streaming

While it appears Netflix is continuing to grow as the dominant video streaming service in the U.S., its competitors are also growing, according to Internet research firm Sandvine.

What gives?

Video streaming, or "real-time entertainment," is on the rise overall and those companies involved are seeing their businesses grow. However, their market share has remained static. According to a survey (pdf) released Tuesday by Sandvine, Netflix has 32.3 percent of the market share, while YouTube has 17.1 percent, Hulu has 2.4 percent, and Amazon has 1.31 percent. And, those numbers haven't changed … Read more

In the wake of disappointment and confusion caused by Netflix's "streamaggedon" movie purge, the rental service has made changes to its API that will make it harder for third-party tools to determine when titles will expire.

The revelation late last month that hundreds of classic movies, including Woody Allen's "Stardust Memories" and the James Bond hits "Dr. No" and "Goldfinger," would soon vanish from movie fans' instant streaming queues caused a minor uproar that some in the media dubbed "streamaggedon." A Netflix spokesperson said that both the number … Read more

ABC's new live TV video service Watch ABC has arrived on smartphones, tablets, and the Web, though its availability is highly limited for now.

Disney/ABC on Tuesday announced the availability of the live programming feature in its mobile app in New York City as well as Philadelphia though local respective networks WABC-TV and WPVI. The update adds a "live" button to ABC's newly renamed Watch ABC software for iOS devices that lets users in those markets watch live streams of those two stations, just like they would on a TV.

News of the feature came over the weekend … Read more

The more I run, the more I realize my regular playlist isn't cutting it. Even with some 150 hand-picked songs, I get bored hearing the same ones over and over. And although they're among my favorite power-pop tunes, they're quite diverse when it comes to tempo. I need songs of at least 128 beats per minute (bpm) to keep me running strong.

Enter Fit Radio, a free app (Android|iOS|Web) that streams up-tempo playlists designed to amp up your workout. It's like Songza for sprinters, or maybe Pandora for bike peddlers.

The app is divided … Read more

Ever had to go on a long trip, knowing you'll be outside your data network or a Wi-Fi access point? Now you can easily store all of your favorite videos ahead of time and load them up to any device for later viewing. Clip Extractor Pro is perfect for downloading all of your favorite online videos. Whether your video-streaming site of choice is YouTube, Vimeo, Dailymotion, or MetaCafe, Clip Extractor has got your back.

Grab movies uploaded by friends and family from the biggest video providers out there. Save birthday and anniversary memories off YouTube, archive Epic Fail movies … Read more

While it's hard to imagine there being a real competitor to YouTube's dominance of the Web video market, Vimeo has quietly made quite a name for itself in the past few years. With billions of videos and a robust sharing platform that has been used by businesses and thought leaders alike, Vimeo is one of the top video sharing sites on the Internet and the mobile app for iPhone and iPad is a perfect representation of why.

When you first open Vimeo, you'll see what makes it so different. This is a site about creating great content, … Read more

Television network ABC will reportedly launch an app this week that will allow residents of New York and Philadelphia to watch local programming live on their iPhones and iPads.

The new app will deliver live broadcasts from the local ABC stations at the touch of a "Live" button, making ABC the first U.S. broadcaster to embark on constant live streaming for smartphones and tablets, according to The New York Times. The app is expected to deliver the same programming viewed on traditional sets, except to Internet-connected mobile devices, where ever they happen to be.

The live stream, … Read more

Google plans to finish defining its VP9 video codec on June 17, providing a date on which the company will be able to start using the next-generation compression technology in Chrome and on YouTube.

"Last week, we hosted over 100 guests at a summit meeting for VP9, the WebM Project's next-generation open video codec. We were particularly happy to welcome our friends from YouTube, who spoke about their plans to support VP9 once support lands in Chrome," Matt Frost, senior business product manager for the WebM Project, said in a blog post Friday.

WebM is Google's … Read more

Android users who employ the TWC TV application will soon have far more functionality available to them.

Time Warner Cable announced on Tuesday that the upgrade to its Android application will deliver access to more than 4,000 On Demand TV shows and movies. The app will also allow for out-of-home access to some On Demand programming and live TV viewing over a Wi-Fi connection. Time Warner Cable says mobile users will have access to over 1,100 On Demand shows and movies and live television from "a dozen or so" news, sports, and entertainment channels.

Time Warner … Read more