BBC iPlayer could be improved say BBC

The service could provide a superior streaming service using targeted rolling content said John Tate, BBC director of policy and strategy.

Speaking at a recent Westminster Media Forum,  he said, “The service is not currently taking full advantage of usage data to provide a more tailored experience. Currently, watching to the end of a show on iPlayer simply brings up a prompt to replay the content, as opposed to broadcast TV, where programmes are followed directly by new shows that are appropriate to the audience and timeslot.”

Mr Tate further added “This is one way in which video-on-demand (VoD) is still “playing catch-up” to regular TV, suggesting the introduction of targeted rolling options on iPlayer could offer various benefits. Why should you have to click play when you go to an online or VoD experience? Why shouldn’t there be some continuity or rolling element to that too?”

The BBC iPlayer set a new record of almost two billion requests for programmes during 2011 and enjoyed record viewing figures in December 11.  The iPlayer service is also set to debut on the Sky Anytime+ satellite service.

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First online shopping, now apps

These kind of branded apps may become much more commonplace now that connected or smart TV’s are becoming standard issue. Companies will use them for advertising and market research as well as expanding the brand.

Talking about the app, Guy Kinnell, marketing director for Samsung UK said,

“The M&S Smart TV App has been an exciting new development that highlights the popularity of Smart TV as the most immersive and interactive format for consumers. The new App brings new lifestyle content from a trusted consumer brand, this gives people a snapshot of how consumers will be able to shop in the future.”

Susan Aubrey-Cound, the director for new channels at Marks & Spencer commented,

“We are continually exploring innovative and new ways to engage or interact with our customers. The Smart TV App enables Marks and Spencer customers to discover more about our products and innovations from the comfort of their living rooms, whilst supporting our broader marketing channels.”

The app is available now and joins more familiar apps such as LoveFilm and iPlayer services. It gives a new meaning to the phrase, “This is not just an app, this is an M&S app”.

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Later this year BBC’s iPlayer will become accessible to Sky customers on their home TV sets. Using BBC’s iPlayer, viewers can catch-up on BBC programmes in the familiar iPlayer experience that they may have missed.

To access the BBC catch-up TV service, users will need a broadband connection and access to the AnyTime Plus internet TV service. Viewers will also be able to use the ITV vod service, ITV Player from today.

The BBC’s goal is to reach all viewers it can, so with Sky’s plan to bring its Anytime+ to customers regardless of who their internet provider is, is a major development in helping to bring BBC iPlayer to around 5 million new homes in 2012 and at no extra charge.

This deal builds on seeing the BBC’s iPlayer on platforms like Virgin Media, BT Vision, FreeSat, Freeview, PlayStation, Wii, along with mobile phones, tablets, and Internet connected TV’s. Launching on Sky Anytime+ rounds off the picture in which BBC’s iPlayer is available on pretty much all major UK TV platforms.

The BBC Director General Mark Thompson said “Having the BBC and Sky work together to further build on the BBC iPlayer success story can only be fantastic news for audiences. Making BBC iPlayer available on all platforms is key to our commitment to universal access and this agreement takes us one step further towards that goal. I’m delighted to take this first step on a story of innovation for both organisations.”

Sky’s Chief Executive Jeremy Darroch, added “Sky Anytime+ will go from strength to strength in 2012 and we are delighted that the addition of BBC iPlayer will allow Sky customers to enjoy the best of the BBC whenever they want.”

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Airtight brings Apple streaming to Google TV, kind of.

So that means that Google TV owners are able to stream content from their iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch to the Google TV hardware.

But music is not included, nor is mirroring. Mirroring lets Apple owners mirror whatever is on their portable device straight to the TV set and can be achieved with the Apple TV set-top box.

For some time Apple users could stream movies, music and photos from an iOS device to the TV using AirPlay, and it would be a shot in the arm for Google TV if it could work on the hardware.

The creators of the app say that they expect to add missing features in the future, the fact that Apple have not endorsed the product could indicate that may not happen.

The app costs $0.99 and without giving access to anything from yor iTunes library makes it a bit of a worthless one. Knowing how strict Apple are with allowing streaming via any non-Apple device. I would not be holding my breath in anticipation of that changing anytime soon either.

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Whilst the HBO Go service does not allow live streaming of channels, the latest shows will be available same day and archived content will also be available on the service.

Speaking in a joint statement, the two companies said that viewers “will have free, unlimited access to the corresponding online services at any time, on any computer in the U.S. with a high-speed Internet connection, as well as a host of other devices, including the iPad.”

Time Warner have indicated that the HBO Go and MAX Go will begin within the next month. The MAX Go service offered by HBO’s sister channel, Cinemax, has around 400 titles on offer.

The HBO Go is a response to the threat and growth of streaming companies such as Netflix.The TV Everywhere service lets HBO subscribers stream over 1400 programs via the web using computers, smartphones and tablet computers. The app has been downloaded over 5 million times.

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Will Google TV be powering your next TV Set?

A pretty big claim considering the platform is seen by many as a failure, even after a major software upgrade was introduced, Logitech stopped producing it’s Google powered Revue set-top box back in November after slashing the price from $300 to $99.

The move saw Logitech lose $100 million and left CEO Guerrino De Luca calling it, “a mistake of implementation of a gigantic nature”. Although he appears to have had a change of stance now saying the company will sit “on the bench” whilst improvements are made.

Google (along with many other big companies) are predicting an explosing in the smart TV market, although Samsung, Sony and LG have been producing smart connected TV sets for some time, many predict that next year it will become standard for every TV set sold.

Google will of course face plenty of competition from the TV manufacturers themselves who have existing TV platform s in place, and other big names such as Apple who are said to be on the verge of launching a connected TV next year. And former CEO Steve Jobs revealed in his autobiography that he had cracked how to create a remote-less connected TV.

So with all the different platforms and competition, it does seem a little far fetched to announce that most TV’s will have Google running them, but Schmidt is not backward at coming forward to ‘big up’ his products.

He also claimed last Wednesday that the Android OS is ahead of the Apple OS in the smartphone market. One thing is for sure though, smart TV sets will be everywhere next year and viewers are probably unconcerned as to which software is running under the hood, so long as the connected TV does what they want.

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Cox TV app comes to iPad

The Live TV app called TV connect is currently for iPad only and can be downloaded free from the app Store. Subscribers then need to go through a verification process, and can then stream around 35 channels from their tablet as well as an on-screen TV guide.

Cox customers will need to be subscribed to the Cox Preferred, Premium or Ultimate package and the High Speed Internet service,  and also have a DOCSIS modem to get the streaming. Cox said in a statement, “The TV Connect application will continue to evolve and expand, adding even more value to our services while adding convenience through convergence.”

Many cable companies allow similar streaming via a ‘second screen’ at the subscribers household, Comcast, Time Warner, Cablevision and DirectTV have all launched live TV streaming apps for the iPad.

Cox had previously launched a rather lame Mobile Connect app for iPad, iPhone and Android devices that let subscribers manage DVR recordings and telephone services. This one is obviously much better but still does’nt deliver what subscribers really want, streaming access anywhere and downloadable content. The app can be downloaded from the app store.

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Fetch TV brings cheap TV on-demand to connected TV

The Fetch TV app lets viewers of Smart Viera TV’s and (early next year) Samsung Smart TV’s to watch TV content and video on demand such as movies from major studios and specialist TV channels.

The programming can be supplied on a pay-as-you-view basis or there are micro-subscription options for unlimited viewings from just £1.99 (€2.30) monthly.

Fetch TV could be accessed previously via the Freeview set-top digital TV box, allowing users to receive all standard definition Freeview channels, and giving access to online content including the BBC iPlayer and Sky Go directly to your TV set. But it will now be rolled out to a range of smart TV sets next year.

With an onslaught of services coming to the UK next year including Netflix and the fact that many devices can receive catch-up TV, we are not sure how many viewers will be flocking to Fetch.

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Verizon Fios streaming app comes to Xbox360

box users will need to be Live Gold members and need to download the Verizon FiOS TV Xbox app to get the streaming entertainment. Back in October Microsoft announced partnerships for “the next generation of TV entertainment on Xbox LIVE.”

They are teaming up with almost 40 TV and entertainment providers in 20 countries around the world including Bravo, Comcast, HBO GO, Verizon FiOS and Syfy for the US, The BBC for the UK, Spanish network Telefónica, Televisa in Mexico, ZDF in Germany, MediaSet in Italy and Rogers On Demand in Canada.

The launch comes just as the Xbox 360 dashboard gets a redesign on December 6, including new features such as cloud storage, integrated voice and gesture controls and social network options.

If you’re an existing Verizon subscriber then you will need to ring Verizon who will add the streaming service, but you will need an Xbox Live Gold subscription plus a FiOS TV and Internet subscription to get the free streaming.

For new users, Verizon are offering a special deal until next January for Xbox 360 owners. For $89.99 monthly users can get a triple play package consisting of TV, phone and internet access plus a free 12 month subscription to Xbox Live Gold, and the game, Xbox Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary.

The range of channels available at launch in December will include 26 streaming channels including seventeen in HD that can be controlled using the kinect motion and voice system. It’s a good move by Verizon and Microsoft as game consoles are the number one device to watch streaming TV.

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The app, which is also compatible with web browsers, is known as Zeebox, and was created (in co-operation with The TVC Group) by Anthony Rose, who was responsible for the BBC’s on-demand catch-up service in 2007. Self-described as a ‘TV sidekick’ it is designed to display ‘now & next’ programme listings for over 30 major UK channels, with each individual show offering the option to view a ‘hub’ of series information, live ratings, social networking comments (from users of Facebook and Twitter) and web links, amongst others.

Additional features include interaction with Facebook friends also using the service (and ‘inviting them’ to watch the same channel as you), looking at a show’s ‘zeetags’, and for the iPad version, links to relevant ‘apps’, and a way to use it as a TV remote control (for users with smart TV’s). The move is thought to be a good one for advertisers as well, with the interactive interface offering a good platform for links and product promotion.

Rose said of the new app: “It’s a new era for broadcast TV.”

Co-founder Ernesto Schmitt summarised the impact that he believed Zeebox could have, stating: “Like Facebook is the platform built around social, and FourSquare is the platform built around location, Zeebox is the platform built around TV.”

A demonstration of the Zeebox app in action can be seen below:

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Sandvine, who are based in Waterloo (Canada), produced a study on current primetime Internet trends, with their main discovery being that in those hours (7-9pm), online streaming has now become the primary source of Internet traffic in Canada and the USA.

Amongst the most popular sources of this bandwidth usage included Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube.

Those companies (and many similar websites) are part of what what is being described as a trend towards ’real-time entertainment’, and is recorded as responsible for 60% of total Internet traffic during peak evening time, up from a 50% figure recorded in 2010. The data was collected from major network service providers.

Most of this ‘real-time entertainment’ (at 55%) is thought to come from connected devices such as game consoles and set-top boxes, while the remaining 45% of the genre comes via ‘fixed’ desktop and laptop systems.

Sandvine are claiming that the increasing trend towards prime-time streaming could be creating problems for handling the increased flow of data during those hours, with some Canadian service providers having already been officially cautioned for ‘bandwidth throttling’ (putting a limit on users downloading during the hours), a trend which Sandvine suggest could be prevented by the service providers starting to charge for downloading in the busiest hours.

The report stated of the platforms used to watch content (and a cause of increased streaming levels): “…when subscribers watching online video are free to choose between screens, they generally choose to watch content on the largest screen available to them.”

While figures may suggest  that streaming content is the new way forward in viewing content, are Sandvine right in claiming that there could be a thing as ‘too much streaming’?

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Google TV 2 gets access to the Android Market

We have seen a number of leaked Google TV 2 pictures that show apps running on Google TV. The images come from the Zatz Not Funny blog, showing the new OS in action on a TV screen. They seem to show a selection of Android Market apps adapted for the TV.

The original Google TV platform was launched in a blaze of glory but soon hit the skids. The system was soon blocked streaming any actual TV by the US networks and became a glorified search engine on the TV. Unfortunately it appears that the new Google TV 2.0 will still suffer from blocked streaming.

The platform had two partners, Sony with a connected TV and the Logitech Revue set-top box. After disastrous sales due to the high ticket price of $299, and plenty of returned boxes the price was dropped to just $99.

The new price point brought brings the product more in line with competitors Apple TV and Roku, but the lack of any streaming may still be an issue.

The Google TV 2.0 release is also expected to come as an upgrade for existing devices, and should be released within weeks.

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Hulu Plus comes to more Androids

It is sure a slow old process though, Hulu plus first launched on 6 Androids back in June, then had an update in July adding four more phones. The new update adds the following eight Android devices:-

HTC Incredible 2, HTC Evo 3D, HTC Sensation, Motorola Droid 3, Motorola X2, Motorola Bionic, LG Revolution and the LG G2X. Hulu also say that more devices will be supported throughout the year.

So pretty much all Android devices that run Hulu Plus are smartphones, but there is at least a couple of Android tablets supported.

The update also adds additional device support and improved playback and is free to download from the Android market. OF course you will need to pay the $7.99 monthly subscription if you want to watch.

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Since the price increase, customers of Netflix have voted with their feet, losing a reported 4% of their customer base since the move, with more and more subscribers defecting from what has for a long time been regarded as the undisputed kingpin of online streaming and movie rental in the US.

While the destination of these disgruntled consumers may differ (with Amazon Prime, Walmart-owned Vudu, and new Dish Network acquisition Blockbuster amongst the most high-profile of Netflix’s rivals), Netflix management have predicted that the end of September will see the company registered with 600,000 less customers in America than at the same point in June, only the second time in a dozen years (and first time in five) that they have seen a drop between quarters, and by far the largest of any customer decrease they have ever suffered.

With shares dropping up to 40% in value since the announcement of higher prices in July (causing an estimated $6 billion cumulative loss for shareholders), and partners (such as Starz Entertainment) backing out of content licencing deals, it seems as though the company is now collapsing in on itself, compounded by a recent decision to stop multi-streaming (more than one download at a time).

Michael Pachter, an official market analyst for Webush Securities, said of the declining situation for the streaming giant: “Netflix isn’t looking like it’s as good a deal because their prices are getting higher and their content isn’t getting any better. It’s like they have taken the beef away from the buffet.”

Regardless of what everyone else is saying, Netflix yesterday came out to strongly defend their decision to raise prices (based on a move to prioritise their online streaming offerings), claiming that they are making ’the right long-term strategic choice’. At the rate customers are dropping them, will Netflix even be able to see a ‘long-term’?

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Google TV may soon be running Android apps

The Android software development kit (SDK) will make life easier for developers currently reluctant to commit to Google TV due to low sales numbers. The kit will let developers build new Android apps for Google TV, or optimise and tweak existing apps for the big TV screen.

The add-on enables developers to emulate Google TV and build apps using standard Android SDK tools, as well as test their apps, and it also provides new APIs for TV interaction, such as TV channel lineup.

Interested parties can download the Google TV kit and read developers guidelines.Speaking for Google, Ambarish Kenghe, Google TV Product Manager said, “While the number of apps available on TV will initially be small, we expect that through this early release of the add-on you’ll be able to bring optimised TV apps into the ecosystem more quickly.”

Some apps will not be suitable for Google TV, for example some tablet and phone apps that need a touchscreen. The apps not suitable will not appear on the Android Market.

The news comes shortly after Google brought Motorola for $ 12.5 billion, and the possibility that Google TV will find it’s way onto set-top boxes.

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9 months after launch and Sony slash prices

The three sets available are the 24-inch NSX-24GT1 $399 (previously $599.99), the 32-inch NSX-32GT1 $498 (previously $799.99), the 40-inch NSX-40GT1 $723 (previously $999.99) and the 46-inch NSX-46GT1 $961 (previously $1399.99)

The move follows the price cut by Logitech of the Revue Google TV box to $99 at the end of July, a $200 drop from the original price of $299.99.

Sony slashed the price of their Google TV powered Blu-ray player last November by $100 which led many to fully expect what was coming a few months later.

According to Google, this is not the end for Google TV, but a step in it’s evolution. Google see the project as a long term plan, especially given the success of the Android OS which Google TV will be compatible with in future versions.

However the many other internet TV platforms out there may well be hoping that this is indeed the death knell for Google TV.

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The service first premiered in the begining of 2010, and currently offers a selection of HBO’s movies and all past episodes of HBO’s original series to subscribers through web browsers, as well as iOS and Android apps.

But GigaOm reports that Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes confirmed in a company earnings call that the service would soon be expanding to consoles and connected TVs

The HBO Go service is currently only available to cable subscribers with an active HBO subscription, which must be confirmed online through the cable service provider.

The current HBO app has been a great success, with over 3 million downloads in under 2 months.

Details on which consoles would be getting access to the service have not yet been disclosed.

Video game consoles have become a popular method for watching on demand internet video in recent years, with half of all Netflix subscribers reportedly using a console to view the service’s streaming content, according to a recent Nielsen survey.

Subscribers to the Hulu Plus service can also stream TV shows and movies using the Xbox 360 and PS3 systems, though the service seems to have seen less use from console owners than Netflix does.

Game console owners are already well catered for online TV, Microsoft and Sony also have TV shows and movies to download for a fee through their online marketplaces.

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Insignia web tv from the nations biggest gadget store

Although TiVo powered, the sets have no DVR built in but run on the familiar TiVo software, letting users browse TV listings and run TV apps. The sets are the first to use the Tivo software interface, which gives Best Buy’s customers a well known and easy to use UI.

The TV apps that are both pre-loaded and searchable are supplied by the Chumby content network of apps. Viewers can access Netflix, Facebook, Twitter, Pandora, Cinema Now, Napster, Photobucket, Accuweather, Reuters News and Sports, Stocks, Traffic, Yahoo Leanback amongst others.

Users can also visit the Chumby website to browse more apps that can be downloaded to the connected TV. Viewers can make use of the search function to find content both online and from networks.

More on this story:-

Best Buy TV gets TiVo interface, but no DVR – msnbc.com

We live in the world of the smart TV using apps to get TV shows and movies off the Internet from Netflix and Amazon or using the on-demand service from our TV provider. TiVo has also moved with the times providing access to Internet content along …

Best Buy unveils Insignia Connected TVs with TiVo interface, Chumby widgets – CNET

For TVs with built-in Wi-Fi and Internet streaming the prices are reasonable if not downright competitive–especially when looking at a comparable bundle (same size LED TV $99 Roku or Apple TV $70-ish universal remote). Id like to see how Best Buy …

Best Buy’s Insignia HDTV TiVo Launching Soon with Chumby Apps – Zatz Not Funny

If you had any doubts that Best Buy will be launching an Insignia-branded TiVo-powered HDTV any day now well I can pretty much put them to rest. Since my previous speculative coverage a treasure trove of product packaging photos have come my way

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Rovi who used to be known as Gemstar-TV Guide International Inc, contends that Los Angeles based Hulu is using protected technology for electronic programming guides, according to a complaint filed in the court.

“Rovi invests significant resources” in the development of its guides and related inventions for digital video streaming technologies, the Santa Clara based company said in court papers.

Rovi has sued Toshiba over three program guide patents towards the end of last year. Earlier this year, Toshiba not only agreed to a license, but will use Rovi’s TotalGuide interactive programming guide in its TV sets.

A long running patent infringement suit against Virgin Media has ended in a small victory, as Virgin was found guilty, but the patents in question were ruled invalid.

Hulu’s not the only online media company that Rovi has taken to court recently. In January, it sued Amazon, and Amazon’s IMDb property over five program guide patents.

We can more than likely expect there to be more of these lawsuits, as Rovi claims more than 1,100 patents related to program guides, which it has licensed to a number of distributors and consumer electronics manufacturers such as Apple, Cisco, Comcast, DirecTV, Microsoft, Samsung, Sony, Time Warner and Verizon.

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The iPlayer app is free to download and install but to watch BBC shows users will have to fork out €6.99 a month ($10), or €49.99 ($72) for an annual subscription.

The initial launch will only work if you live in Western Europe: “Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, The Republic of Ireland, The Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland”. Plans are in place to bring the global iPlayer to the USA, Canada and Australia by the end of the year.

The BBC iPlayer app has some differences from other iPad video apps like Hulu Plus or ABC’s video player. Notably, it can stream shows over 3G connections as well as Wi Fi, and users will be able to download and store shows for viewing while offline.

“When we were doing our user testing, the use case was picking six shows before going on a long journey, and leaving them to download to the iPad overnight,” Mark Smith, the global iPlayer launch director said.

“The way the iPad works, though, is it hibernates and stops you from doing that: you wake up the next morning and only half a show has downloaded. We have managed to override that functionality, and Apple are comfortable with us doing that.”

Subscribers are not going to be able to access to the entire BBC’s on air offerings, however. BBC Worldwide is said to have hired a team of editors to “curate” the content on the iPlayer, picking which shows to put on the app.

It also give them to go beyond the usual genre and title browsing by adding themed collections on subjects and events. As an example, the long running sci-fi show Doctor Who, collections surrounding specific Doctors will be available.

“This is not a catch up service: this is a video on demand service,” BBC managing director Luke Bradley Jones said. “We will have content from the last month, but also the best from the catalogue stretching back 50 to 60 years.”

The content at launch is going be the same accross all the 11 countries, but the BBC has the ability to change the content of the app to allow us to meet the demands of each region/country.

This will likely factor more highly in the introduction of the global iPlayer to the USA, where licensing rights for TV shows can be more very complicated. According to reports, once the BBC works out the rights issues, the iPlayer content shouldn’t affect the company’s offerings in iTunes, Hulu, and Netflix.

“We see the global BBC iPlayer very much as another ‘Channel’ operating in Western Europe,” BBC spokesman Alex Fulton said. “By adopting windowing strategies for our content, we are able to ensure that our broadcast partners and Channels around the world are able to entertain their audiences with our shows.”

The subscription price is interesting because it is lower than the BBC license fee in the UK, making it cheaper to watch the BBC abroad. This may have some residents up in arms.

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Amazon have brought the company that designs TV apps including a big part in the LoveFilm TV player, Pushbutton said today that Amazon have brought the company for an undisclosed amount.

Amazon aquiring internet TV companies

Pushbutton design user interfaces for traditional and emerging TV platforms and helped get the LoveFilm player running on a number of devices including Sony’s PS3 console and Bravia connected TV sets, and

Pushbutton was founded nine years ago by former BSkyB exec Paula Byrne who said, “With Amazon and LOVEFiLM’s support, we look forward to offering our clients, as well as their customers, even more ways to access digital services in the future.”

The company has worked with the BBC, ITV, BT Vision, Sky, BBC, National Geographic and Virgin Media, the aquisition also gives Amazon a tie-in with the YouView IPTV project as Pushbutton are a member of the advisory group for the Freeview platform.

LoveFilm were brought by Amazon back in January. Speaking about the deal, Greg Greeley Amazon’s vice president said, “Pushbutton has a strong reputation for delivering amazing user experiences on connected devices. They were instrumental in helping launch the LOVEFiLM player through a variety of devices, and we look forward to helping them continue to innovate on behalf of customers.”

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TV apps getting more popular

Not quite up with iPhone users, but a sign that using apps is becoming accepted by even non-techie TV viewers. Speaking for in-stat, Keith Nissen, Research Director said:- “As expected, Netflix and YouTube currently dominate the TV application space, but as Netflix competitors become more numerous and as applications are optimized for the big screen, TV apps will become part of the mainstream TV viewing experience.”

The study says that shipments of app driven connected TV sets will grow by 36% on average during the next five years. However it says that TV apps are not the main reason viewers buy a connected TV.

More on this story:-

Over 60% of Connected TV Households Use TV Apps at Least Once per Week, Says .. – San Francisco Chronicle (press release)

Applications have dominated the news in the smartphone and tablet worlds for some time but with the advent of smart TVs consumers are now rapidly adopting online TV applications that are integrated into their connected TVs with . …

Strong uptake for apps in connected TV households – Rapid tv news

New research by In-Stat has revealed that despite TV apps not being the primary reason for purchasing connected TVs over 60% of connected households will use a TV app at least once per week. In its Q211 US Digital Entertainment Database report …

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The app lets you watch much more content from services such as Hulu, ABC, CBS, FOX and ESPN, which is an improvment on Orb’s PS3 disc costing $20. That service only offered  YouTube along with Comedy Central, and pay services such as Netflix and Amazon.

The Orb Live app also has premium online content via services such as Netflix and Amazon Video on Demand. It also syncs with users music files, online music, video, photos and more.

Speaking about the service, Joe Costello, CEO of Orb Networks said, “Now, consumers can use Orb Live to watch their favorite TV shows, sports and movies anywhere, on their mobile phone, without any additional subscription fees. No matter where they are, people can use their mobile phone to get the same great content that is available on their home PC for watching at the beach, on the soccer field, at the airport or on a commuter train.”

The app is available for iPhone now from the App Store, with a mid-August release planned for the Android devices. Visit the Orb Live website.

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The company is probably preparing a common Windows OS “core” that will allow developers to build applications across multiple devices. Executives are said to have discussed the issue with over 14500 of Microsoft’s partners during their yearly conference event, and it does seem that a single Windows OS is on the cards. But it’s not clear as how far it will go.

Mobile group chief Andy Lees, who spoke at Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference about bringing together different devices,  “into a unified ecosystem.” Lees said.

Operations officer Kevin Turner said: “Our future at Microsoft is the ability to unify the ecosystems and the user experiences. It’s the ability to enhance those ecosystems with great cloud services,” Turner said. Then he added:

“So, when you think about the next release of Windows running across x86, ARM, system-on-a-chip, the opportunity to put Windows with an OS that is scalable across those platforms exists in a new and profound way. And where we go in the future of unifying these ecosystems is certainly going to be an exciting ride, but a big, big step forward is about to get made with Windows 8, and this is really important for you to understand.”

Apple has five devices iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac and Apple TV that run either Mac OS or iOS, and there has been talk of merging the two OS’s Mac OS and iOS.

Microsoft are planning to have a single Windows OS for PCs and Windows Phone, and also the Xbox operating system sometime within the next four years, That would mean Microsoft’s next OS will run on PCs, tablets, phones, and the next Xbox when it hits sometime in 2015/6.

Microsoft wants to allow application developers in this ecosystem to write their apps and have them run on as many different devices as possible. It wants to unify the partner ecosystem.

Windows 8. It seems will bridge the gap between PC and tablet. Microsoft is planning a new application programming model for Windows 8 codenamed Jupiter, with an XAML/UI layer on top of Windows APIs and frameworks.

More on this story:-

Is Microsoft About To Dump Windows? – Business Insider

iOS (known as iPhone OS prior to June 2010) is Apples mobile operating system. Originally developed for the iPhone it has since been extended to support other Apple devices such as the iPod Touch iPad and Apple TV. Apple. …

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ITV Player comes to iPad, iPhone and iPod

Like the android app, the ITV player works via Wi-Fi only and has no 3G option. Robin Pembrooke, the MD of ITV Online and OnDemand said, “I’m genuinely thrilled to be launching our ITV Player app across the Apple family of devices just in time for our customers to be able to catch up on what promises to be some amazing performances at this year’s iTunes Festival on ITV.

He continued, “This launch is a key moment in our mobile delivery strategy and we’re very proud that a simple, user friendly and quality ITV Player experience is now available across a range of mobile devices.”

The iPad has had the BBC iPlayer app available for an eternity and even channel 4 have released their 4oD app before the UK’s largest commercial network. So it is about time the app appeared.

ITV are promoting their content across multiple devices and this move adds the biggest mobile market at this time. You can download the iPhone, iPad and iPod app from iTunes now, you must be UK based to run it.

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