PS3 Adds HBO on Demand
Posted by Steve Fravel on Wednesday, May 26, 2010 · 
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The Sony Corporation has agreed to provide access to HBO on Demand content via the Playstation 3 game system. Combined with access to programming including Major League Baseball, network television episodes, NetFlix and movies, this creates a formidable alternative for some television viewers looking for content sources.
Initially, HBO will allow PS3 owners to pay for access to at least 11 of its original series. Priced at $2.99 per episode, PS3 owners will be able to watch programming like True Blood, Entourage, Big Love and Curb Your Enthusiasm when they become available for sale via DVD. The access window is roughly 11 months after the show’s original run on the network. HBO will introduce additional titles once each month to build the library of content.
The availability of programming via game platforms like Sony’s Playstation 3 and the Microsoft X Box creates just one more venue for program producers to develop revenue generation. It will be interesting to see if other “premium” program services join HBO and Major League Baseball in providing access to their content via game systems.
Best Buy Entering Crowded VoD Market
Posted by Kevin McGuire on Tuesday, May 18, 2010 · ·
Best Buy issued a press release today announcing that they will offer “same-day instant access to new release movies and TV shows” later this month. The service will be available through some consumer devices (like Blu-ray Disc players and HDTVs), as well as streaming to computers through their website www.cinemanow.com. LG Electronics and Insignia are among the first manufacturers that will have the technology available in their devices.
I get it — on-demand media is the flavor of the month, and you aren’t a consumer tech company unless you have a service. But to me it seems overly crowded with the likes of Netflix, Blockbuster, Google and even WalMart vying for a slice of the limited pie. Personally, I think we’re in the land grab days of streaming media. I don’t think anyone knows how it will all shake out yet, but everyone is rushing to stake their claim.
Oh, and does anyone else find it ironic that streaming video, which is supposed to usher in the death of physical media, is available through Blu-ray devices?
Blockbuster Reports Q1 Loss
Posted by Steve Fravel on Friday, May 14, 2010 · ·
Blockbuster, working hard to increase revenues from its multichannel distribution service, came up short in the first quarter of 2010. The DVD rental service reported a loss of $65.4 million compared to a profit of $27.7 million for the same period the previous year.
Citing encouraging discussions with financial and strategic partners as well as a 28-day advantage on competitors Redbox and Netflix, Blockbuster CEO Jim Keyes said that the company has “achieved a number of goals to establish a significant competitive advantage going forward.” Read more
Sony PS3 leads the Pack with Connected Consoles
Posted by Steve Fravel on Friday, April 16, 2010 · ·
A recent study by The Diffusion Group has determined that roughly one third of households in the United States with broadband service have a video game console connected to the Internet. It is the opinion of some that game consoles are likely the solution of choice for delivery of mainstream over-the-top (OTT) video content.
Of the three primary game consoles sold in the United States, the study determined that the Sony Playstation 3 leads the way in terms of users connecting the consoles to the Internet. Sony is followed closely by Microsoft’s XBox 360, with the Nintendo Wii having Internet connection in over 50% of consumer homes that have chosen that platform. Read more
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.
Netflix Streaming Nearly Doubles
Posted by Kevin McGuire on Thursday, January 28, 2010 · ·
Netflix released earnings yesterday and they had some interesting results. The video provider ended 2009 with over 12 million subscribers, adding over 1 million subscribers in the fourth quarter alone, and up 31% from the end of 2008. But what was perhaps the most interesting from a broadband provider perspective was this comment:
Percentage of subscribers who watched instantly more than 15 minutes of a TV episode or movie in the fourth quarter of 2009 was 48%, compared to 28% for the same period of 2008 and 41% for the third quarter of 2009.
Netflix Expanding, Plans to Stream to Nintendo’s Wii
Posted by Jesse Ward on Friday, January 15, 2010 · ·
Netflix has reached an agreement with Nintendo to stream movies and TV shows to Wii customers in the United States this spring.
With this announcement, Netflix now has deals with more than a dozen manufacturers to embed the Internet streaming capability, including Panasonic, Sanyo, Sharp, Toshiba, Funai, LG Electronics, Samsung, Sony, Best Buy’s Insignia brand, Roku and TiVo.
Of particular note, with this announcement Netflix now is available on all three of the major multimedia and gaming devices, including the Sony Playstation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360 and now Nintendo Wii. Read more
