9 Channels for Apple TV

With Apple TV adding channels at a steady rate, the majority of which are going to US customers. In UK we get a steady increase of international channels and few UK Broadcaster.

Here are 9 international channels that would be good to
make it onto Apple TV.

TED Talks

The presentations over on Ted are both informative and engaging, great to sit and watch at any time. As Ted film and own rights to their talks its easy to see them coming to Apple TV. Just look at popularity of the ios app, this is a real winner.

NASA- In-fact even ESA

Space is big business at the moment as well as a fascinating subject. With vast amount in the archive and the increasing TV schedule this would be a great addition.

UStream

A bit of a whildcard choice but UStream does have lots of live and archive content. A bit like Youtube but aimed at live streaming. Ustream has a good mixture of content from wildlife cameras to space. It includes live shows and messages from soldiers home. This could easily become a solid channel.

Amazon Prime

This might be far fetched as Amazon now have FireTV coming out but they are loosing out to Netflix by not being on the platform.
Plus if your using an Amazon Prime membership anyway why not get the benefits out of it.

Flixster (Ultraviolet)

I just want access to my Ultraviolet account. flixster  is established in the UK and would be a great addition. Though you can access other movies the fact a lot of studios support Ultraviolet (poor mans iCloud) it's a big thing that should be supported.

BBC Store

BBC have been working on the BBC Store in secret for some time but I think the end result will be something Apple could not only benefit from but also is a internationally recognised brand that could benefit both companies.

BFI Player

the BFI are defiantly worth adding to the mix as they are growing their restoration archive for the masses and this can only benefit apple to bring more films that may not make it into the iTunes library straight away due to licensing issues. It's also great to showcase the great work BFI does and the British film industry as a whole.

Warner Archie

The Warner archive is a great player that's currently only US bound but with help of Apple TV they really could expand it beyond its initial offering. Aimed at tapping into those lesser montinized titles in the Warner Brothers Archive,this brings the TV and film that would sit nicely in uk for our silver surfer generation.

All 4 (formally 4OD)

British Broadcaster Channel 4 may be one of the youngest Broadcasters in UK but it was one of the first into the streaming On Demand environment. So confident infant it had made all its archive of owned shows available to all.



Apple may take the plunge and add any of these to the roster of apps. Though I think US is their first target rather than the UK, so I think we shall see more of those added first.

Though UK is very eager and willing to cut the cord more than any other country so maybe Apple should try to launch products outside US first. Now that would cause a stir.

Tech to wish for in 2015

Its a new year and I'm really eager to blog more. I've got lots of posts planed for 2015 some I probably should have posted in 2014 but didn't quite get around to finishing.


So to kick of the year I thought's do some tech wishes for 2015. I'm not saying these will make it to the UK market, but some are in US market so next logical step is Europe.

and after all we are in the future......

First on my list is Disc to Digital, now this is slowly growing in US but essentially is a way to get your DVD's onto the ultraviolet platform and then have ability to play them. I'd like to see this so I can get my large DVD collection in the cloud and eventually into HD (cost permitting). I though can't see why it has to be a cost per disc  CD ripping was around for years and then came iTunes Match and Amazons Auto Rip both of which brought those digital files to the cloud at a reasonable cost.

Oh how nice it would be to free my shelf space of DVD's.

This leads me to my next wish.

Ultraviolet  movie access across itunes/google play, if my collection is in the cloud i'd like to have option of where to watch it from. As an Apple fan I love using my Apple TV to watch my TV collection but my ultraviolet collection is a pain to watch currently its all third party apps which don't let me watch on my television easily or in HD.

One App that has enabled this and I'm really hoping will come to UK is Disney Anywhere  not only can you sync your movies between iTunes and Google it brings the great Disney collection together and all in HD and with iTunes Extras (which for me brings best of DVD to digital).

So keeping with movie theme I'd like to see the release of a TV next year and no not a TV made by apple (though look forward to seeing what they come up with) but a TV built on YouView technology.  Having owned a box I can say currently it is a great connected television box. Like with everything there are still a lot they've just not got right but I think they may just be about to fix all that with future upgrades.

Also if TalkTalk buy Tesco's Blinkbox then we could finally see Ultraviolet get a proper platform on TV in UK. Which if falling in place could see Youview as a technology moving across the world.

Before I move on from TV there is going to be an explosion of programs from British producers flooding the worldwide market in 2015 and it will all start with the launch of BBC Store. The one stop shop to get BBC programming from last 50 years. It will also mean other platforms getting access to these programs for their platforms and more as BBC attempts to untangle ownership rights so that all programs ever broadcast on BBC are released on demand. This will obviously see programs broadcast but not owned by other UK Broadcasters profited from for first time in years.

I better wrap up this blog but I think 2015 will be the year of innovation and introduction. We already can see technology for hover-boards on their way. I think its developments from these kind of projects and scientific endeavours that we shall see the biggest change in our lives.

Think new dentistry techniques coming to the market. New health treatments, automated houses, big data used to benefit our lives, the list goes on. I don't even know what to expect or to take educated guesses with.

I want to talk about so much technology in 2015 because I think it will be known as the year that inspired a generation. The year man kind reached a new technological peak. So I hope that I actually have some time to write about things this year as 2015 is ours to explore. 

Itunes Cloud Purchases aren't all cracked up to be

As an avid media watcher I have begun to move my life away from the physical mediums to the digital. This has been for two reasons, the first I have no room in my flat, the second being future proof.

Now being an Apple fanboy I started getting a few video's via apples great 12 days of christmas. Then I brought an Apple TV and it changed my life, less and less I use my DVD player for TV shows and even Movies.

So to start with I replaced Video's for an SD download copy, I occasionally buy HD versions but just don't want to pay the extra money when I can get two films for the same price. So my collection has been building slowly occasionally I've invested in bundles, again great ways to get lots of films on the cheap.

They all play better than DVD's, though I do miss the extras of DVD's that AppleTv can't emulate.  That's fine though, as my collection is growing brilliantly and my VHS collection is slowly decreasing,  my flat space is increasing.

Now my computer is creaking under the amount of video's on my hard drive. I was going to get an expensive hard drive but I thought why bother when iCloud backs up these purchases. It means I could delete a large part of my library and only keep personal videos/DVD rips that apple don't back up (unfortunately). I could continue accessing them via Apple TV right?

Wrong as I was going  through some of the videos when I noticed some had disappeared. Speaking with Apple support they said the content owners can remove these at any time. After much discussion with apple and content owners. Turns out little that can be doen if they get removed you won't get them back.

So currently I discovered I have lost from the cloud: Bourne Identity (though this has returned), Bourne Supremacy, ICe Age 2: The Meltdown, ER Pilot episode. That's a lot of media to loose, so I'm now backing up and saving for that server.

Luckily for me I'd backed these up but iCloud has a long way to go before I can fully trust it with my Media and Data which is a shame as the concept is great but execution is mediocre.

Though I can't fully blame Apple I have to blame the Media Studio's, they are build on a very poor business model, the media rights are all over the place.

I believe the Movie/TV industry need an PRS like the music industry does, to allow them to release videos quickly and globally. Too many rights over territories means a film can be brought in US but not in UK as the rights holders can't release it.  It means things can be released from archive quicker and piracy is lessened as people more likely download what they can't get.

It's time for Apple and the Content owners sit around a table together and push towards iTunes Match for Video. UltraViolet is the Movies Studio answer but Apple have a more reliable system. I want to go to my online locker to get my backup not pay for a expensive backup server.
 

Disney TV shows

As Disney have strengthened their brand with the Disney vault, limiting the release of their classic films then putting them in the vault and increasing sales when VHS/DVD is released. This will prob change as we move more to digital files and digital vaults.

   

Disney is and always will be part of our childhood. Most people remember that they created some of the most iconic children's filmstrip have ever known. They have always tried to cash in on these with merchandise, theme parks and straight to video film sequels.

Most sequels were just rehashed versions of the main movie some were much better extensions of the series, Aladdin: King of Thieves comes to mind.


Disney have been on a bit of a spending spree on our child hood over past few years. They brought Pixar, then Marvel, Muppet's and most recently LucasFilm for the Star Wars Franchise.

They haven't just brought these childhood memories and put them in Disney vault they've taken the franchise and nurtured it. Making the franchise profitable in new ways and bringing the original mediums back to us in new ways. Marvel lets you buy all the original comics in digital form or subscribe to them all in Netflix way.

But whilst this is great I have one question In my mind.

Why don't disney release their TV cartoon series?
Disney have made some great short form cartoons that are part of our childhood. Most of which tied in with great films.

Aladdin, Timone and Pumba, Leilo and Stitch.

Some that had a loose base with characters or franchises.

Mighty ducks, Tailspin, duck tails, Chip 'n' Dale rescue rangers.

And finally there were original cartoons that stick in mind for their own right.
Wuzzles, Gummybears,Recess.

So with this wealth of children's television sat in Disney's vault it's only a matter of time before it should be released on to purchase in digital for or to watch on Netflix.

So Disney why not capitalise on our childhood one last time.

Has iOS 5 sorted the clocks.

The clocks change tonight in the UK and we get an extra hour in bed, but will iOS 5 solve the dreaded clock issue we've seen in the past. I'm about to find out as I go to bed my alarms have been set for work tomorrow and I'm hopping to gain my hour in bed not loose it. So it's good night and I'll update you tomorrow.

Updated: Well the clocks changed and so did my iPhone. It looks like at least for the UK the Apple bug has been squashed. Lets hope that it doesn't come back when they change again.

Mobile Blogging with Siri

Decided today to give blogging a try with the new Siri application on the iPhone. I had an iPhone before and I downloaded the blogger application but this was the first time I was actually going and dictate what I wanted to say.

The news Siri application has been rather good there's a few bugs and it does struggle with my accent but that's more to do with how I speak than the application itself. What I have found is when I've got more info on my phone it struggles between what I want to know and what information I have. In my fact for instance I asked earlier when Mark's birthday was but fortunately I have five marks in my phonebook so Siri said which one do you want.

This means that I need to be more specific with my questions and means my accent gets in the way as mentioned earlier. The big thing I find my is when dictating this into blogger it doesn't take my punctuation into account it just keeps on writing so I do have to actually go back and edit.

All in all I'm very happy with siri and the blogger application together. This actual blog post has take me just a few moments to get out where's normally I'd be hammering away keyboard just trying to get out the post

iTunes store needs a redesign: 10 changes I want to see

Following on from my article iTunes needs a redesign: 10 changes I want to see, I wanted to look deeper at the actual iTunes store. Now being an avid user of iTunes and iTunes there are many things I want to see changed within the store, I thought I'd try to narrow it down to 10 things that I want to see.

1. Completed my Series/Show

As a person who has brought the odd episode from iTunes I often want to complete a season. I hear this is being rolled out in the US to complete a series much as I would an album but I'd like to see this taken a lot further. I'd like to get discounts for buying the next series of a show. 

2. Pricing of TV & Film

I can buy the complete DVD boxset of The Sopranos for around £50 on iTunes it would cost me £150. I can also get most old movies for £3 on DVD cheapest I can get them is £3.99 but in most cases £6.99. There are cases I can buy cheaper than DVD but I dont want to replace my DVD collection at that price I'd prefer to import my DVD's like I do with CD's. Though I have to admit I still have a large VHS collection I'm replacing with iTunes purchases. 

3. HD

HD is a big thing that needs addressing. Firstly I tend to buy SD versions of shows as the extra price of HD is ridiculous. They can range from £2 to £15 for a TV Series and £2 to £4 for a film that to me is the cost of an album or another show. At the moment these are only 720 HD not 1080. I'd like to see HD as standard price and the ability to upgrade all my shows available in HD for a small fee, like the 20p a track for music. In addition all movies should have the ability to sell at HD so why aren't they, its SD for some and both for others they should all be sold at HD. 

4. Rental

When I was young I used to regularly rent from local video stores. £1 a night rental was normal and I'd rent two or three things at a time. Then prices rose and it was £4/5 a night I could buy the move for £10 watch it twice and make my money back hence the reason I still own 200 VHS tapes I've not replaced. Today I could stream unlimited rentals to my TV for £6 a month so why does apple insist on rentals being  so 2.49 SD and 3.49 at HD. I prefer their 99p SD  or even £1.99 HD rentals. I think if they want rentals that aren't subscription based they need to drop them to 99p for SD/HD, especially when I can buy a DVD for £3. 

5. Previews

I can preview a song before buying it but when it comes to movies and TV shows apple are falling a little flat. A movie has a preview trailer option, great but alot of the time its not the theatrical or out on video trailer. I tend to get a scene from the movie and not a good one at that. I want to see the theatrical trailers not a scene from the film. As for TV i'd like to see the promo trailers or the sneak peak as a preview not given away as a freebie that leads me to my next point...

6. Free Episodes

I'm really happy apple give away a free single of the week and even more happy we get gifts during christmas period. I am however disappointed with it compared to US store where customers enjoy regular free music videos and TV episodes. In UK you may get the occasional free episode but in most cases it is a free trailer, promo or scene. I'd prefer a free pilot episode of a show then I'd probably buy the rest of the series. 

7. Movie Bundles

Ok this is kind of the same as point one but I felt it needed highlighting. Occasionally we can get movie bundles nothing like the US again but we can buy 2 and some cases 4 films that are sequels or special offers these are great and I just wish that this feature would spread further. I want to buy several films and their sequels but do I really want to buy them individually or do I want the option to buy a bundle or even having purchased the first movie get the sequel at a special price. 

8. Brought

A very simple thing but one I think should be taken from Mac App Store. When you have purchased something it says installed when you are looking around the App Store and spot something you've purchased. I think this simple feature would be great for seeing what you own and what you don't within iTunes.

9. Content
We all know content is king and as Apple plough more and more music into the store there are still some missing. As they add new TV shows there are a wealth of shows we can't get. I can't get new shows like Dexter (US store can) and there are hundreds of old shows that should be released. Not to mention films and books. There needs to be a bigger push in content and filling the gaps of those missing in store, which brings me to my next and final point.

10. iCloud/iTunes Match mark 2
iCloud is a brilliant step in the the right direction and though I'm yet to sign up to iTunes Match I'm looking forward to the freedom the service will give me. I'm just looking for the next step in its evolution. iCloud needs to start providing purchased support for Movies if it does this I'd watch them straight from my AppleTV and probably buy HD Movies. I want iTunes Match to move towards books and videos, scanning my library and giving my access to books I may have downloaded other places as well as letting me move my DVD collection onto my idevices. All this would benefit Apple as it would help them fill in their missing media by discoving what people own and want. They could merge my match info with my purchased giving me better genius results. The ability to complete albums to the deluxe version. Genrally allow me to see things I've purchased from apple and not letting me spend money on new content.

Apple is always improving its products so we may see some of these in the future we may not but its good fun to guess.