Rep. Rick Boucher Presses NBC About Hulu Practices Toward Boxee

February 18, 2010 in Culture, tv/series by Brian Logee

: Image by Getty Images via Daylife

During the Congress hearing examining the Comcast acquisition of NBC Universal Rep. Rick Boucher Presses NBC About Hulu Practices Toward Boxee.

Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA): What about Boxee? Mr. Zucker you probably are in a better position to answer that. Did Hulu block the Boxee users from access to the Hulu programs?

Zucker (NBC): This was a decision made by the Hulu management to, uh, what Boxee was doing was illegally taking the content that was on Hulu without any business deal. And, you know, all, all the, we have several distributors, actually many distributors of the Hulu content that we have legal distribution deals with so we don’t preclude distribution deals. What we preclude are those who illegally take that content.

Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA): “Well would you have negotiations with Boxee upon request?”

Zucker (NBC): “We have always said that we’re open to negotiations.”

I’m overjoyed to see congress pressing NBC about their issues with Boxee and Hulu. They have had past issues with streaming content online and now with Comcast set to take over I fear those issues will only get worse.

Boxee uses a web browser to access Hulu’s content – just like Firefox or Internet Explorer. Boxee users click on a link to Hulu’s website and the video within that page plays. We don’t “take” the video. We don’t copy it. We don’t put ads on top of it. The video and the ads play like they do on other browsers or on Hulu Desktop.

The big difference between boxee and other browsers are that boxee took the effort to make their product available on other platforms that connect easily to the TV. This is unfortunately perceived as a threat by those studios who don’t get the change in the way audiences want to consume their media. We go into more detail on Speculative Fiction Today #405 “Many Mini Chucks”.

Zucker’s response makes me cringe because it sounds like the health care debate all over again. One side says hey lets negotiate on this and the other side says they are more then willing to negotiate yet their actions shows no intention of doing so.

(via Boxee Blog)

Would you pay for a Boxee app?

August 26, 2009 in Decabling, tv/series by Eric

: Image via CrunchBase

[Avner] Ronen says that the company still has yet to collect any revenue for use of its media center software, but that it’s working on a way to allow content owners to charge for the Boxee Apps that they create (Contentinople).

This begs the question: Would you pay for a Boxee App? I might but there are a few ground rules that would have to be established:

Rules for Paid Apps

Paid App channels would have to be commercial free.
Paid App channels must have a free version to test the content.
Apps must be cheap! The more they cost, the fewer people will pay.
Apps should be available for networks and individual shows.

Reasons I would pay for an app

Premium Channels: HBO and Showtime are top of my list.
Foreign Content: BBC iPlayer is top on my list, but I have a soft spot for Chinese and Indian TV.
Supporting Indie Media: I would pay to support the Guild, Legend of Neil and other shows, but I would expect extras.

How I hope this works

I have hoped for a long time that Apple would open its platform to allow more options. So far they haven’t. I think Media should have a tiered support system:

Free: Ad supported, let me check it out
Tiny Fee: Watch commercial Free
Small Fee: Own outright (The content is downloaded to my device)
Modest Fee: Own outright with special features

I want to be able to watch any show and upgrade my content as I see fit.

Did I miss anything?

What would make you want to pay for a Boxee App? What rules do you have? What model would you like to see?

TV and Movie Streams Up, Push Decabling!

August 6, 2009 in Decabling, tv/series by Eric

The number of people who are streaming TV Shows and Movies online is way up. Now is the time to push Decabling!

Hulu and Netflix are helping in the cause, but we have a lot of work to do. We need to promote AppleTV (or better the Mac Mini) and Boxee to get more people to move to the next phase, leaving the cable companies for the freedom decabling offers.

How do you think we should push decabling?

(via New TeeVee)

Speculative Fiction Today #410 “If Only Wheelie Had a Wayward Pine”

June 16, 2009 in Podcasts, Speculative Fiction Today by Brian Logee

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Podcast (speculative-fiction-tody): Play in new window | Download

Culture

Events
- Innocente Seraphim event added to calander (via Project: Shadow)
- Readercon 20 event added to calander (via Project: Shadow)
- Anticipation event added to calander (via Project: Shadow)
- Bubonicon event added to calander (via Project: Shadow)
- STEAMCON event added to calander (via Project: Shadow)
Life Size Lego Buzz Lightyear (via dashPunk)
Orion’s Shoulder May Have Blown Up! (via dashPunk)

Movie

DVD Releases: June 16th 2009 (via dashPunk)
Transformer round up:
- Transformers 2 Wheelie Clip (via dashPunk)
- International Transformers 2 Poster (via /Film)
- Six New Photos From Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (via /Film)
- A Better Look at Transformers 2’s The Fallen (via /Film)

TV / Series

Contest: Worst Guild Candidate… Ever! (via The Guild)
Boxqueue (discover on the web, watch on your TV) (via boxee)
L8R = del.icio.us + boxee (via boxee)
The Guild on boxee (via boxee blog)

Book

Review: Bride of the Water God by Mi-Kyung Yun (via dashPunk)
The Confessed #11 – “Wizards First Rule Ch 5-8″ (via dashPunk)

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