Movie download service Vudu, which seems to be having trouble convincing customers to first buy a $299 set-top box, is laying off 16 to 18 of the company's 100 employees, and has hired a new CFO, Chris Watts, according to PaidContent. Seems to be a clear case of trying to reduce the company's burn rate as the $21 million from venture investors begins to dry up. And it's another indication that the startup's desperate descent is accelerating.

Months ago, the company slashed the price on its hardware. More recently, it began offering porn and shortly thereafter introduced a sale on 99 movie titles for only $0.99 each. All of which makes it sound more and more like Akimbo.(Photo by Juha-Matti Herrala)

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