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iPod vs. Front Row Experiment

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Today, I left my house in a rush. I did not have time to sync up my iPod to my MacBook Pro. I drive 97 miles to get to a class, so I need my new podcasts. I grabbed my Apple Remote and took my fully charged MacBook Pro on the road. I used a tape adapter to hook up the car and computer. I turned off Airport to conserve battery power. I own an inverter, but I didn’t have time to hook it up.

I’ve got to say that Front Row with a remote works much better than using an iPod. The big fonts helped me see the screen while I was driving. I wasn’t fumbling with a scroll wheel and trying to see a miniscule screen (I have a 3G iPod). Maybe it’s me, but I have trouble landing on the exact file I want using the scroll wheel.

I was able to listen to my podcasts that I had downloaded last night and the 97 miles wasn’t too bad. In addition to the podcasts, I had access to my videos as well. No need to transcode a video into a music file. When I drive long distances, I’d rather hear longer form shows. That way, I’ve only heard 2 or 3 different things on the drive home. If I hear ten three-minute songs, I know I’ve still got a lot of songs to go before I get home.

I would enjoy listening to Simpsons episodes without having to make them audio-only files. This brings me back to the UMPC. No need to transcode, it plays anything. Maybe the UMPC could be the ultimate car computer. It’s not that great to carry around, but in a car, I bet it’s got a useable display especially if it runs a Media Center-like interface.

So for long car rides, Front Row beats iPod for driving. It prevents staring at a small screen. Maybe someone can run an empirical study on this.

New Television Model: Private Licensing

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The current television distribution is good, but it can be better. I just want a license for shows or networks. This is similar to the a la carte cable television plans that have yet to materialize.

I’m quite sick of the gray legal area of bit torrent and broadcast television. It may be legal, it may not be. So I propose licensing to the individual. If I can subscribe to magazines, why can’t I subscribe to a network or television show or studio? Say I enjoy television programs made by Carsey Warner – maybe they should allow the viewer to have a license to watch the shows in any medium. A fee would be paid to the studio, it would allow you access to bit torrent or direct downloads of episodes of their shows. Let’s face it, the cost of digital downloads should be less than that of physical media.

DVDs would require an additional fee or a different license. If you want a DVD subscription of your favorite show, why not offer it directly? If I wanted to have every episode of “House, M.D.,” why can’t that be a reality?

With today’s usage of DVRs and PVRs (and some that still use VCRs), time shifting is a normal activity. Why should “new episodes” be relegated to when the networks tell us new episodes are on? The old medium does not have to die. It merely needs some supplementation. There will be people who do not care for licensing in this personal way, and that is fine. However, there is no reason the studios can’t make more money by adapting my idea.

Instead of being advertiser/sponsor dependent, television could be rely a bit on the consumer directly.

Killing Time: Episode 001

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Doing a new podcast. It’s called Killing Time – it reviews entertainment including movies, comics, television and others. In the first episode, we take a look at Little Man, Spider-Man and his no longer secret identity, Superman Returns with Marlon Brando from beyond the grave and the excellent Berry Gordy’s the Last Dragon.

Direct download: Killing_Time_Episode_001.mp3

Visit the official site at:
KillingTime.tv

Podcast: Play in new window | Download