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watching_tv_on_internet_7_7_2010 [2020.01.08 21:08] – created Steve Isenbergwatching_tv_on_internet_7_7_2010 [2021.12.22 10:51] (current) – external edit 127.0.0.1
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-TV on a PC or Phone Has Some Drawbacks +TV on a PC or Phone Has Some Drawbacks\\  
-By PAUL BOUTIN  in The New York Times +By PAUL BOUTIN  in The New York Times\\  
-Published: July 7, 2010+Published: **July 7, 2010**
  
-Trying to watch TV on the Internet is frustrating+Trying to watch TV on the Internet is frustrating((A lot has changed in 10 years!  See [[catv_alternatives|this wiki link]]))
  
 Sure, cutting off cable service sounds promising, if only for the money you’ll save. But online TV is so fragmented and incomplete that finding a favorite show can be difficult. Watching a compete season of shows, particularly if you want those shows without paying for them, is even harder. Sure, cutting off cable service sounds promising, if only for the money you’ll save. But online TV is so fragmented and incomplete that finding a favorite show can be difficult. Watching a compete season of shows, particularly if you want those shows without paying for them, is even harder.
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 Nevertheless, I was able to find seven of last week’s 20 top-rated shows online and I did not pay a dime. If I were willing to pay a small amount, I could have seen a lot more. But it helps to know the tricks. Nevertheless, I was able to find seven of last week’s 20 top-rated shows online and I did not pay a dime. If I were willing to pay a small amount, I could have seen a lot more. But it helps to know the tricks.
  
-Without Hulu.com, watching TV online would really be a trying exercise of hopping from one network site to another searching for a favorite show.+Without **Hulu.com**, watching TV online would really be a trying exercise of hopping from one network site to another searching for a favorite show.
  
 The NBC and Fox networks opened Hulu as a free online television hub for their shows in 2007. It was popular enough that last year, ABC joined the experiment and put many of its shows there, too. There are hundreds of programs available that run the gamut from morning shows to sitcoms, dramas and talk shows, most of them appearing online the morning after broadcast. The NBC and Fox networks opened Hulu as a free online television hub for their shows in 2007. It was popular enough that last year, ABC joined the experiment and put many of its shows there, too. There are hundreds of programs available that run the gamut from morning shows to sitcoms, dramas and talk shows, most of them appearing online the morning after broadcast.
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 With every network alternately serving or denying its own finicky menu of shows and episodes, what is really needed is a Google for TV, but it is not available from Google. Head over to Clicker.com, a site financed with several million dollars of venture capital, which indexes what’s available in a searchable database. With every network alternately serving or denying its own finicky menu of shows and episodes, what is really needed is a Google for TV, but it is not available from Google. Head over to Clicker.com, a site financed with several million dollars of venture capital, which indexes what’s available in a searchable database.
  
-Clicker.com does not host the shows. Instead, it links directly to each episode’s location, whether on Hulu, network or pay sites. It clearly marks each result as free or paid, and includes a screen shot and quick summary of the episode. Clicker also indexes additional video content, like ABC’s “Lost Untangled,” which explains the complexities of the recently ended show’s puzzle-within-a-puzzle plot.+**Clicker.com**((now tv.com, the URL clicker.com automatically forwards to tv.com)) does not host the shows. Instead, it links directly to each episode’s location, whether on Hulu, network or pay sites. It clearly marks each result as free or paid, and includes a screen shot and quick summary of the episode. Clicker also indexes additional video content, like ABC’s “Lost Untangled,” which explains the complexities of the recently ended show’s puzzle-within-a-puzzle plot.
  
 Clicker takes a while to figure out, but it has filters that let you dig into, for example, only episodes from the second season of a particular show. Using Clicker, I immediately found 112 episodes of “Babylon 5” at thewb.com, and 202 free episodes of “South Park” at southparkstudios.com. Once you figure out the interface, it’s impressive. Clicker takes a while to figure out, but it has filters that let you dig into, for example, only episodes from the second season of a particular show. Using Clicker, I immediately found 112 episodes of “Babylon 5” at thewb.com, and 202 free episodes of “South Park” at southparkstudios.com. Once you figure out the interface, it’s impressive.
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 To get the broadest range of shows, you are inevitably faced with the option of paying for your entertainment. The best thing about many of the pay services is that the TV shows can be watched on smartphones or PCs. To get the broadest range of shows, you are inevitably faced with the option of paying for your entertainment. The best thing about many of the pay services is that the TV shows can be watched on smartphones or PCs.
  
-Last month, Fox introduced BitBop.com, a service that streams live TV to BlackBerry smartphones, or lets users download shows for later play, for $9.99 a month. NBC also offers a smartphone streaming service, NBC2Go, through Flo TV. For $14.99 a month, owners of several smartphone models serviced by AT&T and Verizon can stream NBC shows on demand.+Last month, Fox introduced **BitBop.com**((music and cartoons/anime)), a service that streams live TV to BlackBerry smartphones, or lets users download shows for later play, for $9.99 a month. NBC also offers a smartphone streaming service, NBC2Go, through Flo TV((now flolive.tv, probably is a magazine)). For $14.99 a month, owners of several smartphone models serviced by AT&T and Verizon can stream NBC shows on demand.
  
 Apple’s iTunes, which brings together most of the music biz in one searchable library, lacks a comprehensive television inventory. What is there usually costs about $2.99 an episode. Amazon has shows, too, for $1.99 an episode. Netflix, the movie-in-the-mail service, has a growing library of TV shows that you can stream to your PC or to your TV through a Wii, Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 game consoles, or newer Blu-ray disc players. It has old TV shows like “Mannix” and “Maverick” as well as newer series like “30 Rock” and “Weeds,” but not the current seasons of those shows. Apple’s iTunes, which brings together most of the music biz in one searchable library, lacks a comprehensive television inventory. What is there usually costs about $2.99 an episode. Amazon has shows, too, for $1.99 an episode. Netflix, the movie-in-the-mail service, has a growing library of TV shows that you can stream to your PC or to your TV through a Wii, Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 game consoles, or newer Blu-ray disc players. It has old TV shows like “Mannix” and “Maverick” as well as newer series like “30 Rock” and “Weeds,” but not the current seasons of those shows.
watching_tv_on_internet_7_7_2010.1578546496.txt.gz · Last modified: 2021.12.22 11:21 (external edit)