http://www.themediamall.com/playon

http://www.themediamall.com/sites/all/themes/mediamall/images/ss-playon.jpg

Review:
http://www.engadgethd.com/2008/08/19/playon-media-server-brings-hulu-youtube-to-consoles-netflix-co/

Hmm... I wonder if there is a way TVersity can do this?

Thank you sir I will be checking this out tomorrow. :D

I just installed this and was browsing through some titles. Couldn't get anything to work via Hulu but it looks like that is a known problem. Some great potential here if they can iron out the kinks.

Anybody know how much this will cost when they release the full version?

will be interesting to see if this program lasts.... because there seems to be a difference when people try to "profit" off these kind of programs (vs something like tversity being free). would not be surprised to see this one get the smackdown from one of the content providers.

they seem to let the media center netflix applications go but those were also free.

I just installed this and was browsing through some titles. Couldn't get anything to work via Hulu but it looks like that is a known problem. Some great potential here if they can iron out the kinks.

Anybody know how much this will cost when they release the full version?

The "review" said $30 for the full version after 60 days.

Hmmm... very cool. But still not as cool as having the PS3 do this innately. I would like one device that can do this instead of having 2 running. Maybe if this becomes popular it will pressure Sony to update their flash player.

Hmmm... very cool. But still not as cool as having the PS3 do this innately. I would like one device that can do this instead of having 2 running. Maybe if this becomes popular it will pressure Sony to update their flash player.

If Pandora worked I'd be happy :) and streaming Netflix would awesome, this can't be that hard given the power the PS3.

I think its a revenue thing, if it doesn't directly make $$ for Sony they have no desire to work on it. So why not sell a program and sell a download-able "application" thru PSN for $50 (same cost as a game) that allows Netflix streaming? Seems like a win-win to me.

Wouldn't it generate revenue for Sony in terms of increased console sales? If they could advertise the ability to get all this media on the PS3 it'd be bound to increase sales.

On a side note, this requires WMP11 to be installed. And has a requirement of at least 512mb memory.

This caused me a bit of grief as I am running XP through VMware. I had to resize my memory allocation.

I'm running XP through Parallels and had to install .Net 1.1 to get it to work. Needless to say, it wouldn't work. All I get is Content not found for everything.

Wouldn't it generate revenue for Sony in terms of increased console sales? If they could advertise the ability to get all this media on the PS3 it'd be bound to increase sales.

The answer to that is probably 'why would I buy a PS3 when I can already do this on my PC?' Some people are happy streaming movies and programs without the TV hookup and without the headaches of running into an immature/underdeveloped platform. I'm sure Sony has done the numbers already and may have figured that the forseen revenue cannot offset the licensing and development costs... at least not yet.

Because I have a PS3 in the bedroom that I use for streaming with TVersity, and this would give me one more thing I could use it for. The PC is my DVR, and is in the living room

Wouldn't it generate revenue for Sony in terms of increased console sales? If they could advertise the ability to get all this media on the PS3 it'd be bound to increase sales.

I am not sure that it would, last I heard Sony was still losing a few dollars on each unit sold. So it comes down to demographics, if the majority of the people that want to stream media are not going to buy games then it doesn't make since to worry with this now. Especially since the PS3 is still one of the best Blu Ray players and some folks are buying them just for Blu Ray and not buying the games...

The answer to that is probably 'why would I buy a PS3 when I can already do this on my PC?' Some people are happy streaming movies and programs without the TV hookup and without the headaches of running into an immature/underdeveloped platform. I'm sure Sony has done the numbers already and may have figured that the forseen revenue cannot offset the licensing and development costs... at least not yet.

Of course we're not comparing PS3's to PC's (if we were, I'd point out the price difference and ability to play games and blu-rays) so much as to x-boxes and Wii's.

Easy access to tons of web content right on your TV is a nice bonus to go along with a great game machine and a great blu-ray player.

Also, alot of people aren't tech savy enough to set up a HTPC or stream content. Also, the point of this discussion is that if Sony did what we wanted, it wouldn't be an "immature/underdeveloped platform".

You may be right about the cost benefit analysis done by SOny however. IT seems likely that they would have looked into this - but you never know.

I cringe with the thought of all the wasted time trying to make this work. After my TVersity fiasco I've pretty much given up trying to make things work at all. If it doesnt work perfectly from the start, Im not doing it. As is the ps3 plays everything I torrent thru my portable HDD just fine. Unless something happens to make that process easier, thats where Im staying.

If Pandora worked I'd be happy :)

You do know Pandora's days are numbered right? Now that internet radio is being forced to pay double. I too love Pandora and will miss her. :(

They should do some kind of stand-alone Hulu player to access under Video. If there was some kind of one-time fee, I'd totally pay it.

Of course we're not comparing PS3's to PC's (if we were, I'd point out the price difference and ability to play games and blu-rays) so much as to x-boxes and Wii's.

Easy access to tons of web content right on your TV is a nice bonus to go along with a great game machine and a great blu-ray player.

Also, alot of people aren't tech savy enough to set up a HTPC or stream content. Also, the point of this discussion is that if Sony did what we wanted, it wouldn't be an "immature/underdeveloped platform".

You may be right about the cost benefit analysis done by SOny however. IT seems likely that they would have looked into this - but you never know.
I'm talking about people who already have PCs and the cost/benefit of having a PS3 or some other appliance to do streaming to TV. Many critics have indicated that the market is just not there yet.

Define 'easy' and 'a lot' and you will see that there are far more people who would prefer to have things work out of the box and not have to fiddle with things. I commend Sony for trying to improve the product but streaming to TV in general is not a mature market and has too many pitfalls. How many people are actually doing this or even know it is possible? These are the things that Sony as a company should be looking at. Believe me, I would be the first in line if someone promises a product that can stream everything flawlessly to my TV but as it is now, I am still limping along with Tversity.

I cringe with the thought of all the wasted time trying to make this work. After my TVersity fiasco I've pretty much given up trying to make things work at all. If it doesnt work perfectly from the start, Im not doing it. As is the ps3 plays everything I torrent thru my portable HDD just fine. Unless something happens to make that process easier, thats where Im staying.

I struggled with TVersity as well. But this was very easy. I had Hulu playing immediately after I installed this -- no tweaking. I have not explored all of the options yet, but this may be worth the $30 especially if they get Neflix running.

I cringe with the thought of all the wasted time trying to make this work. After my TVersity fiasco I've pretty much given up trying to make things work at all. If it doesnt work perfectly from the start, Im not doing it. As is the ps3 plays everything I torrent thru my portable HDD just fine. Unless something happens to make that process easier, thats where Im staying.


This was almost too easy to set up. Then again, I had no *real* issues with TVersity.

Anyway, I downloaded the setup file. Ran it.....aaaaand then that was it. It instantly showed up on my PS3 and I was watching Family Guy episodes from the Hulu Channel, and then Airwolf from the CBS channel. It was as simple as can be.

This was almost too easy to set up. Then again, I had no *real* issues with TVersity.

Anyway, I downloaded the setup file. Ran it.....aaaaand then that was it. It instantly showed up on my PS3 and I was watching Family Guy episodes from the Hulu Channel, and then Airwolf from the CBS channel. It was as simple as can be.

Worked great for me too. As you, I didn't really have any issues with TVersity either. The only issue I have with Tversity is when I pause. If I leave it too long, something times out, and after hitting play it stops with an error after a couple of seconds. At this point it, starting the show again, it starts at the beginning. It used to be ok but seemed to start after a PS3 firmware update earlier this summer (could be coincidence). If I hit STOP it is ok.

Tom

Doesn't work for me- trying to stream Hulu, Youtube, or CBS.com hangs and eventually disconnects my computer from the internet. I need to restart the computer and my router before it works again. Is this a problem with my router setup? I'd LOVE to stream Hulu.

For me video and audio freezes about every 4 seconds then resumes. It may be the 512megs of RAM on the panasonic toughbook that I'm streaming from though.

Any word on the video quality for those that have PlayOn up and running?

I wish the PS3 could handle this on its own rather than streaming from another device, but the idea of seeing Hulu and/or Netflix content is tempting.

The quality is what you could expect of non HD stuff although some Hulu shows like CSI don't look too bad. I'd have to say that this is not a bad first effort for the Play On devs. I got everything working fine on an aging P4 XP Pro machine hooked on GigE. I say keep everything wired if at all possible.

Thanks saiga. The network is wired...may give it a shot this weekend.

This could be great. I downloaded and easily started watching simpsons. Quality not horrible on my 37".

No problems installing or watching Hulu's stuff. Watched Babylon5 the pilot episode. Video was passable, that's about it. Babylon5 had great quality, it seems to have been encoded to a lower video quality.

It'll pass the time on a rainy day but you wouldn't want to have your friends see it on your TV. I'm sure this will improve in time.

I got it working as well.... Its nice but I doubt I will keep it past my 60 day trial.

Quality was good (not great).... getting the hd stuff would help here. Maybe it was my tv but it seemed worse than when my pc is directly connected to my projector.

But my big problem is the lack of controls with the content. I have a 360 so I will be getting native netflix support (which leaves hulu as the only real good thing about this) but it doesnt have ff/rw or resume support. We will see if that aspect gets improved but I have a feeling its a technical limitation and not easily fixed. But w/o those features I wont be keeping it.

Edit to my above post:

I watched the pilot episode of Babylon5 and it was obviously older and 4x3. I just watched the first episode of the series and the 16x9 format is there and the video quality is greatly improved. Not quite DVD quality but close enough to have no problem watching the video. Even on a sunny day!

But my big problem is the lack of controls with the content. I have a 360 so I will be getting native netflix support (which leaves hulu as the only real good thing about this) but it doesnt have ff/rw or resume support. We will see if that aspect gets improved but I have a feeling its a technical limitation and not easily fixed. But w/o those features I wont be keeping it.

I wonder if the controls issue is console specific. No disrespect to the 360, but the ff/rw on PS3 seems to work fine. I do agree, resume would be nice too, but at least the other controls work. You might try emailing their support regarding controls concern, they seem pretty approachable as far as suggestions are concerned.

On another note, the video while not spectacular is acceptable. So far I like this software and if its around the 60 days might even consider purchasing since it does fill that gap for PS3 at least. It'll be interesting to see if they can get Netflix up and running without either Sony, Microsoft and/or Netflix squashing this technology.

does it? i tried mine on both the 360/ps3 and neither of them would ff/rw. i assumed it wasnt working because its downloading the streams and then (guessing here) converting it to something else on the fly to stream.

i wonder if connecting both the 360 and ps3 to the same server has something to do with it. i have a feeling netflix will kill everything once the silverlight version launches (which is why they havent killed the media center one already)

It seems to on PS3, yes. I tried it only on Hulu content - Alfred Hitchcock Hour and Speed Racer (oh man how I missed this show!).

Yea, I tried this last night and it was just so damn simple to set up.

Anyone know if they will add NBC.com support?

I thought the quality was decent and I had FF and REW support also. I think this will be $30 well spent as there are tons of shows I would like to catch up on online.

actually you are right... i was being an idiot. i was using the chapter skip to do the faster fast forward (because thats the primary way i fast forward through things).

the ff does work but only to a certain point (im guessing as far as it has downloaded) and then will still error out on me. its workable now but still not as good as id like (for me to drop the 30 bucks on). this is the best application ive found though for this kind of thing and had the native netflix player not be in the pipeline i likely would have bought it.

hulu and the other stuff is nice but netflix is the real prize here (for me atleast) and i doubt its going to work better than the native application for 360.

upon some more digging im not horribly happy with the current interface as well.... from what ive been able to see there is only title/show descriptions and not season/episode info.

there is so much content. Its really fun. Tons of old tv shows; including classics like star trek, with many many episodes. Great idea, I'm sure we'll just be loaded down with this type of stuff in the future. Hopefully we'll have some good HD streams coming soon!!!!!!!

So this service runs through my computer, through the internet and NOT through the ps3 internet connection? I have no desktop, when my laptops arent being used they are closed. I wouldnt have a connection if Im watching somthing and my wife shuts the laptop.

Yea, you pretty much need a desktop running when you want to use this. I'm sure you can do it through a laptop, but it can't be in standby mode.

Anyone get this to work with both your PS3 and your PC on wireless connections? Mine keeps hanging, and I think that might be the reason. Their userguide says for 802.11g wireless networks either the PS3 or PC need to be on a wired connection. I'm actually thinking my router pre-dates the 'g' standard even.... But, before I move my router, I wanted to make sure this is the reason.

While not really a problem associated with PlayOn, Canadians can't use the Hulu or CBS.com players... 'not available outside the US'. I actually sent a message off to Hulu when they launched asking about this restriction - alas, no reply. Seeing as most Canadians (read 'all' with a valid satellite/cable subscription) have access to the NBC and CBS content, it's a little puzzling as to why this is blocked for those of us north of the 49th parallel.

I was able to get Hulu on my PSP using remote play. Granted I was only about 6ft from the PSP. I havent tried it from a remote location yet.

I was able to get Hulu on my PSP using remote play. Granted I was only about 6ft from the PSP. I havent tried it from a remote location yet.

This would be a huge amount of win.

Wow, I didn't even think of using this with Remote Play.

Wow, I didn't even think of using this with Remote Play.

That makes two of us, I know what I am doing with my PSP tonight!

OK, I just installed DD WRT on my router and since I did that, I can't use the Playon media server.

The regular media server works fine, but when I go to play something through Playon, it says something like "The file has been deleted from the media server" or something like that.

I get the whole list of videos and can even see the screen shots, but when I click play, I get that message.

*Edit* I just checked their forums and it seems that Hulu is the issue. There's a new version out as well. I'll check into it.

The Hulu and Netflix login fields are blank on my settings screen. Do I need to buy a license and activate it for these to work?

It is blocked because Canadian broadcasters (CBC and CTV and CITY, etc...) pay for the Canadian broadcast rights for those US shows, and that includes internet rights. CTV does a decent job with its webcasts of things like LOST, but of course, their player (and ever other channel's) doesn't work on the PS3...:mad:

Too bad, I just saw that some of the new episodes of the fall shows will air on hulu a week before they play on tv...

While not really a problem associated with PlayOn, Canadians can't use the Hulu or CBS.com players... 'not available outside the US'. I actually sent a message off to Hulu when they launched asking about this restriction - alas, no reply. Seeing as most Canadians (read 'all' with a valid satellite/cable subscription) have access to the NBC and CBS content, it's a little puzzling as to why this is blocked for those of us north of the 49th parallel.

I was able to get Hulu on my PSP using remote play. Granted I was only about 6ft from the PSP. I havent tried it from a remote location yet.

Very interesting news. :cool:

This crap still won't work for me. Freezes my PS3 for anywhere from 5-30 seconds, sometimes plays the first two seconds of a Hulu video, then freezes again until I either get an error message or am forcibly disconnected from the internet. What. The. Hell.

What are your system specs for your PC?