Video-on-Demand versus P2P? 19
aisnota at aisnota dot com asks: "VOD, the First Skirmish in the Battle seems to be the story of cable and satellite MSO's finally accepting PVR technology. The real question is why it took so long for those companies to recognize consumers with peer to peer networking have effectively created, 'Video on Demand', and they are a bit late to the table. Slashdot readers are invited to chime in to determine if cable/satellite operators are just in time or too late incorporating VOD as compared to peer to peer technologies, licit as well as illicit. The real question though is competing with your own video content to effectively create your own VOD channel with Gnutella or similar peer to peer software. Who has done this?"
It's not going to work.. (Score:2)
Re:It's not going to work.. (Score:2)
I vote for watching it once on PPV for the same price...
Surely we shouldn't have to suffer with the physical bulk of VHS tapes or DVD disks if we have other ways of backing up the entertainment data for which we have paid for the right to view.
Heck, you want me to deal with a bulky tape or DVD, particularly one encumbered by some silly anti-piracy measure? Offer it at a far LOWER PRICE than something streamed that I can archive for my own future use in the manner in which I desire. I guess if the DVD or VHS tape is already so unencumbered, I might pay a small premium over the PPV broadcast, just for the media, but really, I don't want all that bulk, and I can't see how anyone else would: VHS tapes and DVDs should really be interchange media and that's about it, not used for personal entertainment content storage.
The only reason the VHS tape or DVD is more desirable than a PPV broadcast (which really is pre-paid VOD since the "per view" part really is a joke), is because of the artificial encumberances put on PPV broadcasts making it difficult to record them for those that don't know how (i.e. most people).
There are stores that sell bottled water where you bring your own bottle (well multi-gallon plastic container), and will sell you the bottle too, if you don't have one. Your first purchase include the bottle and subsequent purchases are refils, until the bottle becomes too old or scuzzy (NO! Not THAT SCSI) to use. Entertainment content should be sold the same way, perhaps custom encrypted to limited playback devices to keep the DRM-folks happy, but that's about it.
Sigh. I guess the world really is fucked, and not in a good way.
Re:It's not going to work.. (Score:2)
What the fuck are you talking about? PPV on DirecTV is 3 bucks per movie. Buying that movie on VHS is ~$15.
Misleading title (Score:4, Insightful)
I'm very happy with set-top boxes coming with additional capability assuming they can be made with the capacity to handle it, which obviously wasn't true of the painfully slow 1st generation digital set-top boxes. My hope is that cable operators will continue to offer vanilla devices, in order to aviod redundant hardware and unnecessary noise in the house. But additional capabilities for an entertainment device that can still output over RCA and co-ax can only be a positive thing... I don't see why it is even an issue.
And no, Gnutella isn't VOD. To think so is somewhere between Naieve and MPAA propaganda. Demand means I want it now, Gnutella / FastTrack means it may or may not be finished in three days.
Backbone and storage (Score:4, Insightful)
First of all true mass VoD services *can* be cheaper than renting movies, buying storage, hazzle around with ripping software and computers in general. Just imagine the non-nerd comming home from work, (s)he turns on the TV, selects a movie at $2.99 from an archive of hundreds or thousands of titles. Compare this with the extra work and hazzle setting up and utilize a computer not talking about the noice.
Secondly, streaming movies aint that easy so any P2P solution must involve a download and storage procedure, hence using a noicy computer. Which non-nerd likes todo that in the longrun? Also what download times would you get retrieving commercial titles from a leaf node in a network? Compare that with Gigabit fiber backbones of the operators.
I belive that P2P will be used by the same persons that use P2P today who seem willing to spend hours of preparation to watch a handy CAM captured asian bootleg of TTT instead of wait until the real version is available in the renatal stores or at the cinema. A normal user will most of the time sit back in the sofa with a beer, some snacks and silently get the movie from the operator at a relativelly low cost. We can see that happeining today in the music industry where the CD burner forced down the prices on the second line music, and that is good!
P2P can be used to spread movies that doesn't fit in the mainstream audiences and holiday documentaries to friends and relatives. An operator would be able to support that too by offering a public streaming service at the headend etc etc
My punch line is that most people doesn't want to fool around with computers at all. They want to watch movies.
Re:Backbone and storage (Score:2)
there is something to be said about downloading a dvd rip of a movie before it makes it out of theatres (it is still in theatres right?)
True plus Content issues (Score:2)
However despite these I agree with the above VOD and PVR are complementary. The networking capability to the home required for P2P PVR will be provided by value added service providers. The simple fact is most consumers are ordinary people not geeks, most ordinary people are not prepared to pay the full real cost of a 4Meg DSL line, without services.
There is the content issue, we have a healthy revenue from adult content, movies, cartoons and music, but what consumers really like and use much more is the fast changing content like news and weather and that cannot be local enough. This is something P2P VOD cannot provide, yet, this will allow a whole new sector of local service providers, and these are likely to come in part from the P2P network users.
There is also the issue of content innovatations coming with VOD technology, viewer directed story lines, multiple view points, hyperlinked content streams. We are conducting trials of these new ideas. Thunder Road an Interactive soap with a dramatic fly on wall documentary and true documentary all in parallel, with the [bbc.co.uk] BBC [bbc.co.uk]. And it was our most popular VOD item yet.
Bit-torrent (Score:2)
VOD Here (Score:2)
The Subscription Video on Demand, which has channels for each of the premium channels, is very cool. The HBO channel, for instance, has entire seasons of the Sopranos and Six Feet Under, along with a fair selection of movies, dennis miller, and comedya specials and whatnot. And it came free with the cable package I already have.
Showtime also has lots of Red Shoe Diaries on their channel. Good Times.
Freenet + Napster + PVR + Big Media (Score:2)
Everything on demand... (Score:1)
VoD Home Server? (Score:1)
Is there any software that will allow me to backup my DVD collection, and access them via a nice interface on my TV?