ABC Classic Films 2

ABC Classic Films 1

Megaplex 2010 - Live Video Streaming!

Live Megaplex Feed! Live Video Feed From Megaplex! Mad, Mad Science! Come join us at our new home, the Radisson Worldgate Hotel in Kissimmee, Florida, on July 23rd through 25th, 2010, for the next magical edition of Megaplex, with our new theme: Mad, Mad Science! You can catch main stage events from a live video feed from the con! Most of the main stage events will be streamed except those that are requested not by the person running the event. Ustream: http://ustream.tv/channel/megaplex Justin: http://justin.tv/megaplex You can also Chat with others viewing or at the convention when they are monitoring at: irc.pawpet.org #Megaplex

Where To Watch Free Streaming Television Shows and Movies on the Internet

If we talk about television, each one of us can get channels as per our own choices depending upon the class and taste of people. Today, everybody wants to relax on his sofa at his home or office and want entertainment just at a click. TV shows can be seen on internet directly. In cases of women, what is the best time pass for them? Of course it's, chit chat and gossips about their favourite television shows. We are here to provide you best websites for your fun and entertainment. Now you don't need to search the entire web for your entertainment or you won't have to visit the websites which are not authentic or don't have enough data for you.

The content of television programs may be factual, as in documentaries, news, and reality television, or fictional as in comedy and drama. It may be topical as in the case of news and some made-for-television movies or historical as in the case of many documentaries and fictional series. They could be primarily instructional, the intention of educational programming, or entertaining as is the case in situation comedy, reality TV, or game shows.

This network was designed in early 2009 and construction started a few months later. The first iWatch websites were launched in November 2009 and the network is growing ever since. With easy to use video applications and user friendly software, iWatchNetwork aims to deliver the highest quality video on dand at zero cost to all users. User satisfaction is our number one priority.

All iWatch websites use external links to deliver full length videos. As you probably have noticed, none of the videos are hosted on local servers. In fact, none of the videos are ever uploaded or suggested by iWatch staff. These links are mostly gathered by people like you who use the "Add Link" option to provide links to any video available on any iWatch website. All websites are updated on daily or weekly basis depending on their type. For example, movie websites are updated daily while TV Show websites are updated weekly. When a user adds a link to any video, an iWatch admin will verify the entry and accept it into the system if deemed appropriate. The link will be available for browsing on the next website update. This simple yet elegant mechanism allows iWatchNetwork to have the most variety in terms of the number of links among its competition.

iWatchNetwork aims to someday have a database of every TV Show and movie available on the Internet! Although this goal seems farfetched and impossible, but with time and dedication, we believe that everything is possible. Users, of course, are the main contributors to the system. For the meantime, we try to add all the high demand TV Shows and movies immediately so users can watch TV Shows online for free.

Add TV Streaming to Windows 7 Media Center

Add TV Streaming to Windows 7 Media Center

If you have installed the Home Premium or better version of Windows 7, you’d have Windows Media Center installed as well. The standard install needs additional manual settings to bring few more enhancements. You can head to Tasks -> Settings -> General -> Automatic Download Options to manually start the update.

After the update, you will see more Internet TV from CBS, MSN, Zune library and MSNBC…

•CBS Audience Network: Featuring a variety of shows from CBS Primetime, Daytime, Extras, and TV Classics, including full-length episodes of current TV shows, CBS Classics TV shows, short clips, and Web originals.
•Full Zune Video Podcast Library: Thousands of hours of entertainment with full TV episodes, webisodes, clips, and videos from providers including ABC News, CBS News, CNBC, CNET TV, Comedy Central, Current TV, The Discovery Channel, Fox, G4 TV, HBO, MSNBC, NBC, Showtime, and Revision 3, along with some of the best user-generated videos on the Web. Some video podcasts are also available in HD.
•MSN and msnbc.com: Clips as well as full length episodes from TV shows such as Arrested Development, news and weather from MSNBC, editor picks and most popular videos, five day weather forecasts, news, video playlists, music videos, movie trailers and more.
Other Windows Media Center Features in Windows 7:

•Watch Live TV on Your Windows 7 PC: By adding an inexpensive TV tuner to a Windows 7 PC, you can use Windows Media Center to watch, pause, and rewind live TV directly on your PC. There is no additional service charge to watch over-the-air channels in standard or high definition. You can also use your PC as a DVR to schedule recordings of TV shows and movies.
•Stream Digital Media from your Home PC: Never miss your favorite shows. With Windows 7 you can now access your Windows Media Center digital media even when you’re not at home by using Remote Streaming. Simply log in using your Windows Live ID to get your TV shows, movies, music, and pictures streamed to you over the internet – no matter where you are.
•Watch Recorded TV Shows on your Zune or Windows Phone: Watch your Windows Media Center recorded TV on-the-go. Just sync your recorded TV shows with your Zune digital media player or Windows Phone, and watch what you want no matter where you are.
•Access all your Personal Media in One Place: Windows Media Center brings in all digital media stored on the PC – photos, movies, music, and recorded TV shows – into one place. And new with Windows 7 you can use Home Group to access digital media in Windows Media Center from other PCs in your network.

Download ZiggyTV 3.5.2 Free streaming tv channels

ZiggyTV is a software tool that allows user to download, watch or listen to music, videos, movies, tv shows, live streaming of various Tv channels and you can also add your own broadcasting server and stream live own videos.

You have to admit to this being a killer combination as it is very close to the essence of entertainment. Generally, you have to call on different applications in order to benefit from all these, but there is one software that gathers them all under the same roof. Although the name is Ziggy TV, the application provides myriads of radios all over the world as well as some of the most entertaining games you can play at the office if there is no eye on you.

The application incorporates all these three sources for making the most out of your pastime without fumbling on the Internet in search of something to kill some time with. The paid version ($19.88/1 year) offers unlimited HD movies, music videos and TV shows download, over 2000 games, music downloads as well as unlimited technical support and free updates.

It goes without saying that running the application requires an Internet connection and the larger the bandwidth, the better. Main application window wraps up all the fun in three easy to use modules: Watch TV, Radio and Games. Suffice to access one of them and you will be displayed a list with the most popular items for each category.

TV channel list is quite something, offering stations from around the globe, live-streaming from important ones such as Fox News or Sky News, TV shows and generally all television related content, but there is one catch: not all of them are available outside the US. Actually the best of them are restricted to non-US use due to copyright laws. Thus, stations like MTV or Fox On Demand will not play unless you have an US IP address.

Still on the downside, lots of the channels listed will actually display weblinks to stations that offer the content for free or just run video content free of charge on the official website. In the case of ESPN, the same videos can be watched either in Ziggy or on the official website. The same goes for the vast majority of movie stations in the program.

In the case of radios things are not as complicated as the application is simply a medium for different radio stations streaming. There is plenty to choose from as there is a good cover for all the genres, from the urban jams, love music or reggae sounds to the goldies of the '70s or some other decade, jazz tunes, country, new age or techno. Any user can find a favorite in here with the utmost ease as Ziggy can display them by genre, by country (although not all countries are covered), or location as well as sort them out alphabetically, by users' vote, quality or rating.

Games section is composed of myriads of arcade games ready to entertain you all day long. These are old games, but entertaining nonetheless. JewelQuest, Bubble Shooter, Drag Racer, Age of War, Mah Jong, Super Mario, Texas Hold'em, Chess, Flash Sonic, Street Fighter 1, PacMan, Taxi Driving School, all these are old ones you can still get a kick out of. Sure, nowadays generation won't appreciate them properly and their interest in them would be quite undeveloped, but it is a great collection nonetheless.

Just like in the case of TV and radio stations, the games can be arranged by genre, type, country or sorted according to the most popular in the list, alphabetically, by vote, rating or quality. However, not all criteria is relevant and listing them by countries will not provide you with results at all times. During our testing doing this caused nothing but trouble as the application would not respond to country selection. The same behavior was recorded with radio stations and the only section to react was Watch TV.

Setting the application up is piece of cake as there are only four options to configure. When switching from one module to another (e.g. Watch TV to Radio), you can be prompted to decide whether to keep the TV channel/radio station/game playing or not (there is such an option for each module, so this covers three of them). Users can allow for "R" rated content to be displayed or not.

Balancing the services provided by Ziggy TV and the cost of the application as well as the way it works, I would say there is much to be improved. Some of the stations feeding you live streaming are part of TVU Networks, a P2P solution for online TV streaming, used by TVUPlayer. The same station powered by TVU Netoworks will not play in both Ziggy TV and TVU player (this is just a heads up).

Ziggy TV is simply a container for online services, either free or paid, from where the user can choose what to watch. US users may have a blast out of it provided that enough bandwidth for smooth streaming is assured, but for the rest of the world, access to some TV stations/services is restricted.

The Good
It gathers plenty of online services that can be accessed with a single click by the user, at the same time providing a set of arcade games to nostalgics.

The Bad

The application fails to provide the user with a search function for specific items and category, genre, country and sorting are the only ones to help in case you're looking for a station or game. Not all countries are covered when it comes to TV stations over the world.

Some online video streaming services may take a lot of time to load or they may be down and with others the same free content available by accessing the online page is accessed via Ziggy TV.

The Truth

Ziggy TV would be an extraordinary application given that all content would be properly streamed to users' computers. Provided all of the above mentioned the application does not rise to it annual subscription, especially for users outside the USA.

Humberto Soto vs David Diaz Welterweight Title

Enjoy the live HBO PPV Boxing WBO welterweight title match Live streaming between Humberto Soto vs David Diaz live on your PC on March 13 from 9:45pm ET,2010.grab this exciting match live on your PC in this site.Catch the match live here it provide crystal clear HD video and smooth clear sound so stay tune and enjoy the match here is live streaming tv link Humberto Soto vs David Diaz
Date:March 13
Time:from 9:45pm ET
Competition:Live HBO Boxing
Live/Repeat: Live

Joe Biden to Use Justin.tv to Stream to the White House From Abroad

by Amar Toor

When Barack Obama speaks, he gets the attention of every media outlet known to man. When Joe Biden speaks, he gets Justin.tv.

Biden, who's currently touring the Middle East, is scheduled to give a speech later in the week at Tel Aviv University in Israel. Because he's not with Obama, though, the official White House camera crew didn't make the trip with him. Without the crew, live-streaming Biden's speech on the White House Web site initially seemed impossible, since, according to The Hill, such a feat is difficult to pull off with a non-White House camera feed. Luckily for Biden and his fans, though, Justin.tv will be picking up the slack, and will stream the video live on its site. That's right: the same Justin.tv that, back in 2007, gave everyone the chance to watch Justin Kan's every waking moment, and the same Justin.tv that controversially broadcast the overdose suicide of a 19-year-old.

Since its inception, though, Justin.tv has expanded beyond lifecasting, and has now become a bona fide hosting platform, with millions of daily viewers and users. It just so happens that the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv is one of those users, making the arrangement plenty convenient. Playing Ed McMahon to Obama's Carson may not be the most glamorous job in the world, but you'd think the White House, in all of its technological splendor, would've made more of an effort to internally stream Joe's speeches. Considering how notoriously loose-lipped Biden's been in the past, though, perhaps the move was way more calculated than it seems

From goggle to Google: TV meets the internet

Television viewers are doing it for themselves – hitching up to the web for more control over their viewing. Hardware and content providers are scrambling to keep up, Stephen Foley reports

So I'm back from holiday, and I need to catch up on a couple of weeks of American Idol. The older shows I found via file-sharing services and watched on the laptop last night; the most recent are safely stored in the cable television's digital video recorder, so I'll settle on the sofa for those tonight.


But with so much reality-TV flummery still to get through, I won't have time to catch the live airing of Modern Family, ABC's great new sitcom. Happily, that's available on Hulu.com, with a fraction of the irritating ad interruptions, so that could be a treat for the weekend. I'm giving up Gossip Girl, but if I change my mind, I can always pop to Apple's iTunes to buy it and watch it on the iPhone on the way back from work.

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Search the news archive for more stories
How do you watch TV?

With so many ways to find, and places to watch, television, these are rich and exciting times for viewers. Now we can build our own television schedule around the other things we want to do, instead of having to build our lives around broadcasters' schedules. These are bewildering times for rich television industry executives, though, and every day seems to bring new upheavals.

Yesterday came news that Google, the billion-dollar gorilla of the internet, is trialling a new TV project with the No 2 satellite broadcaster in the US, Dish Network, which will install Google software in set-top boxes. The very mention of Google gets media owners hot under the collar, since it already creams off $24bn (£16bn) a year from ads sold against internet search queries, including searches of media providers' own content, as thrown up by the likes of Google News. Now it wants to start making it easier to search for – and within – the television shows available on Dish Network, and move into the lucrative area of selling television ads, something that has previously been the preserve of the broadcasters and cable firms themselves. It's an experimental project that Google and Dish Network have going, not one they are ready to discuss publicly, but ambitions of Google in this space have long been big.

It opens up the opportunity to sell more targeted ads to television users – ads which might, therefore, be more effective than existing, massive TV ad campaigns. That's the business ambition. For it to work, the viewer must be getting something, too, and that something will be much more easily searchable and accessible television on demand.

This is the internet and TV colliding. Or, as the industry calls it, converging. James McQuivey, an analyst at Forrester Research, says viewers are desperate to bring the everything-on-demand philosophy they have got used to on the internet to television. His firm estimates that 9 million Americans already connect their laptops to the television to watch videos – everything from camcorder clips, through YouTube and Hulu (a broadcaster-funded venture similar to the BBC's iPlayer), to movies downloaded via file-sharing services.

"Internet-connected television is already happening in the US in larger numbers than people are aware. It is just that people are doing it in a DIY capacity. This is not rocket science any more: you walk your laptop into the living room and use a VGA cable to connect it to your TV. But while it is not rocket science, it is not drop-dead simple either, so the fact that 9 million people do it even periodically is amazing.

"To my mind, the consumer has voted. Now it's up to makers of devices and providers of content to give people what they seem to want – and people will reward whoever does it easiest."

Although things that have become common currency in the UK – such as clicking the red button on the remote for additional content, or watching shows you missed via the iPlayer – do not yet have widely used equivalents on this side of the pond, the US is marrying online and television worlds in other ways. Digital video recorders (the equivalent of Sky Plus) are much more prevalent, built in to about half of the nation's cable boxes or available for purchase separately from the firm TiVo, allowing viewers to record TV shows to watch at their leisure – and to skip the ads. The makers of these DVRs are racing to make them more sophisticated. TiVo last week launched a new box that doesn't just record television but also has built in access to online music service Pandora (like the UK's Spotify) and Google-owned YouTube, which has augmented its diet of home video clips in recent years with lots of professional content, which broadcasters offer from streaming on YouTube in return for a share of the ads. The cable firms, meanwhile, created Canoe Ventures to set common new technical standards for set-top boxes, in the hope of launching new internet-like services and offering better ad targeting.

Robert Broughton, an analyst at the research firm Screen Digest, says: "The internet-enabled set-top box allows the collection of viewing data on a dynamic basis. You don't have to rely on audience panels any more. But all this comes with controversy. Will people want to have their data collected in that way, and will they agree to have adverts targeted at them using that data?

"Most likely, this will be a multi-stage process, starting with location and demographic-based targeting, not too dissimilar to the way TV ads are sold at the moment. And once we get down to postcode-based targeting, and people are used to that, then no doubt there will be the introduction of more – let's not say, 'invasive' – let's say, 'dynamic' ad targeting."

With so much lucre available, the race is filling up with new players. Even the television manufacturers are getting in on the act, building internet-connected TVs and stuffing them full of whatever media content they can license from the content makers. Sony, which not only makes TVs but also owns a giant film studio, has a headstart. Comcast, the cable firm, agreed last year to buy NBC Universal, a broadcaster and film studio, precisely so it can marry content with its formidable distribution network.

And then there are the new players. Games console makers, most notably Microsoft, creator of the Xbox, have been negotiating licensing deals for content, including live sport – taking advantage of the fact that their consoles are already connected to the living room TV. Boxee, a little technology company, is flogging its own device that creates an interface between internet content and the television, and Netflix, which began by sending DVDs to its members through the post, now does the same for its online movie streaming. Apple TV, another box for under the TV, from the maker of the iPod, is an also-ran, but with a powerful and bold parent that hasn't begun pushing it hard. The question is whether this will all create a frustrating echo of the early days of the internet, where service providers first tried to keep their customers in a "walled garden" of pre-ordained content, instead of letting them range over the whole internet.

"Everywhere you turn, someone is offering you 10 or 20 per cent of what you want to watch," says Mr McQuivey. "The winner will be the one that can deliver the best end-to-end consumer service."

CBS Sells Out of Online March Madness Inventory

CBS says it has sold out its ad inventory for March Madness On Demand, its upcoming live streaming of all 64 games of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.

“There is no inventory left,” said Jason Kint, CBSSports.com svp and general manager. “I will still take advertisers’ calls, but I’m not sure what else we could sell at this point.”

Kint said that despite a still-tough economy, the ad market had improved versus last year when the network took in close to $30 million in additional online ad revenue for MMOD. According to Kint, more advertisers have signed on this year versus last, including both brands that are advertising during CBS’s broadcast coverage of the tournament and several Web-only advertisers.

For this year’s tournament Coke and AT&T are returning as charter MMOD sponsors, though previous sponsor Pontiac has been replaced this year by Capital One.

Though Kint declined to discuss specific dollar figures, he said that he expected ad revenue to exceed last year’s high-water mark for MMOD. “There is not a lot of scarcity on the Web,” Kint said. “But when you are talking about live video that is DVR-proof, there is a ton of scarcity. This is a great case study for cross-platform selling. The NCAA tournament is unique—our success comes from when TV is not available.”

Besides Web streaming, CBS is once again delivering live games to Apple iPhone and iTouch devices via a premium MMOD application. This year the MMOD app runs for $9.99 (up from $4.99 last year)---but the app works on both 3G and EDGE and networks (last year’s app only ran via Wi-Fi). CBS also offers a free "lite" app, which features video highlights, news updates and scores from tournament games.

Watch Nascar Auto Club 500 Race Live Streaming

Watch RACING LIVE ON YOUR PC
The high speed action is back again, the 500 miles distance car racing event that is also be known an Auto Club 500 is going to begin soon. To watch NASCAR auto club 500 race live streaming on your desktop PC, Laptop or palmtop, pay a visit on to our website (WatchNascarOnline.net) and become a member there after paying a small amount towards registration charges and you’ll get to watch all the upcoming racing events. Why pay more?? When you can catch all the action LIVE with just a single click on our website (WatchNascarOnline.net). Don’t end up paying to the greedy tour operators that are there to milk the profits against your true love for the sport. Come and join us and you can get access to watch NASCAR auto club 500 race live streaming with an unmatched picture quality. All you need to do is to become a member on our website after paying a nominal amount towards registration charges. Pay a visit on to our website (WatchNascarOnline.net) and feel the difference. Check for the schedule given below for the upcoming racing events. Date Race 1 February 14 Daytona 2 February 21 Fontana 3 February 28 Las Vegas 4 March 7 Atlanta 5 March 21 Bristol 6 March 28 Martinsville 7 April 10 Phoenix 8 April 18 Texas 9 April 25 Talladega 10 May 1 Richmond 11 May 8 Darlington 12 May 16 Dover – May 22 Sprint Showdown – May 22 Sprint All-Star Race 13 May 30 Charlotte 14 June 6 Pocono 15 June 13 Michigan 16 June 20 Sonoma 17 June 27 Loudon 18 July 3 Daytona 19 July 10 Chicago 20 July 25 Indianapolis 21 August 1 Pocono 22 August 8 Watkins Glen 23 August 15 Michigan 24 August 21 Bristol 25 Sept 5 Atlanta 26 Sept 11 Richmond 27 Sept 19 Loudon 28 Sept 26 Dover 29 October 3 Kansas 30 October 10 Fontana 31 October 16 Charlotte 32 October 24 Martinsville 33 October 31 Talladega 34 November 7 Texas 35 November 14 Phoenix 36 November 21 Homestead (WatchNascarOnline.net) Now break free, if you still comprome with the poor and distorted picture quality that is provided by your cable operator. Switch to (WatchNascarOnline.net) and enjoy the exciting car racing event. You’ll need to become a registered member in order to watch NASCAR auto club 500 race live streaming on your desktop PC, Laptop or Palmtop. You’re very close to make a wise and a life time decision and set an example for others. Logon to (WatchNascarOnline.net) , follow simple and easy to understand steps that will help you to create an account and also pay a nominal amount towards registration to get access to watch NASCAR auto club 500 race live streaming. All you need is a good internet connection and get yourself registered on our website (WatchNascarOnline.net) and after a paying a nominal amount towards registration charges you’ll get access to watch NASCAR auto club 500 race live streaming with a single click of yours.Watch NASCAR Auto Club 500 Race Live Streaming now by visiting WatchNascarOnline.net

A First Look At HBO Go: Curb Your Enthusiasm

TVErick Schonfeld
TechCrunch.com

Today HBO announced it will be making its movies and TV Shows available on the Web to subscribers through HBO Go, which up until now has been in private beta. HBO Go is part of the cable industry's TV Everywhere strategy to make TV content available online to paying subscribers. It contains 600 hours of movies and TV shows which can be streamed live and even in HD. HBO Go is available first to Verizon FIOS subscribers. Since I am a Verizon FIOS customer, I logged into HBO Go this morning and checked it out. (Despite reports elsewhere that it won't be available until Thursday, it is in fact now live). Below are my initial impressions and screenshots.The videos play decently and you can watch in HD, but if I wasn't already paying for HBO I certainly wouldn't pay for access to this site. The choice of shows and movies is just not that great. You can watch every episode of The Wire, and the final season of The Sopranos, but not one episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm. You get a lot more in your cable subscription, especially if you get multiple HBO channels. The on-demand option is great, but essentially HBO Go is competing with much broader array of choices on the TV which can also be made on-demand through a DVR. There are some movies like The Watchmen and Taken, which I think I've already seen three times each this month on TV, and a spattering of older archived movies like Canadian Bacon, but for the most part the selection is worse than what you get on Netflix via its streaming option. I'm not sure I want to see The Chumscrubber in HD.The site itself is well-designed, image heavy with lots of entry points. You are greeted with a slideshow view of ten shows and movies on heavy rotation, including the movie Taken, HBO Series Big Love and The Wire, and a Dennis Miller special. If you have HBO, you can't really avoid any of these shows, so nothing special there except that you can stream it anywhere on your laptop. Tabs across the top allow you to explore deeper into movies, series, comedy, sports, documentaries, and "late night" (aka, HBO's hard-hitting sex documentary series like Real Sex). Everything is done in Flash, which makes it a beautiful experience, but it won't be accessible on an iPad or iPhone without converting the site into an appFor each series, you can choose any episode for at least one season, but some shows are missing. You can also create a watchlist to watch shows later. When I was clicking through the site, the streaming quality was great, but when I tried to switch to another show or movie the audio to Canadian Bacon kept playing in the background (which isn't necessarily a bad thing?I love that movie). My main issue with HBO Go is not the fact that it is behind a paywall (after all, that is HBO's business even on TV) or the site's look and feel. The site's navigation is clean, everything is easy to find, and the playback looks great. And moving part of its video library online is a smart move for HBO. My issue is with the selection. It's not just that 600 hours of rotating shows and movies is just a fraction of what HBO shows on TV in any given month. Managing 600 hours of on-demand video is resource intensive, so HBO has to set some limit. HBO is not Web video company. But Hulu or even Verizon could manage a bigger catalog, and even keep the paywall. TV is moving online, as this first step by HBO illustrates. But ultimately, I want all the channels I get through Verizon to be available for searching, managing, and video streaming on the Web. Verizon FIOS already lets me program my home DVR from the Web, but I can only watch those shows on my TV. There is still a disconnect between my computer and my TV, and that is frustrating. And yes, I want it all because I am already paying for it.

MLB.TV set for Grapefruit, Cactus action, subscribe now, don't miss Spring Training

Spring Training is officially under way with pitchers and catchers reporting to various camps in Arizona and Florida. Routines and rituals can now become established for Major League Baseball players as everyone pursues a World Series dream.

The opening of camps also heralds a tradition and a routine for fans just like you. Subscriptions are now available for MLB.TV Premium at $119.95 per year and for MLB.TV at $99.95 per year. This is when the masses sign up, to watch live Cactus and Grapefruit League exhibitions and then a whole season of live games.

Take it from Kevin Spradlin of LaVale, Md. He just subscribed to MLB.TV and said he will use it to follow multiple MLB clubs.

"I live in far western Maryland now and I can watch the games I want, including the Cardinals, Mariners and Royals," Spradlin said. "Through life in the Army, I followed Seattle and Kansas City and shortly after I got out, fell in love with the Cardinals -- my grandmother's favorite team, as she is from Missouri -- after watching them at Busch Stadium on Opening Day 2007.

"Now I can watch any game, any time. As a baseball fan, I simply couldn't pass up this affordable opportunity. The price is just right and the live-streaming video quality is excellent. I love the technology."

Millions have subscribed to MLB.TV since its inception in 2002, and it is back better than ever for its eighth season as a bar-raising technology in pro sports. A subscription will give you immediate access to relive every moment from every Major League game played in the 2009 season, including the Yankees' World Series clincher.

As part of the subscription, you will be able to watch or listen to more than 150 live games from Florida and Arizona as teams prepare for the 2010 regular season. The Spring Training schedule starts with Braves vs. Mets on March 2 in Port St. Lucie, Fla.

Portability is one of the biggest 2010 features, as you will be able to enjoy convenient MLB.TV options optimized for numerous screens, from home and office computers to laptops and large monitors. Additional distribution through apps on various Apple products, including the company's latest innovation, the iPad, essentially means that MLB.TV has something for everybody, everywhere there's an Internet or mobile connection.

The full schedule of 2,430 regular-season games is included, and most of those are delivered in HD quality (where available). MLB.com's proprietary speed detection allows high-speed users to receive crisp, best-in-class streaming video on any size monitor.

Fans also will get real-time highlights and stats; on-demand access to full-game archives for viewing of any inning from the whole season; MLB.com condensed games featuring a quick, detailed journey from first pitch through the final out; access to MLB.com Gameday Audio and a new, interactive, proprietary pitch-by-pitch display; clickable linescores that take visitors straight to any half-inning of a game; and a fantasy player tracker consisting of ballplayers customized by subscribers and integrated with participating league rosters.

MLB.TV Premium subscribers get all that, and they also can enjoy the following features: Choice of home or away broadcast feeds, so favorite announcers are always a simple click away; DVR for pausing, rewinding and jumping back to live action; and a multi-game view (Quad Mode, Picture in Picture and Split Screen).

MLB.com made its 2010 MLB.TV subscriptions available on Jan. 27, featuring state-of-the-art delivery of live, out-of-market MLB games as part of an unprecedented full season of access to the product over a variety of devices. That includes customers enabled to buy through applications on the iPhone, iPod Touch and the brand-new iPad.

Jeremy Keller is a Cardinals fan and a computer science major at Indiana University, and he said in an email to MLB.com that he has MLB.TV for 2010 "because I am a diehard baseball fan and also a techno gadget freak! I have an iPhone and and iPod Touch and will be getting the iPad. I love being able to take baseball with me wherever I go."


Many fans are asking when the 2010 MLB.com At Bat app will be available and on what platforms, and the answer is to subscribe to MLB.TV and then stay tuned as it will be available between now and Opening Day. The anticipation over that 2010 app is understandable given the impact it had on so many fans last season.

The MLB.com At Bat app was synched up with MLB.TV during the 2009 season so that fans could watch all live out-of-market games over their iPhone and iPod Touch devices. That changed everything. It was the overall No. 2-selling app in iTunes for '09. Rave reviews included "Best Multimedia App" by Macworld and "2009 Most Valuable App" by Sports Illustrated, and CNET called it "another step in proving MLB.com's technical superiority."

The success of At Bat made it obvious to people that an MLB.TV subscription would be a natural fit as well for Apple's newest product. It will look different, but no matter what, it always starts with having an MLB.TV subscription, which you can get right now.

The 2010 MLB.TV media player will deliver a fleet of enhancements in a convenient, cutting-edge Adobe Flash format, offering an unparalleled live viewing experience for every out-of-market regular season game. Meanwhile, the MLB.com iPad application will support MLB.TV natively without Flash. It might not have the full feature set of the Flash version at the launch, but features will be added over time.

Baseball is back at last with the reporting of players to camps, and for them it is now a matter of establishing routines -- throwing in bullpens, hitting in the cages, spending much of your life at the ballpark and entertaining the fans. It is time for you to establish, or re-establish, a summertime way of life as well. Your Spring Training is here, an opportunity to enjoy MLB.TV and be more connected to the game than anyone else.


Mark Newman is enterprise editor of MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Livestation Finally Hits iPhone With Live TV Streams

Twenty months after previewing an in-development app that would bring its live TV news service to iPhones, Livestation is finally taking its streaming offering mobile - but it’s resorting to the open web, and not Apple’s application platform.

Livestation, which was started by Skinkers in 2007 using P2P algorithms acquired from Microsoft’s Cambridge R&D in exchange for a 10 percent stake, has instead launched a service at mobile.livestation.com that will include free channels and its growing portfolio of premium stations.

This is a similar move to TVCatchup, the third-party web TV service that once drew controversy by letting users “record” TV shows to its online PVR but which is now re-streaming only live channels and in October launched a mobile web adjunct.

It has 29 general-interest channels while Livestation currently has six (Al Arabiya Arabic, Euronews in English and French, Press TV and RT in English and Arabic). But Livestation CEO Matteo Berlucchi tells paidContent:UK more free channels will be added soon, along with access to the premium channels the service began offering in December for £4.99 a month.

That freemium mix now seems to be the business model for Livestation. Unlike live-stream-app counterpart Zattoo, it has never stuffed ads in the buffer time before a viewer starts seeing a streamed channel.

Though Livestation hasn’t got to launch its own-brand app, it has been white-labelling the software to single-channel apps offered by BBC World News, Al Jazeera and Five.

Berlucchi says Livestation served 45 million video views in 2009 and five million in January, reaching 13 minutes per user session. He plans to make Livestation available on “other IP platforms” in the next few weeks.

“I think the browser will still play an important role in this world populated by an increasing number of apps,” Berlucchi said.
by Robert Andrews

Web TV delivers for car fans

CarTorque.Tv delivers fresh motorsport coverage rather than leaving fans to scour television and the internet for delayed highlight packages. Photo / Northern AdvocateCartorque.Tv is New Zealand's dedicated automotive web-TV station that provides information and entertaining footage on everything to do with cars. Users are able to watch the content in full motion video without the constant buffering that can occur on other internet video platforms.

The company has identified a gap in the New Zealand automotive market where you will be able to access all the information you need via the net and be able to hear the car you might be looking for.

"We are very excited about bringing this high-quality video platform to New Zealand's automotive market," said co-owner Adam Nelson. "The appetite for online video content is enormous and the opportunities for distributors and motorsport with live streaming is the way of the future.

"The likes of Trade Me do a good job for used cars, but when it comes to new vehicles and motorsport action there is no comparison."

CarTorque.Tv enables folk to watch cars in action, driving around Kiwi streets and on a race circuit, showcasing the interior and exterior features. Brand switching occurs when researching a new vehicle purchase and the site lets distributors showcase video content of their new cars in its entirety, financially prohibitive on traditional television.

It also enables consumers to view numerous brands of new vehicles in the one place. It's not just about new cars though; hot rods, V8s, custom bikes, technology, famous drivers, race circuits, historical footage and interviews are all part of the package. There are over 100 view-on-demand videos available with new ones coming online every week.

One of the objectives is to provide the New Zealand automotive industry with quality exposure. The opportunities for new vehicle distributors, motorsport, car clubs and even car enthusiasts are endless. The investments organisations put into some of these events is quite astounding, yet the coverage in local media is often delayed, with just highlights or an article that lasts a day, and with online there are random videos all over the show. CarTorque.Tv wants to change this outlook and give this car-mad nation the full noise on these events.

The company will be able to live-stream a new vehicle release from the showroom so potential buyers can get involved in the excitement and feel they are a part of the hype. After the event the footage remains on the site so people can view on demand. The same goes for motorsport and car clubs, with a quality online format helping drive memberships, and the new car market and ticket sales to local events.

"With prime time a thing of the past, it is now time for internet TV," said co-owner Mark Courtney. "We have an informative, entertaining channel, specific to the automotive industry, were the viewer has the ability to watch what they want, when they want, in high definition, full-motion video, at no cost.

"And what's more, advertisers have a cost-effective and measurable medium in which they can demonstrate their products and brand 24/7.

"Now that's what I call a win-win situation."

Cartorque.TV is in its early stages of development with enhancements in functionality happening every week. A new comprehensive search engine is just around the corner. The CarTorque.Tv site features on Ziln. Ziln is New Zealand's first internet TV network which began in September and as of last month carries a mix of 23 live-streaming and view-on-demand TV/video channels.

"The Ziln model is a new way of doing television in that it is not just a replayer of content already created for real-time broadcast on legacy platforms," said director Paul Brennan.

"The vastly lower distribution cost of internet distributed television means the Ziln model can create an environment where a new category of content is generated specifically to reach new niche and ultra-niche TV audiences via internet-enabled screens - in other words, a revolution in television."

Harnessing the power of ever-improving broadband speeds Ziln has been created to offer a new television experience where viewers can watch what they want, when they want, on the device they want, where they want. The digitisation of television together with massively cheaper filming and editing technology and tools allows new streams of TV content to be produced and tightly targeted to niche viewing audiences.

The ability of Ziln to target very specific audiences gives advertisers new opportunities to focus TV advertising in a far more concentrated way.

The inevitable move to lounge screen TV sets will further cement internet TV as the delivery system of the future.

By Eric Thompson

.‘All-Access’ Hockey for Olympic Games'

The National Hockey League is launching an “all-access” service to capitalize on the 2010 Olympics and increased digital-media consumption of its games.

Associated Press
Anaheim Ducks defenseman Steve Eminger, left, takes the puck from Edmonton Oilers defenseman Tom Gilbert during an NHL hockey game in Anaheim, Calif.The league, which has 140 players competing in Vancouver, has already seen an uptick in traffic to its Web, mobile and social-media outlets. NHL.com received 13.4 million unique visits in January, a record, said Mike DiLorenzo, the league’s director of social media marketing and strategy, and visits for the ‘09/’10 season are up 34% from the year-earlier period. Its audience on Facebook and Twitter has more than doubled since the beginning of the season, and visits to NHL Mobile have more than tripled year-over-year.

It plans to introduce NHL All-Access Vancouver this weekend, as the Olympics begin, which will provide pre- and post-game reports, analysis and interviews on its online, radio and TV networks. The league’s daily radio show will also air on Sirius XM and stream on NHL.com.

John Collins, the National Hockey League’s operating chief, declined to say how much money it’s making from these initiatives, but he said that NHL GameCenter Live, a streaming service that lets fans catch out-of-market games, was a seven-figure business last year. It is up nearly 40% in revenue and number of subscribers so far this year, he added.

“We’ve seen a 66% annual average increase in sponsor support and ad spending on our media properties as well,” said Mr. Collins, who joined the league three years ago and has spearheaded the plans for digital and big “tent-pole” events, which includes an aggressive distribution and syndication strategy. “Other leagues drive everyone to their sites for content you can get through TV broadcasts as well. Our video player is populated with content fans can’t get anywhere else, every goal, every meaningful save, every body check. We see that as key to our multi-platform growth.”

Hockey isn’t the only professional sports league making a splash this weekend. The National Basketball Association plans to stream 12 hours of live and on-demand programming surrounding All-Star Weekend starting Friday, and it will offer an expanded version of last year’s NBA All-Star Scene online. It has equipped players and celebrities with Flip MinoHD pocket cameras and asked them to capture behind-the-scenes video that will be shared in near-real-time through its Kyte video platform.

Last year’s NBA All-Star Weekend events resulted in record-setting traffic for NBA Digital, which includes NBA.com, NBA Mobile, and NBA TV streams, as well as the regular season package NBA League Pass. Brian Perez, senior vice president and general manager of NBA Digital, said the numbers have continued to grow.

“We’re seeing 515 million video streams through NBA Digital just this season alone,” which kicked off in October, he said.

How To Spot A Good Free Movies Website On The Net

You have to admit it. Movies are one of the means that will entertain you especially if that is a free movie online. It also gives you the pleasure of escaping from reality. While movies can give us a break of our every day life, it also teaches us some important lessons in life to live by. Movies are one of the indispensable things that a person of the 21st century could not afford to lose.

In today’s world, the internet has given us the avenue of data sharing. Millions of information has been shared every day in the web. Of course, movies are not an exemption. With the advent of fast connections and broadband lines, sharing free movies online is not only a good thing which is happening in the internet today, it has also helped the movie industry to grow.

For many years, people conceived of free videos online as a form of piracy. But everyone should admit, most people are not grown out of those big screen showings. There was a survey around the internet on people who watch free videos online and how would affect their behaviour on watching the movie on the big screen. The result yields some interesting facts. Majority of the respondents say that although they have seen the movies freely through online free movie sites, still, they could not afford to miss the big screen where everything is bigger than life.
One thing that has made free movies online helped the industry instead of destroying it is that it has created a free publicity which the producers are not paying for it. This is one thing most movie producers are not aware. Instead of hiring some watchdogs to shut off those free movies and videos online, why don’t they encourage it? In this way, they can gauge if they are going it on to the top or just made a flop.

An interesting thing to internet users is how to spot the best free movies online. Perhaps, this is quite an interesting question. With lots of free movies online, you cannot just go there and enjoy yourself. A number of websites are not only disappointing; they are quite upsetting to movie goers especially for those who have locked themselves in front of their monitors. Here is how to spot a good free movie online.

Is the connection fast?

Before you open a movie, try to check out if the streaming is good. It is always an advantage not to be interrupted with your viewing. If you think you are getting a slow connection from the website itself, time to switch your browsers to another website. Although you are watching a free movie, you must admit the fact that you should also be getting the best out of your time spending for a movie.

Search on Some of Your Old Favourites

One way of testing the database of the website is to check your old favourite movies if it is available in their database. If you can find them, perhaps, the site really has an extensive library of film. Always make it a point that they will always have what you always want to see.


Free movies online gives one the advantage of seeing movies without paying. However, you must admit it, if you like the movie, you should be spending some money for the big screen experience. While those in the industry downplay the capacity of free movies online, however, they must admit to the fact that when internet viewers would not watch it for free, how much more if they will be shown in the big screen. Free movies online should be a gauge for the movie instead of being tagged as the enemy of the industry.

How To Stream the 2010 Vancouver Olympics From Anywhere

washingtonpost.com > Technology > Personal Tech
Patrick Miller
PC World
Thursday, February 11, 2010; 12:19 AM

True fans of the Winter Olympics will need more than a television broadcast schedule to stay current, especially if NBC's Olympics coverage (across local and cable channels) doesn't show your favorite sports or shows them on a tape-delayed broadcast that leaves you 3 hours behind your Twitter feed. Fortunately, we have some tips to help you use your PC and smartphone to get the coverage you need--regardless of where in the world the right coverage may air.

NBC


NBC has the U.S. broadcast rights to the 2010 Winter Olympics, so the best place for U.S. viewers to start looking for coverage is at the NBCOlympics.com Web site. (We previously covered the network's streaming options for the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics.) Prepare your PC by ensuring that it has the most recent versions of the Adobe Flash and Microsoft Silverlight plug-ins; you'll need them to view the slideshows and to stream video. If you don't mind following NBC's online streaming schedule, it offers a fairly good way to watch the Olympics. NBC even provides a BOSS button that brings up a generic Windows desktop--complete with empty spreadsheet--in case you want to view the events discreetly while at work.


If you have problems streaming from NBC's Website, confirm that your browser is set to accept third-party cookies: In Firefox, go to Tools, Options, Privacy and check Accept cookies from sites and Accept third-party cookies; in Chrome, choose Options, Under the Hood, Content Settings, Cookies and uncheck Block all third-party cookies without exception; in Safari, go to Preferences, Security, and check the Always radio button; in IE, open the Internet Options control panel, select Privacy, Advanced, check Override automatic cookie policy, and leave both listings on Accept.

The NBCOlympics Website has plenty of other gizmos besides streaming video to keep you coming back. For example, you can choose among many Olympics RSS feeds organized by topic, sport, country, or nation, opt for alerts via SMS or e-mail, and get local Olympic TV listings sorted by provider. If you have a smartphone, you can supplement your PC coverage with upcoming apps for the iPhone or BlackBerry. A mobile-optimized version of the NBCOlympics site will be available, as will live streaming video via Olympics 2Go.

If you live outside the United States, you won't be able to stream video from NBC without using a workaround, since NBC's broadcast rights don't extend beyond the United States. To watch from another country, you'll need a proxy server or virtual private network (VPN) that is based in the United States and can trick the site into thinking that you're there, too.

Unfortunately, most free proxy servers are designed for simple Web browsing and can't handle streaming video. Instead, try Hotspot Shield by AnchorFree (warning: it's anyone's guess as to how their servers will handle a deluge of Olympic traffic). At this writing, it's unclear whether mobile streaming options will be similarly region-locked; if they are, the iPhone version of Hotspot Shield might help.

International Broadcasts


If you turn your nose up at Yankee-centric Olympics coverage (too much fluff, not enough international competition), consider seeking out an international broadcast feed from another country. Unfortunately, just as U.S. fans abroad can have trouble picking up NBC's coverage, broadcast rights issues can prevent a viewer inside the United States from watching, say, a BBC broadcast.

Among the best international streaming options are Canada's domestic coverage from CTVOlympics.ca (in English) and RDSolympiques.ca (in French), both of which will host up to 14 live streams from Canadian TV networks as well as providing live coverage of every sport from start to finish. Meanwhile, the BBC will offer live BBC Two coverage streams and four Web-only streams via the BBC Sport Web site and mobile streaming via BBC Mobile. Viewers in the United States won't be able to watch any of the Canadian or British streams without a little effort, however.

That's because the BBC and CTV, like NBC, have contracted with the International Olympics Committee for broadcast rights to specific geographical regions only. To watch direct-from-the-source international streams, you may have to do some googling for a VPN service located in your country of choice.

Some free (usually ad-supported) VPN services exist--TheFreeVPN.com, for example, has a free Canadian VPN server, but it's capped at 250 users--but you're likely to have better luck with a paid service, since they typically offer higher bandwidth and a more stable connection. Once you've logged into the VPN, you should be able to access the desired Website normally, though you may notice a bit more delay than usual because data traffic has to jump through a few extra hoops.

Paid VPN services typically range in cost from $5 to $15 per month; some services have free trials, day passes, and other offers that permit you to test the service before committing to a full month of it. Also, make sure that the VPN service doesn't impose a bandwidth limit; many such services offer unlimited bandwidth for a reasonable price, but some put a cap on usage--and you may exceed that cap quickly with streaming video.

If you simply can't find a satisfactory stream from one of the international networks, you'll have to hunt for an independent, fan-generated feed. Luckily, a handful of Web sites and apps are dedicated to helping you find those feeds: SopCast is a great source for sports feeds in general (app installation required), while Ustream and Justin.tv let you stream over the Web. Another alternative is TVU Networks, which offers a Web interface (this requires a TVU plugin), a Mac/Windows app, and a TVUPlayer iPhone app ($4.99); the various TVU options give you access to live TV from 900 channels worldwide.

Fan-generated streams typically consist of TV broadcasts mirrored by individuals, so video quality and reliability tend to be worse than you'd get with a big network stream. And since these streams originate in other countries, the reporting may not be in your preferred language. Another caveat: The hosting service may (and often will) shut down streams of high-profile sporting events on behalf of the broadcaster, so you may find yourself having to jump from stream to stream until you find one that stays around.

Sites such as Justin.tv include a chat window where fans can advertise private, password-protected channels in public streams. These are less likely to be shut down, but your success may vary. With luck, you may be able to find enthusiasts who avoid these sites and host their own feeds, which you can then stream with VLC (to do so, copy the feed URL and then choose Open Network Stream) or Windows Media Player, but finding them generally means spending hours prowling forum communities for links.


Twitter


Twitter can provide an excellent supplement to your video streaming, particularly if you want the latest results without clogging up your e-mail inbox, SMS inbox, or RSS feeds. NBC operates an Olympic Pulse page that covers lots of tweets by athletes and analysts (from the United States, generally); but stick to @NBCOlympicZone if you want the coverage (complete with lists of athletes, organized by region) to come from your Twitter client of choice.

Other television networks worldwide plan to provide Twitter coverage, and that isn't bound by broadcasting constraints. For example, @CTVOlympics supplies all of the coverage from the Canadian broadcasters, plus lists for international athletes, Canadian athletes, and organizations. Even the International Olympics Committee tweets from @Olympics; @OlympicHealth provides all kinds of neat tidbits about how the various Olympians train.

You don't have to rely on these sources, of course. Just check out the Trending Topics list (on the right-hand side of the main Twitter page) to see what the most common names and phrases are; if you're rooting for a particular team or region, you can set your Trending Topics list to cover specific cities or countries.

My Name Is Khan Premiere To Be Streamed Live Online On Facebook – Is Web The Future Of Bollywood?

By debjit • February 10, 2010

First, the makers of My Name Is Khan made the music available online and now they are giving the movie a new dimension by taking the live telecast of the premier of the movie online via Facebook and uStream. Now all you bollywood lovers and SRK fans across the world can watch the star-studded premiere of ‘My Name Is Khan’ sitting anywhere provided you have a Facebook account and an internet connection!

The premiere will start telecasting live from Abu Dhabi today (10 Feb ‘2010) – 2030HRS onwards IST. You can also get a chance to interact with SRK, Kajol and Karan Johar on video chat! All you need to do is Visit the Event Page on Facebook and RSVP it. And when the telecast starts all you need to do is just click on the play button, sit back and enjoy the premier live from Abu Dhabi.

Well, well… We definitely are witnessing a major change in the way live events are being telecasted these days. We have already told you about the Indian Premier League (IPL v3) in which cricket matches will be telecasted live on YouTube. It is very apt to say that Web is the future of the good old TeleVision. Streaming events live via platforms such as Facebook and Youtube gives and entire new dimension to the way we watch the events live online and also give us a chance to post our views about a particular event and see what others are saying about… in real time. The online streaming – Live Telecasting arena in India is also a niche market and the concept is comparatively new in this country. So we would want to see a handful of web services that are built around this.

Social Media Week Live from 7 Cities Worldwide

Social Media Week's second annual conference launches on February 1 and lasts until February 5. The event will take place simultaneously in New York City, Berlin, London, San Francisco, Toronto and Sáo Paulo and be streamed exclusively on Livestream all this week. The five day conference will explore the profound impact that social media has on culture, business communications and society at large. For a schedule of events, visit http://socialmediaweek.org/newyork/livestream and to watch visit http://www.livestream.com/smw_newyork.

Tea Party Convention in Nashville to allow streaming Webcast and broadcast in response to critics

Tea
By Alex Pappas — The Daily Caller 02/01/10 at 11:32 am

This weekend’s Tea Party Convention in Nashville, under criticism that high ticket prices are preventing true grassroots activists from attending, made a surprise announcement late Sunday night that the convention will be televised.

Tea Party Nation, the group sponsoring the event that starts Thursday, said it is working with internet media company PJTV, FOX News, CNN and Reuters TV to “allow the millions of Tea Party activists who could not be in attendance to view many of the proceedings live along with special interviews of delegates and speakers alike.”

Viewing times will be published on the National Tea Party Convention Web site, organizers said. Airings will include the live broadcast of the convention’s opening, keynote speeches during the conference and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin address, which reportedly cost the group $100,000.

The full ticket price — which does not include airfare or hotel accommodations at the Opryland Hotel — is $549 plus a $9.95 online booking fee.

While passes granting access to the full convention are sold out, the group is selling tickets to Palin’s address only for $349 on its Web site.

Organizers say the convention will feature well known speakers, workshops, seminars, information centers and organizational tools for leaders to take back to their respective local Tea Party organizations.

But Tea Party Nation founders Judson and Sherry Phillips have taken heat from those who say they are profiting from the convention and are trying to establish themselves as the leaders of the movement that has been defined so far by its resistance to any centralized leadership.

Nashville newspaper the Tennessean wrote that critics of the event fear it could ruin the movement with its emphasis on transforming the Tea Party from a grassroots uprising into a top-down organization.

A number of Tea Party groups and public officials have distanced themselves from the convention. Last week Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota and Rep. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, both Republicans, canceled their scheduled appearances.

Judson Phillips, president of Tea Party Nation, acknowledged the controversy surrounding the event, saying the group and “my family have taken much criticism over the weeks preceding the convention.”

While working out the logistics to airing the convention, Phillips said the group has kept the “plans close to the vest.”

“Obviously, we believe that the delegates and banquet attendees are going to enjoy the networking and the excitement of being here directly. However, as we are all committed to grassroots activism, we wanted to share this event with those who could not come to Nashville,” he said.

Mark A. Skoda, founder of the the Memphis Tea Party and convention spokesman, also recognized the surprise element of the announcement.

“With our team effort and the many friends we had in the new media, we planned this surprise. We are hopeful that these millions of activists will participate with the local delegates through technology. As my father always said, you keep your powder dry until there’s something to shoot at,” he said.

SCI FI Movies streaming

Watch live video from SciFy on Justin.tv

Justin.tv makes it easier to start streaming

It's not spring yet, but Justin.tv is cleaning house. On Tuesday the video host is rolling out a new version of its broadcasting tool that makes it easier to get a live video stream going.

According to the company, a simple change has led to a 700 percent increase in the number of people who make it from clicking the "broadcast" button on Justin.tv's front page to actually beginning a live stream. At least that was the metric for a beta test the company ran on 10 percent of new users who were beginning a stream from Justin.tv's front page.

Now, when a user clicks the large, red broadcast button on the front door of Justin.tv, the site takes them to a page that requires just a few settings to get going--many of which can now be skipped. That quick transition means more streams, and a bigger potential to turn first-time Justin.tv users into frequent live streamers.

Another part of the change entails putting everything in one window, whereas before the options were spread out. For publishers, this means no more jumping back to their channel pages to stay on top of user chat, which now sits to the right of the video player. Also, the publishers now get a better view of what they're streaming since it displays the same sized viewer and chat window their viewers will be looking at. Previously the show controller tools looked akin to an airplane cockpit

Justin.tv's simplified broadcasting controls make the live streaming dashboard look less like an airplane cockpit to new users.

What I think is more interesting than the tweaks to Justin.tv's broadcasting tools is the shift in what its users are broadcasting. A Justin.tv representative told me that one of the biggest changes in the past year has been the growth of people who start live streaming themselves playing video games--be it consoles or on the computer they're streaming from.

For Justin.tv this ends up being a boon, not only for being able to sell the often-lucrative game related ads, but also for its users who can often see a game ahead of its street date release as gamers in "future" time zones can get the title a day early in some cases. More importantly, Justin.tv is filling in the gap left by places like Vimeo, which actually banned video game clips back in 2008, and YouTube, which does not yet offer live streaming with chat.

Justin.tv's revamped broadcasting tool should be out to all users Tuesday morning.

First look: Boxee beta

by Christopher Breen, Macworld.com

Until recently, Boxee, the social-media-centric media-center application based on the open-source XBMC, was available only to the invited and bore the “alpha” label. Boxee is now open to all and has matured to the point where its developers consider the Mac, Windows, and Linux versions worthy of the “beta” name (a beta version hasn’t yet been developed for the Apple TV). With that consideration comes a reworked interface, consolidation of local and Web-based content within that interface, more content, expanded social networking options, and big plans for the future. I’ve had an opportunity to play with the new Boxee for a week and these are my impressions.

Boxee's Home screen
The means for doing this are the Home screen and Global menu. The Home screen is divided into two areas—at the top of the screen are a row of icons that include Photos, Music, Movies, TV Shows, Apps, and Files. Below you find a Feed column that includes links to content recommended by your Boxee friends. Next to it, a Featured column offers pictures and links to content the Boxee people believe is worth your attention. And to the right of the Featured column is a Queue column, where you see a list of all the content that you’ve added to your queue.

When you select an icon at the top of the Home screen and press Return, you’re taken to a screen devoted to that kind of media. Media screens include a sidebar (which you can hide) that let you do things such as view photos as thumbnails or in a list; filter movies, TV shows, and music by genre; and search for specific hunks of media within that category—all your Michael Jackson music, for instance. You can also click icons to tell the world what you’re viewing or listening to via a Share command, add a shortcut, get more information about a TV show or movie (if Boxee has identified the TV show and movie and can provide that information), or add the media to your queue.


The Movies screen
To play media, just double click on its name. Play controls appear at the bottom of the resulting Now Playing screen. You’re welcome to leave this screen by pressing the Escape key—the music or video’s soundtrack will continue to play in the background. You can quickly return to the Now Playing screen by clicking a Play icon in the upper-right corner of the screen.

Boxee lists copy-protected music and video—such as the movies, TV shows, and non-iTunes Plus music you’ve purchased from the iTunes Store—but it won’t play it. Regrettably, there’s no feature that filters out this protected content.

To leave a media page, press the Escape key and the Global menu appears, which contains these same media icons plus a Home icon as well as Logout, Settings, Queue, Feed, and History icons. Select the item you want with the mouse or arrow keys, press Return, and the appropriate screen appears.


The Global menu
The changes to the interface are welcome but they don’t eliminate the hierarchical structure altogether. For example, if you want to add a folder full of media that lives outside your home folder, you’ll need to dash into the Settings window and dig down until your find the folder you’re after.

Media wherever
Boxee now attempts to erase the line between local and Internet media. For example, when you bring up TV Shows and type “Strangers With Candy” into the search field, Boxee will show you not only the unprotected episodes of the series on your Mac, but also any episodes that are available from Comedy Central’s Website. Similarly, you can move to the Movies screen, type “Love” in the Search field, and see titles that contain that word that can be found either on your Mac or the Web. You now access Hulu content this way rather than through a specific Hulu app.

Unfortunately you can search only by title at this point. So, if you’re in the mood for a John Wayne western, you’d better know the title of the movie you want to see.

Increased content
The beta version of Boxee has a lot of content—157 items can be found in its App Library. This includes such well-known sources as Netflix, Pandora, YouTube, Flickr, Digg, Discovery.com, NPR, Shoutcast, and Vimeo along with a whole host of other sources. And Boxee is actively courting developers to bring even more content to the application.


Boxee's App library
One area in which Boxee has broken from other media player applications is in adult content. Within the Appearance setting there’s a Hide Adult Feeds And Applications setting (enabled by default).
This is an interesting approach but not entirely unexpected. Boxee serves as a conduit for streaming Internet media and this kind of content is available from any Web browser. Boxee is simply being forthright about its ability to deliver adult content and leaving it up to users to decide whether or not they wish to view it. Concerned parents should know that the Appearance setting also includes a Set Adult Content Lock that lets them password-protect this option.

Social interaction
Another thing that separates Boxee from Plex and XBMC is its social networking component. Content discovery (buzz-speak for “finding stuff you want to watch and listen to”) is increasingly important and Boxee’s attempting to take advantage of people sharing their tastes with others. Similar to Twitter and Facebook, you can follow other Boxee users and see what they’re recommending. Likewise, they can see what you recommend. Boxee also includes support for Twitter, Facebook, FriendFeed, and Tumblr so you can post your recommendations to those services as well. (Currently the social networking implementation is buggy and doesn’t work consistently.)


The Flickr app
When you make a recommendation, Boxee does its best to link to something associated with your recommendation. For example, I recommended Bleu’s A Watched Pot album and Boxee linked to Bleu’s Last.fm page.

Given the ability to view adult content, you’ll want to be careful about whose recommendations you keep track of. Should someone you follow recommend an adult video, a link to that recommendation (complete with thumbnail image) will find its way onto your Home screen. This could be a real problem if you use Boxee at work or have a Mac configured as a media center attached to the family TV. Fortunately, you can remove these recommendations—just stop following that person and the recommendations disappears.

Rough edges
You shouldn’t take the “alpha” and “beta” labels too seriously. In fact, the later alpha builds of Boxee were more stable than the first beta releases. But the beta builds are getting better. If you’re upgrading from an older version of Boxee, it’s worth your while to search your hard drive for any existing Boxee files (this includes preference and support files), delete them, and install a fresh copy. I had a lot of problems with the Boxee beta—video anomalies, content that wouldn’t display properly, and the application locking up when I attempted to quit it—after installing it over a copy of the alpha. Once I removed all traces of the alpha version and installed the beta, Boxee was more reliable.

Into the future
Boxee has big plans. The company showed off D-Link’s Boxee Box—a set-top box for delivering Boxee content to an attached TV—at a variety of private events as well as at the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. It also claims to be working to integrate Boxee into other devices in 2010. Additionally, it’s putting together the Boxee Payment Platform, a system that lets content providers sell their media via Boxee (and Boxee users to purchase it). Those frustrated with an Apple TV that consumes only content from the iTunes Store, pay attention.

There are a lot of companies playing in the media-center space, but Boxee is moving in some interesting and ambitious ways. If you don’t have a copy of Boxee, it’s free and worth your while to give it a try—rough edges and all.

Watch out Sky: YouTube is becoming Google TV

YouTube is snapping up live sport and prime time TV shows. Will we soon switch on to Channel Google?
By Tim Edwards

Will 2010 be the year the world switched to Channel Google? Last week brought two announcements that suggest the internet seach giant intends to change the shape of television forever: it plans to stream live cricket to millions around the world, and introduce a new video 'rental' service. Both services will be made available through its video sharing site, YouTube.

Google enjoys a dominance that few other companies could dream of attaining. In the US alone, the company deals with 65.6 per cent of all internet search enquiries. Its closest competitor, Yahoo, attracts only 17.5 per cent of searches.

Its dominance in search has enabled Google to corner the market in online advertising. In 2009, 99 per cent of its $6.52bn profits came from advertising. Its stellar profits have allowed it to buy up any internet start-up it fancies, while developing free software like Google Earth, Gmail and its new operating system, Chrome OS.

But Google, which will sell its new Nexus One 'Googlephone' from its own website, now appears to be seeking ways of diversifying its income.

The company bought YouTube for $1.65bn in 2006 and has been trying to make the business profitable ever since. It has dabbled with charging for content such as music videos, but - fearful of scaring away the video-sharing website's roughly 280m monthly users - it has so far derived most of its profit from advertising, as in its 2008 deal with MGM to stream feature films from its archive to US customers for free.

Unfortunately for Google, the very proposition that made YouTube so popular has scared off corporate advertisers. As a video-sharing site for the masses, the cute videos of narcoleptic kittens are interspersed with hour upon hour of more unsavoury clips.

Now Google has announced that five films from the Sundance 2010 and 2009 festivals will be available to rent on YouTube from today until January 31. The films will only be available to US users and will mostly be offered for $3.99 to be viewed over 48 hours. But a statement on YouTube's blog suggests that the venture is a warm-up for a much more ambitious plan to start providing blockbuster movies and TV series.

"In addition to these five films, a small collection of rental videos from other US partners across different industries, including health and education, will be made available in the weeks ahead," it reads.

Outlining the terms, the statement adds: "Making content available for rent will give our partners unprecedented control over the distribution of their work - they can decide the price of their videos and the rental duration."

But the full extent of Google's ambitions for YouTube were hinted at in the Los Angeles Times, which quoted "people familiar with YouTube's plans" who say that "within months, the website will start to make available for rental other TV shows and films from Hollywood studios". Apparently, YouTube has been negotiating specific pay-per-view streaming rights to films and television shows.

The revelation is surprising, because despite Google's dominance elsewhere on the internet, it has struggled in the newish market for video streaming, even after buying YouTube.

The race to service the demand for film and television series over the internet is far from sewn up. Among others, Netflix, Amazon and Apple's iTunes all offer such services. Besides the intense competition, the big studios have always been suspicious of YouTube, because they are fully aware that much of their content ends up on the site anyway, illegally uploaded by fans - a problem Google has worked hard to fix.

Perhaps YouTube's main problem, however, is Hulu. This is a well-established website owned by NBC, News Corporation and Disney which streams much of their output, and that of other studios, for free. Unlike YouTube, Hulu is a safe environment for corporate sponsors: there is no possibility that you will stumble across a video of a woman giving birth.

With the success of Hulu, and its plan to introduce a pay wall within the next three months, the prospects of prising away such priceless televisual jewels as House and 30 Rock from News Corporation and NBC respectively seem fairly bleak: YouTube can at least hope to steal away the blockbusters of other networks, such as CBS, to offer as part of its own pay-per-view service.

But Google isn't concentrating solely on entertainment programming and another tantalising glimpse of YouTube's destiny was offered last Wednesday when it announced it had won the right to stream live Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket matches from March 12. Cricket fans across the globe will be able to watch the matches for free, with the IPL and Google splitting sponsorship and advertising money derived from the new YouTube channel.

The live IPL matches are seen by some as a highly convenient means for YouTube to raise its profile as a worldwide broadcaster without having to spend anything on new server capacity – and perhaps go some way to repairing the commercial damage done to Google by its high profile falling out with China over censorship.

Live streaming – as opposed to playing a video that you have downloaded – is sometimes a 'choppy' experience for the viewer; at peak times the video playback stops and starts, as anyone who has tried to watch the BBC’s iPlayer at 8pm can confirm. Google would normally have to buy more server capacity to be sure of providing a reasonable service for an event as popular as the IPL.

But live IPL matches will be broadcast at a time of low demand in the United States – the small hours. The result? A smooth experience for Indian cricket fans, while Google gets to make a lot of new friends in the only country with a population over a billion it hasn’t picked a fight with this year.

The pieces are falling into place. With its ambitions in entertainment, movies and sport laid bare, how long can it be before YouTube is a global TV network in its own right?

Cable Cutters: Cheap Alternatives to TV

I don't like service providers. Cable TV, landline phone and fax, mobile phone, ISP, and even satellite radio companies have so little real competition that they know they don't have to impress me very much to get my business. I either pay the full fees and become connected to them by their cord (physical or wireless), or I don't get any service. Until lately.

Now those companies face new pressure from Web-based technologies and services that can offer similar features for far less money, or even for free. Many of these services ride in on the cord owned by the big service provider, relegating said service provider to the job of operating "dumb pipes."

Which TV executive knew just a few years ago that paid and free online services could threaten cable companies? Internet radio being a better value than a satellite subscription, and more.

Here I'll explain the alternatives that can help you walk away from the biggest corded companies that we love to hate. You can pick and choose which are still worth keeping and which to toss. Are you being pressured into buying a service provider's "triple play"? Try three strikes and you're out.

Pay for TV and Movies Instead of Cable Service

The cable--and satellite--TV model is on life support. Who wants to pay $100 or more a month for an endless well of unwatched shows? Even if you have an appetite for premium-channel shows, you can save money by buying some à la carte and watching others free online.

Paid, per-show TV sources are all around you. Apple iTunes, Amazon VOD, Zune Marketplace, Blockbuster On Demand, and Jaman store thousands of shows and movies.

All offer various purchase and rental options, often $3 to $4 to rent a movie for a day. Expect to drop about $30 to $40 per season of scripted, premium-channel TV (HBO, Showtime, and such), or, often, about $10 less for network shows.

That sounds pricy at first, and it often costs more than buying a physical disc. But total up four or five of those seasons and a handful of movies, and you could pay half as much as cable over the same time period.

If you want to watch video on a portable device, stick with iTunes for iPod and iPhone compatibility; or Zune Marketplace for Zune support. Unfortunately, the other stores don't offer portable media player support. If you have an AppleTV or an Xbox 360, you can at least watch your shows in the living room.

Netflix is a good base service for any cable TV-free home. The cheapest subscription for the DVD-by-mail service is $8.99 each month, but much of the value comes in the thousands of shows and movies you can stream from Netflix to your PC. Plus, Netflix can stream to a TiVo, Xbox 360, PS3, dedicated Roku device, and other hardware, so you can watch in the living room without a media center PC.

Similar streaming services like Amazon, Blockbuster, Jaman, and others can play on much of the same hardware. Check your TV-connected hardware against these services' support pages.

I've also got my eye on the upcoming Boxee Box and Sezmi service; both will offer hardware that plays Internet-streamed video on a TV. Sezmi, which will be rolling out nationwide this year, even promises local shows and live sports, one of the biggest deficits in online libraries.

Next: Free TV, Movies, Phone Service, and more

Get Free TV And Movies

Hulu is still my king of free TV sites, although it's uncertain if it will--or won't--change to a paid model. And I've been occasionally frustrated when show episodes or seasons disappear just before I try to watch. But the majority of recent network shows are available. Plus, you'll find movie and TV favorites alongside B-level misses.

As I write this, you can watch "Spartacus" and "All the King's Men" alongside the Norm MacDonald vehicle, "Dirty Work."

Check Hulu first, but also scan other sites for free TV and movies. Crackle, Comcast Fancast, and even YouTube have movies and TV content. If you you're looking for a specific show that you still can't find online, visit its Web site or its network site directly.

Live sports can still be elusive. Check the network that's broadcasting the content for a stream; I saw a Monday Night Football game this way last fall. MLB.com hosts live baseball, but you'll have to pay for service. Justin.tv could be your best ace for any sport. While unsanctioned, many users play live streams of their local stations; just click the sports button.

And remember the cheapest, highest-quality TV source of all: an antenna. Over-the-air HD content looks great, often better than video compressed for a cable TV feed. You'll just need a TV with an HD tuner--typical for most sets built in the last several years--or a PC TV tuner.