Vevo’s website redesign simplifies the video watch page, adds artist pages

Vevo's website redesign simplifies the video watch page, adds artist pages

Chances are you’ve enjoyed Vevo’s music video catalogue in one form or another, and purists who prefer .com access are being rewarded today with a fresh website design. The “video watch page” was previously littered with related clips, a playlist and other distractions, which have now been dispatched for greater focus on the tune at hand. Much of this has been moved to “artist pages”, a new pop-up hub (pictured above) which is full of extra info on your chosen act. Head over to Vevo to see the enhancements for yourself, and with impending OUYA support, you might want to consider it your primary dispensary for that daily dose of Biebzilla.

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Vevo’s website redesign simplifies the video watch page, adds artist pages originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Sep 2012 14:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hulu Plus, HBO Go and Max Go apps for Android updated with support for closed captions

Sound familiar? Just days after the mobile apps for HBO, Cinemax and Hulu added closed captions support on iOS, a similar slew of upgrades have come to their apps on Android. Unfortunately, there doesn’t appear to be any change in the number of supported devices for any of them at this time. Hulu’s upgrade also adds on the option to share videos via Twitter, Facebook and other services, although the 10 second rewind button added on iOS does not appear to have made the cut. As usual you should see the new versions rolling around in the app store, hit the source links for more info.

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Hulu Plus, HBO Go and Max Go apps for Android updated with support for closed captions originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Sep 2012 12:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Simple.TV’s $149 DVR For iPhone, iPad, Roku And Web Ships September 27

simpletv

Simple.TV, which attracted a lot of attention at this year’s International CES show in January, is finally announcing the ship date for its DVR solution for live and recorded TV: September 27 for U.S. customers, who can pick one up via the Simple.TV website for $149. The device automatically converts HD content via an integrated TV tuner from HD over-the-air signals or ClearQAM digital basic cable, delivering them in MPEG-4 formats that mobile devices like the iPad, iPhone and Roku streaming boxes can easily play back.

After a successful Kickstarter campaign during which Simple.TV raised almost double its $125,000 goal, the project is ready to come to market. In addition to streaming to iPad, iPhone and Roku devices, it can also deliver content to a web browser on any other device via an HTML 5 player. The service is essentially a blend of TiVo and Slingbox, bringing time-delayed and live viewing of free content to any device, rather than working with existing cable or satellite providers.

The device also has no video out or pass-through capabilities, as it’s designed specifically to deliver content to non-traditional viewing platforms beyond the TV (though Roku can deliver it to that, too). It can connect to a router via Ethernet (Wi-Fi isn’t an option, which likely makes for better quality assurance, but could pose a problem depending on where the antenna or cable outlet in your house is located), and can also connect to a USB 2.0 hard drive that provides the storage space for DVR functions.

Basic service is free, offering simple in-home streaming of live content and the ability to pause live TV record shows. Simple.TV will also be making a premium plan available at $4.99 per month, with out-of-home remote streaming, scheduled recordings for series programming, and an electronic program guide with images and metadata automatically added to content from your over-the-air or ClearQAM source.

A freemium model for Simple.TV is an interesting approach, and likely one that can help it continue to sell hardware at a very affordable price while also growing long-term revenue. The split also seems quite fair, with a good number of features on both sides of the paid/free divide. The only questions I have about Simple.TV’s long-term success revolve around the requirement that it be plugged directly into a router. Also, similar offerings like those from EyeTV have been around for quite a while now, though those require a dedicated media PC to be useful, so Simple.TV’s standalone nature could help it achieve more widespread adoption.


Delta Airlines to expand Gogo Vision offerings on domestic fleet

Frequent fliers with Delta Airlines will soon have more access to Gogo Internet during their flights. Delta Airlines has announced that it is expanding Gogo Vision across the entire two class fleet and Delta Connection fleet of Gogo equipped aircraft. Gogo Vision is an in-flight video streaming service.

Delta will begin installations in 2012 on its domestic fleet and expects to complete installations to support to Gogo Vision by 2013. Delta Airlines also expects to have a new international Wi-Fi service featuring Gogo Vision completed by the end of 2015. Once Delta completes the new installations, it will have more than 950 aircraft featuring Gogo Wi-Fi connectivity and Gogo Vision.

Delta has also announced that it intends to upgrade its fleet to the next-generation Gogo ATG-4 platform. That upgrade will enhance existing air to ground network and improve user capacity on the aircraft. The Gogo Vision service has an internal server that is stored on the plane, and video is streamed to passengers Wi-Fi enabled devices.

The service will feature both television programs at a per show charge and full-length movies from major Hollywood studios. Individual television episodes will sell for $0.99 with a full-length Hollywood movie costing $3.99. Passengers will be able to sort through titles by genre, length, and search for specific movies or shows and can preview before purchasing.


Delta Airlines to expand Gogo Vision offerings on domestic fleet is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


BBC Media Player to give Android users their iPlayer fix in a mostly Flashless world

BBC Media Player to give Android users their iPlayer fix in a Flashless world

Remember how the BBC was asking Adobe to keep Flash for Android on life support for a short while? The broadcaster just removed any doubts as to why with the launch of BBC Media Player, its solution for that day when the mobile plugin is well and truly buried. Starting with iPlayer on the mobile web and moving on to both radio as well as an updated version of the Android app due next week, the BBC will be using close Flash cousin Adobe AIR for streaming playback on Android phones and tablets. It can’t quit Flash technology cold turkey given the sheer number of devices still running Gingerbread or earlier, which rules out HTTP Live Streaming for now. Media Player isn’t necessarily the most elegant solution — we’re seeing reports of sub-par video and other hiccups — but it will keep those episodes of Doctor Who rolling on most Android hardware and let the BBC push out updates that address as many of the Google-inclined as possible.

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BBC Media Player to give Android users their iPlayer fix in a mostly Flashless world originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 15:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BBC debuts new Media Player for Android phones and tablets

If you’re a fan of TV shows on BBC such as Doctor Who and others, BBC has good news for you if you use an Android device. The BBC has begun rolling out a new secure video player for Android phones and tablets called BBC Media Player. The BBC mobile technical team says that the new Media Player is being used with the mobile view of BBC’s iPlayer website.

The BBC also notes that next week a new version of the BBC iPlayer on Android will launch using the new Media Player. BBC also notes that it chose Adobe Flash as the media format to stream for Android devices. The reason Flash was chosen was to provide the BBC with a number of cross-platform efficiencies since the same infrastructure can be used for delivery to PCs, Android phones, and set-top boxes.

BBC had to change the way it plays content back using Flash because of Adobe’s decision to remove support for the Flash Player plug-in. BBC says that it considered a number of streaming options, including HLS, but HLS isn’t supported on older versions of Android prior to Honeycomb. Using Flash also allowed the BBC to create a simple and generic application that could be used on the website and by native applications like the BBC iPlayer.

The BBC Media Player allows the company to take care of all its media streaming needs with one application. The application will also allow users to listen to BBC Radio on Android phones and tablets as well. The BBC promises ongoing improvement for media playback and mobile experience for Android users.

[via BBC]


BBC debuts new Media Player for Android phones and tablets is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Fox kicks off its Digital HD initiative by joining Google Play and YouTube, offering movies early

Google Play and YouTube add Fox movies and TV shows, use Prometheus as a lure

Fox embraced a radical thought when it outlined its Digital HD initiative earlier this month: customers are more likely to buy digital movies if the content isn’t artificially delayed and priced to match the releases on conventional discs. The studio is about to see if that gamble on common sense pays off. As of today, you’ll find 600-plus Fox movies ready to buy or rent in HD across every major digital video store in the US, with many downloads cleared to arrive ahead of their physical counterparts at lower prices that reflect a disc-free reality. The media giant has also decided to play nicely with Google after a longstanding absence, putting its movies and TV shows on Google Play Movies and YouTube. Its tentpole movie release Prometheus is unsurprisingly being used as the prime incentive to try Digital HD; the title is available online three weeks before the Blu-ray launch at a more reasonable $15 price. The sci-fi thriller is even Fox’s first movie destined for UltraViolet cloud lockers. Only Americans will have expanded access to movies and TV at first, but it shouldn’t be too long before many countries can be creeped out by Michael Fassbender’s android — including on their Android devices.

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Fox kicks off its Digital HD initiative by joining Google Play and YouTube, offering movies early originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Sep 2012 13:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon sends invitations to closed trial of FiOS TV app for iOS with live streaming

Verizon sends invitations to closed trial of FiOS TV app for iOS with streaming

Want to know the definition of frustration? Try being teased with a FiOS TV app that supports live streaming, only to be denied when the app shows up. The end to that (admittedly mild) form of torture may be in sight. Engadget has learned through a tip that Verizon is sending invitations among a limited group to test a new FiOS TV iOS app with the usual schedule browsing, DVR control… oh, and live TV. Flex View On Demand videos and local media should be on tap as well, although it’s not clear whether or not any of the options will require an active link to Verizon’s fiber or cellular networks to watch. The trial leaves some time to go before we’re tuning in through a bedside iPhone 5; even so, it suggests the gap between hope and reality is about to close.

[Thanks, Anonymous]

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Verizon sends invitations to closed trial of FiOS TV app for iOS with live streaming originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 13 Sep 2012 15:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LoveFilm / Aardman deal brings cheese-loving stop motion animation to Amazon-owned UK site

Lovefilm  Aardman deal brings cheeseloving stop motion animation to Amazonowned UK site

Great news for UK movie lovers who just can’t get enough of eccentric inventors and clever sheep: Amazon-owned LoveFilm has struck a deal to bring Aardman content to its service. The agreement adds properties like Wallace & Gromit, Morph, Creature Comforts, Shaun the Sheep and Rex the Runt to LoveFilm’s offerings, letting users stream content on their computers, PS3s, Xbox 360s, iPads and more. For more information, please consult the press release after the break.

Continue reading LoveFilm / Aardman deal brings cheese-loving stop motion animation to Amazon-owned UK site

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LoveFilm / Aardman deal brings cheese-loving stop motion animation to Amazon-owned UK site originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Sep 2012 04:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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UltraViolet movie format to use Dolby Digital Plus encoding, keep sound thumping across platforms

UltraViolet movie format to use Dolby Digital Plus encoding, keep sound thumping across platformsMovies encoded in UltraViolet’s Common File Format represent just one of multiple takes on paid internet video — what’s to make them stand out? The answer might just be Dolby Digital Plus audio encoding, which should be a staple feature of CFF from now on. A newly ready development kit lets producers feed the multichannel sound to hardware and apps that can recognize it, including web-based avenues like Apple’s HTTP Live Streaming, Microsoft’s Smooth Streaming and MPEG’s DASH. Just in case a few devices fall through the cracks, Dolby is talking directly with digital production firms like castLabs, Digital Rapids and Elemental Technologies to make sure the audio codec’s implementation truly spans platforms. We don’t know how soon movies will take advantage of the upgrade, but the Dolby addition lends weight to a fledgling format that might have as fierce a battle in home theaters as it does on PCs and tablets.

Continue reading UltraViolet movie format to use Dolby Digital Plus encoding, keep sound thumping across platforms

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UltraViolet movie format to use Dolby Digital Plus encoding, keep sound thumping across platforms originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 11:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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