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Does Anyone Really Want to Watch YouTube on a Big-Screen TV?
July 18, 2008
Yes, of course.
Not for hours on end. But anecdotal evidence suggests that you or I would find some of the stuff on YouTube worth perusing from the living room sofa.
TiVo keeps trying to hype its broadband-delivered content play, with YouTube clips the latest freebie in the goodie bag.
YouTube-on-the-boob-tube may not be enough to make someone choose TiVo over the MSO's DVR. But it's a cool feature that could prevent people from ditching their TiVos.
TiVo's announcement made me recall a conversation I had recently with the CTO for a major cable network. He was telling me he owns an Apple TV (which also can play YouTube videos). Loves it, he said.
So, he's a huge Red Sox fan. One night, he was telling his son about the great Boston players from the '70s -- you know, Carl Yastrzemski, etc. -- and decided to call up YouTube to show those guys in action. Spent an hour or so. Real father-son bonding stuff, right?
Now, this is not to suggest that such a feature actually makes any sense from a business perspective for YouTube, or for its partners like Apple or TiVo (see YouTube: Still a $0 Billion Business).
In fact, the clip of "Gibson vs. Yaz" -- the top result when you search for "Carl Yastrzemski" on YouTube -- is ripped from Ken Burns' Baseball PBS documentary, apparently without permission. If that's the case, the clip could be subject to a DMCA takedown notice, like, any second.
But from a viewer's perspective? Kind of cool. Can't wait to rick-roll somebody on their giant TV with surround-sound.
The best part is, for most of the stuff on YouTube? No ads.
Shoot, now I want to watch this awesome YouTube classic on TV:
Posted by Todd Spangler on July 18, 2008 | Comments (0)
