last100 » YouTube

YouTube updated for Symbian, now supports user accounts

David Gilson — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 20:08:33 +0000

YouTube's new application homepage on S60

It’s taken a while but YouTube has finally added support for user accounts in its updated client for phones running the Nokia-led Symbian OS.

Announced on the 10th of March, users can now log into their YouTube account enabling them to access their favourites, subscriptions, and videos. YouTube stated that it has taken them this long because they wanted to focus on speed of search and playback. Also new to version 2.4 is suggested search terms as you type in a search query.

Version 2.4 is still missing social features, like sharing videos via Twitter or Facebook. Although, it went unmentioned in the official announcement that there is now a menu option to copy a video’s URL to the phone’s clipboard. While not the easiest of routes, this does present a way for users to direct their friends and followers to the latest skateboarding pet videos.

The new version can be downloaded directly from m.youtube.com/app, although N97 users will be disappointed to find that their device is not yet officially supported. Indeed, installing from the Ovi store will only get you version 2.2.29. However, someone from SymbianFrance.com has extracted an installer for the N97, on behalf of NokiaUsers.net. N97 users can download YouTube 2.4 from here.

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3’s CEO talks iPad, the mobile network’s ‘perception problem’, Spotify, and more

Steve O'Hear — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 15:38:02 +0000

3UK’s CEO talks about how the network is planning to address its ‘legacy perception problem’ and why bidding for the iPad would be like trying to sign a premiership footballer

I’ve just got back from a fascinating press briefing with mobile carrier 3UK’s CEO Kevin Russell and CTO Graham Baxter, billed as a discussion of the “themes, trends and challenges that will shape the mobile industry in the UK in 2010.” Although the subtext was something more along the lines of: how is 3 addressing what was described as its legacy perception problem.

People still, wrongly or rightly, often associate the network with poor coverage and/or service. This despite the fact that the network’s coverage and capacity has and is improving and that in my view 3 is one of the most, if not the most, innovative of the UK networks, especially on pricing, data services and positioning.

Here’s what I learnt during two presentations and the very frank Q&A that took place afterwards:

3 has an image problem that needs be addressed.

Despite investing heavily in its network and seeing the benefits in terms of coverage, speed and capacity, the number one issue facing the network is how to shake off what was described as its ‘legacy perception’ problem. If I remember correctly, it’s the one thing that keeps Russell up at night. Two ways 3 can address this.

1) Organically by letting the network speak for itself as 3 attracts and retains subscribers who can experience the improvements for themselves

2) Try to create a big ‘catalyst’ moment, perhaps through acquiring a ‘hero’ handset or device as O2 did with the iPhone. Russell suggested that it could be a combination of both but wouldn’t go into specific details with regards to 3’s marketing strategy.

In terms of reality, 3 has been on a steep learning curve with regards to huge increases in mobile data usage by its customers, says Russell. But that the network has steadily improved its data coverage and capacity, in part through its network share with T-Mobile, and that 3 is on track to have over 12,000 base stations up from just over 7,000 by the end of October 2010.

It was also pressed home by CTO Graham Baxter that in the end all of the carriers faced the same challenge. The only real way to increase capacity is to acquire more sites (base stations/cells) and more spectrum. 3 is making great strides with the former but the latter is in the hands of the government/regulator. That’s why 3 is particularly worried about the Orange/T-Mobile merger.

Apple iPad maybe?

While Russell didn’t appear to totally rule out 3 offering a subsidised iPad (or perhaps a SIM-only offering that targets owners of Apple’s device) he acquainted bidding for an exclusive to trying to sign a top premiership footballer. Not only does everyone want the same player, but as a result there is a hefty price to play. A price that Russell suggested wasn’t usually worth playing. And besides, 3 likes to ’swim in the opposite direction’ to the rest of the industry.

He also wasn’t familiar with the new microSIM ’standard’ that the iPad requires, which provided a slightly awkward moment.

Spotify’s ’soft launch’

3 began offering the music streaming service Spotify with a single handset – the HTC Hero – in November of last year. It was a relatively soft launch, conceded Russell, and that the network was waiting till it could offer Spotify on more than one device before giving the service a much greater push. He also said that 3’s retail bricks ‘n’ mortar stores were the best channel to promote offerings like Spotify.

As for more handsets that support the service, Russell talked of a half-dozen rather than one or two more. Not surprising since Spotify has clients for Symbian, Android and the iPhone.

YouTube not iPlayer is the bandwidth hog

It’s YouTube not the iPlayer which stands out as 3’s biggest bandwidth hog. Although Baxter explained that in some ways the problem takes care of itself. YouTube throttles its own bandwidth at peak times so it’s often out of 3’s control anyway. In comparison, iPlayer hardly registers. Why?

No reason was offered but I think it could be to do with the way 3’s handsets support iPlayer. All of the Symbian devices support downloads not just streaming. Perhaps users are grabbing content over WiFi before leaving the house. Also worth noting: there’s currently no official iPlayer client for Android.

As you’d expect, Facebook has been a big driver of data usage on handsets too, though obviously nowhere near as bandwidth intensive as streaming video.

3’s been surprised by the Terminate The Rate campaign’s support

Russell said he’d been surprised by how well the carrier’s Terminate The Rate campaign had resonated with the public and members of parliament. The campaign is attempting to influence the decision Ofcom makes on reducing the charge of Mobile Termination Rates (MTRs). From the campaign website:

MTRs are charged when you call somebody on a different mobile network, or call a mobile from your land-line. Their network will charge yours a fee for receiving (or ‘carrying’) the call. This is a Mobile Termination Rate. The current charge is around 4.7p or more for every minute you’re connected – charges we think are excessive and distort competition.

Of course, 3 is particularly exposed to MTRs since it has less subscribers than its competitors so, inevitably, will have to pay out a lot more than it gets in.

Data roaming charges are “stupid”

Somewhat related to MTRs is the charge levied on customers when they consume data in other parts of the EU or elsewhere abroad. Russell highlighted the difference in price domestically and internationally.

Typically, 5GB of mobile broadband will cost £15 here in the UK, while it’s something like £6,000 when roaming. Russell said this is “stupid” and that the issue needs to be addressed now not sometime in the future as has been argued by others in the industry.

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Video: YouTube on the WD TV Live HD Media Player

Steve O'Hear — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 20:59:27 +0000

I gave Western Digital’s original WD HD Media Player a glowing review, describing it as a ‘kitchen sink an all’ media player that just works. As readers may remember, the set-top box does away with local networking or an Internet connection, instead featuring two USB ports only, to offer a near fool-proof way of watching almost any video downloaded from the Internet on the TV.

However, the lack of network connectivity, a potential shortcoming for some, has been addressed with the newly released WD TV Live HD, which adds an Ethernet port and support for YouTube and Flickr, Internet radio from Live365 and Pandora (US version only), along with content stored on a Windows PC or Mac on the same local network.

Like it’s predecessor, the device is being marketed based on HD video support (up to 1080p), and this, explained a company rep at a recent press event, is the reason why a wired connection was chosen over WiFi. Since many home wireless networks don’t stream High Def video reliably, Western Digital didn’t want to mislead customers. The company does, however, provide a list of compatible WiFi adapters – unofficially supported – for those who still wish to go down the wireless route.

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YouTube relaunches TV-friendly version of the site, Android ‘remote control’ debuts too

Steve O'Hear — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 20:31:06 +0000

YouTube XL

It’s not the first time that YouTube has rolled out a version of the video sharing site designed specifically for viewing on a television but the application’s been given a polish and a new name to boot.

Now called ‘YouTube XL‘ the new version of the site features a ‘ten foot’ User Interface designed for viewing on a TV or large screen monitor, which despite running in a web browser, TechCrunch describes as having the look and feel of a ‘native application’. Like the previous version of YouTube optimized for the living room, XL is supported on both the PlayStation 3 and Wii games consoles, though the video quality is compromised on the Wii due to its limited processor and support for an older version of Flash video.

More interesting, however, is the release of an accompanying Android application:

YouTube has created an application called Gmote for Android phones. You can scroll around menus, and also input text if you’d like to search. It’s only on Android so far, but because it’s open source you can potentially develop for other devices as well. The input is sent over your Wi-Fi network.

This is very similar to existing ‘remote control’ apps on Apple’s iPhone to operate the AppleTV and Vudu set-top boxes, Sonos’ multi-room audio system, and the VLC desktop media player, to name a few.

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10 feet away: YouTube lands on PS3 and Wii

Steve O'Hear — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 22:15:21 +0000

Perhaps taking a leaf out of the BBC iPlayer’s book, Google-owned YouTube have launched a version of the video sharing site designed specifically for viewing on a television.

Currently in Beta, the TV-friendly YouTube initially targets Sony’s PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii. That’s because both games consoles feature a built-in web browser compatible with Flash video, making it relatively easy to port over any browser-based video offering. From the US version of the official YouTube blog:

… the TV Website offers a dynamic, lean-back, 10-foot television viewing experience through a streamlined interface that enables you to discover, watch and share YouTube videos on any TV screen with just a few quick clicks of your remote control. With enlarged text and simplified navigation, it makes watching YouTube on your TV as easy and intuitive as possible. Optional auto-play capability enables users to view related videos sequentially, emulating a traditional television experience.

Google also reminds us that, through partnerships with set-top box makers such as Apple, combined with the YouTube API, it’s not the first time that viewers have been able to watch YouTube on the TV, although progress hasn’t been as fast as the company would have liked.

“Our hope is that this site may help to accelerate an industry evolution towards open television access to Web video. Over time, we plan to add support for additional TV devices that provide Web browsers.”

You can access the new TV-friendly version of YouTube by pointing your PS3 or Wii’s web browser to www.youtube.com/tv

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Vudu set-top box no longer a one trick pony, adds support for YouTube, Flickr and more

Steve O'Hear — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 16:46:54 +0000

My biggest beef with the Vudu set-top movie box is that it’s always been a one trick pony, and an expensive one at that. Focusing on paid-for movies (rentals and to-own), Vudu’s sole proposition was that you purchased one of its set-top boxes, starting at $299, so that you could begin purchasing content. Essentially paying to enter the store.

That changed today, with the company announcing support for a range of free online video from YouTube, MSNBC, CNN, MTV, PBS, and National Geographic, as well as images from photo sharing sites Flickr and Picasso. “The new content will be available via a free firmware update that should hit all Vudu boxes over the next 24 hours”, reports Cnet. And best of all there’s plenty more to come.

That’s because Vudu isn’t providing access to said content through formal licensing agreements but is instead pulling in content through those sites’ own APIs or freely available web feeds. Better still, Vudu is going to open up this feature to third-party developers in the first half of 2009 who’ll be able to add support for more online content.

In other words, Vudu looks like it might be slowly morphing, to some extent at least, into the open Apple TV I’ve been long calling for.

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Netgear bringing YouTube HD to a High Def TV near you

Steve O'Hear — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 20:30:03 +0000

Our friends over at NewTeeVee got a glimpse last night of a new set-top box from Netgear that, amongst other features, can stream YouTube HD content directly to a high definition television.

Dubbed the EVA 9000 Digital Entertainer Elite, the device is aimed at “the tech-savvy, early adopter, not your average Roku user”, reports NTV, and, along with YouTube support, can download BitTorrent files, access additional Internet-based content, as well as stream video from any PC connected to the same local network. Netgear hasn’t ruled out the possibility of Netflix streaming too.

On the YouTube HD front, NTV says it looks “awesome” — see video below — and that overall the experience points to where the Google-owned video site is heading.

Watching YouTube HD on a big screen, you get a glimpse at YouTube’s future: premium content from networks and studios delivered straight to your TV sans any cable provider. And it makes you realize why the company reversed its position on pre-rolls as they will look just like commercials on a big screen and probably be more tolerated since people will be in their living rooms.

Check out the video after the jump…

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Zatz Not Funny: TiVo, Flip MinoHD, CES Unveiled and more

Steve O'Hear — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 18:43:30 +0000

A periodic roundup of relevant news from our friends at Zatz Not Funny (one of my all time favorite blogs)…

Flip goes HD, adds FlipShare software

Mari Silbey: Pure Digital unveiled its anticipated Flip MinoHD today packaged with new FlipShare software for editing and sharing… One of the issues with the Flip camcorders to date has been keeping a sharp focus for close-up shots. According to a Flip spokesperson, the MinoHD doesn’t necessary solve that problem, with the minimum focus range staying at 80 cm. However, it’s likely not a significant concern for casual users, particularly with the new HD resolution.

(Ed. I looked at purchasing a Flip but after reading multiple reviews I’ve plunged for the more expensive Sanyo HD800 – review coming soon).

Dave dumps XM (again)

Dave Zatz: See ya, XM. I was on the fence and you pushed. Our time together has been mostly positive, but the massive lineup modifications yesterday without any advance notification isn’t the proper way to treat your customers. So I’m walking.

The phones of CES Unveiled

Dave Zatz: Though CES Unveiled was a modest 3 hour event, both Samsung and Motorola were promoting their latest wares… While visiting Sling’s table, I also spent some time with their still-under-development Blackberry client. The Slingbox software’s currently in private beta, but is looking good – especially on the gorgeous Bold screen.

The CES Unveiled Proofs of Concept

Dave Zatz: I ran across two very interesting and diminutive products at CES Unveiled earlier this week — Micro “personal” projectors and “thin client” computers. While the technology is compelling, I suspect the implementation will have to improve and the challenge these products solve will have to be clarified before we’d see any sort of mainstream or mass market adoption. Generating positive attention and finding commercial success are two entirely different matters.

Unboxing Nero Liquid TV TiVo

Dave Zatz: Announced about a year ago, the Nero+TiVo collaboration has finally borne fruit. Here in North America. Interesting, as this was originally positioned as a means of international TiVo expansion.

Obama brings YouTube to the White House

Mari Silbey: Obama appears to be planning a weekly video address to be distributed on the White House’s own YouTube Channel. During the campaigns both political parties used online video extensively, but we’ve had no real indications until now of how much the government-based “new media” rage would continue post election.

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YouTube adds select TV shows from CBS; takes aim at Hulu for long-form video content

Daniel Langendorf — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 04:52:05 +0000

We wouldn’t call YouTube a sleeping giant necessarily, but when it comes to long-form video the world’s dominant video-sharing site certainly seems to be cat-napping.

Other sites such as Hulu, the joint venture between Fox and NBC, have been getting much of the long-form video attention and name recognition, whereas YouTube remains known for short-form content that lasts 10 minutes or less.

Google, YouTube’s parent, is seeking to change this as it has added select full-length content from CBS in an attempt to take on Hulu and attract other network content to YouTube. [YouTube blog]

Available full-length shows include 20- to 48-minute episodes from CBS’s past and present lineup, including “Star Trek,” “MacGyver,” and “Beverly Hills 90210.” The season premiers of “Dexter” and “Californication” and current episodes of “Young and Restless” will also be shown on YouTube.

To improve the viewing experience, YouTube has introduced a new player for long-form video — known as Theater View — which plays video in a less pixelated 16:9 format. It’s no where near as nice as watching a full video on Hulu, but it may suffice for most viewers.

“When you go to full screen you can actually kick back and watch it,” Shiva Rajaraman, senior product manager, told AdAge.

To support the effort, Google is also experimenting with advertising [see NewTeeVee]. The content will be supported with pre-, mid-, and post-roll ads. YouTube will get a revenue cut, but neither CBS nor YouTube would discuss the terms of the agreement or revenue sharing.

If long-form video gains traction on YouTube, the balance of power — already in YouTube’s favor — will shift even more toward the Google property.

YouTube served up 5 billion videos in July, representing more than 44 percent of online videos viewed in the U.S. The next closest competitor was Hulu, with a share of 3.9 percent.

The YouTube giant has 330 million users, according to comScore, while Hulu has just 3.3 million. Even so, Hulu’s relative success with long-form video content has caught the attention of the cat-napping Google.

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Comscore estimates 5 billion videos were watched on YouTube in July

Daniel Langendorf — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 04:04:29 +0000

We’re obsessed with keeping score. And not just in sports. In politics, movie box office takes, the number of times Meredith and McSteamy glance longingly at each other in “Grey’s Anatomy.”

And YouTube. We love to see the YouTube balloon keep expanding, which means that online video is growing, breaking into the mainstream even more, and will one day rule the networks.

Comscore issued its July Website traffic and online video report and one number stands out: 5 billion. Comscore estimates that U.S. online videoaholics watched an average of 235 minutes of video, with 91 million viewers watching 5 billion videos on YouTube.

That’s 54.8 videos per viewer. In one month.

Just for grins, 51.4 million viewers watched 400 million videos on MySpace, about 8 videos per viewer.

Overall, Comscore says that 75 percent of the total U.S. Internet audience watched online video in July.

Marshall Kirkpatrick over at ReadWriteWeb asks a question that has been on my mind for a while: How accurate are the Comscore numbers? Are they any better than Hitwise, another analyst firm that has argued the online video market in general is declining — except for YouTube.

Numbers and statistics, of course, are subject for interpretation and barroom debate. The trend I see is right here in the house: The Kid, now a freshman in high school, has been spending even more time than usual watching YouTube videos. So are her friends. No one comes over any more to hang out and watch TV or a movie. They hang out and watch YouTube.

It’s The Kid’s TV channel of choice. After all, you can only watch MadTV’s “Can I Get Your Number” sketch twice — once if you happen to catch the original airing and a second time in rerun. On the Web and on YouTube, you can watch it over, and over, and over, and over.

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YouTube gets dedicated Olympic channel, but it won’t be available in the U.S.

Daniel Langendorf — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 05:09:57 +0000

The 2008 Olympic Games will be broadcast online to more than 70 countries on a dedicated YouTube channel, but the United States is not included.

NBC holds the video-on-demand rights in the U.S., but these have not been sold on an exclusive basis in other countries, including Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Vietnam, Iraq, and India (see the complete International Olympic Committee list here).

The IOC will stream about three hours a day of exclusive content — mostly summaries and highlights — from Olympic Broadcasting Services. YouTube will sell ads, but only to Olympic sponsors. The channel will be available on Wednesday.

YouTube will use geo-blocking to prevent access to the channel in countries where the video-on-demand rights have been sold, like in the U.S. Geo-blocking is based on a user’s IP address.

The geo-blocking in the U.S. shouldn’t be that big of a deal, unless you’re one who wants to see everything broadcast night and day or you’re surfing videos at YouTube and want to catch up on the Olympic action without leaving the site.

NBC will show more than 2,000 hours of live content at NBCOlympics.com. That’s more than enough content to keep any Olympic fan happy — and in need of sleep.

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Verizon bringing Internet TV to its set-top boxes

Steve O'Hear — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 13:46:47 +0000

Another major player enters the PC to TV space. Verizon is currently beta testing web video on their set-top boxes, reports Zatz Not Funny.

Unsurprisingly, the content looks like it will be mostly user-generated or that which has been created specifically for the web, and therefore won’t compete directly with the telco’s own video-on-demand offering. Initial “marketing partners” to include Veoh, Blip.tv, Break.com, and YouTube.

On the downside, a PC is still required to act as a bridge between Internet content and the TV via Verizon’s DVR set-top box, notes Dave Zatz.

Unlike TiVo which taps directly into YouTube’s H.264 content, Verizon utilizes their Media Manager PC software as an intermediary. Sites are indexed on a regular basis and when a video is selected from the DVR, the PC software automatically transcodes and streams content on the fly.

In addition to pulling in content from supported video aggregation sites, Verizon’s Media Manager software “also facilitates shipping virtually any video podcast to your DVR”. Podcast subscriptions can be added directly to Media Manager in the standard way via the PC’s web browser.

The new features will be offered as part of Verizon’s top tier DVR package, which currently includes PC photo sharing and multi-room DVR playback, and is expected to be offered to customers later this year or early next year.

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