Instant Watching on Mac/Linux/X360/PS3 Status
(Netflix Analyst Day 2008 update May 28, in bold)
The short answer is:
Intel Mac: probably around Sept 2008 (definitely this year)
PowerPC Mac: unknown (probably never)
Linux: probably mid-2009
PS3/Xbox360: unknown (maybe never) but they are working on it
Stand alone set-top box players: On May 20th, the Netflix Player by Roku was released for $100, more expected in Fall 2008. (Remember: "Members with a Netflix plan that includes unlimited instant watching may associate up to 4 unique devices with an account during a twelve month period." If you aren't sure, you may want to call Netflix and see how many computers you have activated in the last year.)
Read on for the long answer.
As far as I know, Netflix has nothing planned that will allow them to support PowerPC Macs.
They will likely have support for Intel Macs some time in the 2nd half of 2008. They will most likely be switching to Silverlight shortly after version 2.0 comes out. 2.0 has the DRM that the studios require. This will allow them to add support for multiple browsers and Mac (and likely Linux in mid 2009).
Microsoft's Silverlight 2 Beta 1 was released on March 5th at MIX08. (At MIX07 Netflix's movie watching demo on Silverlight was a big deal, this year they didn't seem to have any presence at MIX08. Though Bill Scott (Netflix UI Engineering) just took part in judging a Silverlight contest.) The final release is currently rumored to be in August. The latest word from Microsoft is "before the end of the year."
I would currently guess at Intel Mac support coming around September or so. Future release dates are subject to change, and likely will. Thats just reality in the software world.
In the meantime, there is a workaround for Intel Macs by installing Boot Camp, Parallels, and Windows. There is a similar workaround for Linux.
Netflix is also attempting to get Instant Watching on XBox 360 and Playstation 3, but it is unknown if either will ever happen.
On April 15, Sony's Peter Dille said:
Their upcoming download video service may or may not include a deal with Netflix, but I will update this page when they give out more details "very soon".
On April 21st, Reed Hastings (Netflix CEO) said that they have deals with 4 companies to produce hardware for Instant Watching. LG was previously announced to be one of the 4. They should announce the other 3 by the end of the year.
On April 25th, Michael Pachter (of Wedbush Morgan) predicted that Microsoft & Netflix have a deal to get Instant Watching on the XBox 360. Pachter has a very good track record (about 60%) for predicting big things in the video game console world.
On May 20th, the Netflix Player by Roku was released for $100, more expected in Fall 2008.
On May 28th, from 'Netflix Analyst Day 2008': The other 3 Instant Watch hardware partners are on target for 08/09 releases (One is LG, still no hint on who the other 2 are). Netflix has created an SDK that can be added to existing Blu-Ray/dvd players (that have internet connections) to allow them to stream Netflix movies the same way the The Roku Netflix Player does. It is now up to the Blu-Ray player/game console makers to add this feature into their firmware. Whether any or all of them will opt to do so is unknown yet. Their hope is that once their current 4 partners start showing big success, others will jump on board.
Mac support definitely coming this year. I assume Intel Mac only. It was only mentioned in passing and more as a joke (2 sentences out of about 2 hours that were devoted to discussing movie downloads).
The SDK I mentioned above is "Portable Linux code". Whether that means anything for Instant Watching on computers with Linux, I don't know.
The short answer is:
Intel Mac: probably around Sept 2008 (definitely this year)
PowerPC Mac: unknown (probably never)
Linux: probably mid-2009
PS3/Xbox360: unknown (maybe never) but they are working on it
Stand alone set-top box players: On May 20th, the Netflix Player by Roku was released for $100, more expected in Fall 2008. (Remember: "Members with a Netflix plan that includes unlimited instant watching may associate up to 4 unique devices with an account during a twelve month period." If you aren't sure, you may want to call Netflix and see how many computers you have activated in the last year.)
Read on for the long answer.
As far as I know, Netflix has nothing planned that will allow them to support PowerPC Macs.
They will likely have support for Intel Macs some time in the 2nd half of 2008. They will most likely be switching to Silverlight shortly after version 2.0 comes out. 2.0 has the DRM that the studios require. This will allow them to add support for multiple browsers and Mac (and likely Linux in mid 2009).
Microsoft's Silverlight 2 Beta 1 was released on March 5th at MIX08. (At MIX07 Netflix's movie watching demo on Silverlight was a big deal, this year they didn't seem to have any presence at MIX08. Though Bill Scott (Netflix UI Engineering) just took part in judging a Silverlight contest.) The final release is currently rumored to be in August. The latest word from Microsoft is "before the end of the year."
I would currently guess at Intel Mac support coming around September or so. Future release dates are subject to change, and likely will. Thats just reality in the software world.
In the meantime, there is a workaround for Intel Macs by installing Boot Camp, Parallels, and Windows. There is a similar workaround for Linux.
Netflix is also attempting to get Instant Watching on XBox 360 and Playstation 3, but it is unknown if either will ever happen.
On April 15, Sony's Peter Dille said:
Many of you have been hearing rumblings about a video service that will allow you to download full-length TV shows and movies via PLAYSTATION Network for North America. While I don’t have any new announcements here for the PlayStation Nation, it’s already been confirmed that we’ll be offering a video service for PS3 in a way that separates the service from others you’ve seen or used. Ultimately the goal of the PLAYSTATION Network service will be to break through the overwhelming clutter of digital media to give you the TV, movies and gaming content you want. More on this very soon …
Their upcoming download video service may or may not include a deal with Netflix, but I will update this page when they give out more details "very soon".
On April 21st, Reed Hastings (Netflix CEO) said that they have deals with 4 companies to produce hardware for Instant Watching. LG was previously announced to be one of the 4. They should announce the other 3 by the end of the year.
On April 25th, Michael Pachter (of Wedbush Morgan) predicted that Microsoft & Netflix have a deal to get Instant Watching on the XBox 360. Pachter has a very good track record (about 60%) for predicting big things in the video game console world.
On May 20th, the Netflix Player by Roku was released for $100, more expected in Fall 2008.
On May 28th, from 'Netflix Analyst Day 2008': The other 3 Instant Watch hardware partners are on target for 08/09 releases (One is LG, still no hint on who the other 2 are). Netflix has created an SDK that can be added to existing Blu-Ray/dvd players (that have internet connections) to allow them to stream Netflix movies the same way the The Roku Netflix Player does. It is now up to the Blu-Ray player/game console makers to add this feature into their firmware. Whether any or all of them will opt to do so is unknown yet. Their hope is that once their current 4 partners start showing big success, others will jump on board.
Mac support definitely coming this year. I assume Intel Mac only. It was only mentioned in passing and more as a joke (2 sentences out of about 2 hours that were devoted to discussing movie downloads).
The SDK I mentioned above is "Portable Linux code". Whether that means anything for Instant Watching on computers with Linux, I don't know.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Grant on -
I used that when I had it on my MBP but the streaming sucked. The quality wasn't all that bad but it skipped every few mins or so as it buffered. I might try again with parallels/bootcamp. That maybe better.
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Permalink Reply by subboy on -
well, considering i have Silverlight installed and am using it to watch clips on espn.com, not to mention listen to mlb.com, not sure why NF would have problems.
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Permalink Reply by JMO on -
good point considering MLB is about as strict with copyrights as anybody. At least we have baseball back again!
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Permalink Reply by billy on -
here is the problem i had with virtualbox:
i had to experiment with it because it was my fiurst time using it. so their were a lot of uninstalling and re-installing. This is significant because now, because of all the reinstalls, i can no longer install instant watch on a machine. This is something that i would like to make EVERYONE aware of. I am sure it will happen to a lot of others.
also the times that i did have VB running well and with vista, the video seemed kind of choppy...
honestly. i recomend just dual booting. it sucks... but it is the better (and safest) choice
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Permalink Reply by Tim U. on -
Any news regarding addressing the root cause of the OS support problem: The studio's insistence on using DRM?
How did Apple get several music studios to agree to allow DRM-free music tracks?
Is Netflix going to attempt the same thing? If not, why not?
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Permalink Reply by Tim U. on
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Using defacto-standard FLV for streaming video would solve the OS support problem with minimal work by Netflix's developers. If only the studios would allow it.
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Permalink Reply by Kiernan Holland on -
Well I will get DVD's from netflix, but I got Netflix to work in Virtualbox running on XP (VB, made by a german company, was purchased by Sun recently, a open source VM that will run on linux, mac or windows). I've got copies of XP laying around but am totally and completely boycotting Vista.. Never will upgrade.. I'm moving over to Ubuntu.. Something about a millionaire intent on philanthropy towards building a better linux platform centric on humans, has a nice ring to it.
Amazon already has a MP3 downloader for Ubuntu 7.10, specifcally..
I've purchased at least about 14 dollars of songs on Amazon.. Neat thing about
their mp3 downloads is they take advantage of the ID3v2 album art embeds, they
show up on my Samsung YP-T10 (I just upgraded to 2.00 Korean, hacked firmware that
works on Ubuntu).. I have zero respect for executives that think they can control the market
with DRM and EULA. I'm all over youtube.. 200,000 video views.. Setup the site chann3lz.
I'm not waiting for Netflix, I could care less about what B movies they have lined up for online viewing.. I could easily go watch hulu.com.. Or if I was really mean, pirate movies on Limewire..
But I don't like movies enough to go to that extreme.. I don't really believe that the Internet has stollen from the MPAA or RIAA, just that the Internet has become a black hole of alternative entertainment that can't be accounted for in marketing analysis, and is a scape goat for whatever the executives can think up to do, in the interest of making money. I believe "the customer is always right".. If you think otherwise, prepare to be steamrolled silently in Internet forums.. Viral marketing is not something a marketer does, its what their consumers do out of preference.
Actually.. the stock market controls businesses, not the other way around. Business favors the quick and easy, avoidance of change as it is too risky.. Innovation does not occur in New York, it occurs in small businesses all over the world. It's not common for business to run in the same direction as need, it tends to run juxtaposed to consumer interests.. It's a no brainer..
Why did I feel compelled to comment here? Just a bit upset that Netflix can have its head up its ass pretending not to notice the change occuring all around it.. Maybe it makes money, but soon I will be dropping my membership in interest of some growing competitor to Netflix, whoever it be.. Just don't get complacent.. If I find it I will heavily market it on youtube..
I watch Miro, download video podcasts on Ubuntu 7.10.
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Permalink Reply by Rod Beckwith on -
Hi,
I am testing a www.hauppage.com media extender with www.sagetv.com software that has a Netflix plugin. People that have installed the package say it works nice.
I will let you all know once I test it
Rod
PS - Sorry...PC only application w/DirectX 9.0 above.
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Permalink Reply by Baff on -
Sony is holding a press conference on Friday. I will post an update here if it has anything to do with their VoD plans.
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