Yahoo’s Yahoo! Connected TV platform may be set to get some licensed video-on-demand content from Disney. That’s the same Disney which has blocked Google TV from accessing its content. Then again, this content may not be that good.
Connected TV Platforms
Connected TV platforms are coming at us thick and fast, with the likes of Apple (Apple TV), Google (Google TV), and Boxee (Boxee Box) having released their own in recent months, and that’s just a small selection of those now on offer to consumers.
Yahoo! Connected TV has been with us for a while, and is currently available in 70 different models of television. However, the apps available on it up to now have mostly been widgets (read Web apps) such as those for Facebook, Twitter, and Amazon. In other words, not video content.
Disney & Yahoo!
That looks set to change in the near future though, as Yahoo ups its attempts to get video-on-demand content on the platform. At CES 2011, Yahoo announced plans to up its ‘broadcast interactivity’ with apps possibly coming from CBS and Showtime.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Disney is also considering coming on board. Which would see widgets for ABC, ESPN, and Disney coming online. Unfortunately, rather than full shows or movies, the widgets will likely host trailers and short clips. You could say, promotional material.
Which is rather disappointing if you ask me. It certainly isn’t going to be enough to make people choose Yahoo’s platform over the countless other either already out on the market or on their way to market.
Conclusions
I guess this is a start, not only for Yahoo and Disney but for companies on both sides of the digital divide working together. However, we really need more than just promotional material showing up on connected TV platforms if there is going to be any future in them. And if there isn’t then it’ll be the broadcasters who ultimately lose out.
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