Digital Media Bytes

A periodic roundup of relevant news… from our other blogs: Top Cablecos to Debut Online On-Demand Shows In recognition of the need to bridge the gap to the Internet, both Comcast and Time Warner Cable have now said they will make select programming available online to TV subscribers in the second half of this year. … Read more

DISH’s (Slingified) Online Scheduling Launches

DISH has joined other DVR vendors (DirecTV, Verizon, TiVo, Moxi) by (officially) launching online scheduling. While TiVo was a pioneer in this space, they’ve begun to lag as others provide a direct connection for interactive conflict resolution and to view listings of recorded shows or scheduled recordings. As DISH now offers broadband-connected ViP 612, ViP … Read more

DivX Bringing Social Bookmarking to the TV?

DivXlicious

I recently saw a link to an online survey on DivX’s website, and since I’m not shy in sharing my opinions, these sorts of things are the perfect click bait for me. Most questions covered how and where I watch online video, but after answering a dozen or so, one caught my eye:

5. Would you be interested in a free service that lets you bookmark online videos to queue and play back in media center software or on a device?

I’ve never really been a heavy user of bookmarking services, but being able to bookmark television content would be much more appealing. One of the biggest problems in bridging the computer to TV gap, is the process of finding the content that you want to watch and then getting it to the television set. For downloadable media this is easier to accomplish, but for streaming media you’ll need some kind of a PC or internet connected gadgetry. Once juiced up to the net, trying to navigate the vast sea of digital content with a remote is like trying to paddle upstream while going over Niagra Falls backwards.

So far, Netflix seems to have come up with the best solution, but there’s still room for others to build a better mousetrap. Instead of letting consumers use a remote to browse all of their programing, Netflix makes you bookmark your watch now movies via the old fashioned computer. This hybrid tv/computer approach may lack some elegance, but it does ultimately create a more satisfying experience to the end user. Sometimes having too many choices can create a paralyzing effect when it comes to finding content.

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Hulu Blocks Access from Hotspot Shield

After years of putting it off I finally installed and learned how to use Hotspot Shield last week. It worked wonderfully.  I was all set to write a blog post about it. Wouldn’t you know it, within a week Hulu has found a way to block it! I just tested it and indeed I’m blocked. … Read more

Hulu gets Disney/ABC and a New Shareholder

Popular online video streaming aggregator site, Hulu has picked up another major content provider – this time Disney/ABC. Disney and Hulu announced that they are joining forces to provide content from Disney properties (this includes ABC Network) and in turn, Disney will become a joint Hulu partner along with NBC and Fox. So we can … Read more

Canada’s CTV Puts TV Episodes Online

Canada’s CTV Network hast recently started putting full-length episodes of prime TV shows online. CTV is one of Canada’s three major television networks. It carries about half of the major U.S. primetime shows in Canada. Global carries the other half. The new service is available here (see the ‘Watch Online at CTV.ca’ heading to the … Read more

Cablevision Breaks the Speed Barrier and More

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Cablevision is going renegade. Unlike many other operators, the company has come out against bandwidth caps. And now to add to that rebel stance, Cablevision is introducing a new speed tier at $99.95 per month with 101 Mbps downstream. That’s higher than anything else offered in the US, and marks the first time we’ve seen someone break the 100 Mbps barrier on this continent. It’s remarkable that only 18 months ago we were looking at 20 Mbps as a record speed tier. It’s a wonder what competition (and DOCSIS 3.0 technology) will do.

Cablevision has also made headlines by offering free Wi-Fi access to subscribers at certain hotspots in its footprint. As many have pointed out, the MSO is going all out to counteract Verizon, which has come on strong in the NYC area. What’s interesting is how innovative Cablevision is willing to be. Remember, Cablevision is also the cable company fighting for Network DVR. It may not be one of the largest players on the scene, but Cablevision continues to do interesting things.

Full press release after the jump.

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Adobe’s Flash-y Set-Top Demo at the NAB Show

Adobe’s announcement to bring Flash to the living room is undoubtedly the biggest news out of this year’s NAB show. While much of the focus of the annual event put on by the National Association of Broadcasters goes to the business of producing content, there are always a few flashy tech demos in the mix … Read more