Slashdot Mirror
Amazon To Launch New Streaming Video Service
The New York Times reports that Amazon has begun a limited testing of its new Video on Demand service, which will replace its Unbox store. The significant difference between the two is that the new service will stream movies through your browser rather than requiring you to download them and use Amazon's video player. Users will also retain access to movies and shows they're previously purchased. The service is not expected to be particularly profitable; Amazon is most likely looking to the future.
When I bought my first Linux-preinstalled laptop last year, I felt like I was really discovering how great computing can be again, especially for people who are interested in computers. So it saddened me to find that the Netflix in-browser service requires a Windows machine. I still use it on occasion with an older computer, but I hope that this technology will soon be truly cross-platform like many other modern web services have become.
We bought the Netflix Roku player and have been very happy with it; we've got 135 films in our instant queue and we're glad we don't have to watch normal college-freshman-level TV (i.e. crass humor, actually aimed at 12-year olds) or hang out at our local seedy video store with the nasty carpet smell for the same old catalog.
Also, occasionally I'll blurt out something terribly nerdy about how the Roku player runs Linux and my wife will totally ignore it. This always helps bring me back down to earth for a moment.