UK terrestrial channel Five has signed up to be a joint venture partner in Project Canvas. The formal expression of interest from RTL-owned Five means it joins fellow broadcaster ITV and telecoms operator BT in the venture get the green light. Channel 4, which has been eyeing Canvas closely, has not yet joined the project […]
IP Vision's FetchTV, the first Freeview+ IPTV service to offer its users access to video-on-demand (VOD) and catch up content direct to their TV screen with tied-in subscription model, has its first retail deal with John Lewis. The SmartBox provides free access to a growing range of web video services. Users are able to watch […]
Blockbuster UK has confirmed an agreement that allows consumers to instantly view movies and video from its OnDemand service on Samsung’s televisions and electronics devices. Under the deal Blockbuster’s OnDemand service will be integrated into new Samsung HD TVs, Home Theatre Systems and Blu-ray players. ….
C4's VOD strand has is testing Test Tube Telly – a combo of 4oD with Facebook Connect that tells Facebook friends which C4 shows you're watching. Aggregators Joost and Boxee have broadcaster-wide social viewing feeds.
Charles Dunstone, chief executive of Carphone Warehouse (owner of Talk Talk and Tiscali UK) is studying whether its Talk Talk phone and broadband business should expand Tiscali's TV service and whether that would be via Canvas or the existing platform. Carphone completed its deal to buy Tiscali's UK assets for £236m (E275m) last week, including […]
CBS has become the first network to sign up to trials of an online VOD in the US. The broadcaster's alliance with Comcast, the cable group which unveiled plans for its On Demand Online service last month, could help CBS build up an alternative to Hulu, the fast-growing online video site backed by three rival […]
Netflix has formed a partnership with Sony Electronics that will enable Netflix subscribers to instantly watch movies streamed from Netflix on Sony Bravia models compatible with Sony’s Bravia Internet video link module. Launching in Autumn, Netflix members on an unlimited plan can use the service to instantly watch more than 12,000 movies and TV episodes […]
Communications market research firm Infonetics recently released the Q1 09 edition of its IPTV and Switched Digital Video Equipment, Services, and Subscribers report. Highlights are: "All eyes are focused on video on-demand and streaming content servers as more and more programming moves to on-demand. VOD is rapidly becoming EOD (everything on-demand) as operators beef up […]
Joost was squeezed out of the market by broadcasters setting up their own VOD channels admits Mike Volpi, who resigned as CEO. He said that in April, when Disney joined the Hulu joint venture, it became pretty clear Joost had to do something else — it is becoming a white label video provider. Explaining how […]
The BBC’s director of new media and technology Erik Huggers says that the future for free-to-air digital platforms like Freesat and Freeview is ‘unclear’ – suggesting that only IPTV and Project Canvas venture will give consumers the services and features that they need. Huggers said that, despite work on adding HD to Freeview and continued […]