Netflix Launch Set-Top Box
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The online DVD rental service, Netflix, have launched a new set-top box that will allow subscribers to watch streamed movies on their televisions. The $99.99 set-top box is made by Roku and will link up with any wireless or wired network and TV. Once linked up, it will then stream content straight to the TV. The service will cost $8.99 per month, for the unlimited viewing option.
Netflix have announced that they already have over 10,000 movies available for download and they plan to offer more titles every week. The set-top box is really an extension of their current service where they allow users to stream content to their PCs, but using the set-top box they can now play these movies in their living rooms which are undoubtedly going to be more comfortable and convenient.
The box doesn’t have an internal hard drive, so the movie content will need to be streamed directly for the duration of the film. Roku recommend that you have at least a 1.5Mbs connection, and depending on your speed you will be able to access a variety of levels in stream quality. These currently range from less than DVD quality, right up to DVD quality streaming for users with faster connections.
Unfortunately for those of us in the UK, Netflix are primarily based in the USA and are unlikely to ever reach our soils. With the recent comments from top UK ISPs about the amount of bandwidth that users are consuming, blamed on current streaming services such as BBC’s iPlayer or Channel 4’s 4OD. Secondly, many of our connections in the UK are still archaic so there may not be enough demand in the UK to justify a launch of a product like this over here yet. Only time will tell for the future, but if this is to be successful in the UK we will certainly need a complete overhaul of our current Internet connectivity. H2O had better start digging up some more sewers and laying fibre-optic cable as soon as possible…
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