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DirecTV to launch an on-demand service via IPTV

By Tim Conneally, BetaNews

March 13, 2008, 1:29 PM

Traditionally a direct broadcast satellite (DBS) TV service, DirectTV's HD on Demand uses the Internet to deliver content. The service, which has been in beta since Summer, is expected to launch in the second quarter of this year.

DirectTV has confirmed to BetaNews that this morning's Wall Street Journal article stating its beta period is about to end, is correct, though the official announcement has not yet been made. One will come as the launch date approaches. The company already has over 1,000 downloadable files, including both episodic and stand-alone content.

Select markets in the US have been testing the video-on-demand service for several months. It has thus far only been available on the DirectTV Plus HD DVR receivers models HR20 and HR21, and requires a connection of 750 Kbps or higher to function.

The Support Forum lists normal complaints, with no single complaint overwhelming any others. However, high definition files have been remarked upon for the length of time they require to download.

Add a Comment (4 Comments)

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By persistent

edited Mar 13, 2008 - 11:31 PM

Anyone know anything about DirecTV offering full service - not just On-Demand over IPTV? I've heard that one of the premier FTTP providers in the US is going to offer DTV service over it's infrastructure.

Anyone got any idea what the set top box might be for such a service? Would an HR21 be capable of that?

Score: 0

By jessshaun

posted Mar 13, 2008 - 9:30 PM

I have this service on my HR21. Works pretty good, but there is not enough available. Hopefully that will change when it comes out of beta.

Score: 0

By rebradley

posted Mar 13, 2008 - 2:13 PM

I've tried this service but since I have a DVR already I really don't see much need for on-demand. The shows that I tried were not HD so the speed was just fine. I can only see using this if I found something that I missed several shows. However, if there is an additional charge for this service I probably won't subscribe.

Score: 0

By sorahl

posted Mar 13, 2008 - 8:09 PM

I have found it useful for the childrens programming and the old TCM movies. The content needs to be updated more frequently.

Score: 0

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