Hasta La Gadget!

This article was written on August 29, 2008 by CyberNet.

Yesterday word started getting around that come October 1st Comcast would be enforcing a 250GB bandwidth cap for all their users. This is obviously their way to get back at the whole BitTorrent rigmarole that started last year, and this way people are more apt to know what they consider to be “acceptable use.”

The new policy won’t go into affect until October 1st, and if you’re a heavy user you’ll likely be contacted by Comcast:

If a customer uses more than 250 GB and is one of the top users of our service, he or she may be contacted by Comcast to notify them of excessive use. At that time, we’ll tell them exactly how much data per month they had used. We know from experience the vast majority of customers we ask to curb usage do so voluntarily.

Hitting the 250GB limit would take a lot of Internet usage, but it’s definitely possible if you’re streaming videos all day long or are active on the BitTorrent network. They’ve also not said what will happen once you hit that limit (pay extra, get cutoff, etc…)

Scott, the individual who sent us the tip on the Comcast news, was wondering if there was a good free program to use for monitoring your bandwidth usage. After looking around a little bit I found that the AnalogX NetStat Live (for Windows) was a highly recommended program. With it you can track both the current month and last month’s bandwidth usage, set it to start with Windows, and it can be minimized to the System Tray.

If you’ve got a tool you use to monitor bandwidth usage let us know in the comments. We’re particularly looking for apps that keep track of monthly usage, and not just real-time data.

Get NetStat Live for Windows
Thanks Scott!

Copyright © 2011 CyberNetNews.com

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Earlier this month, Microsoft announced a new slate of Xbox Live partnerships with Verizon, Comcast, and a host of other content providers. Now, the company has unveiled new details about the code upon which these new apps will run. Sources close to the situation tell GigaOM that the new framework, code-named “Lakeview,” will be based on Silverlight, but will also bring a few new features from Xbox Kinect, including voice recognition and gesture-based controls. More intriguing, perhaps, are insider claims that Microsoft’s new content partners stream video using Apple’s HTTP Live Streaming, rather than Redmond’s Smooth Streaming. GigaOM‘s sources went on to say that Microsoft has been introducing major changes to the platform over the past few weeks, in the hopes of having it ready for third-party developers once the Xbox Live update rolls out. Spokespersons for Xbox and Silverlight said they have “nothing to announce” about the new framework, though GigaOM reports that Redmond is aiming to release the update on Black Friday.

Microsoft reportedly preparing Silverlight-like app framework ahead of Xbox Live update originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 10 Oct 2011 06:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Don’t expect Comcast to stop its Xfinity VOD streaming to the living room rollout with just the Xbox 360 this Christmas, as executive Sam Schwartz promised during a CTAM panel that it plans to develop apps for the PS3, Wii, Roku and other connected TV platforms. Multichannel News reports it doesn’t plan to roll out streaming to as many platforms as Netflix, so we’ll have to wait and see where this initial venture into IPTV stops. Think big cable is scared of over the top services? Maybe not yet, since Comcast claims Netflix subscribers tend to be the most voracious users of its VOD. Also in Comcast’s future is its completely revamped Xcalibur guide software with internet and social media tie-ins (check out our early sneak peek here), which Schwartz reiterated would be available nationwide at some point next year.

Comcast promises Xfinity VOD streaming on more devices, new Xcalibur guide in 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 11:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Multichannel News  | Email this | Comments

Just as the rumors indicated, Microsoft is bringing video from a number of providers beyond the ones it initially announced to the Xbox 360 in its fall update, including big guns like Verizon and Comcast. While Verizon is promising “a selection” of its live TV channels on the Xbox 360 as expected, Comcast is only bringing its Xfinity TV video on-demand offerings (no AnyPlay powered live TV — yet) to subscribers when it launches “in the coming months.” Other notable providers include Lovefilm (UK, Germany), BBC TV (UK), HBO Go, and Syfy. As promised during E3, the services integrated with Xbox will offer support for search across all available video, as well as support for Kinect voice and gesture controls. The universal search is looking good since it pulls together various services into one UI (as we discussed on our podcast yesterday), but the reality is content providers and geographical limits on what services you can pick from are still throwing up walls between users and content. Check after the break for PR detailing what you’ll be able to access and where, as well as a video intro to all the tasty new TV services.

Continue reading Microsoft reveals new TV providers including Verizon and Comcast coming to Xbox 360 (video)

Microsoft reveals new TV providers including Verizon and Comcast coming to Xbox 360 (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Oct 2011 12:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Major Nelson  |  Microsoft Technet, Verizon, Comcast, MS PR  | Email this | Comments

Microsoft announced new integration with live TV as a part of the Xbox 360’s fall update during E3 earlier this year, but didn’t name any US pay-TV partners at the time. Now, anonymous rumors recently posted on Digiday suggested the folks at Redmond were looking to work with Verizon and Comcast, followed by Bloomberg hearing similar talk from its own “people with knowledge of the situation.” Today’s rumors finger Verizon (which showed off live TV on a variety of devices at CES), Comcast, HBO, Crackle, Bravo, Syfy and UK service Lovefilm as likely partners. Missing from the list is AT&T’s U-verse, which already offers an Xbox 360 tie-in and distributes its IPTV on the Mediaroom platform, just like some of the international partners previously announced. If these services launch it will be interesting to see how the integration works and if it’s VOD like the existing Xfinity TV and Flex View mobile apps, or if providers cross the IPTV bridge with in-home devices like the Televation / AnyPlay box.

Microsoft reportedly adding video from Comcast, Verizon, HBO Go and others to Xbox Live originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Sep 2011 13:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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