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Tech Brief : A Survey of Recent Innovations in the Production and Distribution of Video July 2006
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Tech Brief :A Survey of Recent Innovations in the Production and Distribution of Video
July 2006
2Tech Brief, Corporation for Public Broadcasting 07/19/2006
What is this document about?This technology brief is intended to highlight and define recent innovations in video production and distribution.
However, in such a swiftly changing industry, not every new product or idea could possibly be addressed. Therefore, the breakthroughs covered here are chosen because:
They relate specifically to video, rather than audio or still-image, content. They are embraced by the general public in significantly growing numbers. They disrupt the traditional broadcast industry.
The task of precisely identifying and categorizing innovations in this fast-moving industry is similarly impossible. As soon as a particular technology and its relationship with another technology is established, something new will come along and render both obsolete. Further, businesses will deliberately stretch the definitions of some technologies to include their products, creating confusion in the general public over the meaning of certain technical terms.
Therefore, this document defines and categorizes technologies as they have been defined and categorized by a majority of sources in a number of different contexts.
Revision 1: Originally written in the 2005, this document has been updated to include more recent information on these innovations.
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Access Search Evaluate Procure Experience Author
The Library The Card Catalog The Review The Library Card The Book The Blank Notebook
These technologies make the media accessible to the
consumer.
These technologies help the consumer distinguish within a category of media.
These technologies help the consumer
make decisions about the media.
These technologies give the consumer the right to consume the
media.
These technologies provide the means through which the
media is consumed.
These technologies aid in the creation of
new media.
Broadband
Video On Demand
Peer-to-Peer File Sharing
IPTV
Internet Television
Interactive Program Guides
MetaData
Content & Speech Recognition
User Reviews & Rankings
Page Ranking Algorithms
Folksonomy
Digital Rights Management (DRM)
Free Content Licenses
Micropayments
TimeShifting
PlaceShifting
“Prosumer” Production Tools
“Prosumer” Distribution Platforms
Innovations: The Consumer’s Viewpoint
An overview of the relevant technologies. The five steps in the media consumer chain — with “author” being an optional sixth step — have not changed as technology has evolved. The proliferation of accessible media, however, has increased the significance of previously less important steps, such as “search” and “evaluate”. The technologies listed are specific to video, growing in popularity, and potentially disruptive to traditional broadcasters.
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AccessThe Library
Broadband
Video On DemandPeer to Peer
File Sharing
IPTVInternet
Television
IN THIS SECTION
Broadband connections facilitate the transmission of video content to both television and computer platforms. Video On Demand (VOD) is one method that IPTV systems use to deliver content. Similarly, Peer to Peer (P2P) file sharing is a method that is commonly used on the Internet to exchange content. IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) is a common label for systems that deliver video over broadband connections to a television. Internet Television is a common label for the content that users access through the Internet and view on their computers.
What is an access technology?
Access technologies pave the way for the content to reach consumers. Often they are intertwined with other features –Video On Demand, for instance, usually has a procurement component attached – but their fundamental contribution is connection.
How have access technologies changed?
Access has been the link of the consumer media chain to see the greatest change in the last ten years. The next ten years promises a solidification of these innovations – connections will be faster, cheaper, and easier to use. These improvements will lead to broader adoption rates.
Why do these changes matter?
Until recently, televisions and cinemas were the primary means for consumers to access video content. As access technologies proliferate, broadcasters’ roles will be challenged, and they will have to re-examine how they can continue to add value for consumers.
These technologies make the media accessible to the audience.
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1% 1%
3%
9%11%
14%
21%
28%
37%
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
BroadbandBroadband Internet access, often shortened to "broadband Internet" or just "broadband“, is a high data-transmission rate internet connection. DSL and cable modem, both popular consumer broadband technologies, are typically capable of transmitting 384 kilobits per second (kbit/s) or more, approximately nine times the speed of a modem using a standard digital telephone line.
>>Households with Broadband Access now Significantly Outnumber those using Dial-Up
Arbitron.com, June 29, 2006The number of broadband households in the United States is projected to grow to 69 million by 2010—up from 32 million in 2004, Jupiter Research said in a statement Thursday.
>> 72% of Active Internet Users have Broadband
Arbitron.com, June 29, 2006Nielsen/NetRatings reports that nearly three-quarters of U.S. active Web users connected at home via broadband, growing 15 percentage points over a year ago. Their research also indicates that broadband users are more likely to make better use of Internet functionalities and newer technologies, such as RSS feeds and blogging.
>> CBS Innertube bypasses Cable with BroadbandCNet, May 4, 2006CBS Corp. has released a broadband channel that will feature original programming, supplements to popular shows, classics and encores of prime-time shows.
IN THE NEWS
AccessThese technologies make the media accessible to the audience.
The Library
Total U.S. Households with Broadband Connections, 1998-2006
Percent
SOURCE: Knowledge Networks/SRI The Home Technology Monitor
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Video On Demand
Video on demand systems allow users to select and watch video content as part of an interactive television system. VOD systems are either "streaming", in which viewing can start as the video streams over the Internet (or other network or cable service), or "download", in which the program is brought in its entirety to a set-top box before viewing starts.
EXAMPLES Comcast's On Demand Time Warner's Video On Demand Disney's Movie Beam PBS's Sprout
>> On-Demand Media ExplodesArbitron/Edison Research, March 2006There was a sharp increase in the number of heavy on-demand media consumers as compared with last year. In 2005, 11% were considered Heavy on-demand users but in 2006 that figure jumped to 21%.
>>Could Giving Voters On-Demand Content Get them Interested?
Wall Street Journal, May 31, 2006
Cable subscribers increasingly are using so-called on-demand technology to watch programs like "The Sopranos" or old movies whenever they want. But the technology also has great potential as a tool for making our democratic system work better.
>> PBS Announces VOD Deal for SchoolsLost Remote, May 20, 2005PBS and WGBH have inked a deal with Library Video Company to provide schools with their choice of educational video.
IN THE NEWS
AccessThese technologies make the media accessible to the audience.
The Library
Comcast’s OnDemand service allows the user to access a selected collection of shows using their remote control and television.
Some shows are free, while selecting premium content automatically bills the customer a fee for 24 hour unlimited use.
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Peer-to-Peer File SharingA peer-to-peer (or P2P) computer network is a network that relies on the computing power and bandwidth of the participants in the network rather than concentrating it in a relatively few servers.
EXAMPLES BitTorrentBitTorrent is a recent, freely distributed peer-to-peer system.
>>BitTorrent Traffic Accounts for One Third of Internet Traffic
Wired, January 1, 2005Analysts at CacheLogic, an Internet-traffic analysis firm in Cambridge, England, report that BitTorrent traffic accounts for more than one-third of all data sent across the Internet.
>>Sales of Home Media Servers at 50 Million Units by 2010
Parks Associates Research, May 25, 2006According to Parks Associates Annual sales of home media servers will reach nearly 50 million units in the U.S. by the end of 2010. The report defines a media server as a hard drive-based platform with media sharing software linked via a home network. The growth will be driven both by the decreasing cost of the servers and the increase in the number of consumers demanding this technology.
IN THE NEWS
AccessThese technologies make the media accessible to the audience.
The Library
In a client-to-server model, each computer can only download files from a central server. As more clients access the server, the network becomes slower and less powerful.
In a peer-to-peer model, client computers can bypass the server and share files amongst each other. As more clients join the network, it becomes faster and more powerful.
Client-to-Server File Sharing Peer-to-Peer File Sharing
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Internet Protocol Television (IPTV)Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) has become a common term for systems where television and/or video signals are distributed to subscribers or viewers using a broadband connection over Internet Protocol.
>> AT&T Announces IPTV PlansTV Technology.com, June 30, 2006
AT&T has announced that the initial buildout of its fledgling IPTV service will begin soon in a Texas suburb. Initially dubbed "Project Lightspeed" the new service, now called "U-verse," is similar in scope to Verizon's "FiOS” fiber-optic video service now being deployed in a number of states nationwide. The buildout is a part of AT&T's $4 billion initiative to compete with cable and satellite.
>> JupiterResearach Reports Digital Cable TV Will Grow to 43 Million Households By 2009 JupiterMedia, September 1, 2004JupiterResearch announced that it forecasts that digital cable penetration will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 11%, from 26 million households in 2004 to 43 million households in 2009.
>> Verizon, PBS Toast IPTV Bid Internet News.com, June 16, 2006
Verizon Communications announced a multi-year agreement with PBS to broadcast public television stations via its FiOS Internet TV service. Under the agreement, Verizon FiOS systems will carry up to three local public television stations. Along with multicasting PBS series such as "PBS Kids Go!," "Viva TV," and "World," Verizon will also offer public alerts and warning bulletins.
IN THE NEWS
AccessThese technologies make the media accessible to the audience.
The Library
Typically, IPTV systems deliver third party content through a broadband connection to a set-top box and a television.
EXAMPLES Microsoft TV mVision
Third Parties IPTV Services Provider Consumer
Content Providers
Interactive Program Guides
Ads & Promos
Digital TVServices
BroadcastServices
Business Mgmt.Services
Set Top Box & Television:
• Video On Demand
• Digital Video Recording
• Interactive Program Guides
• Other Information Services
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Because of the increase in broadband connections, it is increasingly common to find traditional television content, accessible freely and legally over the Internet.
EXAMPLES Web Only Broadcasters
Broadcasters with no parallel television channel
Open Media Network, The Research Channel, ifilm.com
Television/Web SimulcastsLive events accessible both online and on television simultaneously
AOL Live 8 Concert Simulcast, Major League Baseball
On-Demand Rebroadcasts from Television BroadcastersContent available online after an initial television broadcast
CNN, PBS, Discovery Channel
Web-Exclusive Content from Television BroadcastersContent from television broadcasters, but available only online
PBS’s NerdTV, Food Network’s Chef Video Tips
Internet Television
>> A New Media Game: Yahoo and the World CupWashington Post, June 10, 2006As billions of fans tune to television coverage of the World Cup this week, Yahoo Inc. is looking to the month-long tournament as a chance to showcase its new approach to covering big news on the Web.
>> Cable must draw guns for new-media battlesHollywood Reporter, April 18, 2006
The explosion of digital video downloads from the Internet as an effective cable bypass is a game-changing threat. As long as cable operators can stay a step ahead of content providers and rival distributors by leveraging their powerful video-data-voice platform, they can remain relevant in a digital broadband media game.
>> 'Webisodes' and other internet only content will be eligible for Emmy awards
LA Times, July 15, 2006In a move that reflects the television industry's growing embrace of the Internet, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences is making programming delivered over broadband eligible for its Emmy Awards beginning in 2007.
IN THE NEWS
AccessThese technologies make the media accessible to the audience.
The Library
A wide array of programming is easily accessible online – from international news and documentary programming to feature-length shows — such as PBS’s Web-exclusive series, NerdTV.
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SearchThe Card Catalog
IN THIS SECTION What is a search technology?
Search technologies help consumers distinguish and locate a specific media item or group of items from among the media items they have access to. While many search technologies include evaluation features – such as a review in a TV Guide – their primary feature is to distinguish and locate.
How have search technologies changed?
As access technologies have developed, the amount of media available has dramatically proliferated. Further, the number and type of media sources have grown and diversified. Voice and image recognition software is designed to cope with this volume of media by automating the information collection process. MetaData systems aim to standardize the way multiple sources of media label their products.
Why do these changes matter?
Improved search technologies encourage the “long tail” approach to media consumption by allowing users to more easily manage their personal media stream. Therefore, the traditional broadcasters’ curatorial role may be threatened.
These technologies help the audience distinguish within a category of media.
Interactive
Program Guides
MetaData
Collection Methods
Traditionally, video content has been categorized “by hand” – someone has to watch the clip and record dialogue and image as they perceive it. As the volume of content grows, this method of collection becomes less viable. Recent advances in both image recognition and voice recognition software help automate the task of collecting information – rendering even the most up-to-the-minute news video clips, for example, accessible to search engines instantly.
Guides
The print edition of the TV Guide has recently given up offering comprehensive schedules because of the overwhelming success of Interactive Program Guides. Versions of IPGs are available for both television and computer platforms.
Labeling Methods
As the amount of available content has grown, so have the sources of content: everyone from CNN to your next door neighbor can create video clips and make them accessible to the same online search engines and directories. However, people name things in different ways: one person’s “title” is another person’s “headline”, for example. MetaData addresses this problem by establishing a standardized way to label media.
MetaData helps structure the information provided on Interactive Program Guides
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Interactive Program GuidesAn electronic program guide (EPG) or an interactive program guide or (IPG) is an on-screen guide to scheduled broadcast and cable television programs, allowing a viewer to navigate, select and discover content by time, title, channel, genre, etc, using their remote control.
EXAMPLES TVGuide Interactive Guide Plus+
>>Interactive Program Guide Industry To Grow To $1B Worldwide by 2008
In-Stat/MDR, September 1, 2004Interactive Program Guides (IPGs) are becoming the entertainment portal for TV viewers, and In-Stat/MDR expects the worldwide IPG market value to grow to nearly $1 Billion (US) by 2008.
>> TV Guide Removes Listings from Print Edition
Reuters, July 26, 2005TV Guide, in a major shift to win over readers and advertisers, will be overhauled as a full-sized magazine with more celebrity features and fewer program listings, its publisher said on Tuesday. It has been hard hit by a decrease in advertising revenue as TV watchers increasingly look to the Internet or on-screen guides for program listings.
IN THE NEWS
SearchThese technologies help the audience distinguish within a category of media.
The Card Catalog
3841
46 46
2003 2004 2005 2006
Total U.S. Households with IPG, 2003-2006Percent
SOURCE: Knowledge Networks/SRI The Home Technology Monitor
%%
% %
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MetaDataMetaData (Greek: “after” +"information"), is information that describes another set of data. A common example is a library catalog card, which contains data about the contents and location of a book. It is data about the data in the book. Other common types of metadata include the source or author of the described dataset, how it is accessed, and its limitations.
EXAMPLES Dublin Core Metadata Element SetThe Dublin Core is a metadata standard for describing digital objects (including webpages), often expressed in XML. It was so named because the first meeting of metadata and web specialists was held in the town of Dublin, Ohio.
PBCoreTo address the need to manage metadata within public broadcasting’s diverse community, version 1.0 of PBCore (the Public Broadcasting Metadata Dictionary) has been developed by a cross-organizational team of public radio and television producers and managers, archivists and information scientists.
>> Intel Saves $6 for each $1 Spent on MetaData RedNova, July 23, 2005While some organizations are still struggling to help executives see the cost benefits of managing MetaData, such an effort has paid off big for Intel. After a false start six years ago, the chip maker now estimates that for every $1 it spends on metadata management, it saves $6.
IN THE NEWS
SearchThese technologies help the audience distinguish within a category of media.
The Card Catalog
The Dublin Core Metadata Element Set is designed to help users standardize how they categorize all types of online media, including video. When video clips are labeled in a standardized way, fast and easy exchange becomes feasible. Dublin Core tags are already used for podcast labeling and exchange.
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Content & Speech RecognitionContent-based image retrieval (CBIR) software “reads” an image and identifies its contents by matching colors and textures to items it has previously identified. It bypasses the need for a human to manually view and identify the image.
Speech recognition technologies allow computers equipped with a source of sound input, such as a microphone, to interpret human speech. This technology can be used for transcription or as an alternative method of interacting with a computer.
EXAMPLES
MARVELA software program developed by IBM that uses statistical techniques to learn about relationships between colors, shapes, patterns and sounds from video footage to identify its content.
Flexible Image Retrieval Engine (FIRE) DemoThis amazing demonstration offers the user a series of random images. Click on one and the demo will find similar images using CBIR technology.
blinkx.tvAs soon as a word or phrase is mentioned in a radio broadcast or television program from a Blinkx partner, users are notified. Blinkx uses voice recognition technology to create searchable transcripts.
>>IBM’s MARVEL Wins Wall Street Journal Technology Innovation Award of 2004
Wall Street Journal, December 1, 2004
IN THE NEWS
SearchThese technologies help the audience distinguish within a category of media.
The Card Catalog
The Flexible Image Retrieval Engine (FIRE) Demo asks users to click on one of a number of random images. The system will then use CBIR technology to “read” other images in the database and select ones it thinks may be similar.
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EvaluateThe Review
IN THIS SECTION What is an evaluate technology?
Evaluate technologies allow consumers to decide if a media item they have found is worth procuring. Evaluate technologies are distinct from find technologies in two ways: a) they provide primarily qualitative and subjective information about the item and b) they are necessarily outside the control of the producer of the media item.
How have evaluate technologies changed?
As with find technologies, evaluate technologies have grown in number and sophistication as the amount of available content has grown. Primarily due to interactivity limitations (i.e. keyboards), nearly all recent evaluation innovations are accessible only on the computer platform.
Why do these changes matter?
Since evaluation tools are necessarily outside the control of the producer, the information they provide is perceived to be more credible. Further, most evaluation tools create a genuine sense of community where consumers are encouraged to browse and share, thus increasing usage and loyalty. Because nearly all evaluation innovations are on the computer platform, traditional broadcasters risk a growing competitive disadvantage.
These technologies help the audience make decisions about the media.
Ranking Methods
In 1999, Google broke through the Internet search engine market by moving beyond mere categorization into evaluation. Their PageRank algorithm counted links to a particular site as “votes” for that site, and listed it closer to the top of the search results page. This page ranking algorithm method has recently been applied to video clips.
Opinion Communities
As online communities have developed, often a key purpose has been the exchange of opinion. Consumer review and ranking sites are devoted to many consumer products, including television shows and movies. A variation of the consumer review site is a “Folksonomy” site (a combination of “taxonomy” and “folks”). On “folksonomy” sites, visitors don’t review things, they describe them. Distinct from MetaData-style labeling where only the producer is allowed to describe the work, “folksonomy” sites offer all visitors the chance to describe it, presumably providing more credible information about the true contents and significance of the piece.
Page Ranking
Algorithms
Search
Engines
Tagging &
FolksonomyUser
Reviews
Folksonomy
DirectoriesConsumer Sites
Different evaluation methods typically appear on different types of sites, nearly all of which are accessible only on the computer platform. This evaluation represents a significant competitive advantage for web-based video.
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Page Ranking AlgorithmsPage ranking algorithms, such as Google's PageRank, have revolutionized the search engine approach. Before PageRank, a search engine could list sites that matched the user's requested key word, but the search engine could not inform the user as to the site’s relevance as determined by the entire web community.
GoogleFrom the Google Site: "PageRank relies on the uniquely democratic nature of the web by using its vast link structure as an indicator of an individual page's value. Google interprets a link from page A to page B as a vote, by page A, for page B. But Google looks at more than the sheer volume of votes, or links a page receives; it also analyzes the page that casts the vote. Votes cast by pages that are themselves 'important' weigh more heavily and help to make other pages 'important.'"
>> Google Revenues Up 79% Over Q1 2005; "We Had an Exception Quarter," Says CEO
Company Documents, April 20, 2006
"We are driving this growth through investments in our infrastructure and our people, product innovations that attract new users, and relationships with advertisers and partners around the world. The strength of our business model gives us the opportunity to invest in our business, allowing us to maintain and grow our market leadership."
IN THE NEWS
EvaluateThese technologies help the audience make decisions about the media.
The Review
Google assigns a value to each page in its directory based on a PageRank algorithm that counts links to that page as “votes”. Among the highest ranked sites are FirstGov.gov, Apple.com, and Google’s own google.com.
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User Reviews and RankingsThe Internet's instantaneous nature shortens the feedback loop between customer and producer. Most online media entities — commercial and otherwise — include user feedback systems of varying complexity to help users distinguish between several items in the same category.
EXAMPLES
Internet Movie Data Base (imdb.com) Amazon Consumer Reviews ePinions.com NetFlix Friends Rotten Tomatoes
EvaluateThese technologies help the audience make decisions about the media.
NetFlix Friends is an update of the now-familiar user review. With this innovation, you can select your “reviewers” from a group of your trusted taste-makers. Many sites offering video clips include evaluation tools like this to increase traffic and site loyalty.
The Review
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Tagging & FolksonomyA specialized version of the consumer review, folksonomy (a combination of "folk" and "taxonomy") is a system that allows any user to label, or "tag," any category of stuff — news articles, digital photos, video and audio clips, even life aspirations — and share those associations with other users. Online entities devoted to this practice list the most popular tags, their associated items, and other tags associated with those same items.
EXAMPLES del.icio.us Technorati 43 Things
EvaluateThese technologies help the audience make decisions about the media.
Tags from three different types of “folksonomy” sites: del.icio.us, on the left, describes technology; 43 Things, in the middle, describes life aspirations; and Technorati, on the right, describes blogs.
The Review
>> For some educators, tagging is 'it'
eSchool News Online, February 20, 2006
Educators say the greatest benefit of tagging is that it allow users to make their list of tags and sites available to (and searchable by) either a closed community of individuals, such as friends and family, or the students of Mrs. Jones's eighth-grade English class, or all other web surfers. So, instead of searching the entire web, users can limit their forays to an edited universe of pages others already have tagged as interesting or helpful.
IN THE NEWS
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ProcureThe Library Card
IN THIS SECTION What is a procure technology?
Procure technologies give the audience the right to consume media. Often they involve financial transactions and security systems, but sometimes they consist only of licenses limiting usage. The procurement process can be, and sometimes is, bypassed.
How have procure technologies changed?
Digitized media is easy for consumers to copy and distribute with an imperceptible loss in quality. The marketplace has responded by creating free content licenses for some media and by developing new payment and security systems to limit the usage and transmission of other media.
Why do these changes matter?
New procure technologies make profitable distribution equally viable for both established and independent media companies thus creating a larger marketplace, but with many more competitors.
These technologies give the audience the right to consume the media.
Business Models
Commonly, media entities fund themselves through advertising or subscription, but some companies have recently found success with the micropayment model, like Apple’s 99¢ songs and $1.99 videos (including current television programs.) For businesses that deliver content through the Internet, the micropayment model improves on the subscription model. By charging per transaction providers are protected against bearing the financial burden that could result from bandwidth costs of heavy use with a blanket fee model.
License Types
Home-grown producers and publicly-funded media entities are embracing free content licenses as a way of fostering creativity while trying to maintain certain rights over the source material.
Security Systems
In the same way anti-theft devices on store merchandise prevent illegal use, digital rights systems (often just referred to as DRM) restrict the illegal use of digital content. For example, a song bought through the Apple Music Store is programmed to play on only registered computers.
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MicropaymentsMicropayments are means for transferring money in situations where collecting money with the usual payment systems is very expensive relative to amount of money being collected. For example, a system that allows customers to charge 99¢ on a credit card is a micropayment system.
EXAMPLES iTunes Music StoreThe most successful procurement innovator, Apple recognized that "free" music downloads came with a price tag of download time, unreliable quality, and legal liability, and determined that consumers where willing to pay to avoid those issues.
SONY Connect Connect was launched one year after iTunes with similar pricing but allows users to re-download earlier purchases at no extra cost. The store is accessible through a Web-based browser or as part of a jukebox software package. Songs purchased through Connect can only be played on SONY brand devices.
>> Apple Celebrates 1 Billion DownloadsApple.com, February 23, 2006One billion songs have been legally downloaded from the iTunes Music Store since it was launched less than three years ago. The iTunes Music Store is also the world’s most popular video download store with more than 15 million videos purchased and downloaded. iTunes offers over 60 popular TV shows for just $1.99 for viewing on a computer or iPod and recently added new hit programming from ABC, Bravo, NBC, MTV Networks and SHOWTIME.
>>Consumers Want Micropayments for Television According to CBS
Los Angeles Times, January 18, 2005CBS research indicates that consumers appear to be receptive to an economic model that provides an alternative to DVRs. In this scenario, viewers would pay $1 to see an episode of a favorite TV show on demand — much as music fans do when they download a song from Apple’s iTunes Music Store.
IN THE NEWS
ProcureThese technologies give the audience the right to consume the media.
The Library Card
iTunes Music Store began by allowing users to pay 99 cents for
each song and around $10 for most albums. iTunes then added audio
books, podcasts, music videos and, recently, full length episodes of
television programs.
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Free Content LicensesFree content licenses are a category of standardized license, the Creative Commons License being the most prominent, that copyright holders can grant to users. These licenses are designed to facilitate the free flow of material such as software, written works, music, and video while allowing the authoring entity to designate certain restrictions.
EXAMPLES Creative Commons LicenseThe Creative Commons License refers to the name of several copyright licenses released on December 16, 2002 by Creative Commons, a US nonprofit corporation founded in 2001. These licenses all grant certain baseline rights, such as the right to distribute the copyrighted work on file sharing networks. The copyright holder has the option of specifying certain extra conditions.
The Creative Archive Licence GroupThe BBC, the bfi, Channel 4 and the Open University set up the Creative Archive Licence Group to make their archive content available for download under the terms of the Creative Archive Licence - a single, shared user license scheme for the downloading of moving images, audio and stills.
>> Microsoft incorporates Creative Commons tool into Office
ARS Technica, June 21, 2006Microsoft is making the use of Creative Commons licensing easier with a new add-on for Microsoft Office 2003. After installation, an Office menu item allows users to easily incorporate a Creative Commons license into a Word, Excel, or PowerPoint document. It creates a Creative Commons logo, allows users to select from a list of licensing terms, and inserts the license chosen along with a brief summary and link to the Creative Commons site.
>> bfi Downloads Success Story
CALG, May 5, 2005The British Film Institute (bfi) is delighted to report that the first four clips it made legally available under the Creative Archive Licence at launch on April 13th have already attracted more than 3,000 downloads.
IN THE NEWS
ProcureThese technologies give the audience the right to consume the media.
The Library Card
Creative Commons licenses provide a flexible range of protections and freedoms for authors, artists, and educators.
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Digital Rights Management SystemsDigital Rights Management (DRM) systems, or simply “DRM,” refer to several technical methods used to control or restrict the use of digital media content on certain electronic devices. The media most often restricted by DRM techniques include music, visual artwork, and movies.
EXAMPLES Windows Media DRMWindows Media Digital Rights Management (WMDRM) is a platform for the secure delivery of audio and video content over a network, to a PC or other device like an MP3 player, set-top box or personal organizer .
Apple’s FairPlayFairPlay is Apple Computer's digital rights management system built into the QuickTime multimedia technology and used by iPod, iTunes, and the iTunes Music Store. Every file bought from the iTunes Music Store is encoded with FairPlay. It digitally encrypts audio files and prevents users from playing these files on unauthorized computers.
SONY's OpenMGOpenMG is SONY’s digital rights management system built into their Connect Music Store. The proprietary software, called SonicStage, transfers music files to Sony media devices like Network Walkman, CD Walkman, Hi-MD, Clie handheld or Vaio computer, but does not transfer to non-Sony hardware.
>>Consumer Electronics Giants Agree on Digital Rights Management PCPro, January 20, 2005Sony, Matsushita (Panasonic), Samsung and Philips have agreed to adopt a common method of digital rights management (DRM) and have formed the Marlin Joint Development Association (Marlin JDA) in order to establish a common standard for playing 'appropriately licensed video and music on any device.'
IN THE NEWS
ProcureThese technologies give the audience the right to consume the media.
The Library Card
22Tech Brief, Corporation for Public Broadcasting 07/19/2006
ExperienceThe Book
IN THIS SECTION What is a experience technology?
Experience technologies affect where, when, and how media is experienced. Often, they are combined with other types of technologies – for example, DVRs often include an Interactive Program Guide– but their primary innovation is to allow consumers control over how they view the content to which they have access.
How have experience technologies changed?
Developments in procurement technologies are giving consumers unprecedented control over how they experience media at the same time that the potential sources of media are proliferating.
Why do these changes matter?
Both timeshifting and placeshifting technologies shift consumers’ focus away from the source of the content and towards the control they have over when and where they use the content. In addition, to creating an opportunity for new, independent producers of content; this increase in consumer control begins to marginalize the role of the traditional broadcast schedule.
These technologies provide the means through which the media is consumed.
Placeshifting
Placeshifting technologies allow media originally or traditionally accessed through one platform to be viewed on another platform. Many placeshifting technologies transfer content between computers and televisions, while others allow programming to be viewed on mobile video devices like cell phones.
Timeshifting
Timeshifting allows programs to be recorded from a broadcast signal and viewed at a later time. The VCR might be considered the original timeshifting device. Today, TiVos perform the same function.
Placeshifting
Placeshifting technologies allow content to be exchanged between the television and computer platform, effectively blurring the line between broadcast television and Internet television.
Consumers are willing to make trade-offs between the control to use media on portable devices and the quality of the visual images on those devices.
23Tech Brief, Corporation for Public Broadcasting 07/19/2006
PlaceShiftingThese technologies allow users to watch or listen to recorded media on any device - not just the television, computer, or DVR that originally received it. Placeshifting technologies threaten to blur the line, in the eyes of the audience, between independent and traditional broadcast entities.
EXAMPLES SlingboxThis small device, which retails for about $250, can beam any live TV show coming into your home to an Internet-connected Windows PC anywhere in the world. It also allows you to remotely watch shows you have recorded at home on a digital video recorder.
AkimboAkimbo is a $229 set-top box that allows the user to download video from their broadband Internet connection to play back on their television.
Video iPodIn October 2005, Apple released the video iPod which allows users to play video content sold through the Apple Music Store, in addition to the existing audio content.
Mobile ESPNThis service allows you to use a special cell phone to access a wireless sports service which provides up-to-the-minute scores, news, opinion columns, audio and video similar to what you might watch on ESPN’s cable channel.
>> Akimbo gets big-name backers
Computer Business Review, June 25, 2006Networking equipment giant Cisco Systems continues its expansion into the digital home by joining with telecom and mobile goliath AT&T Inc in investing $15.5m in an IPTV start-up. AT&T and Cisco, as well as venture capital firm Blueprint Ventures, joined existing investors Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Sprout Group, and Zone Ventures, in a Series C funding round of Akimbo Inc.
>> Mobile TV Broadcast to Leap to 100 Million Subscribers by 2010
In-Stat, June 21, 2006By the end of 2010, mobile TV broadcast subscribers worldwide will reach 102 million, a giant leap from 3.4 million in 2006 as providers move from cellular networks to higher bandwidth TV broadcast networks.
>>The Mobile Video Market will generate revenues over $500 Million By 2010
Jupiter Research, March 28, 2006Jupiter Research has found that 41% of mobile phone users are interested in some form of video service on their mobile phone. According to the report the growing demand for video will generate $501 million in revenues by 2010, up from $62 million in 2005.
IN THE NEWS
ExperienceThese technologies provide the means through which the media is consumed.
The Book
Akimbo allows users to access Internet channels like ifilm.com and National Geographic through their television sets, effectively blurring the line between broadcast and cable entities and Internet Television.
24Tech Brief, Corporation for Public Broadcasting 07/19/2006
Timeshifting & Digital Video RecordersTimeshifting is the technique of recording television/satellite/cable transmissions for later viewing. Timeshifted content can be viewed as long as days, months or years later, or as soon as a few minutes behind actual broadcast time to provide a buffer for fast-forwarding through commercials.
The personal video recorder (PVR), also called digital video recorder (DVR) or digital personal video recorder, is a consumer electronics device that records television shows to a hard disk in digital format. Since it was first introduced by TiVo in 1999, PVRs have steadily made the "time shifting" feature (traditionally done by a VCR) much more convenient. Popular abilities include recording a program to watch later, pausing live TV, instantly replaying interesting scenes, and skipping advertising.
EXAMPLES TiVo ReplayTV
>> Just Seven Years After Their Introduction, PVRs Become Mainstream Products In-Stat, June 5, 2006Consumer demand for Personal Video Recorder (PVR) products continues to increase. In just seven short years since their original introduction, PVR products have gone from “niche” to mainstream, according to In-Stat. 2005 was another banner year for PVR products with worldwide unit shipments reaching 19 million, a 60% increase over the 11.9 million units shipped in 2004
>> DVRs face competition with a PC twist USA Today, June 27, 2006
DVR providers, including TiVo and cable and satellite companies, will face a new rival this fall. This fall ReplayTV, a DVR pioneer, will offer a service with software that makes ordinary PCs full-featured DVRs.
>> TiVo, Comcast Reach a DealCnet, March 15, 2005TiVo and cable giant Comcast have reached a distribution deal, easing some investor concerns over the digital video recorder pioneer's future.
IN THE NEWS
ExperienceThese technologies provide the means through which the media is consumed.
The Book
TiVo is first and still most popular DVR. “TiVo” is sometimes also used as a verb to describe the digital recording of a television program, regardless of whether the equipment is a TiVo brand DVR (e.g. "Could you TiVo Star Trek for me tonight?").
25Tech Brief, Corporation for Public Broadcasting 07/19/2006
Author
IN THIS SECTION What is an author technology?
Author technologies support the production and distribution of new media.
How have author technologies changed?
At the same time the Internet has broken down the media distribution monopoly, technological developments have put professional-quality production tools within the reach of consumers.
Why do these changes matter?
As the barriers to entry into the media world drop, the value of many media item similarly plummets – especially in the case of video, where many of the new entrants are motivated not by profit, but simply by creative expression.
These technologies support the production of new media.
The Blank Notebook
“Prosumer” Production Tools
Since the term “prosumer” (“professional” or “producer” combined with “consumer”) was introduced in 1980 by futurist Alvin Toffler, the market for “prosumer” production tools has proliferated dramatically, particularly in the medium of video. Today, a “prosumer” can outfit a professional quality production studio for less than $5,000.
“Prosumer” Distribution Platforms
From vlogs to microchannels, many different types of “prosumer” distribution platforms have blossomed recently. Many of them cater to the amateur simply interested in creative expression, but some hope to develop businesses around enabling producers to sell downloads of clips and then keep a percentage of the proceeds.
26Tech Brief, Corporation for Public Broadcasting 07/19/2006
“Prosumer” Production ToolsThis grade of production equipment is marketed to the hobbyist interested in creating professional quality media. In the last fifteen years, these products have dropped dramatically in price and increased in quality and usability.
EXAMPLES Final Cut Studio A $1300 software editing package offered by Apple, this is the industry standard for independent producers. The most recent version provides High Definition Video (HDV) support.
Sony HDR-FX1 HDV Handycam® CamcorderRetailing for $3700, this new Sony product claims to be the first consumer level high definition camcorder. CNet gave it an editor’s choice award in May 2005, calling it ideal for early adopter prosumers.
>> Sony HDV Camera Under $2000
USA Today, July 13, 2005“When it comes to consumer electronics, price is typically a moving target, and the good news is that it almost always moves south. How fast it gets there is another matter.” – Edward C. Baig
IN THE NEWS
AuthorThese technologies provide the ability to create new media.
For about $5000, a “prosumer” can be fully equipped to shoot and edit HDV compatible programs. For another $300, she can add special effects.
The Blank Notebook
$1300 $3700 $300
27Tech Brief, Corporation for Public Broadcasting 07/19/2006
“Prosumer” Distribution PlatformsAs broadband connections have proliferated, so have Internet-accessible channels of video distribution. Some are simply collections of clips, such as Google Video and Brightcove, while others have special intents, such as Bridges.
EXAMPLES Google VideoThe next step in Google’s quest to “organize the world’s information”, Google Video includes content from a large number of traditional media entities like CNN, C-SPAN, PBS, and KQED. They also encourage “prosumers” to upload their own videos.
YouTubeYouTube allows users to upload, tag and share videos worldwide, browse millions of original videos uploaded by community members, find, join and create video groups to connect with people who have similar interests; and users can elect to broadcast their videos publicly or share them privately with friends and family.
BrightcoveBrightcove aims to provide an online service to allow mainstream and emerging video publishers to offer material directly to consumers over the internet. Producers set their price and BrightCove takes a finder’s fee.
BridgesBridges is an interactive online program that helps connect middle school students in the developed world with their peers in indigenous communities across the globe.
>> NBC to Post Video on YouTube.com
Marketplace, June 27, 2006The NBC television network plans to post clips from some of its fall shows on the video-sharing Web site YouTube.com -- a big step for YouTube.com and NBC, which previously attempted to block the site from posting clips of NBC shows.
>> Sony Chooses Brightcove To Launch New Internet Video Initiative
Brightcove Press Release, June 19, 2006SONY will use Brightcove to deliver broadband video in new video players deployed across its network of artist and label websites, offering consumers on-demand access to music videos, interviews, live performances, and behind the scenes footage from its extensive catalog of videos.
>> Akimbo Enables Vlog Delivery to Television
Silicon Valley Business Journal, June 18, 2005Akimbo Systems Inc. says it is adding video blogs to the content available to its subscribers. Five of the Internet's most popular video blogs are now available on the Akimbo service, including Rocketboom, FreshWave.TV, Clint Sharp's Vlog, Steve Garfield's Video Blog and "The Carol and Steve Show."
IN THE NEWS
AuthorThese technologies provide the ability to create new media.
The Blank Notebook
