Digital Trends

AOL and WB have announced In2TV, a new service planning to offer high-quality video of thousands of older TV shows for free via a P2P-style network.

In an aggressive new foray into bringing television content to broadband-enabled Internet users, America Online and Warner Brothers Domestic Cable Distribution have announced a free online video service which will offer thousands of episodes of older television programming via the Internet using a peer-to-peer file sharing network controlled by AOL.

The new online offering, dubbed "In2TV," will be available via AOL's Video on Demand, Video Search, and AOL Television sites in early 2006 and will initially feature full-length episodes from television series including television evergreens like The Fugitive, and Maverick, more-recent fare such as Growing Pains, Sisters, and Perfect Strangers, classic sitcoms like Alice and Welcome Back, Kotter, to genre favorites like The Adventures of Brisco County Junior, La Femme Nikita, and Babylon 5. Programming will initially be categorized into six channels, within an expanding lineup to accommodate additional shows added to the service. In2TV will also feature original interactive content to accompany the episodes, such as games, quizzed, polls, and trivia contests. In2TV will be adding episodes and programming during 2006; a list of shows to be offered by In2TV at launch appears below.

Episodes presented via In2TV will feature 15- to 30-second video advertising totalling 1 to 2 minutes within each 30 minute block, and will also feature sponsors and banner advertising in addition to in-stream video ads. Initially, the technology behind In2TV will be sponsored by General Motors.

And the technology behind In2TV is raising as many eyebrows as AOL's aggressive new entry into the online TV field. Although few details are available—and what details have been released are sketchy—In2TV will rely on a new video format called AOL Hi-Q which purports to be able to deliver DVD-quality video quickly and efficiently using a peer-to-peer style file sharing network technology AOL has developed in partnership with Kontiki. According to AOL, the "AOL Hi-Q video player provides a high resolution display with image quality designed for full-screen viewing on PC monitors or televisions capable of showing a PC interface." AOL Hi-Q supports with digital rights management (DRM) technology designed to help protect the copyrighted television content, and, reportedly, users will be able to access AOL Hi-Q content via a software plug-in, although there's no word on what platforms (other than Windows) the software will support, or whether programming can be burned to CD or DVD, or transferred to portable devices like the PSP or video-capable iPods.

In addition to installing special software, AOL Hi-Q users must also participate in a new file sharing network, a closed peer-to-peer system which AOL plans to use to distribute video content to users. According to AOL, their network does not present the privacy and security risks of other peer-to-peer systems (such as Grokster or Kazaa) because AOL will maintain full control over the network and the software. By utilizing storage and bandwidth paid for by its customers to distribute video—rather than on network infrastructure provisioned by AOL itself—AOL is simultaneously lowering its costs to provide the online video service while potentially delivering better performance to users. However, some users, particularly business users, may not appreciate their bandwidth and storage being utilized by a third party outside their control, and it remains to be seen whether AOL can shake the popular stigma currently associated with the category of peer-to-peer sharing software.

AOL is starting off its AOL Hi-Q service with a trial featuring roughly 100 Hi-Q video items (including movie and video game trailer, plus music videos) and plans to expand the trail with additional videos and, eventually, full-length television episodes on the In2TV service.

In2TV launch programming is to include:

• Adventures of Brisco County Jr.
• Alice
• Babylon 5
• Beetlejuice
• Chico and the Man
• Dark Justice
• Eight is Enough
• F Troop
• The F.B.I.
• Falcon Crest
• Freakazoid
• Freddy's Nightmares
• The Fugitive
• Growing Pains
• Hangin' with Mr. Cooper
• Head of the Class
• Histeria!
• Kung Fu
• La Femme Nikita
• Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman
• Maverick
• The New Adventures of Batman
• Perfect Strangers
• Pinky and the Brain
• Scarecrow and Mrs. King
• Sisters
• Spenser: For Hire
• V
• Welcome Back, Kotter
• Wonder Woman