MyPCTV - A weekend wasted with Tom Lehrer

We found some videos of Tom Lehrer on YouTube - you really cannot buy this stuff - I liked the old stuff, the kids explored the whole gamut of machinima work done set to Lehrer's music. (The Anime Elements Song is too funny).

This was interesting - consuming PC based video art on a TV with good hi fi is a quite different experience.

This weekend I started to bring the iPaq 5555 into play as a way of controlling the system remotely, a lot of potential but still a fairly expensive device for a rough cut approach to home IP media - the best option still seems to be the use of remote keyboard controlling the PC and some form of TV remote interface.

What is becoming clear is that there is a real opportunity for an EPG / Remote Control / Surf Aid function.

What is also becoming clear is that with development this approach, in my opinion, will be a fairly credible "good enough" that IPTV has to deal with. Recent moves by Microsoft, Apple and Google make me more convinced.

And the evidence supports it - this research from AOL on user habits is worth repeating:

Nearly three-quarters (71 percent) of online video users would prefer to watch an ad before a video in order to watch the video for free, while 23 percent say they'd rather pay for ad-free videos. Most frequently viewed videos include:

-- News: 72 percent

-- Television or movie clips: 59 percent

-- Music videos: 48 percent

-- Sports highlights: 44 percent

-- Amateur videos: 43 percent

-- Concert highlights: 23 percent

-- Full-length movies or TV shows: 22 percent

-- Live sporting events: 17 percent

-- Video podcasts: 17 percent

-- Live concerts: 9 percent

Amateur/Podcast Videos and Sports have the same ratings...yet traditional media pays stupid money for sports rights and the alternative is near free - this is a no brainer way to attack Old Media

And this is not an IPTV play, this is a MyPCTV play.

And maybe the Telcos are wondering about IPTV too...AT&T has just started Mobitv for laptops...20 channels, switching this stuff over to a big screen is but a heartbeat. (Appears not to work with Mozilla Firefox though...is this how IE gets back in the game?)