The news comes from the COO of Syabas, the company that makes the Popcorn Hour set-top box. Up until now they’d had a loose agreement with the ‘Tube: They can stream video from YouTube for free, but YouTube can change the terms of the deal whenever they want. Which they did!:

YouTube has always retained the right to change its terms of service in the future should it ever wish to do so. As a result of Google’s decision, Syabas is no longer allowed to access YouTube through its APIs. To be clear, Syabas is not being singled out. With the exception of a few strategic partners Google has chosen to work with, the company has informed Syabas they are asking all over-the-top device makers that are currently connecting to YouTube content through its APIs to take down the service.

To quote every set-top box manufacturer in the world, probably: “Shit.” YouTube access had become the kind of thing you take for granted in a connected box or Blu-ray player, and it was nice to have. Now, it’ll be limited to devices like the PS3, Wii and TiVo — backed by the kinds of players who have the clout to pressure Google, or the money to pay them — leaving everyone else to search for some kind of hacky workaround.

I understand that Google wants to squeeze some ad revenue out of YouTube, and that letting anyone and everyone access raw, ad-free content through the back end probably isn’t the best business plan, but this isn’t Hulu — it’s not like they have many powerful content providers to appease, just a bunch of teenagers with webcams. Set-top box folks: Watch your free video cornucopia dissolve on December 2.

UPDATE: YouTube’s statement:

Since July of 2008, YouTube’s Terms of Service has restricted implementations for televisions based on our APIs. YouTube has been in active discussions with various developers on how best to implement YouTube on set top boxes and TVs. There are several companies, however, that have deployed solutions, like video scraping technology, to circumvent the rules and violate YouTube’s Terms of Service. Companies that have negotiated agreements to use our APIs, like TiVo, Sony, Panasonic and Sony’s PS3 are not impacted.

So, companies like Syabas have been in violation of YouTube’s terms of service for some time now and knew this was going to happen. The question remains, though: Why couldn’t they just comply and get a deal like TiVo or Sony? Does it cost anything? Is YouTube selective? Does it just take awhile? [Syabas via Engadget via Lifehacker]

One of the truly unforgivable aspects of the Foxtel Download launch recently was that it didn’t support 64-bit Windows systems. Fortunately there are people smarter than me who have worked out a way to get around this limitation.

If you head on over to the 0xF051 blog, they’ve got a pretty simple to follow guide to enable the downloads on a 64-bit system. Of course, you still need to have a valid Foxtel subscription to make it work, but that’s to be expected.

As always – user beware if you’re going to try this. But if you’re game to give it a go, let us know how it works in the comments section.

[0xF051 via Lifehacker]

Currently in beta with 5000 subscribers, here’s what we know:

• It’s free with a subscription
• You authenticate up to three devices through Comcast.net or Fancast.com
• Video playback on Move Networks player
• Video on Demand content, though no word on HD content
• Streaming will count against Comcast’s 250GB monthly bandwidth caps

But don’t take our word for it. Watch the whole interview with Comcast’s Amy Banse here:

[NewTeeVee via mediaexperiences2go via Engadget]

Boxee’s fantastic media centre software has always been just that: fantastic connected media player software. Today, the company says its going to announce hardware — a Boxee Box, even.

Boxee’s post on the box has nothing in the way of details yet, so I’m just going to have to take a WILD guess at what this thing will look like: It’ll be a box, with an Ion chipset, a medium-sized HDD, HDMI-out and a Boxee sticker. Just a theory!

We’ll get to see the box — assuming it’s not just this Boxee-compatible Myka number we saw a few days ago — come December 7, when it gets the full unveiling treatment. Also interesting, though probably a little aspirational:

* make it easy for users to consume and find content – no matter what the source
* give content owners, aggregators, and developers the tools to create unique experiences with a variety of business models
* enable CE companies to enhance their Connected devices

This will be the first connected device running Boxee, but the idea is to provide consumers with a way to get Boxee in their living rooms, no matter whether it’s on a Connected TV, game console, set-top box, BluRay player, computer, etc.

Multiple Boxee Boxes! Boxee Boxen! [Boxee]

The tale of Netflix on the PS3 is sad: Sony’s solution is only now shipping after sitting pretty on the Xbox for more than a year, and to add insult to injury, it comes on a disc. Thankfully, it’s slick.

The interface is technically new in that it’s visually catered to the PS3, but it should look familiar to anyone who’s used a Blu-ray player or connected TV with a Netflix widget. This means it’s pretty basic: so far as I can tell there are just “Instant Queue” and “Recently Watched” tabs, with none of the additional — though admittedly kind of useless — category views Xbox users are used to, and video navigation is unchanged with the same visual timeline taking care of FF and RW funtions. One thing Xbox users aren’t used to, though, is not having to pay for the privilege: Netflix-subscribed PS3 owners can just order a free disc and be done with it; Xbox owner need to have a paid Live subscription as well. (Ballmer’s gotta eat, right?)

In any case, the experience is smooth from start to finish, with a fast-loading interface and the same near-instant streaming you get on any other platform. It’s just a shame you need a disc — until this is part of the PS3 firmware, it’ll feel more like a hack than a new feature. [Engadget]

Lots of gear still that’s still kicking around only has an analogue connection with digital video recorders (DVRs): like TiVos and Slingboxes made before 2004. And what about your TV? You’d likely be forced to upgrade to gear with digital ports (like HDMI) to watch movies protected with Selectable Output Control (SOC).

The studios are desperate to show on-demand movies over cable prior to their DVD release, but claim they can’t without so without SOC. They say the tech protects their revenue by blocking easy analogue copying — the so called “analogue hole“. Problem is, DVDs (a supposed secure format) get ripped and shared online anyway.

Not only that, but it’s almost a moot point. Warner Brothers (who signed the original SOC petition last year) released Observe and Report and Ghosts of Girlfriends Past for video-on-demand (VoD) this September — before their DVDs hit stores. Consumer advocacy groups, like Public Knowledge and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), also point out that Magnolia Pictures, distributors like IFC Films and more recently, Starz Media, are also doing VoD before DVD.

The MPAA says that the outputs would only be disabled for the new movies, and wouldn’t impact any existing content. And they make the fair point that there’s always a lag between new experiences early adopters get compared to those with older gear.

But I’m sorry MPAA, pull your head out of your arse. DVDs still get ripped, and one of the very studios you represent is still releasing on-demand movies prior to their DVD release. Why bother? Think about the huge customer base you’re alienating, and stay away from the back of my TV. [Public Knowledge and PC Magazine via BoingBoing]

But don’t hold your breath on it happening yet: Peter Kafka has “yet to hear of a single programmer that has made a firm commitment”. As he points out, while networks are constantly looking for new revenue, like those arsehole aliens in Independence Day moving from world to world consuming every natural resource, they’re nervous about the idea for a lot of reasons.

A lot of it has to do with the icky, sticky relationships between networks and pay TV operators, where everybody’s worried about losing out as people start to watch more and more TV content online, not in their living rooms — where streaming video eats up bandwidth, and advertising revenues aren’t nearly as rich (which is why Hulu wants to figure out new ways to get you to pay).

While these little complications might slow the process down, the exodus is inevitable. There’s no stopping this. The internet is the new pay TV: Netflix, Hulu, BitTorrent. Apple might not get to launch it in a few months, but it will happen. Just give it time. The actually crazy part, if you ask me, is that the Apple TV might even live up to its name. [Hulu]

Of course, those pictures can’t be shared in order to protect their source, and what’s more, they’re hearing that “Nintendo originally planned to bring the Netflix service to the Wii before the end of this year” but they’re “also considering holding off on the Netflix service until they release their next generation Wii HD unit in early 2010″. So, uh, just keeping your breath on that one. [Streaming Media via Engadget]

Hulu, the joint venture between News Corp.’s Fox, GE’s NBC Universal and Disney’s ABC, doesn’t plan on charging people to watch the stuff it’s currently airing on the site–a mix of first-run shows from broadcast TV, a limited number of cable TV shows and a smattering of movies. But Hulu is trying to figure out how to create some kind of premium offering where you’ll pay for stuff that isn’t on the site right now.

This jibes with Carey’s adjacent reassurance that “not all content on Hulu would be behind a pay wall”, which hints at the addition of some kind of subscription or pay-per-view system, that could conceivably leave current offerings untouched. This is a plausible possibility, but far from sure: Kafka’s sources says Hulu doesn’t actually have a plan yet, so anything is possible.

Plan or no plan, telling everyone what they aren’t going to do would do Hulu good — vague threats of fees for “broadcast content” are just terrifying everyone. [AllThingsD]