Sony's Blu-ray high definition video disc won a contentious, expensive, and possibly over-hyped video format war reminiscent of the VHS v. Beta battles of yore. The "battle" for dominance of the next-generation DVD market was determined over past few weeks as major studios and big box retailers sided with Sony's Blu-ray, essentially shutting Toshiba's HD-DVD format out of the market. But who really wins here? The studios and retailers manage to force consumers to go......

DirecTV called LAist on the phone and left us a message. The recorded voice said that DirecTV had worked out a deal with WNBC in NY that allowed certain zipcodes in LA the ability to get the east coast channel for just $6 a month. The benefit would be that we in LA would be able to get late night shows like Saturday Night Live and Conan O'Brien at 9:30pm instead of at 12:30am.......

Dear Directv, It's your old pal, LAist here. Your biggest fan. We've had you for years, we even installed you into our friends' homes, and even on strangers' roofs. We get all the channels and most of the sports packages. We love you. There is one thing that has bothered us for quite a while though, and we were just reminded of it. What is your problem with The Daily Show and MSNBC's Countdown?......

El Segundo's DirecTV is trying to sell us on their better picture through High Definition equipment (and extra monthly service fees, natch) by making us want to see every hair in Burt Reynolds' chest? (Full screen image here) Thank you, but maybe HD is too accurate. Maybe we don't even need television anymore. Maybe we should go back to sitting around the fire and telling tall tales about giants and blue oxes. Although it's......