[...] Netflix is winning back subscribers and investors with a bold attempt to establish its $8-per-month service as a home entertainment powerhouse that rivals the broadcast television networks and premium cable channels such as HBO. With 29.2 million U.S. subscribers — far more than the 21.9 million TV subscribers that leading cable provider Comcast Corp. has — Netflix has already reshaped home entertainment. By expanding its library of content, Netflix is hoping people will decide to spend their idle time on its Internet video service rather than play video games, fraternize on Facebook, surf cable or satellite TV or watch a DVD. BTIG Research analyst Rich Greenfield believes the scarcity of compelling choices on broadcast TV at this time of year is bound to help Netflix draw more viewers to "Arrested Development." Like Netflix's previous series, all 15 new episodes of "Arrested Development" will be released simultaneously to allow viewers to watch the show as if they were perusing a book and deciding how many chapters to pore through in a single sitting. February's release of "House of Cards," a political drama that stars Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey, helped Netflix add 2 million more U.S. subscribers during the first three months of the year, more than analysts anticipated. The original cast, including Jason Bateman, Michael Cera and Will Arnett, is returning to the zany series revolving around a family whose opulent lifestyle was torn apart by the arrest of a corrupt patriarch played by Jeffrey Tambor. The long-awaited return of "Arrested Development" prompted Netflix to be more optimistic about subscriber growth during the traditionally sluggish April-to-June period, Hastings told The Associated Press in a recent interview. Netflix infuriated customers in July 2011 when it announced price increases of as much as 60 percent for people who wanted to rent DVDs by mail and stream Internet video.

Netflix had just announced an unpopular price increase in the U.S., and investors got worried by the intensity of the customer backlash. Even after subscriber complaints subsided, investors remained concerned about intensifying competition at the same time the company is spending more to acquire Internet content and expand abroad. Netflix Inc. says it will raise prices by as much as 60 percent for millions of subscribers who want to rent DVDs by mail and watch video on the Internet. Hastings appears at an investors' conference in New York, where he laments the company's recent mistakes but predicts they will be forgotten as Netflix's Internet video service continues to reshape the entertainment industry. Verizon Communications Inc. and Coinstar Inc. unveil plans to challenge Netflix with its own streaming service to bundle with DVD rental kiosks operated by Coinstar's Redbox division. On the same day the multiyear deal is announced, Comcast Corp. announces plans to undercut Netflix with a less expensive version of a service that will stream old TV series and movies to devices with high-speed Internet connections. Netflix says it suffered its first quarterly loss in seven years as it dealt with rising licensing fees and the bill for an international expansion. Netflix announces that subscribers watched more than 1 billion hours of online video in June, an indication that streaming video is getting more popular. Netflix says the provision is triggered if a person or group acquires 10 percent of Netflix, or 20 percent in the case of institutional investors, in a deal not approved by the board. Netflix announces that its video subscription service has trumped pay-TV channels and grabbed the rights to show Disney movies shortly after they finish their runs in theaters. Netflix's streaming service will have exclusive U.S. rights to offer Disney's first-run movies during the period normally reserved for premium TV network such as HBO, Starz and Showtime. Netflix surprises investors by reporting a fourth-quarter profit as it warded off stiffer competition to add 2 million U.S. subscribers during the final three months of 2012. Netflix announces that it added 2 million U.S. subscribers in the January-March period, hitting the top end of a target set by the company's management.

In the first three months of the year, Netflix gained 2 million U.S. Internet subscribers, thanks in part to the success of the political drama "House of Cards," which debuted in February. Netflix is expected to get another boost this weekend with the revival of "Arrested Development." Here's a breakdown of Netflix Inc.'s subscribers as of March 31 and details on its forecast:

NEW YORK (AP) — ABC's newest "Bachelorette," Desiree Hartsock, says it's not hard to keep the details of her experience on the show a secret from her friends. "Ironically, I'm kind of a private person anyway, so my friends know not to ask," she said in a recent interview. Hartsock has some experience with the matter, although her last reality TV romance ended in heartbreak. [...] Hartsock won over viewers with her girl-next-door looks, attitude and raw vulnerability when Lowe sent her home after meeting her family. Hartsock says there are no hard feelings over her brother's skepticism and stresses it was "very Sean specific."

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie was never a fan of MTV's "Jersey Shore," saying it unfairly cast the state in a negative light. Christie and "Jersey Shore" cast members appeared separately on NBC's "Today" show during filming in Seaside Heights, N.J., to talk about the state's recovery from Superstorm Sandy.

First lady to students: 'I have failed at things' The school is located in Anacostia, one of the city's poorest neighborhoods. Mrs. Obama said the actress, who was sitting in the audience for the visit, is a big star these days because she chose to keep perfecting her craft instead of becoming discouraged by rejection during her career. Olivia Pope is her character on "Scandal" and Patrick Pope is the school's principal.

NEW YORK (AP) — Actress Amanda Bynes appeared disheveled in a long blond wig and sweats Friday in a criminal court where she was charged with reckless endangerment after police said she heaved a marijuana bong out the window of her 36th-floor Manhattan apartment. The 27-year-old former child star was arrested Thursday evening, after building officials at her midtown apartment called police to complain she was rolling a joint and smoking pot in the lobby. The officers went to her apartment where they said they saw heavy smoke and a bong sitting on the kitchen counter. Bynes rose to fame starring in Nickelodeon's "All That" and has also starred in several films, including 2010's "Easy A." But she has been in the news more recently because of several scrapes with the law and bizarre public behavior. [...] in California, she was charged last fall with driving on a suspended license after it was temporarily taken away from her after two hit-and-run cases where she was accused of leaving the scene without providing proper information.

Guest lineups for the Sunday news shows WASHINGTON (AP) — Guest lineups for the Sunday TV news shows: Peter King, R-N.Y., and Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla.; retired Gen. John Allen, former commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Jim Zabel, a legendary broadcaster who was the colorful voice of University of Iowa sports for more than a half-century, has died. The popular radio personality covered more than 6,100 sporting events, including six Rose Bowls and 26 NCAA basketball tournaments. Zabel was known for his colorful play-by-play descriptions, yelling "I love it! I love it! I love it!" during climactic moments in Hawkeye football and basketball games. Zabel correctly called the Nov. 14, 1987, play when Iowa quarterback Chuck Hartlieb connected with tight end Marv Cook for the winning touchdown against Ohio State, helping them earn a berth in the Holiday Bowl. Zabel, who was inducted into the Iowa Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame in 1994, was proud of his busy schedule.

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey used a record-breaking gesture Friday to celebrate its recovery from a record-setting storm, proclaiming to the nation that the Jersey shore is back in business following Superstorm Sandy. Gov. Chris Christie and a host of volunteers carried out a ceremonial ribbon cutting that broke the Guinness World record for the longest such undertaking. The event was part of a no-holds-barred rollout of summer in this famous resort town made infamous by the MTV reality show "Jersey Shore," which filmed here until wrapping up last year. [...] they even hired fun. — the rock band whose anthem "We Are Young" captures the spirit of this blue-collar oceanfront playground that was devastated by the Oct. 29 storm and has been furiously rebuilding ever since. Christie, who has been racing up and down the shore opening boardwalks and talking up shore tourism all week as the summer kickoff approached, appeared on the "Today" show Friday morning, giving him a national pulpit to preach his message of recovery from a storm that caused $38 billion in damages in his state, and harmed or wrecked 360,000 homes or apartment units. Tourism is a nearly $40 billion industry in New Jersey, and shore towns are counting on a good summer to help them recoup major losses they incurred after the storm. [...] Kevin Stewart, owner of JR's Ocean Bar & Grill on the boardwalk, led a Champagne toast with his bar employees right after Christie cut the ribbon. Mark Romanowski, a bartender at JR's, said the "Jersey Strong" slogan that has adorned T-shirts, bumper stickers and sweatshirts for fundraising efforts since the storm is not a cliche.