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2008 Beijing Olympics as a Media Test-Bed
CNN is reporting that NBC is using the 2008 Olympics in Beijing as a test-bed to understand how people are using different media platforms. "NBC has scheduled 3,600 hours of Olympics programming on its main network, along with Telemundo, USA, Oxygen, MSNBC, CNBC and Bravo. That's the equivalent of eight days of programming packed into each day. In addition, the company is planning to make 2,200 hours of streaming video available on NBCOlympics.com. Consumers may also get video on demand via their computer and Olympics content through their mobile phones."
The other networks have to turn it into a fucking soap opera giving you a 20 minute tear-jerker biography of the damn athlete before each event. That cuts into time that could be better spent, I don't know, covering the actual Olympics? There are so many sports that don't even make it on television.
Kwisatz Haderach
Sell the spice to CHOAM
This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
I recall a lot of folks were annoyed during the last olympics because the BBC blocked access to their online video streams to American IP address blocks because of NBC legal threats/licensing junk.
I would love to see them actually stream decent quality video on their website. All networks want to boast their revolutionizing web access, when all they do is stream some ultra low res grainy crap. It's totally unwatchable when you are used to watching the exact same events in HD, for free. Why are content providers so scared to broadcast HD feeds via the web? They could leave the commercials in, and it would be the same as watching it on TV. It can't honestly be that they are worried about people distributing the content. I mean.... people can very easily capture the HD feed to their computer with a tv tuner. And when it comes to the "too much bandwidth" argument, couldn't they just use bittorrent? I know the reason probably has to do with money... but I'm not seeing it. Someone please enlighten me.
I'm a member of a Curling Club , you insensitive clod!
they do an outstanding job covering the Olympics, if you can get it.
while they of course emphasize Canadian athletes, they don't cater to them exclusively.
and you get to actually watch complete events. not flip from event to event in a format apparently designed only for those with attention deficit.
I bet CBC even gets some of the smog on screen. what a wonderful place to run long distances...
The actual events will require both Silverlight and Vista.
Thereby making absolutely certain that the videos won't be cached, transcoded and redistributed within seconds of their first webcast. You won't be able to archive them or time shift them or view them on the evil Lunix or your otherwise capable crackberry or eee pc. Right? Right? Because Vista's secure media transport and display has been perfected and will never be cracked.
This streamed olympic footage will not be available for fair use, ever. Not even long after even those who participated have ceased to care. Me, I don't care already. If they stream it to an open platform I might watch some of it but Vista alone is too much of a price to pay, let alone Silverlight. I think instead I'll click over to CNN and see if they manage to smuggle out footage of protesters.
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