for 8-year-olds dubbed the "High Seas Hottie" to a "Devil Grrrl" costume that comes with a red miniskirt, fishnets, a tiny pitchfork, and the sales pitch: "This grrrl devil likes to get things heating up!" It gets creepier... more ›

Investigators tell the Daily News that the man found stabbed to death in his Queens apartment probably met his killer online. The News reports that Michael Pecora's sister had called his cell phone, only for a stranger to answer: "The man with Pecora's cell phone was a cab driver, who told the sister he was given the phone earlier in the week by a passenger who said he didn't have any money to pay the fare, sources said. The passenger gave the cab driver the phone and a watch as payment when he was dropped off in the Bronx." The sister contacted the police, who then questioned the cabbie. The cabbie recalled the fare was carrying a laptop—and Pecora's laptop was missing from his Forest Hills home—leading police to suspect the killer stole the computer to cover his tracks. more ›

The other week, Cablevision revealed that it would shift Newsday.com from a free website to one that charges for its content, given the declining fortunes of newspaper industry. Now the NY Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger says he is considering "incremental" charges at the NYTimes.com website. At an event at SUNY Stony Brook, Sulzberger discussed the print industry, “The immediate future looks, at a minimum, grim. Traditional revenue streams are anemic and getting worse." The NY Times has had various approaches for web revenue: Charging non-subscribers, charging international visitors, charging for editorials and opinion pieces... An analyst tells Crain's, “The Times has taken this position of ‘we’re free, we’re the biggest news site on the Web' If they make a mistake and confuse people again, the Times will have pulled defeat from the jaws of potential victory.” more ›

Yesterday, Cablevision executives had a conference call with analysts and let it drop that they are going to put Newsday.com in the paid subscription business model. COO Tom Rutledge of the cable company, which bought the Long Island newspaper last year, said, "Our goal was and is to use our electronic network assets and subscriber relationships to transform the way news is distributed. We plan to end the distribution of free Web content." more ›

The MTA has some good news: they're going to help you find those things you leave behind on the subway or bus (if no one steals them first). The NY Post notes that last year "riders lost about 19,000 items on subways and buses - including the fake limb, a used cooking pot, and a trumpet - and about 7,980 items were returned." more ›

The AMTMoA (that's the Art Museum Toilet Museum of Art, for you philistines) is holding their first-ever call for submissions! Before you go trying to steal the royal throne at the Louvre, read on. The museum (which is online-only) holds "the world’s largest collection of images of art museum toilets taken at various art museums around the world," and they're currently seeking to build up their collection. "The site currently houses exclusive images ranging from the prestigious marble lavatory at the Metropolitan Museum of New York" to art toilets spanning the world. Interested parties can find more information about submitting an image here. And hey, Guggenheim (pictured), step up your game, alright. What a disgrace. more ›

Hey ambitious young (or old!) strivers looking for internet media experience here in New York City: Gothamist is seeking interns to work out of our Brooklyn office. Responsibilities vary widely, hours are flexible. We're particularly interested in applicants with speedy typing skills, an eye for photography, Photoshop skills and a familiarity with blogs. No pay but college internship credit is possible. Please email your resume and any other relevant information to info (AT) gothamist (DOT) com, subject "internship." (No attachments, please.) more ›

A White Plains man used a remote access program on his laptop to monitor the suspect who stole it, resulting in his arrest last week. The laptop was stolen on September 4th after Jose Caceres left it on top of his car while he carried stuff into his home. Using the remote tracking, Caceres was able to monitor the suspect's internet use, which he says primarily consisted of studying the remarkable migratory patterns of the Black-tailed Godwit. Kidding—it was porn, all porn. When the suspect, 34-year-old Gabriel Mejia of White Plains, typed in his home address to replenish his porn supply, Caceres tipped off police, who arrested Mejia just hours later. The sting is reminiscent of last May's bust of two thieves in Westchester, which took place after the owner remotely used the camera in her computer to photograph the suspects. more ›

Has a Jimmy Fallon-hosted Late Night reality sunk in yet? Well, it's happening, and the ex-SNL cast member will be getting a head start by popping up at a URL near you sometime soon. The NY Times reports that "Lorne Michaels has decided to try to get a jump on things by starting NBC’s next edition of Late Night, with its new host Jimmy Fallon, as a nightly entry on the Internet." more ›

The European Cup soccer tournament heads into the quarterfinals this weekend and it's shaping up to be one of the most exciting and highest-rated international tournaments in some time. For those who contend that soccer is too boring to watch, one should try watching it surrounded by football fanatics who can not only clue you in on the finer parts of the game, but whose enthusiasm is infectious. Turkey scored a stunning last-second goal yesterday to tie its game against Croatia and advance. more ›

A Westchester woman who had her laptop stolen didn’t even bother with old fashioned signs like the one pictured here – instead she remotely used the camera in her computer to photograph the culprits. The laptop was stolen from her apartment on April 27th along with $5,000 worth of other electronics. more ›

Last week Governor Paterson signed off on a new tax law requiring out-of-state retailers to collect sales tax from consumers in New York State. Like other states, New York requires residents to pay tax on out-of-state purchases for which sales tax wasn’t collected. The big argument is over who’s responsible for collecting; the new law puts that onus vendors like Amazon, which is now fighting the bill in State Supreme Court. more ›

For the first time, tickets for the Public Theater’s free Shakespeare in Central Park shows will be made available online. While most tickets will still be given to those who wait for hours (pictured) in Central Park, a limited number will be available to theatergoers who log on to the Public theater website at midnight before each day’s show and submit a request for up to two tickets. more ›

Momofuku Ko, the trendy new 12 seat restaurant by acclaimed chef David Chang, is getting more attention for its maddening reservation system than for its food. That’s partly due to the fact that no critic has been able to get into the place and review it, not even the top dog in town, Times restaurant critic Frank Bruni. more ›

Online dating is never easy, no matter what culture you're in. At least that's what is suggested by a woman's $50 million lawsuit against a Brooklyn imam involving name calling, damaged laptops and a relative in al Qaeda. more ›

There's been talk of what will happen to the Hotel Pennsylvania for a while now, and today the NY Observer reports that the skyscraper planned to take over the 401 Seventh Avenue address could be stopped by preservationists. Since the demolition project needs to be met with public approval it might not bode well that the construction "would entail building over the railroad tracks that run beneath the hotel and pose engineering and security challenges." However it seems like a done deal, as the NY Times reported today that "Merrill Lynch has been negotiating with Vornado over the terms of a billion-dollar 65-year lease that would give the company control of the half-block hotel site." more ›

BAM Cinématek more ›

Students of all ages are headed back to classes this morning. The NYC public school system is opening its doors this morning all over the city. Insideschools reminds us there are 1.1 million students and 150,000 educators in the system - and that quite a few charter schools have been open since last week! more ›