Herdon, VA is the second community to receive Verizon’s TV offering beginning this week. Verizon’s FiOS TV provides television service over fiber optic lines utilizing both traditional broadcast technology and IPTV. They appear to be using the Motorola 6412 as the dual HD tuner hardware platform.

Unlike Verizon’s original deal in Texas, all of Fairfax County, VA has given Verizon the go-ahead to provide video to all residents, regardless of city jurisdiction. Additionally, state law in Texas has been modified which has resulted in Verizon being granted a state-wide license to offer television programming. I sure hope my state and local governments get on the ball – I’m oh-so-ready to dump Comcast.
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The first high definition Blu-ray feature length film is in the can. Is Sony’s library so poor that they had to go with Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle? Then again, it can’t be any worse than Stealth. Despite their poor taste in content, the disc will be shipped to manufacturers for next-gen player development. Perhaps Netflix is right in stating Blue-ray has won.

Sony says: Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle was compressed and authored in MPEG 2 full high-definition (1920 x 1080) by Sony Pictures’ Digital Authoring Center (DAC) and is now being shipped to BD hardware companies for player testing. Utilizing Blu-ray’s unprecedented storage capacity, the Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle disc features dynamic menus with full resolution graphics and animation, superior audio and unparalleled picture quality. “We are confident this achievement will help everyone understand that Blu-ray is real and poised to enter the marketplace,” said Mr. Feingold. “Blu-ray will bring the highest quality HD experience possible to the home.”

The era of à la carte content experimentation continues. This week Time Warner jumps into the fray announcing free Internet streaming of select television shows. The catch is shows will contain advertising which can’t be bypassed and episodes don’t appear to be scheduled in a predictable manner.

Shows will optionally be offered in higher definition format using a new AOL software and service called Hi-Q (as in high quality or haiku – boy they’re clever). To save on bandwidth Hi-Q will utilize a P2P file sharing cloud.

One to two minutes of commercials per episode is a reasonable trade off for free content. Though, as with MovieLink and CinemaNow, you’re theoretically tethered to the computer. However, free thirty minute shows may be more conducive to PC viewing.

NYTimes says: Programs on In2TV will range from recently canceled series like “La Femme Nikita” to vintage shows like “Maverick” from the early 1960’s . Other series that will be available include “Chico and the Man,” “Wonder Woman” and “Babylon 5.” The company will offer a changing selection of several hundred episodes each month, rather than providing continuous access to all the episodes in a series, Mr. Frankel said, so as not to cannibalize potential DVD sales of old TV shows. Programs on In2TV will have one to two minutes of commercials for each half-hour episode, compared with eight minutes in a standard broadcast. The Internet commercials cannot be skipped.

How much are you willing to pay for commercial-free TV? How much would you pay to watch that content through a DVR which already let’s you bypass commercials? DirecTV and NBC think you’ll pony up 99 cents a show using their new DVR, available at Best Buy and Circuit City later this month.

We’ve definitely entered an era of exerpimentation (iPod shows @ $1.99, Time Warner’s VOD) with companies trying to figure out what we want to watch, where we want to watch it, and what we’re willing to pay.

DirecTV says: NBC Universal and DIRECTV, Inc., today announced a first of its kind agreement that will give consumers access to the top programs of NBC and its cable entertainment networks, USA, SCI FI and Bravo, within hours after they air, commercial free, for just 99 cents. The programs will be available on demand through the new DIRECTV Plus interactive DVR. “The way people are consuming content is changing,” said David Zaslav, President, NBC Universal Cable. “Through this agreement with DIRECTV, consumers will be able to watch top NBC content on demand for just $0.99, when they want, without commercials. It’s a huge sea change. This deal is the first of its kind and we value DIRECTV’s partnership in rolling it out.”

Marketing fluff, profit sharing, or really the ultimate in convergence? Sprint, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and Cox Communications have just signed a 20 year agreement to integrate all your media and data in a “quadruple play” of services. Sprint, the linchpin of the arrangement, is dropping a cool $100 million to provide a variety of functionality through your “third screen” using their new high-speed EV-DO network.

The companies say: The next generation wireless phone will be designed to connect customers of Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox and Advance/Newhouse Communications to Sprint through Sprint’s nationwide high-speed Power Vision(TM) EV-DO (Evolution Data Optimized) network and integrate products from each cable company. Customers using the converged services will be able to seamlessly interface between email, home and mobile voicemail, Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) and photo programs. The parties plan to implement and sell Power Vision(TM) EV-DO-enabled handsets and service packages that will enable customers to:

• Use interactive features like remotely programming their home DVRs
• Have a single voice mailbox that serves both the home and the wireless phone
• Access innovative new calling plans which allow for unlimited calls between the home and the wireless device
• Surf the Internet using their cable Internet portal
• Send and receive e-mail from their cable high-speed Internet account
• Access unique content like streaming television programming, music, video clips, games and pre-recorded DVR programs

We’re all familiar with the iPod – sleek design and a well-executed user interface, combined with simple sync and purchase options via iTunes. In those respects, the new video iPod performs as expected. If you have a large audio collection, the slimmer form and black option of the 5th generation iPod could be appealing. Some might even consider it a bargain – the 30BG model is only $50 more than the 4GB Nano.

Apple made a point of specifying this iPod just so happens to have video capabilities. After playing with it awhile I can tell you they’re not being modest, it’s not much of a video device… yet. While the screen is sufficiently bright and detailed, 2.5″ is on the small side for extended viewing. I also find support for only MPEG-4 and QuickTime limiting. Initially I figured I’d be able to overcome both those deficiencies, after all Steve Jobs touted all the movie trailers I’d have at my disposal. Well it turns out that the dozens of previews viewable through iTunes are not available for download to my video iPod. Why should they give me free content when they’re pimping TV shows at $1.99 a pop?
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Time Warner has been talking up their pseudo-DVR service “Start Over” since first mentioned in the WSJ last year, with more details revealed this spring. Now that they’ve gotten NBC’s blessing (money talks), South Carolina digital cable subscribers will be getting first dibs next month.

Start Over falls somewhere between VOD and a DVR in functionality – you can restart a show already in progress, but you can’t skip ahead or schedule recordings. It may be a simpler concept to grasp for folks who haven’t jumped on the DVR bandwagon, but Start Over isn’t very compelling for those of us who have. Good thing Time Warner is bundling it with digital cable at no additional charge.

USA Today says: With Start Over, digital cable customers who miss the beginning of certain shows, but who tune in before the end, can push a button and go back to the start. They also can pause and rewind the show — but can’t fast-forward through commercials. The service lets viewers act on impulse or because of unexpected delays. They don’t have to plan ahead to record a show, as they do with digital video recorders (DVRs).