Posted 11/16/09 at 02:35:01 PM by Bart Salisbury

With Google in the crosshairs of some Internet content providers, such as Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., it’s unsurprising that Google would feel compelled to add its two-cents worth to the debate. It turns out, from Google’s perspective, its efforts are largely misunderstood. It is not, as commonly portrayed, a monster in the ether, devouring all it encounters, but rather a benign and useful acolyte ready to serve users and content providers alike.

Danny Sullivan, of Search Engine Land, relates an extensive interview with Josh Cohen, Google’s business product manager. In it Cohen says that Google isn’t hellbent on forcing content providers to index their content, and provide it to users free of charge, but rather is willing to work with content providers in any way they way, including not linking to their content at all. Cohen says that Google offers four levels of service content providers can use, ranging from free access to content to indexing of previews or summaries, with full-content only possible through registration or payment. Google would like to see as much open content as possible, Cohen explains, but is willing to cooperate "one hundred percent" with providers to implement the level of access they want.

However, Cohen interjects, the idea of pay-to-view content isn’t necessarily the best option, even for content providers intent on maximizing revenue. Google users tend to shy away from content with strings attached. So much so that Google’s search algorithm, which mimics users desires in search results, deemphasizes sites with paywalls. Cohen argues that, at a minimum, visibility is key, even behind a paywall: “I would argue even more important if you’re putting content behind a paywall, because all of a sudden, depending on your model, again, you’re potentially shrinking your potential base of users. So you want to increase the size of that funnel, you don’t want to restrict it even further.”

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Posted 03/23/09 at 08:05:51 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Some users of Netflix’s streaming service have groused about dwindling performance in recent times. The dip in performance has not only nettled users but also engendered speculation as to its cause. The most plausible conjecture is that video streams are being deliberately throttled by Netflix.

But Netflix’s chief product officer Neil Hunt has dismissed such misgivings and passed the buck to the ISPs. He even claimed, on the company’s official blog, Netflix can’t resort to throttling even if it wants to because it relies on third-party Content Delivery Network (CDN) services.

“Also, routing to different ISPs in the same region may be quite different, thus performance may also be quite different, even for neighbors, if they are connected to different ISPs. Moreover, congesting points can rise and fall with ISP configuration changes and other conditions,” Hunt wrote.

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Posted 09/18/08 at 02:33:33 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Amazon has armed its subsidiary Internet Movie Database (IMDB) with 6,000 full-length movies and TV episodes. Users can watch the video content without spending even a single penny. Video on IMDB had been long overdue and its absence was perplexing.

Sadly enough, though, only a glimpse of the video feature is enough to tell you that it will take quite a long time for video to be the site’s USP. The list of featured videos is too short to be any good. 

Therefore, to make the most of the wide gamut of video content provided by the likes of Sony Pictures Television, HULU, CBS and roughly 500 indie filmmakers, you will have to mainly depend on the website’s search capabilities.

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Posted 07/17/08 at 04:51:23 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Xbox Live is a major money-spinner for Microsoft's gaming division, one which both Sony and Nintendo envy. Sony is currently trying to replicate Live's success with its very own PSN service and the wide array of new additions to PSN might help Sony in its endeavor. One of the new additions happens to be the Playstation video downloading service, which is now live.

Users can rent or purchase SD or HD content from various leading TV and movie stables including Fox, MGM, Warner and Disney etc. TV videos begin at $1.99, while movie rentals and purchases begin at $2.99 and $9.99 respectively.

Several reports frequenting the internet seem to suggest that the service is not available in all regions/countries. But there is no word on this issue from Sony. Limited launch or not, Wedbush Morgan’s videogame analyst Michael Pachter believes that availability of videos on PSN can lure potential Apple TV owners towards the PS3.

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