Rogers boots up online vid portal in Canada
Canadian TV web watchers can’t access Hulu, but come Monday they’ll have their very own online video TV service. Assuming they subscribe to Rogers Communications cable service.
“We’re no longer in the cable TV business,” said Dave Purdy of Rogers video product management, as he unveiled the On Demand Online service. “We’re in the video entertainment business.”
The service will be ad-supported, Rogers hopes. Premium programming will be in the mix at some point, but otherwise the content comes free. Access is limited to Rogers’ cable and/or cable modem subscribers in Canada — sorry, no border hopping allowed.
Content kicks off with about 15 broadcast partners and 19 TV and specialty channels. Rogers owns several cable channels (Citytv, Sportsnet, A&E, Bio, G4 Canada), which will be included at launch.
Rogers last month cut a deal with Michael Eisner’s Vuguru online studio, giving the cabler exclusive Canadian rights to its Web productions.
Similar to YouTube’s early model, viewers have the option of standard definition and a higher-quality offering that they’re not calling HD (cheers).
Astral Media launched TMN OnLine in October, offering the Movie Channel content to consumers who get their TV via the Bell system, which competes with Rogers.
U.S. cable giant Comcast is rolling out its ballyhooed TV Everywhere service before the end of the year, using the same interface (thePlatform) as the Rogers version. Comcast owns thePlatform, which is based in Seattle.
YouTube thinking big, in 1080p
We’re days away from 1080p HD displayed at full resolution on YouTube.
The amateur video giant has been supporting 720p “high def” for a while now, and while uploaders could get a 1080p video onto the servers, display rubbed up against that maximum output. No more, apparently.
YouTube’s HD mode will now offer 720p and 1080p, depending on the resolution of the source video file. (1080p is what you get from a Blu-ray.)
YouTube is even going back to re-encode 1080p files already uploaded to get them into proper resolution.
“For viewers with big monitors and a fast computer, try switching to 1080p to get the most out of the fullscreen experience,” a YouTube engineer suggested on the official YouTube blog. OK here, we go. (Don’t waste your time trying this on your iPod, which doesn’t do 720.)
A sample video of Pennie the Dog’s nose is offered as a 1080p preview. Kind of underwhelming, but get a load of this 1080p high definition test of some square in Maine put up by a consumer. Big and beautiful. To get the full 1080p (apparently), add this to the end of the URL string: &fmt=37
Terrific, but … here are the potential downsides: Eternal upload times (even at the 11-minute limit), constant buffering during viewing due to server slowness, and audio playback that’s the pits compared to the video. Everyone banging on the YouTube servers could share in the HD strain.
“How about making it so that videos load fast enough on NORMAL QUALITY first?” one crank commented on YouTube’s blog posting announcing the news.
YouTube is making the inevitable move to full 1080p support now, probably figuring enough people have full-HD home video cameras to justify the expense and hassle. The whole area of online video is one big Beta anyway — let’s enjoy the bumpy ride.
Now about that crappy audio …
Best Buy streaming CinemaNow, soon
CinemaNow just won’t go away quietly — now the pioneering movie download service has popped up in a noisy deal with Best Buy, which is trying to carve out a spot in the non-DVD/Blu-ray future.
The big box retailer partnered with CinemaNow owner Sonic Solutions to provide streaming content via prefab setups in the retailer’s lineup of “connected consumer electronics” such as TVs and Blu-ray players. Best Buy says it’s in talks with various hardware manufacturers.
In theory, Best Buy is taking on Amazon, the iTunes Store and Netflix in the movie streaming space.
The retailer said it would start promoting digital delivery in its many stores (where DVDs and Blu-rays already are starting to lose floor space.) Remember, Best Buy bought what’s left of Napster in 2008.
Selling low-fi electronics to Joe and Mrs. Sixpack, of course, offers Best Buy a killer opportunity to push its own streaming-content brand. No name or pricing structure was announced, although the Los Angeles Times said Best Buy planned to experiment with various models, including subscriptions and ad sponsorship.
Here comes the Best Buy-CinemaNow deal’s canned statement: “We expect on-demand entertainment to quickly grow into a mass market activity, with digital sell-through and rental becoming a significant new revenue stream for content owners,” said Dave Habiger, president and CEO of Sonic Solutions.
CinemaNow, no longer a standalone, claims to have more than 20,000 movies at the ready. Unfortunately, many are the same “classics” and weary catalog titles found on Netflix’s Watch Instantly. Roxio CinemaNow’s biggest partner is Blockbuster, although it’s done some preliminary dealing with Netflix on streaming content.
Best Buy said the movie downloads would be tried on “web-connected television sets, portable media players, PCs, Blu-ray Disc players, set-top boxes and mobile phones.” (Sonic Solutions calls that sort of thing the “Roxio CinemaNow ecosystem.”)
Apple, meanwhile, is said to be working on a subscription TV service that would run off the existing iTunes Store software. The $30 or so subscription fee is relatively steep, but could be a good deal for the many people who now get their TV programming online (compared with TV and satellite). Disney is expected to sign on first, reports Peter Kafka of All Things Digital.
YouTube loses top content deal maker
YouTube’s chief of content partnerships, Jordan Hoffner, is leaving after three years on the job. Hoffner helped YouTube get into the premium content game in some fashion, making deals with Disney/ABC and Time Warner, and setting up an internal movie “channel.”
Hoffner is off to Barry Diller’s new multimedia production unit at IAC, joining Ben Silverman. Chris Maxcy, who handled music partnerships, steps up to take Hoffner’s place.
Hoffner starts off with some serious traction: YouTube’s live (and archived) global webcast of U2’s Rose Bowl gig has sent out more than 10 million streams since Oct. 25. It’s a beautifully done concert presentation with solid sound and imaginative visuals. YouTube also just wooed back Warner Music artists .
The DIY video giant also has been in content talks with majors Warner Bros. and Sony, as well as MGM and Lionsgate. YouTube recently created a “Shows” section for professional video. YouTube also made baby-step deals for short-form content and trailers from DIsney/ABC and Time Warner.
