Again, this is quite an exciting development, as TVU allows live streams to your iphone. I was actually able to watch a live football match on it last week, pretty impressive....
Tuesday 24 March 2009
Boxee Remote App for iPhone
It seems that almost every week new technologies are continuing to converge and synergize at a phenomenal rate, this demonstration showing how boxee can now be controlled through a very neat and intuitive application on the iPhone. Genius!
Boxee founder speaks!
Here's a brief interview with Boxee founder Avner Ronen on why it is such a great application...
Thursday 5 March 2009
The Future pt 2
"The BBC is hoping to launch a new project (codenamed ‘Canvas ’) that will bring web-based programming to the TV. Project Canvas is a partnership with BBC, ITV and BT, and will encourage an open-industry standard that will allow “platform-neutral publishing ”; web-based TV will be able to move from the computer to television. Additionally, the BBC is planning to engage with Adobe AIR, which could allow cross-platform downloading.
Project Canvas includes Freeview ( digital terrestrial TV service) and a next-generation set-top-box. It will combine radio, TV, VOD, web/interactive content and catch-up content such as BBC’s iPlayer and ITV’s player. It will be an open platform, accessible to other PSBs and content providers to exploit."
http://www.flypaper.tv/2008/10/25/what-is-project-canvas/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/feb/26/project-canvas-strartup-costs
Back to the notion then of On Demand, whenever or wherever users demand it then. It again demonstrates the synergistic nature of media as it continues to develop.
I wonder as providers are increasingly moving towards platform neutrality, will there eventually be a shift towards regional neutral internet, allowing instant access to content as soon as it airs directly to our TVs using boxee or Joost? Why not pay for a general Media License that allows you access to all content, rather than paying for a TV license.
It is also interesting to note than plans for another VoD service, Project Kangaroo (encompassing BBC Worldwide, ITV.com and 4OD) were blocked by the Competitions Commission, as it was believed that "there was a danger that the platform could be too powerful."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kangaroo_(video_on_demand)
http://www.competition-commission.org.uk/rep_pub/reports/2009/543kangaroo.htm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/organgrinder/2009/feb/04/decision-block-project-kangaroo-could-help
Project Canvas includes Freeview ( digital terrestrial TV service) and a next-generation set-top-box. It will combine radio, TV, VOD, web/interactive content and catch-up content such as BBC’s iPlayer and ITV’s player. It will be an open platform, accessible to other PSBs and content providers to exploit."
http://www.flypaper.tv/2008/10/25/what-is-project-canvas/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/feb/26/project-canvas-strartup-costs
Back to the notion then of On Demand, whenever or wherever users demand it then. It again demonstrates the synergistic nature of media as it continues to develop.
I wonder as providers are increasingly moving towards platform neutrality, will there eventually be a shift towards regional neutral internet, allowing instant access to content as soon as it airs directly to our TVs using boxee or Joost? Why not pay for a general Media License that allows you access to all content, rather than paying for a TV license.
It is also interesting to note than plans for another VoD service, Project Kangaroo (encompassing BBC Worldwide, ITV.com and 4OD) were blocked by the Competitions Commission, as it was believed that "there was a danger that the platform could be too powerful."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kangaroo_(video_on_demand)
http://www.competition-commission.org.uk/rep_pub/reports/2009/543kangaroo.htm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/organgrinder/2009/feb/04/decision-block-project-kangaroo-could-help
Wednesday 4 March 2009
Video Democracy and the future
Aside from widely publicised legal user-generated content sites such as youtube, there has been a recent growth in such sites and applications that utilise P2P technologies and incorporate aspects of social networking too.
Joost is also available for the iPhone and iPod Touch, and I look forward to when there is a much less buggy version than the one currently in use.
Another very exciting development is Zattoo which allows users to legally watch channels such as BBC, ITV and C4 live on their computers. It is a fantastic program and I can see great potential for this.
In the last few months, Boxee has been causing great stirs due to the revolutionary way it generates data for the content you have already downloaded to your computer and also the way in which it integrates aspects of social networking. Boxee can also be run on AppleTV thus providing a very powerful media centre to your television.
As various media and platforms start to converge on a much more regular basis, we have seen Boxee provide content from the iPlayer and Joost. http://macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/19653/
Until very recently, Boxee allowed US users to access the fantastic service HULU, (alas not available to UK users), but HULU have withdrawn their services from boxee, which I consider to be negative for both HULU and boxee users.
Our content providers requested that we turn off access to our content via the Boxee product, and we are respecting their wishes. While we stubbornly believe in this brave new world of media convergence — bumps and all — we are also steadfast in our belief that the best way to achieve our ambitious, never-ending mission of making media easier for users is to work hand in hand with content owners. Without their content, none of what Hulu does would be possible, including providing you content via Hulu.com and our many distribution partner websites.
http://boxee.pbwiki.com/
One of these which is starting to make a significant impact is Joost, which legally hosts many classic movies, such as Carnival of Souls, 39 Steps and various TV and music.
Joost is also available for the iPhone and iPod Touch, and I look forward to when there is a much less buggy version than the one currently in use.
Another very exciting development is Zattoo which allows users to legally watch channels such as BBC, ITV and C4 live on their computers. It is a fantastic program and I can see great potential for this.
In the last few months, Boxee has been causing great stirs due to the revolutionary way it generates data for the content you have already downloaded to your computer and also the way in which it integrates aspects of social networking. Boxee can also be run on AppleTV thus providing a very powerful media centre to your television.
As various media and platforms start to converge on a much more regular basis, we have seen Boxee provide content from the iPlayer and Joost. http://macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/19653/
Until very recently, Boxee allowed US users to access the fantastic service HULU, (alas not available to UK users), but HULU have withdrawn their services from boxee, which I consider to be negative for both HULU and boxee users.
Our content providers requested that we turn off access to our content via the Boxee product, and we are respecting their wishes. While we stubbornly believe in this brave new world of media convergence — bumps and all — we are also steadfast in our belief that the best way to achieve our ambitious, never-ending mission of making media easier for users is to work hand in hand with content owners. Without their content, none of what Hulu does would be possible, including providing you content via Hulu.com and our many distribution partner websites.
http://boxee.pbwiki.com/
The Fight
As previously discussed, there has been an explosion in distribution of TV content over the internet, and it is not only the lucrative sports channels who are trying to protect their content. UK broadcasters disable the viewing of services such as iPlayer outside of the jurisdiction, and conversely, in the UK we are unable to view streams from NBC, Fox and other cable sites in the US. Even in the North of Ireland I am restricted from viewing the live stream from Ireland's national broadcaster RTE, but that's a whole different can of worms....... Therefore, I feel it is inevitable that in the democratic nature of the web, users submit data to be shared and enjoyed by others.
There is currently a massive case going on in Sweden at the moment between the IFPI and Bittorrent site The Pirate Bay. It is really interesting and the trial has certainly been colourful to date. http://torrentfreak.com/
The following clip from the excellent movie Good Copy Bad Copy (www.goodcopybadcopy.net) demonstrates the strength of feeling on both sides and the near impossibility of an outcome that will entirely satisfy both sides.... The movie also explores different models of distribution of digital content in Nigeria and Brazil.
Out of Control?
Not everyone is best pleased about the amount of user control though, namely Cable/Satellite networks.
The ability to watch and stream online sports in particular is a massive thorn in the side for Sky Sports, who just paid over £1.2 billion for the rights to show Barclay's Premiership matches. With such astronomical figures in question, it is easy to see why they are keen to protect this golden goose that could lay up to £35 a month per subscriber!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2008/nov/26/premierleague-bskyb
It is often the case though, that despite paying the premium for the Sky Sports package, there is simply not enough sport (Sky doesn't show any 3pm kick-offs) on it for the die hard fanatic, and they will supplement their viewing from streams or P2P programs from the internet.
A user can download a piece of software called Sopcast or similar P2PTV player and then proceed to use a site such as www.myP2P.eu which hosts links to the streams that can be accessed through the player.
The myP2P.eu site recently had a legal battle (which it won, incidentally) and for a while the hosting of links to many football matches had been suspended. http://www.myp2pforum.eu/website-forum/35088-myp2p-wins-court-case.html
Users may also stream content from sites such as justin.tv or iraqgoals.com, but again we are back to issues of quality. Uploaders are streaming content from their own satellite/cable connections and it is incredibly easy to do. I have to say I much prefer the slick high quality and even HD quality that Sky Sports provides, rather than watching a blurry stream that intermittently cuts out and the screen is the size of a postage stamp!
However, I personally would be willing to pay for a legal sports subscription service that delivers high quality to my PC or mac. Who knows, maybe in the future, where users have legal access to sports content at all times for a small subscription, the exorbitant wages of our footballers may return a level where they play for the pride of the club.....
Control and Demand
One of the greatest developments from and challenges to broadcasters is the idea of greater user control. Remember the revolution that allowed you to program codes from the Radio Times to record shows onto your VCR? Sky+ and Virgin+ allow you to take that control so much further, recording series, pausing and rewinding live TV. Personally speaking, I love the fact that you can record your favourite show and the fast forward through all the adverts.
On Demand is what users increasingly want, and they are taking greater ownership of how they watch it and where they watch it from.
For example, a new episode of Lost airs in the USA very early on a Thursday morning and it will air on the following Sunday evening on Sky One. In the interim, the user has a multitude of options in how they can digest this content, and can be quite demanding as to how soon they want it:
They can download it via Bittorrent (P2P) or Rapidshare (file-hosting), then have the alternative of watching on their laptop or streaming it to their TV via their Xbox 360, PS3, Apple TV, Squeezebox etc. (not entirely legal).
OR
They can stream it from one of the many not entirely legal video hosting sites, such as www.surfthechannel.com, www.tvshack.net or www.ovguide.com
Increasingly, many young people are turning to sites like the above to watch their favourite programmes. The quality from such streams are not great, but a lot like the scenario in terms of music downloads, the ability to consume a product instantly, or on their terms, takes precedence over quality.
This also means that someone in the UK can download their favourite show as soon as it airs, rather than having to wait for months on end for a series to import from the US. For example, The Sopranos was watched by many here almost immediately after it aired in the US and many many column inches were devoted to the ending of the landmark show. Consequently, by the time it aired in the UK, there was a good chance you had either read about the ending or someone had unwittingly told you!
iPlayer rules them all?
It is also extremely navigable and easy to use unlike some of its rivals (ITV and 4OD..... as for Channel Five, if I were remotely interested in anything they had to offer I might have a look...). The other thing is that the BBC produces programmes I would actually watch, I'm not a big fan of celebrities I haven't heard of doing mundane things and then voting for an eventual winner you see, unless it was a competition like the one in The Running Man! I also tried to watch a Champions League match on the ITV player, but that was an exercise in futility.
The cheekily named Skyplayer offers a pretty decent service and a bit of a challenge to the iPlayer:
You don't have to be a Sky TV customer (or take Sky Broadband) to get this service
You can buy packages at £5 a month for Sky Player access
There is great deal of pay per view content, including a World Cinema service
It also looks like Sky has a lot of clout with US distributors and may be able to offer a wide range of content and full series, eg, BSG.
You don't have to be a Sky TV customer (or take Sky Broadband) to get this service
You can buy packages at £5 a month for Sky Player access
There is great deal of pay per view content, including a World Cinema service
It also looks like Sky has a lot of clout with US distributors and may be able to offer a wide range of content and full series, eg, BSG.
There are some excellent reviews of all the VoD services from DownloadMonkey here
http://www.downloadmonkey.co.uk/?s=reviews
and and excellent discussion from The Guardian's Gareth McLean here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/jun/02/bbc.itv
and and excellent discussion from The Guardian's Gareth McLean here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/jun/02/bbc.itv
How are broadcasters currently coping? part 2
Here is a short demo of it working on the V+ box:
The iPlayer is also available on the iPhone and the iPod Touch, which is pretty handy. Another short demo here:
Once downloaded, the content is only playable within the iPlayer and digital rights management (DRM) software will prevent it being directly copied to another medium, though these limitations do not apply to viewers using the online streaming service.
I think this demonstrates effectively the harmonising between what is often deemed to be a negative or illegal technology and new modes of access.
There has been criticism levelled at the iPlayer's use of KService from Kontiki, the peer-to-peer application which continues to use users' bandwidth, even after the iPlayer has been shut down.
Because of this, users may be charged by their Internet service provider for exceeding their download limit or fair use policy.
There has been criticism levelled at the iPlayer's use of KService from Kontiki, the peer-to-peer application which continues to use users' bandwidth, even after the iPlayer has been shut down.
Because of this, users may be charged by their Internet service provider for exceeding their download limit or fair use policy.
How are broadcasters currently coping?
Currently UK broadcasters (BBC, ITV, C4, C5) are quite frankly struggling in the current climate. A combination of cheap programming, the economic downturn resulting in poor advertising revenue and the challenge from satellite and the internet have made survival increasingly difficult. ITV in particular seems to be in grave difficulties:
"We are scrapping for our lives at the moment. We need every source of possible revenue – I don't care how small it is, we need it."
ITV reported a loss of £2.7bn for 2008
ITV's advertising revenue has fallen with the growth of niche commercial channels and the internet.
The company estimates its net advertising revenue for the first quarter of 2009 will be down by about 17% on the same period last year.
Channel 4 has also been deemed to have been struggling of late too, and there was talk of a merger with the BBC Worldwide , then Channel Five, and now very recently, BT has stepped in with the possibility of a merger of C4 with BT Vision. To me, this would make great sense as C4 would benefit from the other's technological prowess while BT Vision could capitalise upon some of the excellent content and branding the broadcaster has.
It comes as the Government is seeking funding solutions for Channel 4, which expects to have a funding shortfall of £150m a year from 2012.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7922770.stm
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/opinion/stephen-glover/stephen-glover-how-did-itv-possibly-become-one-sixth-of-the-size-of-bskyb-1622729.html
Will the Internet ever replace the TV?
...Not necessarily, but rather they will continue to synthesize and develop. Users have become much more tech savvy and the television is increasingly used as a hub for all our media needs. The television now acts as a home cinema; a games centre; a display for our photos; a music centre; a computer monitor and even a virtual air-hockey table.....
What you're looking at is a whopping 103 inch Panasonic TV being used a mutltitouch air hockey table! Every home needs one...
What you're looking at is a whopping 103 inch Panasonic TV being used a mutltitouch air hockey table! Every home needs one...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)