Last month PlayOn got tired of waiting for Apple to launch a native iOS app for its streaming audio and video service, so the company introduced a web-based version using HTML5. But Apple has since decided to relax some of its App Store rules, and now there’s an official PlayOn app available for download. It’s free, and it’s kind of awesome.
First, here’s a little explanation of how PlayOn works. The app doesn’t stream content straight from the internet to your mobile device. Instead you need to install a server app on a PC running on your home network. The PC actually grabs the media from the internet and transcodes it on the fly for delivery to other devices. PlayOn works with video game consoles like the Nintendo Wii, Playstation3, and now also with mobile devices including the iPhone and iPod touch.
It’s a little clunky, requires a reasonably fast server PC, and a good home wireless network. But the upshot is you can use PlayOn to watch video from Hulu, CBS, Comedy Central, MLB, NHL, ESPN, CNN, PBS, MTV, and Amazon VOD on your iPhone, just to name a few of the available channels. Some are available for free users, while others (including ComedyCentral) require you to upgrade to a PlayOn premium account.