The Devil's boots don't creak - Scottish proverb
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Project Canvas will be free
PROJECT CANVAS, the Internet connected TV set-top box co-owned by the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Five, BT, Talk Talk and Arqiva, will be offered for free.
Well, free if you buy a Talk Talk broadband subscription package when it goes on sale, but at least the thought is there.
The idea is to bring things like the BBC Iplayer to the TV screen.
The boxes, which are expected to go on sale in 2011, will retail for approximately £200, but a 'mobile phone-style' pricing strategy is being investigated.
Talk Talk senior director Max Alexander told Marketforce and the Institute of Economic Affairs annual Future of Broadcasting Conference in London that punters will get the new broadband connected set-top box for free. Free if they buy certain broadband bundles. We understand the desire to promote the thing, but the normal concept of 'free' seems to have gone off somewhere.
The service is likely to be marketed as Youview and received BBC Trust approval last week.
The idea is that you will get ordinary TV channels in exactly the same way as Freeview. But its broadband connection will mean that it can stream video-on-demand straight to a television set, without the need for a computer.
However when he said "free", apparently the set-top box will be £200 if you try to buy it yourself. The original thought of Project Canvas being 'free' is now missing and suspected dead.
To make matters worse, Talk Talk says it will actively discourage consumers from buying the new set-top box who "are not achieving sufficient line speeds" as they will struggle to stream content from the web.
About 20 per cent of the population will not be able to stream content during peak time and will not be able to use the service to watch Dr Who. The original 'free' thought is now in an alternative universe being chased by Daleks. µ
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It's only "free" if you buy something first for $200. This does not fit my definition, nor of most others definition, of what Free means.
That's like saying the wheels come free with your $40,000 auto.
Just tell it like it is, it costs $200 to start.
Why don't you cover services like the programs that aggregate all the tv channels into one place. Take a look at seetvpc [dot] com. This is $27 one time and you get all the TV you want without any commitments or monthly fees. (And NO, this is not my product. I'm just trying to make a point)
so its not free at all then
for under £200 you can build a small media pc and have complete freedom of choice on what you do and do not view so the concept is pointless. this will also play discs, avis, mp3s you name it.
go one better and sell your integral freeview-tv and buy an older tv with an analogue receiver - then you dont need a tv licence!
screw 'em all and their ripoff ideas
its all full of skanky 'celebs', diy, cookery and reality cack anyway