Free-To-Air TV To Launch A VOD Service For TVs Next Year?
According to a report by Paul McIntyre in the Age this morning, Freeview and ABC head honcho Kim Dalton is pushing hard for the free-to-air TV stations to launch a video on demand service that actually delivers content direct to TV screens. Colour me VERY excited.
Obviously, the ball has already started rolling in this direction with the ABC announcing a special version of iView for the PS3 scheduled for later this year. But the idea that all the free-to-air networks will also begin offering their content through a single portal.
Mr Dalton reckons that we should have these kinds of services in Australia next year. But as much as I like the sound of that, I think the reality will be a bit further away. Considering you’ve got both Nine and Seven starting to push their own VOD through their respective MSN and Yahoo! portals, not to mention iView on the PS3, Seven’s TiVo and its VOD offering… the logistics of getting all the networks to agree on a singular format will be a real challenge.
On top of that, there’s also the question of who will pay for this content. Will it be subscription based, advertiser driven, or some horrible combination of the two? Knowing the FTA networks, they’ll probably push for intrusive ads every 5 minutes of a show, which will completely take away the appeal.
Still, if the networks are even thinking about this kind of way to give us punters the entertainment we want when we want it, then maybe they’re not as out of touch as we always thought…
[The Age]
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Comments
In principle, love the idea!! Watch what I want, when I want it…
The bad is, the networks will be rubbing their grubby little hands together for the revenue…they’re so short sighted that it will have to pay for itself within 1 year…not good for payed downloads…
You need to make it cost effective for viewer and allow them a “grace” period for watching their selected programs.
I’d love to line up a series of programs in the morning, go to work and be able to start watching them when I get home…but not all in one go :P
Yes, nice idea, need to see how it develops and if it can compete with torrents…opps, did I say that out aloud??
When you look at how far advanced the ABC are ahead of the other networks, specifically because they dont have to rely on a revenue model to pay for this stuff, asking the other networks to do similar is asking a bit much.
Thinking your going to be able to get them to agree on a good open standard between fierce competitors your just deluding yourself.
Looks at what a balls up Freeview has been, the delays to Sony’s PlayTV and the networks trying to copywrite public information i.e. a list of what times television shows are playing and you see just how backward these networks are.
Hears hoping they go bankrupt soon anyway.
I think it is great, I don’t mind if there was some advertising to keep costs down, as long as the adverts were more like sponsor ads at the begining and we could then watch the movie uninterupted.
never going to happen.. well OK maybe it will happen, but it wont be anything like HULU etc
In principle this would be good, however I’m reserving my excitement and/or hatred until more details come to light.