Joost launches – well, sort of

Will Head Columns & Opinion, Internet, TVs
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will.jpgWill Head writes…

There’s no big fanfare, but much hyped TV over the internet service Joost quietly slipped from a closed beta test, to a slightly less closed one just a few hours ago. That doesn’t mean that you can just rock up to Joost.com and download the app, though – you’ll still need to be invited by an existing user. However, all users have been given unlimited invitations, so there’s no restriction on how many people they can introduce to the service.

So, is it going to kill off TV as we know it? Probably not yet, is the short answer. The problem is, although it’s video – and very good quality video at that – it currently has to live on your PC, which means the office or spare room rather than living room.

After all – how many people do you know that have a PC hooked up to their TV? Microsoft has tried to push the PC into the living room with Media Center – but it’s just not taking off.

For Joost – or any TV over internet service – to work in this consumer world it has to not feel like a computer application running on a PC. It should come out of a little box, with a remote control, that you can just switch on and veg out in front of – no waiting for it to boot or messing around with a mouse.

Maybe that’s the plan for Joost down the line – once the content deals are in place. A little Joost box sitting quietly in your lounge, hooked into your broadbrand connection, streaming the content to your TV. But until that happens, it’s going to be one of those things that people use because they can, not necessarily because they want to.

If you want to see what all the fuss is about, leave your details below and I’ll send you an invitation.

Will Head
For latest tech stories go to TechDigest.tv

38 comments

  • Always enjoy your writing. May i have an invite to see what all the fuss is about?

  • Good on you for sharing, thanks so much. We would love an invite, stuck living in Hong Kong without a TV. Thanks

  • Hi, I would be really interested in trying joost out so thanks very much in advance if you are willing to invite me.

  • Hi, I would be really interested in trying joost out so thanks very much in advance if you are willing to invite me.

  • I’m very interested in trying out Joost. May I have an invitation? Thanks!

  • Hi, Very curious as I’m about to be sent abroad to work for a while so could prove a life-saver.
    Thanks for the offer of an invite!

  • Hey, really curious about this thing so was wondering if i could get an invite,

    cheers

  • Just to let you know – the unlimited invitations haven’t kicked in yet, but should soon. Once they do I’ll start sending them out.

  • Hi. This sounds interesting. Thanks for the offer of an invite – I was wondering how I could get to see it.

  • I want to see what all the fuss is about! Please send me an invite. Thanks!

  • Would be very grateful for an invite, thanks for the offer.

  • Just read the news about unlimited invites. That’s a good thing.

    Would love an invite if you can forward one to me.

    I’ll reserve judgement until I try it out, but I’ve worked on a number of IPTV projects similar to Joost, and I’m still looking for features that distinguish it from other channel-based broadband video services. Perhaps its differentiator will be content…. we’ll see.

  • Not really convinced by the hype, but I’d still love the chance to try Joost out.

    Thanks.

  • I would love to receive an invite to joost as I hope that it replaces my dish network subscription someday. If you would be so kind as to send me one, I would greatly appreciate it.

  • I have been tracking this for several weeks and would also LOVE to receive a joost invite. I am hoping that someday this replaces my dish network subscription or at least is playable on xbmc. Thanks.

  • Thanks for offering up some Joost invites. I’ve been hearing about it for a couple of weeks now and would love the chance to try it out.

    Thanks!

  • Hello, I have heard many things about Joost. I would love to recieve an invitation. Thanks in adavance.

Comments are closed.