Roku Refreshes Their Entire Lineup

Roku, the company known for its range of home video streaming solutions, has announced an entire suite of new models. The company has streamlined its naming convention, as well as given a facelift to the look of all existing models, which it says will “simplify everything about streaming, right down to our product names.”

Roku has introduced three new models to go along with its top-of-the-line Roku 3.

Netflix Goes HD

Clearer video for everyone! Or at least for some.

Netflix is now offering Super HD, its highest-quality streaming video, to all of its customers, the company announced in a blog post on Thursday, expanded from a limited rollout in January.

But some netflix customers still might not be able to use Super HD all the time, because some Internet service providers haven’t joined a network Netflix designed to keep Internet congestion low.

 

Why Netflix’s Recommendations Are Getting Better

Long time ROKU streaming box subscriber here … To me it’s worth the money …

The viewing behavior of Netflix‘s (NASDAQ: NFLX  )  streaming members is telling the company something, and the good news for subscribers — and investors — is that Netflix is listening. Its recommendation engine is focusing more on viewer data, and less on the five-star rating system that Netflix depended on when it was a DVD-by-mail business. That shift appears to be working well for the streamer.

In defense of Netflix (reviews.cnet.com)

14% of Households Use Streaming Media Devices, Roku More Popular Than Apple TV

Streaming media device use has doubled since 2011, with 14% of U.S. broadband households using products like the Apple TV or the Roku in 2013, reports Parks Associates (via CNET).

While the Apple TV has increased in popularity over the last several years, it falls short of competing product Roku. A survey of 10,000 U.S. broadband households revealed that 37% used a Roku device while 24% used an Apple TV, making Roku the most used streaming set-top box in the U.S.

Parks Associates predicts that worldwide connected TV device sales will double to reach 330 million annually by 2017, with annual sales revenue increasing almost 100%.

“Innovations such as next-gen game consoles and 4K or ultra-HD TVs will boost unit sales for these devices, but overall, consumers are reluctant to replace these big-ticket items solely for smart upgrades,” said Barbara Kraus, director, research, Parks Associates. “As a result, streaming video media devices will have a thriving market because they can offer innovations such as streaming video at low prices. Devices such as Roku’s streaming players and Google’s Chromecast will benefit from these market conditions.”

 

So What’s Next For You Kiddies

Buy or else, like the old Soviets of times gone past … Let’s make streaming copyrighted content a FELONY’

Got to pay our Hollywood donors back … Felonies are us, for stealing a $10 movie?

A report by the US Department of Commerce’s Internet Policy Task Force recommends that the government make the streaming of copyrighted material a felony.

The report recommends “assessing and improving enforcement tools to combat online infringement and promote the growth of legitimate services while preserving the essential functioning of the Internet.”

Currently, streaming content is a simple misdemeanor that breaches rules on violation of the public-performance right, but the report recommends upping the penalty to felony status for those who push out audio and video material for which they haven’t paid royalties.

Apparently cable companies and their royalty streams aren’t doing so well. Once you figure out you can do without … Seen the discount bins at Walmart lately???

Jolting The Market???

The market for streaming media players may no longer be a two-horse race between Apple and Roku. The introduction of Google’s Chromecast has given the category a jolt — but there were always more fish in the sea than the big two. Now that Google has gotten people talking about streaming media players in earnest, we’ve canvassed the competition, including some models you may have missed, to gage the strengthes and weaknesses of each.

Google video … Introducing Chromecast. The easiest way to enjoy online video and music on your TV. For $35. What PC Mag has to say. Limited, but affordable.

As a ROKU fanboi, we’ll see. Miracast is coming … 

Netgear Unveils True Dual-Band Range Extender With Support For Apple’s AirPlay

Netgear announced at CES 2013 its first wall-plug dual-band Wi-Fi range extender, the Universal Dual Band WiFi Range Extender Wall-plug Edition (model WN3500RP).

You plug it into a wall socket within the range of an existing Wi-Fi network to help extend its range. It’s also the first Wi-Fi range extender that can be directly connected to speakers for music streaming using AirPlay, via its standard 3.5mm audio jack, or the USB speakers via its USB port.

 

The new Universal Dual Band WiFi Range Extender can simultaneously extend both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi bands, making it best suited for a dual-band home network. It works, however, with a Wi-Fi network that uses either of the two frequency bands.

The WN3500RP comes in a compact design, just slightly bigger than a power adapter of a mobile device. It comes included with a dock and with a separate power cord in case you don’t want it to crowd the power sockets. The device’s USB port can also be used to host a printer and share it with the rest of the network.

The new Universal Dual Band WiFi Range Extender, Wall-plug Edition (WN3500RP) is available now and costs $100.

STREAMING SERVICES BEGIN TO BEAT CABLE SUBSCRIPTIONS IN ‘THE BATTLE FOR THE COUCH POTATO’

Due to improved and increasing streaming services provided by companies Hulu, Netflix and others, millions of Americans are “cutting the cord,” if you will, from cable companies.

A recent report from Convergence Consulting Group found between 2008 and 2011, more than 2.86 million people canceled cable subscriptions in favor of online streaming. The report – The Battle for the North American (US/Canada) Couch Potato: Online and Traditional TV, and Movie Distribution — in its sixth year now, shows that compared the previous year, 2011 saw 50 percent fewer customers signed on for cable services.

Not only that, but the report states broadcast and cable networks are making the online full-episode TV they do offer “less free” by increasing ad time, and/or reducing available shows for free.

Although the report forecasts “cord cutters” will reach about 3.58 million before the end of 2012, it does project that cable subscriptions will be up next year to 185,000 new subscribers (112,000 subscribers were reported for 2011 and 272,000 in 2010).

Yahoo! News reports Convergence co-founder Brahm Eiley speculating that increased prices for streaming services will be a factor in this small rebound for cable and broadcast companies. The issue is that sites such as Netflix need to keep up with the cost of streaming rights in order to provide content to their users. Yahoo! reports Netflix owing $1.1 billion for streaming rights in 2010, whereas the number jumped dramatically to $3.9 billion in 2011.

Intel Buys RealNetworks Patents

Intel has purchased 190 patents and 170 patent applications from RealNetworks for $120 million.

The patents include technology invented to create next-generation video codecs, which encode or decode video so that it can be sent over networks efficiently. It’s one more example of a giant company “armoring up” to deal with potential patent wars in the future.

As part of the deal, Intel will acquire RealNetworks’ foundational streaming media patents, expanding Intel’s diverse portfolio of intellectual property.

Intel said the deal enhances its ability to “continue to offer richer experiences and innovative solutions to end users across a wide spectrum of devices, including through Ultrabook devices, smartphones and digital media.”

“Selling these patents to Intel unlocks some of the substantial and unrealized value of RealNetworks assets,” CEO  Thomas Nielsen said in a statement. “It represents an extraordinary opportunity for us to generate additional capital to boost investments in new businesses and markets while still protecting our existing business.”

The two companies also agreed to collaborate on future support and development of the video codec software and related products.

RealNetworks will retain certain rights to continue using the patents in current and future products.