Boxee Adds a Second Target Buyer
Posted by Steve Fravel on Sunday, January 29, 2012 · 
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Though Boxee has been targeting residential customers who are “cutting the cord” to conventional cable services and satellite subscriptions, it announced last week that it would add cable operators who may be considering eliminating program costs and shifting their focus to selling just high-speed Internet access. Read more
Boxee Adds Local Ability
Posted by Steve Fravel on Friday, November 18, 2011 · ·
Intent on drawing the video cord-cutting crowd to the Boxee solution, Boxee today introduced a new add-on that helps keep viewers in the Boxee box.
The new “wrinkle” is a dongle that attaches to the Boxee via USB and provides a coaxial connection to an antenna or pay-TV device. The live dongle will allow a user to integrate local broadcast signals or content from cable, satellite or telco into the Boxee experience.
According to Boxee, the majority of highly rated television programs originate on “free,” over-the-air broadcast channels. For many viewers, the all-in-one approach of Boxee integrating OTT content like Hulu and Netflix along with the over-the-air signals creates a compelling alternative to pay-TV.
VOTW: Boxee Readies Set-top Box
Posted by Jesse Ward on Monday, July 19, 2010 · ·
And last but not least, our video of the week (VOTW). Boxee, software that allows users to watch movies and TV shows from the Web on a television, is putting the final touches on its new set-top box. In this video, Zach Klein, who oversees design at Boxee, discusses the STB and the production methods the company is using to make it. Zach tells us that the device will be on retail shelves in late October/early November. D-Link is builing the box, which is expected to go on sale for around $200.
WalMart Agrees to Buy Movie Service Vudu
Posted by Kevin McGuire on Monday, February 22, 2010 · ·
According to the New York Times, Walmart has agreed to buy movie service Vudu. Vudu is a 3 year old start up founded by industry veterans from companies like TiVo, WebTV, and OpenTV, to name a few. It had deals with major studios bringing the ability to purchase or rent over 5,000 titles through either a stand alone box, or recently embedded into a variety of consumer devices like TVs and DVD players.
While details of the transaction are not known, one can be safe to assume that Wal-Mart is doing it to protect/diversify their DVD sales business. One site that I came across suggested that Walmart made up nearly 40% of the total $17B DVD market back in 2006 (which I believe was before iTunes sold movies).
Will they be successful? Time will tell. With services like Netflix, Blockbuster, and Boxee having a head start, Walmart may have a difficult time differentiating itself in an increasingly crowded market. I’d bet they will adopt one of their time tested strategies to try to compete: low, low prices.
Boxee to Offer Web-to-TV Set-Top Box
Posted by Jesse Ward on Monday, December 14, 2009 · ·
Video start-up Boxee announced last week that it is supplying the software for a new set-top box that will transfer online video to TVs. Taiwanese vendor D-Link will manufacture the device, which the companies hope to keep under a $200 retail price.
Boxee collects videos and music from Web sites such as Netflix, MLB.TV, Comedy Central and Pandora, and presents it in a visually friendly format, alongside some social networking features.
The free service has caught on with early adopters, who say it represents a future in which the wide selection of content from the Web wins out over a more limited television experience controlled by big media companies. Read more