Google TV Coming To U.K.

Google TV may not have been a success in the U.S., with Apple TV outperforming it every step of the way, but that isn’t stopping Google from planning its next move. And it’s one that will see them hop across the Atlantic to arrive on the doorsteps of the British public.

According to Eric Schmidt, speaking in his keynote at the Edinburgh Television Festival, Google TV will launch in Europe in the next six months, and the search and advertising giant is already in talks with British broadcasters.

This is a necessary step if Google is going to avoid experiencing the same problems in the U.K. and Europe as it has in the United States. The major U.S. networks have all blocked their content from streaming through Google TV, proving their desire to remain in control but also their unwillingness to stare the future in the face.

Google TV Future…

Google, however, is looking to the future, and Schmidt claims that early failure (as perceived from the outside) will now prevent the company from moving forward with its plans. According to Reuters, he is confident that more partners will join the existing ones, saying:

“We’re absolutely committed to staying, to improving Google TV. I believe that they’re both [Sony and Logitech] going to be on board and I believe there are many more coming. Wait shortly for an announcement.”

The message is clear: Google isn’t going to kill Google TV off anytime soon. In the same way that Apple is viewing Apple TV as a hobby for the time being, knowing that its day will surely come, so Google is confident that connected-TV platforms are the future, and it needs to be involved.

Conclusions

There is a longterm battle shaping up here, not only between Google and Apple, but also between dozens of other smaller players all building their own connected-TV platforms. We won’t know who is going to win until the TV networks start playing nice, but Google is clearly not going down without a fight.

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Mobile Video

Mobile video is a growing sector, with the number of people owning mobile devices capable of displaying video in high quality lurching ever upwards. As we all carry our smartphones with us pretty much everywhere we go content is needed to fill the gaps between taking calls and sending texts.

The question is whether anyone wants to actually watch movies or television shows on a screen that’s barely even a few inches in diameter? Google obviously thinks so, which is why it has updated its Android Market Videos app and rolled it out to smartphones.

Android Market Videos App

The Videos app is the official video player for Android Market movie rentals. It previously only worked on devices running Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) but has now been updated and rolled out to smartphones running the 2.2 and 2.3 versions of Google’s mobile operating system.

Once installed the Videos app gives you access to all movies rented through the Android Market, which can be bought for as little as $1.99. Rentals can even be saved locally to view offline, but once playback has begun it has to be completed within 24 hours.

The Videos app also deals with other videos, including YouTube content and clips you have recorded yourself.

Conclusions

I’m not convinced people will want to watch a movie on their phone at this point in time, especially one they have paid good money to rent. A tablet with a reasonable-sized screen, sure, but a smartphone? Really?

Luckily the Android Market Videos app does more than just allow you to rent movies, so even those who aren’t keen on that usage will find some worth in downloading and installing it. Assuming of course their phone is running Android 2.2 (Froyo) or higher.

[Via TechCrunch]

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Web Video Chat

It has been possible to chat via the Internet using webcams for years thanks to services such as Skype, Google Talk, MSN Messenger, and Yahoo! Messenger. But in many ways it’s only this week that the idea has come of age.

This is due to a couple of new services in the form of Hangouts on Google+ and Skype on Facebook. Both of which bring new features and easy-to-use video chat into the mainstream.

Google+ Hangouts

Google+ is a new integrated social network from Google currently in beta testing. And one of its many features is Hangouts, a simple-to-use video chat service which can be used for one-on-one chats or for groups of people of up to 10 at a time to come and go.

The group video chat element works exceptionally well and will be recognizable to anyone who uses other Google products. The one-on-one element isn’t quite so accomplished, but luckily for us there is an alternative.

Skype On Facebook

Skype video chat has now been integrated into Facebook, showing up as an option right on the homepage and one your friends’ profiles. This comes after Microsoft acquired Skype, and it clearly wants to make it pay by placing it on the biggest site in the world.

Skype already offers group chat, but it isn’t free, requiring one user to be a premium service subscriber. This means that Skype on Facebook only caters to one-on-one video chats, but it does so with ultimate ease. You can now chat with any of your Facebook friends without any kind of effort.

Conclusions

Google+ Hangouts and Skype on Facebook offer different experiences and will cater to different needs. The former is great for group video chats, the latter for instantly connecting with friends on a one-on-one basis. Both are good additions to a bustling sector.

[Via CNET]

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Inventive YouTube Videos

There have been lots of inventive YouTube videos over the past few years, most of which have been posted on our sister site WebTVHub. These include Annoying Orange, and virals from Old Spice and Tippex.

And now we have a new game to suck all our time away from us: a YouTube version on the classic Tic Tac Toe. Unfortunately, what is the simplest game when played with pen and paper is a little trickier to recreate on a video site.

Interactive Tic Tac Toe

YouTube Tic Tac Toe has been created by video producer Rutter Jared. Great name, great game. It uses the annotation feature on YouTube to astounding effect, with 131 separate videos and more than 1,000 annotations required to cover every possible move and combination of moves in the game.

Jared told GigaOM that YouTube Tic Tac Toe required him to put in a month’s worth of 14-hour days, with the video editing and annotations being laborious work. And I doubt I’d have had the patience to see it through, if I’m honest.

The one aspect I don’t like is that it’s virtually impossible to win because we, as the player, always goes second, and everyone must know by now that Tic Tac Toe is usually won by the player who goes first. Which is Jared. Still, it’s fun losing in such an innovative environment.

Conclusions

As well as being fun for those of us who play the game, it’s a job for Jared as he has been making a living producing videos for YouTube since November 2010. YouTube has been trying to entice people to become full-time video creators of late, and it’s clearly working.

AOL AV

Those of you out there who want to expose yourselves on the Internet for others to see, intimately or otherwise, now have another option for doing so. AOL AV is a free video chat service which requires no sign-in or username, and no software download. It does, however, require Flash.

Leaked last week by some naughty bloggers, AOL AV has now launched in beta. And very impressive it is too. AOL AV allows four people to chat (video, audio, and text) together at one time without hoops needing to be jumped through.

All you need to do is visit the AOL AV site, click ‘Start a Video Chat’, click ‘Allow’, and there you are. To bring other people into the chatroom you just share the shortened URL with anyone you want to, be they friend or stranger.

Flash & Revenue Options

The one thing AOL AV requires is Adobe Flash (10.3). This is fine for people with a PC running a recent version of one of the major browsers, but not for users of Apple products such as iPad and iPhone, or some other smartphones.

Jason Shellen of Thing Labs said, “We’re using Flash much like YouTube used Flash. We’re already investigating other video technologies.” Which would imply it won’t be too long before there are other options for users of these devices.

The other quandary is how AOL are going to make this pay, which they invariably will do. Launching as free means I can only assume it will stay that way forever. And to charge would surely require sign-ins or downloads, completely removing the point of the service in its entirety. So, advertising it is. Which is fine by me.

Conclusions

I’ve tested AOL AV a few times and it’s worked brilliantly. Which, seeing as this is still just a beta version, is pretty amazing. A few more features, some unobtrusive advertising, and an alternative to Flash should mean this is a winner.

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Google TV

Google TV has been with us for almost a year now, but its first incarnation was never going to the best or final version. As is Google’s way, the company releases a product and then beavers away improving it with subsequent releases.

This is exactly the treatment Google TV has been rewarded with. There were strong rumors that the improvements would be displayed in brief at Google I/O this week, and that has indeed turned out to be the case.

Although it’s far from being a complete unveiling, it is at least something. And the screenshots are kinda hot, in a very geeky way.

Google TV Update

Google unveiled the new user interface for Google TV at Google I/O on Wednesday (May 11). NewTeeVee nabbed some screenshots which certainly show the UI has been vastly improved over the past year.

Simplicity is key, with Google having sought to remove all the extraneous steps unnecessary features to make the user experience a lot better. Simply put, the installed apps are available to select along the bottom of the screen while the current video continues to play above.

The new UI, which is being released on Android 3.1 (Honeycomb), also features an improved search capability and the Android Market. This will bring a huge selection of apps to Google TV and make it a much more appealing purchase than it currently is.

Conclusions

I’m impressed by these changes, and there are clearly more to come. The question is whether they will be enough to persuade the online video-viewing public to buy into the product. Because so far they haven’t in any great number.

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Google TV 1.0 to 2.0

After months of rumors Google TV was finally unveiled a year ago, in May 2010. Using its own Android operating system and Chrome Web browser, and partnering with several hardware manufacturers, Google was hoping to control the future of Web television.

Things didn’t quite pan out that way. Content partners weren’t convinced, and nor were reviewers. And sales of the Logitech set-top box couldn’t match the hype or ambition. Even the new Apple TV did better than Google TV.

There was speculation last week that Google would be seeking to reboot Google TV, and Ina Fried at All Things Digital claims v2.0 is definitely on its way. It’ll likely be shown in brief at the Google I/O conference next week and be ready for release before the holiday season.

Cha-cha-cha-Changes

The big question is what Google needs to do to turn Google TV from an also-ran into a must-buy?

Improving the hardware will be a must, as will removing the various technical issues that bugged users. The keyboard should probably go, to be replaced with a less-clunky way of interacting with the software.

The whole experience of using Google TV needs to be made much more user-friendly, and the promised “TV-centric version of the Android Market” with lots of third-party apps will help shake things up immensely.

That just leaves content, which is wholly reliant on the big networks and online video content providers such as Hulu coming on board rather than shutting up shop and blocking the platform as it has done so far. That’s a huge problem, one which Google will struggle to solve anytime soon.

Conclusions

There are certain things Google can and likely will do to improve Google TV in the eyes of consumers, manufacturers, and the networks. But the problem the company faces is it’s not completely in control of its own destiny.

Like the rest of the connected TV platforms that are here or are emerging, Google TV needs content to make it worthwhile. And that isn’t something that is easy to come by, at least without paying for the privilege.

TiVo has emerged victorious, with Dish and EchoStar paying $500 million to end all ongoing patent litigation.

TiVo Vs. Dish, Echostar

In 2004 TiVo, then on the up and up, sued EchoStar (which owned Dish at the time) over its DVR patents for ‘multimedia time warping’. TiVo won the case in 2006, but thanks to endless appeals the case kept trudging on.

TiVo won every appeal possible, and in April 2010 a judge ruled that the two companies would not only have to pay damages but also cease their services. It’s taken another year for a settlement to be reached but that has now finally happened. To the relief of everyone concerned, I’m sure.

Final Settlement

The final settlement sees Dish and EchoStar paying TiVo $300 million up front with another $200 million due in six annual payments between 2012 and 2017. This closes out all pending litigation and injunctions on both sides.

TiVo has also licensed its DVR patents to Dish and EchoStar for their remaining lives, ensuring the latter two can remain in business.

Thus begins a love-in between the companies, with TiVo promising to help Dish promote its new Blockbuster digital video service, coming after Dish acquired the assets of the former market leader in video rentals.

Dish CEO Charlie Ergen said:

“We are excited to work with TiVo to help develop our Blockbuster video service. Resolving the patent infringement case allows us to further engage with TiVo on a variety of exciting strategic initiatives, like Blockbuster, where we are uniquely positioned to collaborate.”

Conclusions

You have to wonder whether all of this was worth it in the end. Technology evolves so rapidly these days that what seems cutting-edge today will be old-fashioned tomorrow.

TiVo peaked in January 2007 when it boasted 4.4 million subscribers. It now has just 2 million, with the numbers having more than halved over the last four years. Mainly because online video now fills that void.

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Brightcove History

Brightcove is a company which offers an online video platform for publishing and distributing content on the Web. It was founded in 2004 and has since built am enviable customer base of high-profiles businesses. The company now streams 700 million videos every month, up from 400 million a month this time last year.

In 2005 Brightcove applied for a patent covering some very broad brush strokes concerning the online distribution of content, including video. Unbelievably, almost six years later and the patent has been awarded. Making it the latest in a long line of inconceivable patents being granted.

Online Video Patent

This patent (no. 7,925,973) being awarded would only make sense if Brightcove had been the first company to be involved with creating and distributing online video, and if there were no other companies actively involved in the business now. Neither of which applies, although Brightcove has been an important player from the beginning.

There is something terribly amiss at the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office), because some of the applications that have been and are being awarded these days are absolutely ludicrous. Just recently Apple has claimed ownership of the term ‘App Store’, Facebook ownership of the word ‘Book’ when used as a website, and Google a patent covering how a company logo can be modified.

This patent is so broad that it doesn’t even only refer to video, but the “distribution of content.” And the key points of the patent are features used by all online video players and platforms. How it was granted is something I’m either too stupid or naive to understand.

Conclusions

Regardless of my (lack of) understanding of this patent, the USPTO has seen fit to award it, and that is that. What this means for all those other companies, YouTube included, which use the same techniques, is not yet clear, but Brightcove could conceivably play dirty.

The company has raised around $100 million since being founded, and is expected to seek an IPO before 2011 draws to a close.

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Kate and William Royal Wedding

Prince William of Wales is marrying Kate Middleton (officially known as Catherine) on Friday April 29 in a ceremony set to begin at 10 am BST and last until around 2pm BST. Whether you personally are interested in seeing the nuptials taking place and all the surrounding hubbub, a significant proportion of the population is.

Hundreds of television channels around the world are showing the royal wedding live, but the event is also being streamed in full online. The official YouTube channel of the Royal Family is hosting the full ceremony, as is the NDN, and any other website which has paid the asking price to embed the feed.

In all, around 2 billion people are expected to watch the royal wedding between William and Kate, with 400 million of those estimated to be doing so on the Web. Which begs the question: Will the Internet with the bandwidth demands?

Bandwidth Demands

The last big online video broadcast which taxed the Internet was the inauguration of President Obama in 2009. That saw 70 million people tune in from the U.S., and an estimated 200 million worldwide. the royal wedding between Kate and Wills is set to at least double that, and those estimates may be exceeded quite easily.

Local congestion is likely to be fierce, as people in offices combine to strain their network. Unless their boss is feeling generous and lets them watch it on broadcast television instead.

Next up the chain is YouTube itself. This will be the biggest test for YouTube’s capacity to deliver live video streams to date, but Google is unlikely to have taken any chances; instead it will be very confident it has devoted enough resources to delivering the event to as many people as tune in.

Lastly there’s the wider Internet. Other websites, especially social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, will be hit by increased numbers of users as people pass their thoughts on what is happening. Therefore outages could be a common sight across the day.

Conclusions

I sincerely hope the Internet copes with the demand. If it doesn’t then it will dent the confidence of many as to how feasible it is that the Internet will become the primary delivery method of content in the years to come. It’ll also mean many of us have to watch the edited highlights of the royal wedding after it’s all over and done with. Calamitous, I’m sure you’ll agree.

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