Hulu requests removal from Boxee • Hacker News Board

Re: Hulu requests removal from Boxee

#31

Post by krschultz » Thu, Feb 19, 2009, 4:11 AM UTC

jrockway wrote: post #27

jonursenbach wrote: post #2

It really is a shame for NBCU, and company, to ask Hulu to cut Boxee off. If I recall correctly, didn't content from Hulu that was piped into Boxee still have ads? Hopefully someday they'll realize that when they cut off people from having legal access to their content, people will go back to their illegal methods. When will old media learn?

Hopefully someday they'll realize that when they cut off people from having legal access to their content, people will go back to their illegal methods. When will old media learn? How is bit-torrenting TV episodes illegal? They are broadcast into my house for free, so why would it matter if I record them, or if Some Guy On The Internet records them for me? (I never watch TV un-timeshifted, so I don't see ads either w…

Your problem is that you are being rational, and copyright law is anything but. I don't think there has been a definitive ruling on the matter but I think torrenting is illegal because you never own the show, you have a license to view it in one way and viewing it in another violates that license. For example, if I get the show in HD on my package and you don't, me giving you a copy means you have an experience that you would not otherwise have and therefore are violating the copyright.

Re: Hulu requests removal from Boxee

#32

Post by krschultz » Thu, Feb 19, 2009, 4:14 AM UTC

brent wrote: post #28

nikblack wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Further, here is a comparison of CPM rates and revenue for a typical TV episode. Network TV: $20-40cpm per ad - 15-19 ads shown in 30 minutes Cable: $1-15 cpm per ad - 10-22 ads shown (plus subscription revenue) iTunes: $0.80 per viewer, so CPM of $80 total (est network share) Hulu / Online: CPM $10-40. 1-4 ads per show. If you do the math, its obvious that network broadcasts really rake it in. A 30 second spot on a…

First, thank you for providing actual numbers.... but... Supply and demand. If everyone started watching on Hulu they would be able to charge more per advertisement. These are rates given the current situation, not the future. Why do I say this? I watch Hulu. I do not watch TV otherwise. If the advertisers (and networks) want my eyeballs they need to provide content via Hulu.

Those numbers or per thousand so it doesn't really matter I would think. Personally I would think that the Hulu ads are more valuable than the TV ones because it is 1 advertiser per show and there is less signal to noise for the viewer. When I watch football on Sunday it is sponsored by Ford, Toyota, Miller, Budweiser, Verizon, and 10 other companies I will never remember or care about. When I watch the Daily Show on Hulu it is 1 company a few times and actually leaves an impression.

Re: Hulu requests removal from Boxee

#33

Post by modoc » Thu, Feb 19, 2009, 4:49 AM UTC

It's funny, I ordered an Apple TV to install Boxee on for the bedroom TV today. Hulu was going to be one of the major sources of content for Boxee, however now it sounds like it'll simply be tvtorrents + rss + rtorrent. It's just as easy for me, but it means zero ads. Seems like NBC is the one losing out by this move.

Re: Hulu requests removal from Boxee

#34

Post by ctingom » Thu, Feb 19, 2009, 4:52 AM UTC

sachinag wrote: post #15

ctingom wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How do you do that?

1. Open Internet Browser 2. Hit Triangle and Search for [hulu] 3. Go to Hulu.com (should be the first hit) 4. Click on the video you want. 5. When the page loads, hit Triangle then click on View. Then select the "maxiumum size" option. 6. Then Click on Full Screen view in the options on the Hulu page. This should work, but I get letterboxing on the left and right sides of my HDTV. I assume this is my TV, but who know…

Awesome, thanks!

Re: Hulu requests removal from Boxee

#35

Post by donniefitz2 » Thu, Feb 19, 2009, 5:20 AM UTC

This is devastating news. WTF? For what reason? The ads are there. What is wrong with these people. So much for innovation.

Re: Hulu requests removal from Boxee

#36

Post by donniefitz2 » Thu, Feb 19, 2009, 5:25 AM UTC

tocomment wrote: post #26

Dumb, question but what is boxee? Why would I use it? I honestly couldn't figure it out from their website nor the wikipedia article about boxee.

Just download it and try it. You'll see why it rocks so much. I agree, the site doesn't do the product justice.

Re: Hulu requests removal from Boxee

#37

Post by whughes » Thu, Feb 19, 2009, 5:45 AM UTC

wmf wrote: post #30

jrockway wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hopefully someday they'll realize that when they cut off people from having legal access to their content, people will go back to their illegal methods. When will old media learn? How is bit-torrenting TV episodes illegal? They are broadcast into my house for free, so why would it matter if I record them, or if Some Guy On The Internet records them for me? (I never watch TV un-timeshifted, so I don't see ads either w…

I'll assume this was a serious question. While recording a show yourself and downloading it both produce the same outcome, copyright law cares about the path that bits take. Even if the TV networks are distributing something for free, it isn't legal for you to redistribute it for free without their permission.

An interesting post I read about this a while back: http://ansuz.sooke.bc.ca/lawpoli/colour/2004061001.php

Re: Hulu requests removal from Boxee

#38

Post by bjtitus » Thu, Feb 19, 2009, 6:21 AM UTC

zhyder wrote: post #29

wmf wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No it doesn't, because whether you watch Hulu using Firefox or Boxee the same ads should be shown.

I know. But when you bring up the same show on TV using over-the-air/satellite/cable you see more ads.

Then why don't they shut Hulu down?

Re: Hulu requests removal from Boxee

#39

Post by Timothee » Thu, Feb 19, 2009, 6:37 AM UTC

tocomment wrote: post #26

Dumb, question but what is boxee? Why would I use it? I honestly couldn't figure it out from their website nor the wikipedia article about boxee.

It's a media center software (based on XMBC) with a focus on online content with videos from Hulu, Netflix, Comedy Central, YouTube, torrents, etc.; pictures from PicasaWeb and Flickr, music from last.fm, NPR, etc.

Why should you use it? It's a great step towards combining online content with a TV. It has a lot of pieces that are missing from AppleTV. (even though it's possible to install Boxee on AppleTV :))

Re: Hulu requests removal from Boxee

#40

Post by jonursenbach » Thu, Feb 19, 2009, 7:14 AM UTC

zhyder wrote: post #29

wmf wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No it doesn't, because whether you watch Hulu using Firefox or Boxee the same ads should be shown.

I know. But when you bring up the same show on TV using over-the-air/satellite/cable you see more ads.

Then should they prevent me from buying a Mac Mini/Apple TV, hooking it up to my TV, opening up a web browser with Hulu and watching something in full screen?