Can Joost Bring Internet TV to the Masses?

By NewsFactor Network | January 17, 2007

The founders of Skype are inching ever closer to officially launching their broadcast-quality Internet TV service, but what remains to be seen is whether the effort can finally bridge the gap between TV and PC.

The new service, dubbed Joost, was first unveiled in December as “The Venice Project” and helmed by Skype cocreators Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom. To launch Joost, the pair used part of the money gained from selling Skype to eBay in 2005.

Analysts and tech observers have been curious as to whether the two developers can do to TV what they did for VoIP — create a disruptive technology that inspires imitation and changes the communications landscape.

Market Scene

In creating Joost, Friis and Zennstrom are entering an increasingly crowded market, said Yankee Group analyst Adi Kishore.

Content providers such as television networks and movie studios have been putting more video online, and technology companies such as Apple and Microsoft have made major moves toward shuttling content between TV sets and computers.

“It’s a very hot area, and many companies are getting into it,” said Kishore. “But there are also many challenge with getting content from a PC to a TV and vice versa.”

Quality is a major consideration, he said, pointing out that anyone who has ever visited YouTube will recognize that not all video online is quality material.

“But, even with the challenges, it’s a good time for Joost to get in,” he said. “With the level of investment, it’s a good time for them to think about how they’ll differentiate what they have from other offerings.”

TV Channel

Joost is determined to be unique in the industry by providing a global TV distribution platform, melding content owners, advertisers, and users into a single community. The service will depend on peer-to-peer technology for delivering content, and will be particularly careful…

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