901am

Super Bowl XLVII Caused 15% Dip In Internet Usage As Viewers Flocked To TVs

Super Bowl XLVIITV viewership for Super Bowl XLVII remained strong despite a push by internet services to siphon off the big days viewership.

While millions of users posted Facebook status updates and more than 20 million tweets were delivered, a study released this morning by Sandvine found that most social network users tweeted from the comfort of their living room as they watched the big game.

According to Sandvine:

“While many might think the big game might cause big demand on fixed access networks. The truth is while everyone is watching the game on their television they are actually giving the network a break from usage.”

A drop in internet usage because of the Super Bowl is known as the “Super Dip” and it has continued despite the fact that Super Bowl coverage is available for free. Users could visit CBSports.com or use the NFL.com and CBS Sports mobile apps to catch the game on their mobile devices.  [Read more…]

Boxee Brings NHL Game Center Live to its Updated Service in Beta

For those of you who are currently using Boxee, which is currently in beta have a reason to rejoice as Boxee announced two new exciting features of its service. First is that NHL GameCenter LIVE is now available on Boxee.  If you are subscribed to this service on a monthly or annual basis, you can now enjoy watching great Hockey games and fights in HD mode on Boxee.

The other part of Boxee’s exciting announcement is related to updates to its service which is currently in beta mode. The latest version of Boxee beta has some interesting new features such as the following:

File Identification Progress – This feature lets you to easily see how many files Boxee is scanning, has identified, and doesn’t recognize in your media collection.  You can check the status of its media from any menu sidebar or from the Media settings menu.

Manual Movie and TV Show Identification – This feature lets you tell Boxee what’s in your media collection. It allows you to change incorrectly labeled files, find and identify unresolved files and select files to label them correctly.

Facebook & Twitter in your Boxee feed – Boxee Beta now lets you see recommendations from your Facebook and Twitter friends and contacts within Boxee. You can see shared videos in your feed with an icon on the right that tells you where they are from.

New & Improved RSS Management – The new version of Boxee Beta also now lets you better manage, discover and play RSS feeds in Boxee. You can search, arrange by category or sort through the most popular, top rated, new and HD feeds available on your Boxee account. You can then use the RSS feeds app to play back your favorites.

Bug Fixes and Fixes and Fixes, and Fixes! – Of course, just like any other version updates, the new Boxee Beta has addressed hundreds of bugs and issued various fixes to these.

Netflix Now Streams TV Shows and Movies to Nintendo Wii

Nintendo and Netflix are treating Wii users all over the world with free streaming of TV and Movies on TV sets via Netflix services. The new TV and movie streaming services are provided free of charge to Wii users with existing Netflix plans starting at $8.99 monthly.

With a Nintendo Wii connected to a broadband service, a Netflix subscription you can practically turn your Nintendo Wii into a multimedia device. We’re talking here of unlimited movies and TV shows delivered courtesy of Netflix.  You can also opt to receive DVDs delivered straight to your door step.

Certainly this new service will boosts Netflix’s clout in the home entertainment scene. The Nintendo Wii remains to be the most popular gaming consoles, thanks to its motion controls which users find useful for both exercising and gaming controls.

As for Nintendo Wii, this new service extends its purposes and functions from a mere gaming machine to a portable multimedia entertainment device. It’s definitely a win-win for both parties.

To have streaming TV shows and movies from Netflix on your Nintendo Wii, you simply need to request for a free instant streaming disc from www.netflix.com/wii. Once you have your CD, you can pop it inside your Nintendo Wii and you will presented with a catalog of movies and TV shows that you can freely watch.

via Business Wire

Netflix for iPad Lets You Stream Movies and TV Shows on iPad

Right now if you take a look at Techmeme.com, half of the news aggregators page is occupied by news items about the iPad, most specifically about iPad applications. Even Internet giants such as Google is announcing something about their mobile services for the iPad.

For us here in 901am, one of the apps that caught our interest since we used to cover news items about it is – Netflix which also released its own native app for the iPad. Available now from the iTunes iPad App Store, Netflix for iPad lets you instantly watch an unlimited number of TV episodes and moviews streamed directly from Netflix to iPad. Streaming is free of charge for Netflix members on plans starting at $8.99/mo.

The Netflix App for iPad will deliver high-quality viewing experience of a broad array of movie and TV choices through a clean and intuitive interface. TV episodes and movies are organized into a various categories based on personal preferences, popular genres, new arrivals and members’ invidivual instant Queues.

Netflix co-founder and CEO Reed Hastings said that his company is very excited about the Netflix app for iPad.

“The innovation and consumer appeal of iPad make it a perfect device for instantly watching TV episodes and movies streamed from Netflix,” said Reed Hastings.

If you’re a Netflix member and you bought the iPad, you may want to download the Netflix App for iPad from the iTunes iPad App Store. But wait since you don’t have your iPad yet, just take note of this app.  It’s a free app by the way.

Justin.TV Finally Arrives on the iPhone

For Justin.TV’s take on the iPhone market, it’s better late than never. While others have already made some applications that allowed online video streaming a long time ago, Justin.TV is banking on its million of users to make their iPhone venture a successful one.

Unfortunately though, Justin.TV’s iPhone doesn’t allow you to record your own video and stream it live yet. Although this feature is set for a future release. Still, the application is worth taking a look at as it brings some pretty good features.

The app lets you connect to your existing Justiv.TV account or create an account if you’re new to Justin.TV within the application.  The moment you logged in to Justin.TV via the app, you will be presented with a list of featured videos and screen caps.  You can tap on any of these videos and watch it stream on your iPhone. If you want to watch more videos other than the ones suggested by the app, you can always use the app’s search function. The app will also let you delete video channels from the menu initially given to you.

Another major feature of the Justin.TV iPhone app is the chat facility that you can find at the bottom right-hand corner of the video screen. It allows you to chat from within the app. You can also share channels with friends via the iPhone’s email facility. Future plans include sharing on Facebook, Twitter and other social networks.

The Justin.TV app is available now for free download from the iTunes Apps Store.

Via NewTeeVee

Microsoft Launches the MSN Video Player in the UK, BBC iPlayer Rival

When it comes to online video watching in the UK, the only service that I know of and keep on hearing and reading about is the BBC iPlayer.  This online video player has been dominating the UK online video scene for quite some time now without a worthy opponent. Until now, as Microsoft just launched its own MSN Video Player in the UK.

The free MSN Video Player is threatening BBC iPlayer’s dominance in the market because of several reasons. For one thing, it will also feature a thousand hours of television programming geared for the young market – youth, young families and professionals in the UK.

The free online video player will also allow viewers to watch full series of various TV shows instead of letting them watch shows a few days after they are aired on TV.

The MSN Video Player which has been in test mode for several months now will be offered for free and that includes watching the TV programs. However, users will be required to watch a single 30-second ad before, during and after a program’s run. If you’re from the UK and you don’t mind these ad setup, then say hello to countless hours of watching TV programmes on your computers.

Interestingly, the MSN Video Player was launched by Ashley Highfield, Microsoft’s consumer and online managing director who also happens to be one of those responsible for the creation of the BBC iPlayer. So Microsoft is hoping that its online video player will get the same success as the BBC iPlayer had.