Fox’s 8-Day Delay on Hulu Triggers Piracy Surge

Illegal downloads of some Fox Networks TV shows like Hell's Kitchen and MasterChef have increased since the company established an eight-day delay before its TV shows are made available on Hulu and Fox.com, according to TorrentFreak, reports Cnet.

It’s been a week since Fox stopped offering free access to its TV-shows the day after they air on television. The TV-studio took this drastic step in the hope of getting more people to watch their shows live and thus make more revenue. TV-viewers, however, are outraged by the decision and have massively turned to pirated sources to watch their favorite shows.

During the first 5 days, the number of downloads from the U.S. for the latest episode of Hell’s Kitchen increased by 114% compared to the previous 3 episodes. For MasterChef the upturn was even higher with 189% more downloads from the U.S. For MasterChef.

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Hulu to hit Japan later this year

Hulu recently announced that they will be rolling out their service in Japan later this year, making it the first international expansion.

[via Ubergizmo]

500M views in 5 years: How TEDTalks did it

With nearly 1,000 videos from various events posted to the site, TEDTalks has attracted a large — and growing — audience. In just five years, it has racked up more than 500 million views and counting. GigaOM reports.

TEDTalks videos are designed to make you think. Talks can run up to 18 minutes, which shows viewers are actually engaged with the videos they’re watching.

That hasn’t stopped the organization from reaching critical mass online.

... While no one single talk has attracted the type of view totals as, say, a Lady Gaga or Justin Bieber music video, the 500 million view milestone also shows the importance of the long tail. The most popular video on the site (below), Sir Ken Robinson’s “Schools kill creativity” talk from 2006, has less than 10 million views by itself. But with nearly 1,000 videos to choose from, TEDTalks ensures that there’s always something of interest for viewers looking for brain food.

Read more.

Sony Films Leave Netflix

Movies distributed by Sony Corp.'s Sony Pictures Entertainment were removed (temporarily) from Netflix on-demand Internet service Friday. The removal of an unspecified number of movies stemmed from a contractual issue between Sony and Liberty Media Corp.'s Starz cable channel.

Read full article in The Wall Street Journal.

Warner Announces China's First Video on Demand Service, but Is It Legal?

Warner Bros. has signed what could be a historic deal to make its movies available to homes throughout China on Video on Demand... as long as it turns out to actually be legit. TIME Techland reports.

Warner Bros. Entertainment has announced a partnership with YOU On Demand Media to provide China's "first national Pay-Per-View and Video On Demand platform," to launch in the summer with movies including the last Harry Potter installment.

... The Hollywood Reporter points out that with the Chinese media market tightly controlled by government regulators - only 20 imported films are allowed for theatrical release each year - it's also uncertain whether or not the deal will even be approved by the authorities at this point.

Read full article.

On-Demand Viewing Poses a Test for Broadcasters

Video-on-demand technology has become a balancing act for executives weighing how to offer more programming without threatening traditional ad revenue.

[via The New York Times]

Netflix to start streaming 'Mad Men'

According to USA Today, Netflix will start streaming the hit TV series Mad Men in a multi-year deal the online movie rental company struck with Lions Gate, the show's producer.

Netflix and Lions Gate Entertainment said late Tuesday the show's first four seasons will be available beginning July 27, with additional seasons added each year after they air on AMC.

Netflix is already streaming the first four seasons of Mad Men in Canada.

Read more.

Netflix Signs First-Run Canada Streaming Pact With Paramount

Netflix the online and mail- order film rental service, reached an exclusive five-year agreement to stream first-run movies from Viacom Inc.’s Paramount Pictures to subscribers in Canada. The accord will add more than 350 movies to Netflix’s streaming service in Canada.

[via Bloomberg]

Movie-rental choices keep streaming in

The Chicago Tribune looks at the many new ways consumers are watching movies.

Today, movie watchers are using video-subscription services, such as Netflix; vending-machine movies, such as Redbox; and on-demand movies from their TV subscriptions. And, increasingly, consumers are watching Hollywood productions on their computers or streaming online movies to their TVs with help from a variety of set-top boxes. Some are even watching movies on the go with hand-held devices and laptops as they commute to work or travel for business and pleasure.

Behind the scenes in the movie industry, a number of players, including movie studios, premium cable channels and movie-delivery companies, are scrambling to create partnerships, carve niches and preserve profits.

Read full article.

In This War, Movie Studios Are Siding With Your Couch

Armed with new copy-blocking technology, studios want to offer new movies on video-on-demand only about 45 days after they arrive in theaters, at a premium price of $24.99 - instead of after 120 days for $4.99.

[via The New York Times]

Library of Congress Posts Historic Videos on YouTube

Rosie the Riveter: Real Women Workers in World War II from the Library of Congress' new YouTube Channel.

[via Switched]

Japanese Movie Companies Stream Classic Films to TVs

"Maru Maru Eiga" is a new service to deliver Japanese classic films on Japanese television.

The five companies are Kadokawa Pictures Inc, Shochiku Co Ltd, Toei Co Ltd, Toho Co Ltd and Nikkatsu Corp. They will select classic and hit films from a total of about 12,000 movies that they own and deliver six of them every month. Each film is available for purchase for six months.

[via Tech-On]

P Diddy Becomes the Newest Celeb to Use Ustream.tv

More and more celebrities seem to be adopting live video as a way to interact with their audience. It’s an easy way to engage fans and answer questions from the comfort of their homes. The newest pairing? P Diddy and Ustream.tv Mashable reports.

P Diddy launched his uStream Channel just yesterday, but has already racked up 19,000 views and over 2500 viewer hours. His uStream show, named P.TWITTY TV, makes full use of his Twitter account to inform users of broadcasts and his mobile phone to stream from the clubs that he visits. His Ustream page even has a TwitterTwitter reviewsTwitter reviews search widget showing recent @replies to P Diddy.

Read full article.

Condé Nast Inks Distribution Deal With Hulu

Looking to get more exposure for its online video content, Condé Nast has signed a distribution deal with Hulu, becoming the first magazine company to link up with the free online video service.

Condé Nast’s destination sites Style.com, Epicurious.com and Men.Style.com are part of the deal, as are Wired.com and Vogue.TV. The company, which is sharing revenue with Hulu as part of the agreement, plans to add other digital sites’ content in the future.

[via MediaWeek]

UK's Hulu-style Project Kangaroo shot by government hunters

The UK's proposed Hulu-style venture, Project Kangaroo, would have offered on-demand material from the three largest broadcasters, but the government has found this kangaroo to be dangerously anticompetitive. ars technica reports.

According to the Commission, no proposed remedies would have been good enough to create any sort of competition in the video-on-demand (VOD) market, so the service cannot go ahead.

Kangaroo was to feature both "archival" (old) and "catch-up" (recent) content from ITV, Channel 4, and the BBC. Nearly all of the material would be free to consumers thanks to the magic of advertising, and it would all be available from a single site.

Nintendo Wii to Have Video On Demand

According to Gizmodo, Nintendo will start offering video in their Wii console soon.

Nintendo and Dentsu shall use the environment surrounding the Wii so that living rooms with Wii-ready TVs would become more of a fun area for communication among families and friends.

The two companies will develop original programming for the Wii, which will be available through the Internet both for free and for a fee. They also expect to expand their offering to other countries after the Japan introduction.

Sky launches online pay-TV service

Sky has made some of its channels available to view on the internet.

The Sky Player TV service is aimed at Windows and Apple Mac users, with a choice of three channel packs available. Customers can pay monthly, with no minimum contract period.

[via Computer Active]

ITV shows to go 'on demand'

ITV viewers will soon be able to watch shows like Coronation Street and I'm A Celebrity whenever they want, under a deal with BT's digital television arm. The BBC reports.

Until now, replays of soap operas and other top-rated programmes have only been broadcast on demand over the web.

ITV's catch-up service will be available on BT's digital television platform, Vision TV, from next month.

Viewers will be able to access replays of shows within minutes of broadcast up to eight days after their first airing.

Read full article.

Video-On-Demand Gets Hollywood Uptake In China

Warner Bros. announced plans to become the first Hollywood studio to make its new release movies available digitally in China, reports ChinaTechNews.

In the first transactional VOD deal of its kind in China, Warner Bros.' new release movies, including some that have never been released theatrically in China, will be available to Chinese consumers to rent on VOD to their PCs via Voole.com.

Upcoming titles will include "I Am Legend", "Fool's Gold" and "Speed Racer", with further new titles announced as they become available.

Netflix welcomes Mac users to 'Watch Instantly'

Netflix has expanded its "Watch Instantly" movie streaming player to include Macintosh-owning subscribers.

[via News.com]

Video Is Dominating Internet Traffic, Pushing Prices Up

According to Bits Blog, reporting on what was said at the annual seminar of the Columbia Institute for Tele-Information, demand for data over broadband is rising fast. Less clear is whether the supply of bandwidth is rising as fast as demand, and thus whether prices will go up or down for consumers.

File sharing has been usurped by legitimate video services, the very heaviest users drive up network costs and unlimited data plans may have a limited life.

Read full article.

Download full seasons of popular TV shows for $5

In an effort to push its new-ish Video On Demand service, Amazon is offering cheap deals on full seasons of popular TV shows. For example, you can get the first three seasons of Battlestar Galactica for just 5 bucks each. Also in the bargain bin: House (four seasons' worth), Heroes (seasons 1 and 2), The Office, and, if you're really hard up for entertainment, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Saved By the Bell.

Amazon Video On Demand lets you stream shows and movies right in your browser (Mac or PC), no download required.

[via News.com]

Where to watch free horror movies online

In the spirit of Halloween, Yahoo Tech has rounded up some websites where you can watch scary movies online.

Above poster is from the old scary movie collection of Embarq. More recent horror flicks can be found on Hulu (Amitiyville2,Ghosbusters), Joost (Christine, The Blob) and Dyers.org put together a list of 85+ free Halloween movies you can watch on Netflix on demand, like Silence of the Lambs.

Video Site Joost Reboots as a Hulu Clone

On Tuesday, Joost, the much-hyped Internet video service, will relaunch as a Flash-based online video hub with free, ad-supported television shows and films — or, in other words, a clone of Hulu.com, the popular Web site jointly owned by NBC and Fox. New York Times Bits Blog reports.

"The new Flash-based site also abandons Joost’s original peer-to-peer method of distributing video, although Mr. Volpi said the company might still use the technology to broadcast live events.

... In addition to new youth-oriented social networking features, which allow users to share their favorite programs with friends, the new Joost.com will feature full-length shows from CBS, Viacom and the Warner Bros. Television Group.

Most of that material can be found elsewhere on the Web. To really compete with Hulu’s deep library and YouTube’s sheer volume of user-generated video, Joost will have to build its own trove of find-it-nowhere-else material."

ThePirateCity embraces movie streaming

The Pirate City, no relation to the equally rule-bending The Pirate Bay, is offering the latest movies, all of which have yet to hit DVD, free to watch on its site via streaming.

The site, which has admitted it's experiencing unusually high traffic (we wonder why?) must be leaving the movie industry shame-faced, at a time when it is bidding to combat illegal online-movie downloading.

[via TechRadar]

Related: The Pirate Bay may be Getting Into Streaming- a tipster told TechCrunch a couple of weeks ago, that The Pirate Bay, the world’s largest BitTorrent tracker (and one of the most hated by studios), may be getting into streaming.

The Pirate Bay Is Getting Into Streaming?

The Pirate Bay the world’s largest BitTorrent tracker (and one of the most hated by studios), may be getting into streaming, a tipster told TechCrunch.

"... Apparently, streaming is right around the corner and will be kept on thepiratecity.org. Right now, the page is down, saying the test phase was completed successfully, but a cached image shows ripped DVDs being used as the streaming source."

Showtime offers "Dexter's" premier online - before TV air date

If you can't wait until September 28th to find out what happens next to America’s Favorite Serial Killer - and you are an American viewer, click through Showtime via TV Addict to watch the third season premiere of DEXTER right now. The password is: lady killer.

[via TV Tattle]

Links to other shows streaming online before scheduled TV premier

Imdb.com allows free film, TV viewing - before air date

Amazon.com said on Monday that its subsidiary, Internet Movie Database, would allow users to watch feature films and TV shows for no charge on its website, imdb.com. Reuters reports.

"Over 6,000 titles will be available, the company said, citing recent episodes of popular television shows like "24" and "Heroes" or classic films like "Some Like It Hot."

IMDB also said that the first episodes of new fall television shows like "Lipstick Jungle" and "30 Rock" will be available for free viewing before their first air date."

Links to other shows streaming online before scheduled TV premier

Porn on a plane: Flight attendants want filters

Leaders of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents some 19,000 workers including American Airlines flight attendants, asked American Airline's management this week to consider adding filters to its in-flight Wi-Fi access to prevent passengers from viewing porn and other inappropriate Web sites while in-flight. New.com reports.

"A union representative told Bloomberg News that attendants and passengers have raised "a lot of complaints" over the issue.

American Airlines is one of several airlines testing in-flight Internet access as a way to lure more passengers."

Related: - Flight attendants on in-flight porn usage

Amazon extends its paid video service to streaming

NewTeeVee reports that "Amazon has extended its paid video service to streaming, Macs, and compatible Sony BRAVIA devices and televisions.

"Amazon Video On Demand beats iTunes on TV because it has NBC, and it beats Hulu on movies because it has far more of them. Netflix’s movie service, meanwhile, only provides streaming for PCs."

European and other-than-US-connecting-viewers are once again left out in the cold, here's the message I get (from Switzerland) when trying to stream a Dr House episode.

Hulu Launches Fall Lineup, Premieres Before TV Broadcast

Hulu on Tuesday announced that it has launched its Fall Premiere Lineup, which over the next seven weeks, will be the place to find season premieres of Prison Break, Bones, House, Heroes, The Office and 30 Rock.

To build up the hype around new shows or those in their second season, Hulu will also debut the first episode of Knight Rider, Lipstick Jungle, Chuck and Life, one week before they air on broadcast television.

[via TechCrunch]

Top TV series premier schedules

Top TV series premier schedules. Count 1-3 days more for availability on video sharing websites.

Gossip Girl premieres September 1st

Prison Break premieres September 1st

The Shield premieres September 2nd

Heroes premieres September 22nd

Lipstick Jungle premieres September 24th

Criminal Minds premieres September 24th

Ugly Betty premieres September 25th

Grey's Anatomy premieres September 25th

Dexter premieres September 28th

Californication premieres September 28th

Desperate Housewives premieres September 28th

Pushing Daisies premieres October 1st

CSI premieres October 9th

30 Rock premieres October 30

Both Mad Men Season 2 and Weeds Season 4 are back already.

Cable Quietly Introduces On-Demand YouTube Rival

Seeking to compete with the immediacy of the Internet and slow the movement of advertising dollars online, cable operators are using a little-known political channel to offer an alternative to sites such as YouTube. All Headline News reports.

"Elections '08 On Demand is the first product of Conoe Ventures, a project of six cable companies, including Comcast, Time Warner and Cox Communications. The goal is to entice advertisers with better way to guage who is watching and the effectiveness of their promotions."

ReelTime to offer streaming movies from Walt Disney Studios

ReelTime Rentals and Disney have reached an agreement to "provide popular video on demand rentals as they become available from The Walt Disney Studios, including new and classic titles from Walt Disney Pictures, Disney-Pixar, Touchstone Pictures, Hollywood Pictures and Miramax Films."

[via engadgetHD]

ChannelFlip Launches: UK’s First “Video Magazine For Men”

The Inquisitr reports on the launch of what is claimed to be "the UK’s first “video magazine for men”.

"At launch, ChannelFlip offers over 200 “quirky yet informative” short video programs aimed at “tech savy men.” Content includes coverage of gadgets, technology, gaming and DVD releases. The site has Intel on board as the launch sponsor, and during a trial earlier this year attracted 150,000 viewer a month with over 1 million video views."

Millions watching lectures? Who knew?

TED.com picked up three Webbies on Tuesday night at the a href="http://www.webbyawards.com">2008 Webby Awards ceremony in New York City.

Per TED blog: We're honored to be chosen for these awards -- and even more honored by the fact that so many people are sharing these Ideas Worth Spreading.

Director of TED Media, got 15 words total to thank the academy and our millions of viewers. Her first five-word speech: "Millions watching lectures? Who knew?"

Films With Limited Release Find a Home on the Web

The nonprofit Tribeca Film Institute in New York is joining Amazon.com to create a digital marketplace for films and videos that have been stuck in archives with limited circulation or have been otherwise unavailable through conventional retail and Web outlets.

The service, called Reframe, is expected to become active on Monday through an Internet site, reframecollection.org, the institute’s representatives said.

[via The New York Times]

Tiscali TVs revamped search tool and child remote control

Netimperative reports on a new search tool for Tiscali.tv subscribers, designed to help viewers instantly locate on demand, catch up and broadcast programming.

"Users can look for programs by title as well as by credits, including cast members and even by subject matter, with a simple SMS style text input making entries quick and easy. "

Also interesting, Tiscali TV also claims to have "the first child remote control which will only let them watch tv that's meant for them", called minimote.

Weemote is another such remote found online.

Apple to make major studios’ films available for download

According to the Times Online, "Apple is poised to announce it will start selling films from four major Hollywood studios for download in the UK as part of its iTunes internet service at prices on a par with DVDs. The company intends to unveil agreements with Disney and Paramount."

[via Techmeme]

Bezos: video on demand soon

Amazon.com will be adding a new video on demand and streaming business in the next few weeks said Jeff Bezos. Streams will start instantly and will be sold on an a la carte basis.

[via USA Today]

Warner Brothers To Rent Movies Online Sooner

Warner Brothers will now start making films available for online rental, such as through Apple TV, and on cable pay-per-view systems, the same day that it releases them to DVD.

[via the New York Times Bits Blog]

Hulu.com lets you Cut, Paste and Forward Web Video

The Guardian on some of Hulu.com's wonderful features.

"We all know about cutting and pasting from one document to another. Hulu.com lets you do it with video: select the bit you want from, say, an episode of The Simpsons and email it to a friend, post it to your blog or put it on your Facebook page.

Another surprising tool is the search function. If a particular TV show or a film isn't one of the 400 TV series and 100 movies on the site, it doesn't give a "no results" message. Instead, it looks across the entire web to find legitimate (ie, non-pirated) video, and offers links to it - even if it sends users away from Hulu. So if someone searches for Desperate Housewives, a link will appear to abc.com - a rival network.

Another great thing about Hulu.com is that they are considering moving beyond the US market. According to Jason Kilar, CEO of Hulu: "We very much have ambitions to be a global site but we want to walk before we run," he says. "We would be very hesitant about launching in a territory without stellar content. In the US we took our time to make sure we had great content. We don't think that a service is built to last unless it is worthy of remark. And that will be our mantra."

Hollywood studios tout entertainment service--for 2009

News.com reports that a joint venture featuring heavyweight Hollywood studios is looking to fall 2009 to launch a premium television channel and video-on-demand service that will offer feature films and original television series.

"The unnamed venture, and the unnamed channel it will produce, has the backing of Viacom and its Paramount Pictures unit; MGM Studios; and Lionsgate.

It will offer new films released in theaters after January 1, 2008 for some studios and after January 1, 2009 for others.

In addition, the venture will feature new, original television series."

NBC to send on-demand TV to Europe

According to Digital Spy, shows such as Heroes may be available before they are broadcast for an extra cost under NBC Universal plans to launch a global video-on-demand service.

"The production company is agreeing distribution deals in up to ten European and Asian countries for the TV Box service. In some markets, the content will be part of existing subscription packages."

New music video Web site features major label artists

A company backed by investors including Will Smith and major record labels has launched a new Web site offering 10,000 free, high-definition music videos. Associated Press reports.

"Universal Music Group announced Wednesday that it has joined EMI and Sony BMG in backing Santa Monica-based PluggedIn.

The Web site features music videos from artists such as Gwen Stefani, Green Day, Coldplay and Norah Jones and is powered by a new media player that supports full-screen high-definition video".