Tag: Mobitv »

Ever since the invention of the internet, consumers have been dictating the way that they consume media.  Whether it be digital music or the recent boom digitally delivering television via services like Hulu or the more shifty BitTorrent, people have decided that they want to be able to enjoy their entertainment on their own terms.  The problem was, until recently anyway, the only way to consume this content on an iPad was either via breaking copyright laws or through Hulu's iOS app.

They say that competition breeds a superior product, so lets hope MobiTV's newest entry to the iPad helps to kick the entire market into gear.  MobiNow, as their new app is called, looks to improve on their existing iPhone app named after its parent company, by adding in a library of new content and channels as well as support for pushing the iPad to its visual limits.

Here is what the developer has to say about the introduction of their new product:

"MobiNOW allows iPad and iPhone users to watch the best in family entertainment, reality TV, breaking news and more. Take PBS Kids, Discovery Channel, FOX News, A&E, History, TLC, Animal Planet and many more with you wherever you go. It's a free download and it brings tablet- and device-based entertainment to a whole new level." -- VIA MobiTV Product Blog

MobiTV's push to syndicate on-demand content seems to actually fly in the face of the live sporting events that have been previously touted by their legacy iPhone app.  Does this mean they are shifting their focus, or is this just another method to advertise the re-packaging of an existing product?  It is hard to say at this point, but with an initial free download, they seem to be begging you to find out.  Your assignment is to give it a download and report back here with your findings. I know I would appreciate learning what is going on!

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MobiTV has been around for years on other mobile platforms. And the technology behind it has powered the NCAA March Madness app the last two years and also the NBA and UFC video apps. But the MobiTV client, at least until now, hasn't been available on the iPhone.

MobiTV is a streaming video application that let's you watch both live TV and on-demand programming. For free, you can try out the app and stream the ABC News Now channel to test the speed and the picture quality.

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With a monthly subscription to the MobiTV service, there's a greater selection of channels you can watch such as MSNBC, Fox News, ESPN, Disney Channel, ABC, CNBC, and Fox Business. You also get access to 30 channels of on-demand such as MTV shows, ABC, CBC, SyFy, NBC, etc. The service costs $9.99 per month with slight discounts for pre-purchasing multiple months either 3 or 6 month packages.

MobiTV is available in the App Store now and it's free, but to really get anything out of it, you will need the subscription. Oddly, MobiTV hasn't changed much since I first tried it out on my Palm Treo all those many years ago. The number of channels hasn't grown, if anything, it's shrunk a little. This, of course, limits is usefulness and makes the $10/month fee seem a little crazy.