Guest Column: Central Asia on Joost?
Sasha Meyer writes about an obscure announcement last week that he says holds promise for Central Asia. Think Joost, a new Internet TV idea.Many countries and regions have an image problem. Central Asia has a different one: It has virtually no image. And the 2006 release of a faux documentary featuring a faux Kazakh journalist left many in the region with the belief that, if you don't create your own image, someone else will. Or worse: In the popular mind, Central Asia will get lumped together with its volatile neighbors to the south, resulting in an unwanted and unwarranted association with violence and religious militancy. That's the opposite of how most Central Asians want their societies to be perceived: as secular and modernizing.
The most influential images are what people see on their TVs. But creating a TV channel is both cumbersome and expensive. Distribution deals for Central Asian content would need to be negotiated with individual satellite and cable TV companies in each country. Such companies in the developed world, facing capacity constraints, are picky about new content and reluctant to add channels with unproven profitability.
Joost solves those problems. It's the brain child of the people who brought us Skype. They aim this time to deliver TV free via the Internet. Last week they entered open beta status, meaning anyone can try out the test version of the software. It's slated for full release later in the year.
Joost will offer ethnic content: Spanish-language series from Colombia, Chile and Peru, and an Arabic-language comedy. Channels in other languages will include Romanian, Turkish, Russian and Bengali. There is even Australian Food Channel and one on Chilean rugby.
Central Asians would do well to set up one of their own. The region produces a sufficient number of films and music programs. There are also Soviet-era movies. Some of that content is already on YouTube (a great number of music clips) and Google Video (some movies).
Most or all the Central Asian governments will be reluctant to strike a deal with Joost, but they oughtn’t be. Just like Skype, it offers instantaneous global reach at no cost. It delivers its content in TV-quality, unlike YouTube and similar services with bandwidth limitations. And, unlike traditional satellite and cable TV companies, Joost can have an infinite number of channels. Joost also accepts only professional content; no YouTube-like amateur clips here.
The most influential images are what people see on their TVs. But creating a TV channel is both cumbersome and expensive. Distribution deals for Central Asian content would need to be negotiated with individual satellite and cable TV companies in each country. Such companies in the developed world, facing capacity constraints, are picky about new content and reluctant to add channels with unproven profitability.
Joost solves those problems. It's the brain child of the people who brought us Skype. They aim this time to deliver TV free via the Internet. Last week they entered open beta status, meaning anyone can try out the test version of the software. It's slated for full release later in the year.
Joost will offer ethnic content: Spanish-language series from Colombia, Chile and Peru, and an Arabic-language comedy. Channels in other languages will include Romanian, Turkish, Russian and Bengali. There is even Australian Food Channel and one on Chilean rugby.
Central Asians would do well to set up one of their own. The region produces a sufficient number of films and music programs. There are also Soviet-era movies. Some of that content is already on YouTube (a great number of music clips) and Google Video (some movies).
Most or all the Central Asian governments will be reluctant to strike a deal with Joost, but they oughtn’t be. Just like Skype, it offers instantaneous global reach at no cost. It delivers its content in TV-quality, unlike YouTube and similar services with bandwidth limitations. And, unlike traditional satellite and cable TV companies, Joost can have an infinite number of channels. Joost also accepts only professional content; no YouTube-like amateur clips here.
Big names like CNN, CBS, MTV and Paramount Pictures have signed up. So have small independent producers like CenterStaging, a music production company based in California. Central Asian governments and NGOs should be next.
Labels: authoritarianism, Caspian, central asia, joost, president carter, skype
4 Comments:
Steve, interesting article. Yes, I have followed Joost since before it launched and was an early beta tester of it. Interesting concept but requires a newer computer with a fast processor and higher speed data lines (at least 2MB)...not everyone has this at home today.
An alternative that has been around for several years and does not require a fast computer nor very high speed network connections comes from RealNetworks (RNWK). They already do streaming for channels like Al Jazeera and will be moving into other areas of media content, like the ethnic programming you mention, as well as ways to put these streams on your mobile. Yes, an interesting world is shaping up out there in the world of on demand or live media to the desktop and to the mobile.
--Vincent
Vincent: Would you consider sharing your experience with beta testing Joost? Were you in the US while testing? The reason I ask is that some US testers complained of less than perfect video quaity. But apparently it wasn't Joost's fault: their ISPs don't provide high upload speeds. Testers in most of Western Europe and East Asia didn't have this problem.
I'm a bit surprised at your description of hardware specs. System requirements posted on Joost's site describe quite an average PC (Pentium IV, 32MB video card). Maybe, the software has been improved since you tested and now can do with an almost obsolete computer.
The 2 Mbps speed is quite commonplace in North America and becoming rare in France and Germany; it's extinct in South Korea and Japan.
I know of RNWK. It's one of the many services that use the traditional approach: a company with deep enough pockets buys tons of network capacity and essentially resells it to its clients (Al Jazeera, etc.). The problem is that their services are not free. Joost is free because it uses a different model: every viewer contributes their own network capacity. So, it's free to content producers and the viewers.
Alex, good to hear from you. I tested Joost in North America and in Central Asia. The problem is the video card requirements that not all computers, especially notebook computer, have installed plus the slower Pentium machines some folks have that have not been replaced since 2004. Also, you will be surprised to find that there are areas of North America where the upload and download speeds are not the best. Examples: areas around Seattle and Vancouver as well as Montreal and Portland still are being built out with xDSL lines in the suburbs and/or faster cable modem installations, whereas the Dallas and LA areas have very good penetration, possibly due to geographical reasons (not mountainous, not full of forests, who knows).
As for RealNetworks, you will find the model is changing in the coming 12 to 24 months. Digital advertising and video to mobile are a huge, growing part of the media industry and will help move them into a better revenue sharing cost model...plus companies like Level 3, Limelight and Comcasts "thePlatform" are moving forward with revenue sharing plans that can bring more "no cost to the sub" viewing capabilities, like Joost. Joost has just appeared, and YouTube in the past year with ads, and was able to take advantage of the ad server and other technologies to serve up a revenue generating business. Joost has done a good job, let's see how the others catch up.
--Vincent
Vincent: You are right about the broadband quality in the US. Many people don't realize that the US is way behind the rest of the developed world in that regard. That's thanks to the telco/cable co duopoly. In East Asia 100 mbps is standard and in Sweden you can have Gbps connections installed. All for the price of a 2 Mbps package in North America.
I didn't know there was such a seismic shift afoot in the traditional companies like RNWK. Thanks for sharing that.
Google Video and YouTube shouldn't be dismissed as yet. As the bandwidth costs drop further, those folks will be able to offer higher resolutions and longer videos.
Also, there is a bunch of startups that use the same technology as Joost. BabbleGum is one that comes to mind.
I'd say the more, the merrier. I hope Joost succeeds so that the competition heats up. Then both content producers and TV viewers would benefit.
It'll be interesting to see how all this will impact society in general and politics in particular.
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