Internet TV on Windows 7 - facing real competition.
30 October, 2009
I was always hoping that the Internet would kill off low-brow TV forever, but no such luck, apparently. During last week’s launch, the “Internet TV” feature in Windows 7 suddenly became something serious for users in the U.S.. Internet TV was already present in pre-release versions of Windows 7, but back then it only had short clips and promos. With the final release, Internet TV includes full episodes of a surprising number of classic and current TV series. With this, Microsoft is entering competition for TV content distribution with Hulu and Apple in a much more direct sense than ever before.
Content
The content is organized by network, which I understand but is not the most user-friendly solution. On the CBS page, for example, you’ll find full episodes of the current series CSI:Miami, NUMB3RS, Accidentally On Purpose, and How I Met Your Mother. All of those are on CBS now, but you will also find older stuff, like all three seasons of the classic 50 year old Twilight Zone (in black and white), and even MacGyver is there, for all those Americans that have no life.
Functionality
To set up Internet TV , first you have to let the Media Center application download and display the listings. Then when you first view a program a Flash viewer gets installed, and you’re ready to go. Apparently not all of the networks are onto Silverlight yet :)There’s no charge for any of the content. Each full episode includes a handful of short ads - far fewer than those found in a network broadcast. I couldn’t find any obvious fast-forward capability to zap through those ads. You do not need a special TV tuner in your PC for this, just the internet connection. The Internet TV features are not available on a Media Center extender, probably because of the Flash-based player. The interface offers no option to save the episodes for offline watching.
Competition
The race is on for Internet-based TV, with Hulu and Tivo and Apple all experimenting with different ways of signing partnership deals, delivering content, and charging viewers for the privilege. But, while the good people of the US are exploring Hulu and Windows TV, the rest of the world are simply going to their favorite torrent sites and grabbing high definition .mkv files of every tv show that airs within a few days of its being there. Full libraries of Family Guy and South Park. Every episode of all seasons of Big Bang Theory. Viewable any time in glorious high def, no commercials, no annoyances. And that is the real competition for Hulu, Tivo, Apple and Microsoft Internet TV…
Copypaste this story
Mail to a friend - Copypaste to del.icio.us