Streaming

The football (US version -- apologies to those in the rest of the word) season is getting under way, as the NFL kicked off the pre-season two weeks ago with the traditional Hall of Fame game. At the same time, the league has been pushing out its new Now app to various platforms like Xbox One, Fire TV and Roku.

The latest to get the new service is Apple's living room solution, the Apple TV. Like its rivals, the tiny box is getting the app, which brings the NFL alive in video format. This adds the massive library of NFL Films, along with original content, made specifically for the app, as well as a bit of live stuff, such as press conferences.

There are many parts of the internet that are blocked to children under the age of 13. Facebook, for instance, implements an age restriction and Google is another online firm that prevents younger web users from setting up accounts. But all this could be set to change. First reported by The Information, Google has plans to open up its service to a younger audience. This does not mean that youngsters will be free to sign up for an account and browse through the contents of YouTube without restrictions. Parents will be able to sign their children up for an account and retain control over what they are able to do online.

One of the primary concerns many people have about Google -- regardless of their age -- is privacy. Google has a proven track record in delivering tailored content and advertisements to its users, and this is something that is at odds with laws around the world when it comes to children. The news coincides with UK plans to experiment with age ratings for online videos, and privacy and child protection groups are already voicing their concerns. Of course, there is nothing to stop someone of any age from signing up for a Google account; it's easy to stretch the truth with dates of birth online. But Google specifically targeting children with its services is unchartered water.

Head to the stores to look for real, physical DVDs and Blu-rays, and you'll probably find that there's an age rating on them. Now plans are afoot to bring the same idea to the web. As insane an idea as this may sound, this is actually happening, and it is completely pointless and unworkable. Initially starting off with the involvement of YouTube and Vevo, the scheme is the brainchild of UK Prime Minister David Cameron and will start as a pilot program in October. It's something that is likely to appeal to concerned parents, but the practicalities are a rather different matter.

Announcing the ratings plan, Cameron said: "We shouldn't cede the internet as some sort of lawless space where the normal rules of life shouldn't apply. So, in as far as it is possible, we should try to make sure that the rules that exist offline exist online. So if you want to go and buy a music video offline there are age restrictions on it. We should try and recreate that system on the internet".

In recent years, I have enjoyed simplicity in my home. Long gone are the days of owning stacks of CDs and DVDs. Instead, like many people, I have embraced streaming audio and video. Not only is it convenient, but it helps to prevent clutter. A tiny box can be placed next to your TV, which can deliver thousands of hours of entertainment. However, which one do you choose? Apple TV? Fire TV? Roku?

Ah, Roku. Something about that box's UI and remote make it a dream to use. It is not much bigger than a hockey puck, but I guess for some, even that is too big. Well today, the Roku goes invisible -- how's that for small? Don't worry, magic is not involved and technically it isn't invisible. Actually, it is being hidden inside the TV, yet it is so much more. Yes, with Roku TV, an embedded Roku is finally a reality and you can pre-order it today.

A few weeks ago I complained bitterly about my atrocious internet connection. The impact of a deathly slow and unnervingly unstable connection is hard to overstate. Tension and frustration chez Wilson reached boiling point. Nerves were frayed and tempers short. But as I sank into the bleak, hellish broadband abyss, a hand reached out to save me. The hand was extended by the suitably named Satellite Internet who took pity on me having read of my plight. A trial of satellite broadband was duly offered, and I don’t think I could have said "yes, please" faster. It's something I've considered before, but the startup costs had put me off.

Satellite Internet's service uses Astra satellites, the same ones used to deliver satellite TV to Europe. This means that a smaller dish than you might expect is needed. Forget the monster installations you may have seen in people's gardens in years gone by, these days the dishes have shrunk to something that's just about the same size as those used for TV broadcasts. Installation was delayed due to my trip to the Isle of Skye (which, incidentally, has blisteringly fast internet considering it's a tiny island connected to the mainland with a small bridge), but this morning two installation engineers arrived at 8:00, having travelled more than two hours to reach me.

Roku, the tiny set-top box with a lot of channels, gets one more improvement today. It's an important step in the battle with stiff competition from Apple TV, the recently improved Amazon Fire TV, and the forthcoming Android TV, to name only three.

Now Vimeo is the latest to add just a bit more functionality to the Roku box. The streaming service is announcing a major improvement to its app -- the first major change since it was released back in 2011.

The Amazon Fire TV has become a solid competitor in today's set-top box market, competing with Roku, Apple TV and others. It works especially well for those who are Prime subscribers, as the service is completely integrated into the tiny box.

But Prime is not all you can do with Fire TV, other apps, like Hulu and Netflix, were available at launch and Amazon promised more on the way. That time has arrived, and the company is celebrating in its usual manner. That is, offering discounts on the device.

A lot of news recently has swirled around Netflix and its problems with ISPs, especially after the Comcast incident, where the service was forced to pay a premium simply for customers to get reliable service. However, Netflix is not shy about reporting the winners and losers on a monthly basis.

Today it announces its report of ISP streaming speeds. Despite the fee now being paid, Comcast still failed to finish at the top, coming in at fifth place. The giant of the US market ranked behind, in order, Cablevision, Cox, Suddenlink and Charter.

Last year Amazon debuted a number of pilots, though only two survived the final cut -- both Alpha House and Betas had first season runs. Of those, only the former will survive to season two. However, the company continues pushing its own original content, and is now set to debut a new run of pilots for viewers to decide upon.

On August 28th the retail giant will kick off several new shows, all available to any customer who has a Prime subscription. The episodes cover the gamut of content, so pick and choose as you wish.

Regardless of what your views are on 'alternative' methods for getting TV and movie content for viewing, Popcorn Time continues to exist, much to the dismay of the MPAA. The service utilizes BitTorrent technology to get content and streams it to the viewer as it downloads, making for almost instant viewing.

Now the service is taking a step to help its users become more secure, adding a free Virtual Private Network (VPN) service, provided by Kebrum. This means users should be safe from being tracked or intercepted (NSA not included in this statement).

Baseball season is in full swing and marching steadily towards the playoffs, and football is now in pre-season, making it a great time to have easy access to sports information. Now those who have joined, or will soon join, the Amazon ecosystem with a Fire TV, are going to get just that, along with other services as well.

The retailer announces the addition of MLB.tv, WATCH Disney Channel, WATCH Disney Jr., Animal Planet Live, and the WWE Network. "Customers are loving the selection on their Fire TV, telling us how easy it is to watch their favorite movies and TV shows, listen to music, and play games in their living room. And because of that, developers continue to bring great apps to the platform, with app selection more than doubling since launch", says Steve Rabuchin, Vice President of the Amazon Appstore.

Recently my colleague Joe Wilcox wrote about how he'd cut the cord and was not turning back. I can sympathize, and have made the same move, though I can't promise I'll never go back. Football season is coming, after all, and Sunday Ticket, while costing a fortune, will still tempt me.

I have been a DirecTV subscriber for more than ten years. I truly loved the service, and I paid for that love affair. Perhaps not to the extent of other cable and satellite customers -- I settled for the middle package and didn't bother with premium channels like HBO or Showtime. I did briefly flirt with the sports package, but found it to not be worth the extra hit to my bank account.

XBMC has gone through many iterations over the 12 years of its existence. The program, which now powers a number of home theater computers, began life as Xbox Media Player, then morphed into Xbox Media Center, before finally settling on the shorter abbreviation of XBMC.

But the platform has moved so far off from its original Xbox beginnings that it has announced it will get away from the old name as well.

Long-running TV show Doctor Who, which is produced by the BBC, will be coming back for yet another season on August 23rd. However, fans who can't wait can catch up through Hulu, which has debuted what it terms "Doctor Who Month".

The streaming service is hosting two exclusive specials, as well as a pair of classic episodes that had previously been lost for 30 years. Those episodes were recently recovered and can now be viewed via Hulu.

Smart TVs and Blu-ray players have become all the rage these days, with customers using them to replace the need for a set-top box, though in most cases apps can be limited. So when a new one debuts on a platform it can be a big deal to customers who invest in that particular device for their living room.

Now Spotify announces it will be making its way to Vizio TVs. The app will begin appearing for download in the Internet Apps Plus store right on the big screen.