ESPN360.com bills itself as the premier destination for streaming access to live sports events.
If the sport or team you love isn't important enough to be shown on cable TV, no fear, ESPN will stream it to you online for free. Well, that is if you a subscriber to the right Internet service provider.
ESPN's warm welcome to customers of ISPs that have signed deals.
Customers of AT&T DSL and Verizon's Fios services, along with approximately 20 more ISPs, can have free, 24-hour per day access to ESPN's exclusive sports content. Customers of Comcast, Cox, and hundreds of other ISPs, both big and small, are left out in the cold--forbidden to access content that ESPN has, via exclusive contracts, guaranteed that you cannot obtain via any other means in the U.S.
Love Italian soccer and get your Internet access through Comcast? Too bad.
After telling out-of-luck users that their ISPs haven't coughed up funds for their customers to access ESPN360, the sports network informs them that AT&T customers do have access, and helpfully provides them with a toll-free number that they can call to make the switch to that ISP. How nice of ESPN.
(Credit: ESPN360.com)
There are many reasons why an ISP would decide against paying ESPN for its premium Web content. A spokesperson for Cox Communications told a journalist back in 2006 that signing on to carry ESPN360 would require Cox to burden all of its customers with additional costs--even those who don't want the service.
Many customers in the United States still have no real choice for their ISP. For example, if you live out in rural Montana and the one cash-starved regional ISP that offers broadband Internet access hasn't agreed to ESPN's shakedown effort, you have no options.
Not surprisingly, this discriminatory policy concerns Ben Scott, policy director at Free Press, the group leading the fight against Comcast's anti-BitTorrent filtering and other foes of Net neutrality. When asked for his view, he issued the following statement:
ESPN360 raises the unsettling prospect that each ISP will someday have its own distinctive "Internet experience" that includes all kinds of exclusive content in parallel walled-gardens. That is a troubling vision for anyone that values an open media system shared by all Internet users alike.
Most interesting, I suppose, is ESPN's policy of discriminating against particular ISPs, while at the same time giving free access to any user visiting the site from a U.S. military or university Internet connection; that is, users coming in via a .edu or .mil IP address get to view the sports content without any money changing hands between ESPN and Uncle Sam.
While the decision to support the troops (via free access to European soccer) is a noble one, the decision to give college students a free ride is extremely interesting. After all, the major media companies have shown no real restraint in trying to shake down university users--at times, taking thousands of them to court for their attempts to download content for free.
The cynical among us might perhaps see this as a Joe Camel-esque tactic--offer free access when they're young, hope that they develop a habit, and once they graduate or leave the military, they'll look for an ISP that has cut a deal with ESPN.
ESPN spokesman Paul Melvin dismissed my cynicism, explaining the decision to offer free service to these millions of Americans:
These groups are not commercially served by an ISP, and they are not likely to be commercially served in the reasonably foreseeable future. Given this, there is no reasonable chance that we could strike a deal with a retail ISP, nor that the market will continue to grow and offer them greater choice. As a result we adjusted to these specific circumstances.
To try to understand how government regulators would see this issue, I turned to Rep. Rick Boucher (D-Va.), one of the most powerful members of Congress in issues related to telecommunications and Net neutrality.
[This issue has] nothing to do with network neutrality debates, which focus on the practices of the broadband providers. What is in question, is the practice of a content provider, a website owner, in terms of how it chooses to make its content available ... I don't see it as a matter for policy makers to get involved in. I see it as a matter for private contracts, to be determined by content providers.
The congressman is correct in that this is not a traditional Net neutrality conversation per se, since that term usually applies to discrimination by the company owning the "last mile"--the connection to a user's home. Perhaps a new term will need to be invented by the "Save the Internet" crowd, so as not to further dilute the "Net neutrality" phrase. However, what does concern me is the rather shameless attempt by ESPN to shake down big ISPs, while at the same time giving away its content to millions of college students for free.
Boucher added that:
If ESPN had market power, I would agree that there would be anti-trust issues. Companies that have market power have different market obligations. [However], this is one web site that is putting up sports content, competing with others. Even though ESPN is popular, I don't think [anti trust] applies. It might in TV broadcast, but certainly not on the Internet.
While I respect the congressman (and am a huge fan of his work in fighting against the dreaded Digital Millennium Copyright Act), I think he is on the wrong side of this issue. Due to the exclusive contracts that ESPN has negotiated with various sports associations, the company does have market power. If you love European soccer or another sport that can't draw enough viewers to justify TV coverage, there is simply no other (legal) way to view live sports events in the U.S. ESPN is the only game in town.
Libertarians out there will, like the congressman, argue that ESPN is a private company and has a right to decide which customers can access its content. If ESPN offered a generic service (like e-mail, horoscopes, or photo sharing), that would certainly be true. However, because ESPN has exclusive contracts for U.S. distribution of many types of sports content, I don't think these same rules apply. ESPN shouldn't be able to get exclusive access to this content, and then deny it to millions of Americans.
Yes, the content is expensive--which is why ESPN could allow the customers of non-kickback-paying ISPs to pull out their credit cards, and sign up for an individual account in order to view these games. Unfortunately, this is not something ESPN is interested in. Explaining this lack of an individual subscriber option, ESPN's Paul Melvin simply stated that "it is not the business model that we've chosen."
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Friday, September 5, 2008
Online Video Viewers Want TV
One In Five Households Watch TV Online
A new study has shown a sharp rise in the numbers that watch TV online, with channel homepages and YouTube the big winners.
A new study by the Conference Board and TNS shows that one on five US households that use the Internet also watch TV online. That’s twice the number recorded just two years ago, according to Information Week.
So why has Internet TV become so popular? Convenience is the main reason, the ability to watch shows any time – but also from anywhere, and to be able to avoid commercials.
In a statement, Michael Saxon, senior VP of brand and communications at TNS, noted:
"The shift from appointment TV to content on demand is well underway. Fundamentally, consumers expect content to be available when they want it, and on the screen of their choice -- TV, PC, or mobile.
"For consumers, PCs enhance content on demand from simply time-shifting to place-shifting. Online content can be viewed in any room in the house, or at work or school."
Most people – around 90% - watch from home, 15% in the office, and 6% elsewhere (some watch from multiple locations, hence the quirk in the figures). News attracts the most viewers, with 43%, followed closely by drama shows, pulling 39%.
68% of viewers watch streaming video, and YouTube grabs 41% of viewers, with network homepages attracting 65%.
A new study has shown a sharp rise in the numbers that watch TV online, with channel homepages and YouTube the big winners.
A new study by the Conference Board and TNS shows that one on five US households that use the Internet also watch TV online. That’s twice the number recorded just two years ago, according to Information Week.
So why has Internet TV become so popular? Convenience is the main reason, the ability to watch shows any time – but also from anywhere, and to be able to avoid commercials.
In a statement, Michael Saxon, senior VP of brand and communications at TNS, noted:
"The shift from appointment TV to content on demand is well underway. Fundamentally, consumers expect content to be available when they want it, and on the screen of their choice -- TV, PC, or mobile.
"For consumers, PCs enhance content on demand from simply time-shifting to place-shifting. Online content can be viewed in any room in the house, or at work or school."
Most people – around 90% - watch from home, 15% in the office, and 6% elsewhere (some watch from multiple locations, hence the quirk in the figures). News attracts the most viewers, with 43%, followed closely by drama shows, pulling 39%.
68% of viewers watch streaming video, and YouTube grabs 41% of viewers, with network homepages attracting 65%.
SnagFilms
This is an interesting site. They claim to bring the best nonfiction films to the web and promote viral web distribution through virtual movie theater widgets.
From SnagFilms:
SnagFilms announced its first annual September 11th Remembrance in Film, with a slate of five documentary films, featuring the critically acclaimed 7 Days in September.
In addition to 7 Days in September, the slate of films comprising the online Remembrance include: Afghanistan Revealed, Beyond Belief, Saint of 9/11, and We Are Family. Each of the five films illuminates the roots or results of the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attack on the United States. As with all of the more than 300 non-fiction films in SnagFilms’ library, each of these documentaries may be streamed for free online in their entirety, or “snagged” via a widget which can be embedded on a user’s website or social networking page. A special five-film “multiplex” widget will showcase all September 11th Remembrance in Film offerings, which are available for free, instantaneous viewing and without commercial interruption. Viewers will be encouraged to share their own memories and reflections on both www.snagfilms.com and www.indiewire.com.
Comprising footage culled from more than two-dozen filmmakers’ material produced on the day and immediate aftermath of September 11th, 2001, 7 Days in September has been called by New York Times film critic A.O. Scott “an almost unbearably powerful documentary.” Director Steven Rosenbaum wove together the journeys of 28 New Yorkers — each of whom recorded their most private experiences during the attacks on the World Trade Center, and the week that followed. The storytellers, included a postal worker, a college student, an artist, and Rosenbaum’s 11 year old son Max, who together captured the sorrow and solidarity of the 9/11 story.
Viewers of films presented by SnagFilms.com are encouraged to become “filmanthropists,” either by opening a new movie theater widget on their personal website or social networking page, or by contributing directly to a cause tied to the films they watch. Viewers who respond to the “support” button connected to any of the Remembrance films will be able to contribute funds to the National September 11th Memorial and Museum. The National September 11th Memorial and Museum is the builder, programmer, and operator of the Memorial and Museum at Ground Zero.
SnagFilms CEO Rick Allen said, “The seventh anniversary of 9/11 is a solemn occasion. Bringing these remarkable films — each with a different perspective on these events — to an online audience is an affirmation of SnagFilms’ vision and value. September 11, 2001 was a milestone in the development of the Internet as a global communications hub, as millions of people turned to the Web for news, or to communicate with one another. It is fitting that we utilize the web to share these films as part of an overall effort to remember and reflect. SnagFilms is honored to feature the first online streaming of 7 Days in September, and proud to match our viewers’ contributions to the National September 11th Memorial and Museum. And we are happy to offer these films not only free to viewers, but also without commercial interruption during this remembrance week.”
7 Days In September Director Steve Rosenbaum said, “Each year, the granular details of September 11th become harder to recollect - and more essential that we keep connected to. By enabling an online audience to view our film through such an intimate medium, 7 Days In September will continue to reach audiences that need it most - individuals ready to touch those memories and those days. I’m honored to be included in SnagFilms’ first-ever September 11th Remembrance in Film. I’m tremendously grateful to the National September 11th Memorial and Museum, whose mission is to keep alive memories of what happened when the World Trade Center was attacked, and am so pleased that, through SnagFilms, viewers of 7 Days in September will have an easy means of contributing directly to this great institution.”
SnagFilms founder and chairman Ted Leonsis said, “One of the reasons we created SnagFilms was to bring to a wider audience high quality documentaries that can really have an impact. Offering a web audience a chance to see these powerful films, add their own reflections, and support the Memorial — all as a way of commemorating September 11th — is something we uniquely can and must do.”
The films will be available in their entirety, without commercial interruption, at both www.snagfilms.com and www.indiewire.com until September 12th, 2008.
In addition to 7 Days in September, the slate of films comprising the online Remembrance include: Afghanistan Revealed, Beyond Belief, Saint of 9/11, and We Are Family. Each of the five films illuminates the roots or results of the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attack on the United States. As with all of the more than 300 non-fiction films in SnagFilms’ library, each of these documentaries may be streamed for free online in their entirety, or “snagged” via a widget which can be embedded on a user’s website or social networking page. A special five-film “multiplex” widget will showcase all September 11th Remembrance in Film offerings, which are available for free, instantaneous viewing and without commercial interruption. Viewers will be encouraged to share their own memories and reflections on both www.snagfilms.com and www.indiewire.com.
Comprising footage culled from more than two-dozen filmmakers’ material produced on the day and immediate aftermath of September 11th, 2001, 7 Days in September has been called by New York Times film critic A.O. Scott “an almost unbearably powerful documentary.” Director Steven Rosenbaum wove together the journeys of 28 New Yorkers — each of whom recorded their most private experiences during the attacks on the World Trade Center, and the week that followed. The storytellers, included a postal worker, a college student, an artist, and Rosenbaum’s 11 year old son Max, who together captured the sorrow and solidarity of the 9/11 story.
Viewers of films presented by SnagFilms.com are encouraged to become “filmanthropists,” either by opening a new movie theater widget on their personal website or social networking page, or by contributing directly to a cause tied to the films they watch. Viewers who respond to the “support” button connected to any of the Remembrance films will be able to contribute funds to the National September 11th Memorial and Museum. The National September 11th Memorial and Museum is the builder, programmer, and operator of the Memorial and Museum at Ground Zero.
SnagFilms CEO Rick Allen said, “The seventh anniversary of 9/11 is a solemn occasion. Bringing these remarkable films — each with a different perspective on these events — to an online audience is an affirmation of SnagFilms’ vision and value. September 11, 2001 was a milestone in the development of the Internet as a global communications hub, as millions of people turned to the Web for news, or to communicate with one another. It is fitting that we utilize the web to share these films as part of an overall effort to remember and reflect. SnagFilms is honored to feature the first online streaming of 7 Days in September, and proud to match our viewers’ contributions to the National September 11th Memorial and Museum. And we are happy to offer these films not only free to viewers, but also without commercial interruption during this remembrance week.”
7 Days In September Director Steve Rosenbaum said, “Each year, the granular details of September 11th become harder to recollect - and more essential that we keep connected to. By enabling an online audience to view our film through such an intimate medium, 7 Days In September will continue to reach audiences that need it most - individuals ready to touch those memories and those days. I’m honored to be included in SnagFilms’ first-ever September 11th Remembrance in Film. I’m tremendously grateful to the National September 11th Memorial and Museum, whose mission is to keep alive memories of what happened when the World Trade Center was attacked, and am so pleased that, through SnagFilms, viewers of 7 Days in September will have an easy means of contributing directly to this great institution.”
SnagFilms founder and chairman Ted Leonsis said, “One of the reasons we created SnagFilms was to bring to a wider audience high quality documentaries that can really have an impact. Offering a web audience a chance to see these powerful films, add their own reflections, and support the Memorial — all as a way of commemorating September 11th — is something we uniquely can and must do.”
The films will be available in their entirety, without commercial interruption, at both www.snagfilms.com and www.indiewire.com until September 12th, 2008.
Skyfire: downloadable mobile browser that delivers rich web media
Skyfire
We came across this piece of software and it sounds really interesting: a Windows Mobile browser that allows you to watch youtube clips on the web. It's in beta now and apparently limited to Windows Mobile phones in the United States so our American friends might like to check this out.
From the Skyfire website:
A downloadable mobile web browser that makes browsing on your phone exactly like browsing on your PC. Now, you can use the web from your mobile phone with unprecedented speed and simplicity.
It’s easy to experience the PC web on your phone with Skyfire’s clickable content and intuitive navigation. On the start page, we’ve added handy links to popular web sites. You can also bookmark your favorite links and use your browsing history. Better yet, you can even bookmark specific content on a web page to get exactly want you want in one click. When you do a search, the results are presented in easy to read tabs: web, images, and videos, and maps. Navigating is intuitive with full screen, thumbnails and zooming while resizing at speed comparable to your PC.
On the Phone You Own – and FreeWhen our private beta starts, you’ll load Skyfire on your phone in a few simple download steps. In a matter of minutes, you can install it either over the air or via your PC. It’s free – what more can we say.
Join Our Private Beta We want your feedback and suggestions built into the final product so sign up for our Beta 2 today. We’ll notify you as soon as Beta 2 launches and it’s your turn for a test drive. Then you can start using Skyfire and tell us what you think. Even with the early beta release, you’ll be browsing the web on your phone just like you do on your PC.
The Skyfire private beta will initially support Windows Mobile phones in the U.S. In the coming months, we will introduce a version for Symbian phones. Other phone platforms and geographies are on the roadmap too. This is just the beginning.
Monday, September 1, 2008
Canwest Announces Breakthrough Online Programming Line-Up
Canwest Broadcasting today announced the country's most extensive line-up of programs available for streaming on its network websites. Canadians will now have access to over 50 hit programs online, including top ten favourites and some of the most anticipated new fall shows.
In 2006, Canwest was the first Canadian broadcaster to stream U.S. primetime programming on its websites. Today's announcement solidifies Canwest's position as Canada's most progressive and innovative broadcaster. Hit shows on www.globaltv.com and www.eonline.com include No. 1 program HOUSE, HEROES, THE OFFICE, DEAL OR NO DEAL and for the first time in Canada, daytime hits THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS and DAYS OF OUR LIVES.
The hottest new programs, including the most anticipated new shows of the season, 90210 and KNIGHT RIDER, will also be in full glory and in full format on the network sites. Specialty is streaming at Canwest with critically acclaimed favorites such as DAMAGES, WEEDS, THE SHIELD and THE L WORD on www.showcase.ca; design darlings SARAH'S HOUSE, COLIN AND JUSTIN'S HOME HEIST and MAKE IT RIGHT NEW ORLEANS on www.hgtv.ca; tasty titles including CHEF ABROAD, FRESH and CHEF SCHOOL on www.foodtv.ca; and on www.slice.ca fan favourites TILL DEBT DO US PART, WEDDING S.O.S, TORI AND DEAN: HOME SWEET HOLLYWOOD AND BULGING BRIDES.
In addition to full episode streaming rights, Canwest has secured a robust broadband asset package from NBC Universal, inclusive of blogs, games, behind the scenes footage and specially produced webisodes.
News Junkies Rejoice: Livestation comes to the Mac
Online television streaming service Livestation has launched a Mac client, bringing free streaming news television to Apple fans.
P2P powered Livestation launched last year as a streaming television platform that offered legal feeds from news services such as the BBC, later adding additional channels including Russia Today, Al Jazeera English, Euronews and France 24. Livestation took their platform further by turning the service into an open streaming platform, allowing users to add their own streams to the player, and for those streams to be shared across the network, for example CNN, NASA TV and Bloomberg are now quickly available from the platform, along with hundreds of other live stream stations.
Upfront there’s nothing remarkable about the Mac client; like the Windows client each channel includes a chat room, and you can search for feeds among user contributions, but where Livestation excels is in a full screen view, where compared to internet streams it offers a rich, nearly perfect television like quality on its officially supported channels.
You can download the Mac or Windows client here.
P2P powered Livestation launched last year as a streaming television platform that offered legal feeds from news services such as the BBC, later adding additional channels including Russia Today, Al Jazeera English, Euronews and France 24. Livestation took their platform further by turning the service into an open streaming platform, allowing users to add their own streams to the player, and for those streams to be shared across the network, for example CNN, NASA TV and Bloomberg are now quickly available from the platform, along with hundreds of other live stream stations.
Upfront there’s nothing remarkable about the Mac client; like the Windows client each channel includes a chat room, and you can search for feeds among user contributions, but where Livestation excels is in a full screen view, where compared to internet streams it offers a rich, nearly perfect television like quality on its officially supported channels.
You can download the Mac or Windows client here.
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