WebTV

Google released an U.S.-focused version of its video quality report Tuesday, which offers users a way to check which of their local ISPs deliver the best-looking YouTube streams. The report is singling out some ISPs as “HD verified” which YouTube Product Manager Jay Akkad defined this way in a blog post: “If your provider can Continue Reading →

Comcast Chief Executive Brian Roberts teased the idea of streaming-video services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime coming to Comcast, as part of a platform that sounds like the holy grail of home entertainment. In a Q&A session at the Recode technology conference in Palos Verdes, Calif., Roberts said the services could eventually be integrated Continue Reading →

ESPN has already said it may let you pay for its sports programming on the Web without subscribing to a traditional pay-TV package. Now it is floating the idea of selling some of its stuff directly to consumers, just like Netflix does. ESPN boss John Skipper says that next year the company may sell a Continue Reading →

YouTube announced a new initiative called Creator Preview, a video series in which the Google-owned company shares what features it is working on for creators. In the first video, YouTube reveals it is building a mobile app just for creators, a feature that lets fans directly contribute funds to creators, and a “way to harness Continue Reading →

Amazon is emailing some of its customers with an offer to try out the $99 Fire TV box free-of-charge for 30 days. If they don’t get along with the little Android-powered streamer and gaming console, they can return it without obligation and without being left out of pocket — so long as they follow the Continue Reading →

Video hosting platform Vimeo has introduced copyright matching technology to ensure it remains “a home for original work — not for rips of movies, TV shows, music videos, and sports broadcasts”. Announced in a blog post, Vimeo says that unlike other copyright detection systems on other sites it is working hard to strike a balance Continue Reading →

In the future, Netflix will know exactly what you want to watch, even before you do. You won’t have to spend all that time browsing through endless lists of shows on your television. That’s according to Neil Hunt, Netflix’s chief product officer. It’s just one of many predictions for the future of TV that the Continue Reading →

Google’s YouTube has reached a deal to buy Twitch, a popular videogame-streaming company, for more than $1 billion, according to sources familiar with the pact. The deal, in an all-cash offer, is expected to be announced imminently, sources said. If completed the acquisition would be the most significant in the history of YouTube, which Google Continue Reading →

Netflix has officially raised the monthly price of membership for new members, who will now have to fork over $9 a month. That’s a dollar more than the $8 price point the company has charged for several years. If you’re an existing Netflix subscriber, you don’t have to worry; the company has promised your monthly Continue Reading →

Walmart’s Vudu announced that it will introduce a Share My Movie feature that will allow its customers to share their UltraViolet collections with up to five friends or family. Back in the era of physical media, one of the cool things about owning CDs and DVDs was being able to lend them to friends and Continue Reading →