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Roku Opens Channel Store, Disappoints with No Hulu

Paul Lilly — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:18:43 -0600

Living up to a promise made several weeks ago, the Roku Channel Store is now open. Unfortunately, rumors that the open platform for delivering content to Roku boxes would include support for Hulu turned to out to be false, at least so far. According to an article in Playboy magazine, "Hulu support is coming," but the video site wasn't among the first ten channels released, which includes Pandora, Facebook Photos, Revision3, Mediafly, TWiT, blip.tv, Flickr, FrameChannel, Motionbox, and MobileTribe.

"The Roku Channel Store turns the Roku player into the world's first open platform designed specifically for the TV," Anthony Wood, founder and CEO of Roku, said in a statement. "Now content producers and distributors -- from single person shops to billion dollar corporations -- can deliver their content directly to consumers without having to go exclusively through cable operators, satellite networks, or TV affiliates."

Roku said a free SDK is available upon request, which would allow developers to add to the Store's selection. As for the Channel Store itself, it's also free and is being distributed through automatic upgrades within the next couple of weeks. No Roku owners will be left out in the cold, as the Channel Store works on all Roku devices, the company said.

Image Credit: Roku via Gizmodo

Microsoft to Take Zune Overseas

Pulkit Chandna — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 19:20:32 -0600

The Zune entertainment brand is all set to traverse platforms and borders. Microsoft reckons its time for the Zune brand to go global. Beginning Tuesday, a new Zune-branded video service will replace the Xbox Live Video Marketplace in 18 countries, including the US, UK, France, Germany and Australia. The addition of streaming video content is what really separates the Zune-branded video store from its Xbox-branded predecessor. Microsoft wants its Zune brand to traverse platforms and this launch is clearly a step in that direction.

“The strategy and vision of Zune is to continue to build out that full entertainment experience. This is a very important step for us to introduce Zune to new consumers around the world,” Christine Heckart, general manager for TV, video and music marketing at Microsoft, told the Financial Times. Apart from rebranding the video service on the Xbox 360, the company will also be introducing direct access to social networks like Facebook and Twitter.

Managed Copy Enabled Blu-Rays Coming Soon

Justin Kerr — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 18:39:20 -0600

The first Managed Copy enabled Blu-Ray disks will be hitting store shelves soon, unfortunately, it will be well ahead of any hardware that can make use of it. For those that haven’t heard of Managed Copy, it is a system that allows you to make legal copies of Blu-Ray disks, but spawned versions of the content are very heavily protected by DRM. Any user trying to play the copied version needs to contact the studios DRM servers which decide if you can watch it, and even how many times it can be copied.

Dedicated Blu-Ray hardware isn’t expected to implement this feature anytime soon, but PC jukebox software will likely be available within the next few months to take advantage of the fact that all disks sold after December 4th will need to be compliant. It remains to be seen if this is true of just new releases, or if the entire back catalog of Blu-Ray disks will eventually be updated. Either way, expect it to be a confusing mess until packaging updates roll along in the Spring.

Many wonder if Managed Copy will satisfy consumers ever increasing demands to “liberate” their digital content from the medium, but consumers historically haven’t embraced solutions that trade one DRM implementation for another. This is especially true when competing technologies such as those from Slysoft accomplishes the same thing, and without any additional usage restrictions.

Want to learn more about HD Video Encryption? Check out our White Paper for the low down.

Refreshed Roku Set-top Box Boasts Wireless-N

Paul Lilly — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:01:00 -0500

Roku, makers of the popular Netflix streaming set-top box, has refreshed its lineup with a pair of new models, bringing the total number of set-top boxes to three.

On the lower end, Roku said it's "introducing a breakthrough price point" with its Roku SD player. Priced at $79, or $20 less than the company's original set-top box, the Roku SD unit connects to TVs using standard composite video and audio cables, but also includes both integrated WiFi (802.11 b/g) and an Ethernet port.

For HD buffs, the new HD-XR player takes things a step further by incorporating 802.11n dual-band.

"The Roku HD-XR is one of the first Netflix-streaming devices to embed next generation 802.11n dual-band wireless connectivity, making it easier and more reliable than ever to start enjoying movies, TV shows, sports, and the best online content available, all on the living room TV," said Anthony Wood, founder and CEO of Roku.

Roku says the HD-XR player not only works with legacy routers, but can actually boost the WiFi range inside the house.

Both the Roku SD ($79) and HD-XR ($129) are available now.

Image Credit: Roku

Hands-On with Western Digital's TV Live HD Media Player

Norman Chan — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:00:00 -0500

Possibly the media pirate's perfect movie and music streamer

Yesterday, Western Digital officially announced the second generation of their WD TV HD media player. In our review of the original device, we loved its ability to play back almost any video we tossed at it, but lamented its inability to handle encrypted media files. Since then, Western Digital has issued a series of firmware updates that improve format compatibility (including DivX), but the new WD TV Live adds new hardware features as well. Most notable is the addition of an Ethernet port to connect the WD TV Live to your home network. That means you can not only stream movies from your desktop PC or NAS boxes to the WD TV Live, but also get video, music, and photo content from the internet. We received a retail sample of the new system, and tested it to see if these new features are worth the $50 price bump.

First, a quick briefing on how the WD TV Live and its previous iteration work. The WD TV system is a media player, but video and music files aren't stored on the device itself. You connect USB hard drives or flash keys to either of the two USB ports on the back and the top of the player, and the WD TV reads files off of those storage drives to play onto a connected television or monitor. The first WD TV launched with support for most standard video formats (MPEG, WMV, H.264), 1080p resolution and high-bitrate playback, and used HDMI or Composite video connections. Its support for community-adopted video containers, like MKV and H.264 AVI files, made it a popular alternative to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 for media playback.

In addition, the firmware for the WD TV has been open source, which has led to 3rd-party firmware updates that have added neat functionality to the player, including USB optical drive and limited network adapter support. The WD TV Live utilizes new internal hardware, so it's unclear that existing 3rd-party firmware will run on it.

The WD TV Live's packaging is very similar to the original's. Included in the box is the player (which is about the size of a portal hard drive, only thicker), an IR remote, AAA batteries, power adapter, and video cables. The box includes both Composite and Component cables, though they're cables with 3.5mm jacks on one end to plug into the WD TV. Neither the first WD TV nor the WD TV Live include an HDMI cable, though everyone knows they're relatively cheap to buy from monoprice.com.

Also new is a warning sticker on the back of the WD TV Live, reminding you not to stack USB hard drives on top of the player. In our experience, the player gets pretty hot when playing back 1080p video, though we've never had one of these devices die on us from overheating. Still, it's a good idea to keep the player on its side during use, and avoid placing it on top of or around other hot gadgets.

Physically, the WD TV Live (on the left in the above photo) is exactly the same dimensions as the original. WD opted for a matte grey finish as opposed to the glossy black of the original, which was prone to greasy fingerprints. We still prefer the black finish. The HDMI logo has also been removed from the front face of the device.

On the rear of the player, you can see the new Ethernet port as well as the modified Composite and Component video out ports. If you choose to use the Component connection, you'll have to output audio from the Composite port (for stereo sound) or use the Optical port for 5.1 audio playback. The HDMI connection outputs both audio and video.

Here's a quick glance at the differing format support, as indicated from the packaging (WD TV Live on the right). The original WD TV box is a little out of date, since new firmware has expanded what type of files the WD TV can play, including a wide range of soft subtitles. DRM-protected files are stil not yet supported. But enough about specs -- let's turn this thing on!

System boot up on is a tad faster than the new player, but the thing we noticed most was how responsive the new menu is. Optimizations in hardware and the OS software have paid off, and navigating around the WD TV doesn't feel sluggish at all. This is a necessary improvement, since there are more menu categories to browse around this time around.

The actual menus aren't changed much from the first WD TV. Cosmetic changes like a darker blue background aren't a big deal -- you still navigate around the layered menus using the arrow keys. You can use the included remote to work the menu system, or pair the WD TV with a universal remote like the Logitech Harmony series.

The first thing you'll want to do is set up the Network configuration. The WD TV has an automated setup process that detects your router settings and DLNA network drives, including Home Servers and NAS boxes.

We ran the WDTV through the gamut of numerous video and audio files of varying size, bitrate, and formats, and the WD TV Live handled them all with ease. Everything from MP4s ripped from DVDs using Handbrake, 1080P WMV movies from Microsoft, or even MKV H.264 Blu-Ray rips with embedded subtitles and 5 audio channels played back without problems.

HD video stored on a Windows Home Server was instantly detected and flowed over a wired connection without any loss of quality. When we connected the WD TV Live to a hacked router that acts as a wi-fi bridge to try streaming video over 802.11g, video playback was a little more limited -- very high bitrate files occasionally stuttered. You definitely want to be on a 802.11n network to stream high def content. Western Digital plans on selling its own wireless Ethernet adapter for the WD TV Live, but there's no work on what wi-fi standards it'll support.

On to the new connected features. WD TV can tap into Youtube to play video, but browsing options are pretty limited. You can enter channels showing the newest, most popular, highest rated, or "featured" videos, but searching for specific content is a tedious process. Entering search terms is done with the arrow keys on your remote, and it took us at least 5 minutes to find specific movie and game trailers. However, you can log into your Youtube account to visit favorited channels and user subscriptions.

By default, Youtube will stream the Hi-Quality of HD version of a video if its available. You can turn this off if you're on a slow or shakey internet connection.

Online music streaming is actually a pleasure to use. Menu entries for Pandora and Live365 let you log into an account and access online radio feeds. The player experience replicates the features of those services you'd find on their respective sites, as well. We're not sure how many people actually want to stream online radio to their TV, but the option is there.

Finally, you can browse Flick's photo content with pre-configured feeds, such as the last week's worth of "interesting" photos. Again, this is more of a novelty feature than an actual practical one -- we don't envision many people rummaging through Flickr on their TVs out of boredom.

One disappointment is that most of the pictures we opened from the Flickr feed turned out to be the low-resolution photo, which then isn't stretched out to fill the screen.

From our early tests, the WD TV Live looks to be a worthy successor to the WD TV. It's most attractive features haven't changed -- video aficionados and media pirates alike will still be drawn to it for its wide file format support. The Ethernet connectivity and streaming feature, however, really makes this a true contender as the dominant media player in your home theater setup. The device's small profile, relatively low power usage, and whisper quiet operation makes it more ideal than the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 for in-network media streaming. Whether that's worth $150 or adding another media player to your TV stand is up to you.

Note: As of the time of writing, Best Buy is selling the WD TV Live for $120 (may be backordered)

Postal Worker Pinches 3,000 Netflix DVDs, Pleads Guilty to Federal Theft

Paul Lilly — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 12:00:28 -0500

Perhaps Myles Weathers' biggest mistake was not calling it quits after stealing 2,000 Netflix DVDs instead of 3,012. Or maybe he should have been more careful about removing the DVDs from Netflix mailers in front of surveillance cameras. Then again, the whole idea is dumb to begin with, and we imagine the 49-year-old former postal worker is kicking himself pretty hard right about now.

Weathers, who worked at a mail processing and distribution center in Springfield, Massachusetts, was picked up by authorities last year after Neflix officials fielded a hunch that perhaps thousands of missing DVDs meant something shady was going on. Surveillance footage confirmed the suspicion when it showed Weathers stuffing the stolen DVDs into his backpack, but not before he managed to lift over 3,000 discs valued at more than $30,000.

Weathers pleaded guilty yesterday to federal theft charges and is scheduled to be sentenced December 23, 2009. His felony plea carries a maximum of 5 years in prison, but will likely receive 1 year, The Smoking Gun reports.

Blockbuster Closing 960 Stores, Shifting Focus to Kiosks

Paul Lilly — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 07:56:30 -0500

According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Blockbuster plans to board up anywhere from 810 to 960 of its retail locations by the end of 2010. Blockbuster says the closures affect all unprofitable stores as it aims "to improve four-wall profitability."

Most of the closures will take place this year, with between 580 and 685 stores expected to be on the chopping block. The remaining unprofitable stores will shut down sometime next year, but there's still time to turn things around.

"All these stores are candidate stores," Blockbuster spokesperson Randy Hargove said in a phone conversation with Cnet. "Although we may in fact close that many stores, if we can renegotiate leases or remodel stores to make them more profitable, that number might go down."

Meanwhile, the company's kiosk business continues to grow and is set to explode this year. In a separate filing with the SEC, Blockbuster said it plans to have 2,500 units available by the end of 2009, up significantly from the 497 kiosk units now available. And by the end of the 2010, Blockbuster anticipates 10,000 kiosks scattered throughout the country in an attempt to "increase the points of distribution."

And maybe increase its stock price. Blockbuster shares are currently trading for $1.40, a far cry from the $45 Netflix shares change hands at.

Image Credit: blogs.dallasobserver.com

Microsoft and UK-based Tesco Team Up on Virtual DVD Service

Pulkit Chandna — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:02:53 -0500

Microsoft announced Wednesday it will work in tandem with the largest British retail chain, Tesco, to offer DVD-like features with digitally downloaded movies as part of a new “virtual DVD” service. The service is scheduled to debut in the UK sometime this fall. The ingenious plan is to let British customers download special digital copies of “certain home video titles” bought from Tesco.

These special downloadable copies will include interactive content and bonus material, both of which are usually associated with movies distributed on physical media. To boot, the downloadable versions will also provide some network-dependant features, including auto-updated trailers, games, ringtones, MP3s, and movie viewing parties with online chat. Microsoft revealed in a press release that the service will be based on Silverlight technology.

The company had announced Tuesday that Silverlight 4, the next iteration of its Flash rival, will include PlayReady DRM, making it possible for retailers and movie studios to provide digital movie copies with much the same rich interactive experience as offered by DVD and Blu-ray titles. Microsoft also said that it does plan to offer its virtual DVD service elsewhere.

Image Credit: PC World