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CBS Hosts Ad-Funded TV Series, Incl. Original Star Trek

Posted by timothy on from the whole-new-generation-can-obsess-or-ridicule dept.

eldavojohn writes "On Friday, CBS launched a TV Classics section to their ad based online service. Which means that Trekkies can now watch all three seasons of Star Trek: The Original Series online at the expense of a few commercials. Alongside this CBS is offering all of MacGyver, Twin Peaks and even three seasons of the original Twilight Zone. A side note, they seem to work perfectly fine in Linux. "

8 of 276 comments (clear)

  1. "On Friday"? by Dolohov · · Score: 5, Informative

    Um, it's been there for over a year now. I watched the first season last spring.

  2. Wow by calmofthestorm · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This and Hulu make me very happy. It takes a bit longer to download than bittorrent, but I don't find the ads obtrusive (so short), the quality is good enough for me, and the option to stream live is handy.

    I imagine they don't like you downloading it but sometimes I don't have tubes, and as the commercials aren't annoying I don't bother removing them.

    Now if only they carried programming I liked more...and here we are:-)

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    1. Re:Wow by Cassius+Corodes · · Score: 5, Insightful

      You do realise that that is how they make money right? They aren't putting in ads coz they want to piss you off...

      If you want internet video to continue to provide you a service you have to actually accept having to view the ads.

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    2. Re:Wow by skam240 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Honestly I'm kind of bummed that these work-arounds to sites like Hulu exist. Finally I have a means of watching TV where i don't feel like I am wasting too much of my life on commercials while those that make the shows that I enjoy are able to make some money. Now that we're seeing a move back towards a reasonable level of advertising for TV we've got people abusing the system to the ultimate determent of us all.

      I like the fact that I can honestly watch these shows without watching 8 - 9 minutes of commercials for every 21 - 22 minutes of show. It's really disappointing to find out that there are those that are actively ruining this for the rest of us because they can't be bothered with 2 - 3 30 second advertisements so that those who make the TV we like can make a bit of money.

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  3. Star Trek should be required in schools. by tjstork · · Score: 5, Interesting

    And by that, I mean, classic Trek. See, the current vogue is that every character has to have faults and be greedy and weak somehow... I mean, in the new Galactica everyone has more issues than a Windows Beta, and its like, it sucks. Men are all crying, cheating, pathetic, and I'm supposed to draw some moral lesson from these people? What a joke.

    On the other hand, there's Captain Kirk, decorated, confident, successful. Now, he goes and tells me that there is a better way, that, I don't have to be a big jackass and we can solve social problems, learn about the world around us, and not be sissies about it, that's all good.

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    1. Re:Star Trek should be required in schools. by Culture20 · · Score: 5, Funny

      Excellent, use, of commas, in, the Kirk paraphrase!

  4. Re:Outside the US? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    yah, but if the CBS execs went warp 10 around the sun, they could go back and, uh...

  5. Re:Outside the US? by canonymous · · Score: 5, Funny

    yah, but if the CBS execs went warp 10

    They could "hyper-evolve" into salamanders and have gross salamander sex?