""The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" is Already Spawning Collecitbles

     New Zealand's government is minting coins that feature characters from Middle-earth to commemorate the upcoming film "The Hobbit:  An Unexpected Journey."  The coins range in price from a New Zealand one dollar coin that retails for $24.43, to a $10 coin made from pure gold that costs about $3,019.53.  New Zealand is also releasing six postage stamps featuring characters from the film.  See, www.nzpost.co.nz. 

Zombies In "The Walking Dead" Are Walking Ahead

     "The Walking Dead" has become a darling of horror and/or fantasy pop culture.  In its second season it set a record among young viewers.  An official magazine, video games, scores of blogs, a live companion talk show called "The Talking Dead", an appearance at San Diego's Comic-Con International, and just in time for Halloween, "The Walking Dead:  Dead Inside" maze is this year's centerpiece for Universal Studios' Halloween Horror Nights have made the show a franchise for AMC cable television.  See also , www.variety.com.

Homeland Attempts To Hold Viewership

     The cable television sensation Homeland has been ordered for a third season.  The show which recently started season two on September 23, 2012 attempts to portray the war on terror in an intriguing way.  Homeland, about two CIA agents, tries to hold audience viewership with a series of sharp story turns.  "You can't let the cat out of the bag too much in crafting this show", says Michael Cuesta, one of the shows directors.  Homeland's goal of keeping audiences off-balance, as the show slowly reveals its storyline, is so far being achieved.  See full story, www.variety.com.

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New App Merges TV and Twitter

     British app Zeebox shows twitter feeds while simultaneously showing what you are currently watching in a "second screen." Primarily catered to the most avid TV watchers Zeebox has its own messaging service and trending topics called "z-tags" that make it easier to track what TV viewers are talking about. See also, www.nytimes.com.

The Hunt For A New Red Apple iPad In October

    California has not been one of Apple's most popular venues for product launches, but October 23, 2012, Apple will launch  a new smaller tablet than the 9.7 inch iPad.  The new smaller tablet is expected to feature a display that is between 7 inches and 8 inches.  The new smaller tablet will directly compete with Amazon's Kindle Fire HD, that only launched a year ago and already has 20% of the U.S. tablet market.  See also, www.nytimes.com.

Surface is Not a Submarine

     Microsoft's new Surface tablet will have two cameras, a USB port, and will be Wi-Fi only.  A second, heavier, Surface tablet aimed at the new generation of "ultrabooks" (lightweight laptops) is expected on the market in a few months.  Market watchers speculated correctly that Microsoft would price it's new Surface low enough  to compete with Apple's less-powerful iPad2 and Amazon's Kindle Fire HD.  The Surface will run a simplified version of Windows 8 that is not compatible with old microsoft applications.  See full story, www.nytimes.com.