In Japan, Sony has outlined basic plans for a new online store that, if the plans pan out, will manage to rival iTunes, Amazon, YouTube and Flickr - at least for Sony customers.

Sony Online Service, as it's been dubbed at this early stage, will offer digital content including music, movies, and books as well as other downloadable applications for Sony's entire range of products and will be based on Sony's popular PlayStation Network offering for the gaming side of its business.

A movie into this kind of software - if done well - is seen as a clever way for Sony to improve its fortunes: "Sony has been too focused on hardware", Tokai Tokyo Research Center analyst Osamu Hirose told BusinessWeek.

"It has to focus on networked products [and] delivering digital entertainment to consumers".

Sony will try one interesting way to try and differentiate its service from iTunes, or other such offerings, by giving users the chance to also upload media, such as home made video, photos and "other digital content " to their personal online accounts.

We will keep you posted on this one.

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Tags: Software Sony iTunes Audio YouTube Home Cinema Gaming Playstation Network Sony Online Service

Sony Online Service iTunes rival announced originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:44:02 +0000

Google has used its automatic speech recognition tech, as seen in Google Talk, to offer machine-generated automatic captions across all of its YouTube videos.

"The captions will not always be perfect", says Google, "but even when they're off, they can still be helpful - and the technology will continue to improve with time".

Google is also launching automatic caption timing that it says makes it "significantly easier" to create captions manually by creating a text file with all the words which then uses Google's ASR tech to figure out when the words are spoken and create captions for the video.

Both features are demoed in the official video above - hit play for the explanation.

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Tags: Software Google YouTube Video

VIDEO: YouTube gets automatic captions originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:34:10 +0000

Google has announced that its YouTube video-sharing site is going 1080p. It's available to test right now on some videos, but will be going live for all users at some point next week. Until then, you can see some 1080p content by appending "&fmt=37" to the end of the URL.

Google says: "As resolution of consumer cameras increases, we want to make sure YouTube is the best home on the web to showcase your content. For viewers with big monitors and a fast computer, try switching to 1080p to get the most out of the fullscreen experience".

YouTube has accepted 1080p uploads for some time, but downscales them to 720p in the processing phase of the upload. Luckily, however, the originals are stored, so YouTube will be re-encoding and converting any existing 1080p videos in its database.

When the feature goes live for all users, we'll update this post.

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Tags: Software Websites Online YouTube Google HD Video streaming Video

VIDEO: YouTube gets 1080p HD functionality originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:31:15 +0000

It's all too easy to go to YouTube as a knee jerk reaction whenever you want to find a video on the internet. In fact, the term has passed into common parlance to refer to any user-generated internet film footage much the same as Google has come to refer to search. But if you take the time to have a look around, you'll notice some perfectly good video services in their own right, such as the very popular Vimeo. Some of them, in fact may even be better. So, how does our alternative example compare with the big kid in the playground??

Ownership

Like all good internet phenomena both Vimeo and Youtube were started by some budding entrepreneurs but have both since been bought up by corporate giants. However Google chooses to present its offices and ethos, its power and influence are second to none online making the company officially The Man as far as the world wide web goes. So, as a user and contributor to YouTube you are supporting the big G machine and all it stands for whether you like it or not. As it happens, it may not stand for anything that bad at all but it's worth bearing in mind.

Comparatively speaking, Vimeo is the little guy, but not by much. Owners IAC have over 50 consumer brands including notably Bloglines, Ask, CollegeHumour and Urbanspoon. You're certainly not saving the manatees by choosing Vimeo over YouTube but it might be a factor for the more corporate conscious.

Content Allowed

Vimeo will not host any commercial videos, gaming videos, pornography or anything else not created by users. YouTube is a little more stringent in its demands, if perhaps only subtly. Google's requirements are the uploads should not be defamatory, contain pornography, copyright violations and material that might encourage criminal behaviour. Much of this, of course, is very reasonable and very necessary given the size of the audience. However, as a smaller player, Vimeo does not have to include such overt holds on subjects with such grey areas like whether a video may or may not spark illegal activities. There have also been issues with other subjects including religion and incidents like the Hillsborough football disaster. Vimeo may well have problems in the same areas but there's no particular hard and fast rules on the matter.

Both sites will delete certain videos they deem unacceptable. YouTube relies on its community to flag videos in breach of the terms rather than vetting each on individually. The system works well but it does mean there's more of a chance of catching something inappropriate before its taken down. Whether you view that as an advantage or disadvantage is up to you.

Copyright issues

Being more much more in the spotlight, YouTube has famously had many more issues with copyright than any other video service. Both Viacom and, more recently, PRS in the UK have sought damages and pulled their content from the pages. Doubtless Vimeo would face the same problems but its smaller size means that these larger companies aren't bothering to look for their material there with quite the same fervor. Consequently, you're more likely to Premier League football, Saturday Night Live sketches, music videos or whatever else you might be looking for without finding that the content has disappeared.

The other issues over copyright to note is that YouTube ?gave over IP addresses and the details of millions of its users to Viacom in the landmark court case. Doubtless the same precedent would apply to such an injunction against Vimeo but with less legal action likely, there's less of a chance of having your data involuntarily shared with a third party.

Library

On the other hand of course, Vimeo's catalogue represents a drop in the ocean compared to the force of nature that is YouTube. YouTube has 20 hours of footage uploaded every single minute. That's nearly 2 million minutes of new video each 24 hours. Vimeo's 13,000 daily uploads is impressive especially given that 10% of those are in HD but it's just a different league. If you want to find a clip or you just want choice, YouTube is the place to be.

Video Quality

Vimeo's greatest boast is that it hosts the highest quality user video on the internet. While the site was quick to adopt 720p HD, YouTube has done the same as of this year. What's more, sometimes a lower quality is preferable. YouTube differentiates with both YouTube Mobile and YouTube TV which are optimised depending on where it is you're looking at the films. That's a handy data saver that Vimeo doesn't offer.

Where Vimeo still can shout though is in terms of video bit rate. The service offers up to 5,000 kbits whereas YouTube delivers around 2,000. Naturally, you're not always going to get that magic 5,000 with Vimeo but the footage does look noticeably smoother. That said, YouTube offers better audio bit rates with anywhere up to 256kbps but you'll only get up 128 with Vimeo although it is at least in stereo.

Uploading

Both services can cope with just about any video file you care to throw at them but they have different rules as to the quantities of data that you're allowed to add. YouTube has set a maximum length of 10 minutes to any one video unless you happen to have a partner account. No file can be larger than 2GB in size either. With Vimeo there is no maximum length of footage but the maximum file size is only half the size at 1GB and with a basic account you're only actually allowed to upload 500MB per week which might not get you that far.

The limit on Vimeo never used to exist until Plus accounts were introduced which offer multiple channels per user, no advertising, priority encoding and 2-pass re-enocding which gives better quality results. So, to some degree, the original users' accounts were downgraded with the introduction which did not go down to well, leaving one wondering whether it's something Vimeo might be happy to do again.

Promotion/Humiliation

With well over 1 billion views each day, YouTube is a far more powerful promotional tool than Vimeo will ever be. If you're big on YouTube, you're famous whether you like it or not. For filmmakers, photographers, musicians and creatives in all sorts of fields, YouTube can be and has been a platform where people have hit the big time. It's still very possible on other services but it's a simpe case of numbers. If you want your work to be seen by as many people as possible, then YouTube is the way to go.

Community

YouTube is for the masses while Vimeo has an air of refinement about it. As a result, there's not only a better quality of video content but also a more friendly comments stream to say the very least. If you want some fair appreciation of your creation, then upload to Vimeo. YouTube is strictly for the thick-skinned.

Downloadable

One very nice touch with Vimeo is that you can download just about all of the videos. So, long as you're a signed up member you can get the footage as the original file that it was uploaded as to keep and enjoy at your leisure. Although there are plug-ins and add-ons and ways that you can do this on YouTube, it's far more convoluted and often doesn't reap particularly good results.

Support

At CES at the beginning of the year, just about every TV manufacturer released a range of internet connected, widget-based products for the living room. Almost all of them had a YouTube widget. Nobody, was that fussed about a small service like Vimeo. Things will change as time goes on but, just as with the iPhone in the mobile phone field, other companies look to support the big player and it's YouTube that we'll find easiest to access wherever we happen to be.

Purpose

With the recent deal to bring ad supported film and TV content onto YouTube, it might not be a case of which of the two services is better than the other but more a case of which is appropriate for your needs at that moment. The commercial route takes Google's video service more towards the likes of Hulu and iPlayer with a shift of focus away from its user generated roots that Vimeo still holds on to. It just depends what you feel like watching. So long as it all stays free, then everybody's happy.?

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Related links:

• News - YouTube intros skippable pre-roll adverts

Tags: Software Websites Online YouTube Home Cinema Video on demand Vimeo IPTV Features

Vimeo vs YouTube - which is the better video service? originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:58:02 +0000

YouTube has begun a "small test" of a new kind of advertising on the site, in an attempt to finally meaningfully monetise the billion videos it serves on a daily basis.

While initial testing for pre-roll adverts on the world's most popular video site did not go well with "abandonment" rates said to be as high as 70%, the site is now going at it again with skippable pre-roll advertising.

"We are constantly working to find the right ads for the right content on YouTube, so as to create an experience that works for our users, partners, and advertisers", says YouTube in a blog post.

YouTube has tried various ways to make big money from advertising. InVideo "overlay" adverts have been live on the site since 2007, much to the disgust of many users when they were introduced, while last year YouTube began a click-to-buy scheme.

"We know what you're thinking", says YouTube, "Who would choose to watch an ad when they can skip it?"

The answer, it seems, might not inspire confidence: "Well, that's what we're trying to find out".

YouTube suggests short (say, 15 second) pre-rolls have seen success as have particularly creative efforts - the "quality and relevance" of an ad making users want to see it play out.

"Skippable pre-rolls [can] create a win-win-win for everyone on YouTube. For users, this format gives them more control over their experience. For advertisers, we're working toward a solution where they pay for ads that users actually watch and engage with".

What are your thoughts on pre-roll ads? Does a "your video will start in 10 seconds" message drive you mad? Have your say in the comments box below.

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Tags: Software Websites Online YouTube Home Cinema Video on demand Advertising Biz

YouTube intros skippable pre-roll adverts originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:06:03 +0000

Google, perhaps reacting to criticism that it's keeping a whole load of your data in disparate places, has launched a "dashboard" that displays all the info that the search giant is keeping on you, and allowing you to modify that data.

The service, which can be found at google.com/dashboard, covers your account, alerts, Blogger, calendar, contacts, custom search engines, docs, finance, friend connect, Gmail, iGoogle, health, Latitude, mobile sync, Orkut, Picasa, your public profile, reader, shopping list, talk, tasks, voice, web history, and YouTube. There's also a few other products that aren't available yet on the dashboard.

Google says, at the bottom of the page, "This page represents the data associated with this Google account. All data is private unless indicated with (an) icon?as visible to others". Next to every entry in the list is an option to manage that information and modify it.

There's a video that explains the system in more detail, which we're currently trying to track down (Google's removed it from YouTube) but probably a better way to understand it is to go visit Google Dashboard yourself, and see exactly what the big G knows about you. You might find it scary.

UPDATE: We found the video. It's embedded at the top, there.

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Tags: Software Online Google YouTube Blogger Video

Google launches data Dashboard originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:17:29 +0000

Orange's terms and conditions for its mobile internet ban applications like Spotify, AudioBoo, Ustream, Facebook and YouTube, something which could be of concern to those considering buying an iPhone with the mobile network.

In the company's T&Cs, it says:?"Not to be used for other activities (eg using your handset as a modem, non-Orange internet based streaming services, voice or video over the internet, instant messaging, peer to peer file sharing, non-Orange internet based video). Should such use be detected notice may be given and Network protection controls applied to all services which Orange does not believe constitutes mobile browsing".

That covers a whole host of different applications that are wildly popular on Apple's handheld computing platform. The company also limits its "Unlimited" plan to just 750MB per month, as Dan pointed out in his comparison feature the other day, which might be worth considering if you're planning to use these apps heavily.

The issue was spotted and pointed out to the BBC's Rory Cellan-Jones, who says: "if too many power users start streaming TV and playing online games on their phones, the Orange network may buckle under the strain".

Orange has, however, commented to the BBC - saying: "We do recognise that iPhone customers will use popular streaming services such as YouTube, Spotify etc. As a result we do not intend to apply network protection controls to anyone, as long as they are within their usage allowance. The T&Cs are in place to reserve the right to restrict access should they continue to exceed our Fair Usage policy, and our other Mobile data users suffer a reduced data experience as a result".

If you don't mean it, Orange, why put it in your T&Cs?

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Tags: Phones Mobile phones Orange iPhone O2 Spotify Facebook YouTube

Orange T&Cs ban Spotify, Facebook and YouTube originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:52:50 +0000

Whilst here in the UK Amazon is highlighting the pre-order sales success of American company Microsoft's Windows 7 OS, in the States, Amazon.com has announced that Brit Susan Boyle's upcoming album, "I Dreamed a Dream," has become the biggest ever CD pre-order in the history of the Amazon.com music store.

The $9.99 album, "I Dreamed a Dream," will not be released from Sony Music Entertainment until 23 November, but has already beaten the likes of U2, Coldplay and Bruce Springsteen to get the pre-order top slot.

Boyle became a reality star here in the UK, and an internet star globally, after her appearance in April on "Britain's Got Talent," which quickly became a YouTube hit and subsequently the fifth most viewed video online.

To see who Boyle beat to the US top slot, here's the list of the top 10 CD pre-orders of all time in the Amazon.com music store:

1. Susan Boyle, "I Dreamed a Dream" (2009)
2. Norah Jones, "Not Too Late" (2007)
3. U2, "No Line on the Horizon" (2009)
4. Bruce Springsteen, "Magic" (2007)
5. Dixie Chicks, "Taking the Long Way" (2006)
6. Coldplay, "Viva La Vida" (2008)
7. U2, "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" (2004)
8. David Cook, "David Cook" (2008)
9. Diana Krall, "Quiet Nights" (2009)
10. Clay Aiken, "A Thousand Different Ways" (2006)

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Tags: Audio CD Amazon Statistics Susan Boyle YouTube

Susan Boyle album becomes biggest ever CD pre-order on Amazon.com originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:07:59 +0100

Fans of U2 will be able to watch the band's upcoming performance from the Rose Bowl in LA live on U2's YouTube channel.

Described as the first global concert webcast, those in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, South Korea, Spain, the UK and US will be able to tune in live online on Sunday 25 October at 8.30pm PT.

There's also the option to join in with the "global listening party" via a Twitter gadget embedded on U2's YouTube channel.

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Tags: Audio U2 Media streaming YouTube Twitter Software Home Cinema Video

U2 concert to be broadcast live on YouTube originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 15:46:07 +0100

YouTube and Channel 4 have done a "landmark" deal that will see full-length versions of the broadcaster's top TV shows available online, on demand on the Google-owned site.

The agreement, 6 months in the making, is for a 3-year period and will mean programmes will go online "shortly after" shows have aired. ?

New shows available will include the likes of Skins, Hollyoaks and Peep Show and will be joined by 3000 hours of archive programming including Brass Eye, Derren Brown and Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares.

Channel 4 will continue to offers its in-house 4oD catch-up service while the two companies will share ad revenue on the C4 content online at YouTube.

Channel 4's TV shows are due to be "fully available" via YouTube in early 2010, apparently the first time any broadcaster has used YouTube to offer a full-fat catch up service.

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Tags: Home Cinema YouTube Video on demand Channel 4 Online Biz

Channel 4 content to be available on YouTube originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 16:29:15 +0100

YouTube is celebrating its third anniversary of being bought by Google with the news that it is serving over 1 billion videos a day, showing that we all need our quick fix of the random and bizarre in video format.

"We're working hard to keep up with the fast pace of technology to bring you everything you would expect from the world's largest video site: better quality; a full spectrum of choices and tools for users, partners and advertisers; and ways to make the YouTube experience your own anywhere, anytime", said YouTube's co-founder Chad Hurley.

But what did Pocket-lint's editor Stuart Miles make of the announcement? He sat down with TechRepublic Editor in Chief Jason Hiner and TechVi's Randall Bennett to talk about where YouTube has found its success and what's in store to come.

Watch the video to find out.?

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Tags: Software Online YouTube Media streaming Google

VIDEO: YouTube serving 1 billion videos a day originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 22:05:35 +0100