Justin.tv is no more, with the pioneering live streaming service having suddenly shut down after seven years. Meanwhile, its replacement, Twitch.tv, is making a series of changes which suggests it’s preparing to be acquired by Google.

Justin.tv Is No More

On August 5, Justin.tv shut down without its users being given any kind of notice such a big change was happening. The only explanation offered for killing Justin.tv was the popularity of Twitch, with the company stating in its farewell blog post, “Twitch is now the focus of the company’s resources. Unfortunately that means we need to shut down Justin.tv.” Short, and not at all sweet.

Justin.tv began in 2007 and has provided a place for people to live stream them and their lives ever since. Earlier this year Justin.tv renamed itself Twitch Interactive, showing just how much of an impact its video-gaming offshoot had become. And now it’s absolute focus of the entire company.

Users were given no notice of this change, with accounts being closed and all access to content and settings denied. Users who don’t stream themselves playing video games — and for whom Twitch would obviously be inappropriate — are advised to start using “YouTube, Ustream and Livestream” instead.

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Seinfeld could soon be available to stream on Netflix, with Jerry Seinfeld, the creator and star of the classic sitcom, suggesting talks are ongoing.

However, Netflix could face competition from rival streaming services, and in order to secure the rights, Netflix may have to stump up a huge sum of cash.

Seinfeld

Seinfeld is a hugely successful sitcom that originally aired between 1989 and 1998. It initially struggled to find its audience, but by the time the show came to an end it was the biggest thing on network television.

Seinfeld has made a lot of money in subsequent television runs, and it’s one of those shows that people watch over and over again. Which explains why it hasn’t yet made it across to streaming services such as Netflix.

“Yet” being the operative word.

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Microsoft has long held ambitious plans to turn its games console into a media hub delivering masses of content of all kinds into people’s living rooms. With Xbox Originals, it may be on its way to realizing this dream. Unfortunately, while the initiative has a lot of promise, the details leave a lot of room for disappointment.

Xbox Originals

Microsoft has announced the initial lineup for Xbox Originals, its first foray into original programming. Committed projects include a Halo TV show, Every Street United, an unscripted show featuring famous soccer players, and Humans, a show about robotic servants.

There are further projects in development that may or may not make it past the pilot stage. These include Deadlands, based on a pen-and-paper RPG, Gun Machine, a detective thriller based on the novel by Warren Ellis, and Winterworld, based on Chuck Dixon and Jorge Zaffino’s series of graphic novels.

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LoveFilm is no more, being rebranded as Amazon Prime Instant Video and being folded into the existing Amazon Prime service. Most people will have to pay more money for the service, but the £79-per-year asking price buys you more than just streaming video.

Amazon Prime Primer

Amazon Prime is primarily a premium version of Amazon, with those willing to pay the asking price gaining next-day delivery (two days in the much larger U.S.) on most items sold through the online retailer.

If this was the only advantage Prime offered, you would have to order a lot of items to justify the expense. However, Prime customers in the U.S. have had extras included for several years, including Amazon Instant Video (formerly Amazon Unbox and Amazon Video on Demand) and the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library.

This has sweetened the pot and upped the number of Amazon customers opting to subscribe.

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YouTube is set to continue its efforts to evolve from the home of a disparate collection of funny animal videos into the home of truly talented individuals all creating professional-quality programming. In order to affect this change it’s opening YouTube Spaces around the world, with the latest due to open in New York in 2014.

A Good Investment

When Google paid a whopping $1.65 billion for YouTube in 2006, most people thought the search and advertising giant had overpaid by a considerable margin for a site that, despite growing a rapid rate, was still only 18 months old.

However, seven years later and with YouTube now dominant in the space it occupies, Google’s acquisition looks to have been an extremely intelligent one.

Where Google has triumphed in that time is nurturing independent talent, allowing filmmakers and amateur content creators to become partners, which benefits all concerned.

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As was rumored for some time, YouTube has started charging for content, with paid channels making their debut. The pilot scheme gives qualifying partners the opportunity to erect paywalls, but will viewers pay in the numbers needed to make this worthwhile?

Paid YouTube Channels

YouTube has rolled out its first paid content, with a pilot scheme which sees 50 channels offering subscriptions costing $0.99 per month. All offer a 14-day free trial, and there are discounts for longer subscriptions.

The pilot scheme includes channels as diverse as Jim Henson Family TV, UFC Select, and GayDirect. In the coming months YouTube is promising a wider rollout which will see partners able to set up their own paid offerings.

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Amazon has taken on the episodic version of Zombieland in order to add to its Instant Video lineup. Which further cements the feeling that television networks are becoming a resource we could well do without, either now or in the near future.

Amazon Takes On Zombieland

Amazon is developing a TV series based on Zombieland, a hit movie starring Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Woody Harrelson, and a cast of unnamed zombies. Oh, and featuring a cameo by Bill Murray.

Zombieland began life as a proposal for a TV series, with CBS buying a pilot. The network decided not to proceed, so writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick turned it into a screenplay for a movie which was eventually released in 2009.

There have been rumors of a sequel, which then morphed into rumors of a TV show based on the movie. That looks like it’s going ahead, but funding is coming from Amazon rather than CBS or any of the other big U.S. networks.

Zombieland looks set to be an Amazon Prime exclusive, but with the project only just getting underway it could be some time before it sees the light of day.

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