Archive for the ‘Net TV’ Category

iPhone app climbs Apple's 'walled garden' to display photos on TiVo

by Steve O'Hear

November 12th, 2008 | Posted in Mobile, Net TV | CommentsNo Comments

DVRPics is a new application for iPhone and iPod touch that enables you to stream photos to a networked TiVo so that they can be viewed on the TV.

Currently only one photo can be selected at a time — a limitation the app’s developer blames on Apple, since third-party developers aren’t given direct access to the iPhone’s photo library. However, a version of DVRPics that supports photo slide shows is next on the app’s road map. The app costs 99 cents from the iTunes AppStore (iTunes link).

Interestingly, DVRPics isn’t the only TiVo-related app for the iPhone. After a quick search I discovered an app called DVR Shows (iTunes link) that enables you to see what recordings are stored on your TiVo via an iPhone or iPod touch, including full program details. Unsurprisingly, you can’t actually stream those recordings to the iPhone or even use the iPhone as a TiVo remote a la iTunes or the recently released iPhone app for Sonos.

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Vudu's boast: more HD content than the rest (but is the biz model the right one?)

by Steve O'Hear

November 10th, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | Comments2 Comments

Set-top box movie service Vudu is claiming to offer more High Definition content than any of its competitors — Apple TV, Netflix, XBox 360, and even Blu-Ray itself — reports CNet. And while content is mostly King, I’m still unsure about the company’s business model.

From CNet:

Indeed, a quick examination of competing services seems to bear out Vudu’s claim. We counted more than 1,100 HD movies available through Vudu’s box (including about 200 that are also offered in Vudu’s Blu-rayesque HDX format), compared to 391 on Xbox Live Marketplace, and something south of 700 on Apple iTunes. (Netflix will be kicking off its own HD streaming service later this month with a mere 300 titles.) By comparison, Amazon’s Blu-ray inventory–i.e. the total number of Blu-rays available–shows a total of close to 2,000 titles, though that includes TV shows and pre-release discs.

However, while Vudu’s catalog clearly beats its Internet set-top box rivals, along with holding its own against the fledgling Bu-ray format, there’s little to distinguish the service in terms of pricing – rentals range from $0.99 to $5.99, and purchased movies range from $4.99 to $19.99.

In fact, when you consider that the Vudu set-top box is a one trick pony compared to most of its direct competitors who also offer various additional functionality, such as gaming or the ability to bridge the gap between the PC and TV, the Vudu proposition appears to deliver a lot less value for money: buy our hardware ($299) so that you can start purchasing our wares. It’s like charging people to enter the store. Instead, Vudu should find a way of giving its set-top box away for free or at least making consumers feel like they’re not paying for the box.

How so?

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New XBox 360 games carry Netflix streaming promotion

by Steve O'Hear

November 5th, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | CommentsNo Comments

More Netflix news…

Netflix is promoting trials of its ‘Watch Instantly’ streaming video service with select Xbox 360 games, reports Streaming Media’s Dan Rayburn.

In a joint marketing effort with partner Microsoft, a 48 hour ‘Gold’ pass to XBox Live that includes the Netflix promotion, can be found in the box of US retail copies of the newly released James Bond game, although access to Netflix on XBox 360 won’t be available until later this month when the previously announced Dashboard update is rolled out. Rayburn says this is the “the beginning of what is expected to be some massive marketing efforts by both Netflix and Microsoft for the new service.”

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Not exclusive to XBox, Netflix HD streaming coming to Roku too

by Steve O'Hear

November 3rd, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | CommentsNo Comments

Last week Engadget reported that the XBox 360’s support for Netflix streaming would include a limited amount of HD content too – initially around 300 titles – prompting many to ask if High Def content would also make its way onto Roku’s Netflix set-top box.

Dan Rayburn quickly followed up to confirm that, despite the lack of an official company announcement, Roku’s hardware was at least technically capable of streaming Netflix in HD, leading to speculation that Netflix HD streaming could be a Microsoft exclusive, for the time being anyway.

Not so.

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After on-off relationship, Netflix streaming comes to TiVo

by Steve O'Hear

October 30th, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | CommentsNo Comments

It may have taken four years but they got there in the end. Netflix and TiVo today announced that the two companies have began rolling out access to Netflix’s ‘Watch Now’ video streaming service on Internet connected TiVos.

As Dave Zatz notes:

The process probably hasn’t played out exactly the way TiVo and Netflix anticipated when they initially inked a development agreement in 2004… In fact, the struggle to find content and move this project forward drove Netflix CEO Reed Hastings to declare there’s “no work going on,” “no content,” and “no point” in 2005. Fast forward a few years and it’s pretty clear that the landscape has drastically shifted. Content is everywhere and Netflix intends to serve as many platforms as possible: “We want to be integrated on every Internet-connected device, game system, high-definition DVD player and dedicated Internet set-top box.”

It’s pretty impressive that over the last six months Netflix has delivered on its promise to bring its Internet TV offering on to many devices beyond the PC. What sounded like pie in the sky – especially in light of the company’s on-off relationship with TiVo – has actually panned out, in which Netflix streaming is available on game consoles (Microsoft’s XBox 360), set-top boxes (Roku), DVRs (TiVo) and Internet connected DVD players (LG and Samsung).

See also: Don’t call it a hobby: Netflix and TiVo continue to push Internet TV into the living room

Want to hear more from Netflix’s CEO? We got a spare ticket for NewTeeVee Live in San Fran. on Nov 13 where he’ll be speaking. (See: NewTeeVee Live: last100 reader discount and ticket giveaway)

NewTeeVee Live: last100 reader discount and ticket giveaway

by Steve O'Hear

October 29th, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | Comments1 Comment

It’s time again for GigaOm’s annual conference – NewTeeVee Live – covering the business of online video. And best of all, last100 readers qualify for a discount. Actually, strike that. Not only do you qualify for a $200 discount, but better still we have one free ticket to giveaway!

But first the details of NewTeeVee Live…

NewTeeVee Live
Television Reinvented
Thursday November 13, 2008
Mission Bay Conference Center
San Francisco, CA

Television is being reinvented. What are the business opportunities for you in this age of online video? Attend NewTeeVee Live to find out.

NewTeeVee Live is the premier conference for the creators, technologists, and distributors of the next generation of TV. It is the conference where we ask the hard questions about online video, push forward the most interesting topics into next year—and cut the deals needed to make it all happen. Last year’s conference sold out early and garnered rave reviews for it’s mix of influencers, top executives and media industry thought leaders who made the deals.

Who’s coming? The creators and producers of “Heroes” and “CSI”, the CEOs of Hulu and Netflix, the VPs of Digital Media for ABC, FOX and Lucasfilm and many more senior executives who are driving the decisions that effect the future of online video. All of the key influencers in web video will be on hand to discuss the future of new media. So don’t miss your chance to be there.

REGISTER NOW and SAVE!
Last100 readers get a special $200 discount with the code “LAST”. Click here to register now – http://events.newteevee.com/live/08/?a=last

So how do you enter to win a free ticket?

Simply leave a comment below with a link to your favorite Internet TV news or feature as covered by last100 (we know you’re a regular reader) and tell us why you chose it. Remember to include your email address in the comment form otherwise we’ll be unable to contact you if you win. The winner will be chosen randomly from those entries that qualify. We’ll close comments in one week’s time. Good luck!

BBC iPlayer on Wii gets a UI overhaul

by Steve O'Hear

October 28th, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | CommentsNo Comments

Six months after launch, the BBC has finally got around to redesigning its version of iPlayer for the Nintendo Wii games console to make it more suited to being operated from the couch. Initially taking a ‘keep it simple, get it out fast’ approach, explains the Beeb’s Anthony Rose, the original Wii version of the public broadcaster’s seven day TV catch-up service made do with the 2 foot user interface designed for the PC. “The new Wii version has a simplified user interface that presents just a few options on screen at a time and nice big chunky controls – easy to aim at with a Wiimote.”

Rose also takes the opportunity to defend the BBC’s original decision to build a Wii version of iPlayer rather than one for Sony’s PlayStation 3. “The reason is simple: there are twice as many Wii units in the UK than PS3s”. Additionally, the original PS3 web browser had “some odd quirks which have increased development time”, says Rose. In other words, a PS3 version is still in the works.

… we’re not quite there yet as the PS3 uses a slightly older version of Flash which doesn’t support some of the features used in our media player, and the very promising Flash 9 update now available on PS3 has some compatibility issues. Our Flash developers are working on it – stay tuned for updates.

See also: BBC iPlayer lands on Wii – who said Nintendo doesn’t do media center?

Netflix streaming to Mac courtesy of Microsoft! Could Nokia phones be next?

by Steve O'Hear

October 27th, 2008 | Posted in Mobile, Net TV | CommentsNo Comments

Oh the irony

Netflix has finally began rolling out a version of its video streaming service for Mac users, and it comes courtesy of Microsoft. Although only available initially to “a small percentage of new Netflix subscribers”, with a full roll-out anticipated by the end of the year, the new PC-based version of the company’s ‘Watch Now’ service is powered by Microsoft’s Flash competitor Silverlight, a technology that crucially includes its own cross-platform ‘studio approved’ DRM solution, thus enabling Netflix to support both Windows-based PCs and now those running MacOS (Intel only).

Along with adding Mac support, Netflix says the adoption of Silverlight delivers a number of usability improvements too, including “a faster, easier connection” and “a breakthrough in timeline navigation that vastly improves the use of fast-forwarding and rewinding.” Yes you read that right, fast-forwarding and rewinding. Who said the revolution wouldn’t be televised?

In the future, it’s very possible that Neflix’s use of Silverlight could see its streaming service reach even more devices beyond PCs and set-top boxes currectly supported. In particular I’m thinking of mobile phones and Internet tablets from Nokia. The Finnish handset maker has already announced that it plans to support Silverlight on future handsets, starting with those powered by S60, with S40 and Maemo devices to follow. And from a marketing perspective, a partnership with Netflix would make a lot of sense as it would surely help the company shift more handsets in the US. In this regard, Nokia has previous form too. The company’s flagship smartphone, the N96, is in part being sold in the UK based on its support for the BBC’s iPlayer service.

Don't call it a hobby: Netflix and TiVo continue to push Internet TV into the living room

by Steve O'Hear

October 23rd, 2008 | Posted in Net TV | CommentsNo Comments

No longer content with dissing his company’s own offering, Apple CEO Steve Jobs is now calling the whole product category a “hobby”. But that isn’t stopping others from forging ahead to bring Internet TV into the living room, with both TiVo and Netflix rolling out partnerships this week to give their customers more content and hardware choices respectively. But first back to what Jobs said during the company’s Q4 earnings call on Tuesday.

“I think the whole category is still a hobby right now. I don’t think anybody has succeeded at it and actually the experimentation has slowed down”, said Jobs in answer to one analyst’s question about how Apple sees the digital living room opportunity in the next year. “A lot of the early companies that were trying things have faded away, so I’d have to say that given the economic conditions, given the venture capital outlooks and stuff, I continue to believe it will be a hobby in 2009.” (via Seeking Alpha)

That’s a fairly dire prognosis from Jobs, and suggests that the company might purposely be taking its eye off the ball when it comes to the living room, especially as Apple pursues more developed and profitable markets such as that of the iPhone (although you should always be careful when taking what Jobs says at face value). Either way, for those companies that are still in the market, now seems like an ideal opportunity for greater experimentation and to give consumers more non-Apple choices. On that note, let’s return to those announcements.

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Google's big bet: Android beyond the cellphone

by Steve O'Hear

October 22nd, 2008 | Posted in Audio, Mobile, Net TV | Comments1 Comment

Much of the iPod’s success, says Steve Jobs, is down to the fact that Japanese consumer electronics companies don’t produce elegant software. He makes the same accusation of handset makers too. They can do hardware but they “just can’t seem to get the software right.” Enter Android, Google’s open source OS, which although explicitly designed to deliver better software for Internet-connected cellphones, will also soon find its way onto all manner of devices.

“Over the last few weeks I have learned that numerous companies are tinkering with Android in an attempt to get the OS to power a whole slew of gadgets — everything from set-top boxes to navigation systems to mobile Internet devices to smart picture frames”, reports Om Malik.

Motorola have already confirmed that it has at least one Android-powered handset in the pipeline, but the company is also a major player in the television set-top box space and is said to be exploring the potential of Android in the living room too. Malik also says he’s heard from “fairly reliable sources” that two large PC makers are experimenting with Android-based Internet devices. None of which I find surprising. From both a technical and business point of view, Google has laid the foundations for Android to move quickly beyond its cellphone roots and, the company hopes, eventually become a ubiquitous platform.

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