'YouTube' 4K demo to launch Google play to control Ultra HD

YouTube will demonstrate 4K Ultra HD video using a new codec Google hopes will corner the streaming market, VP9, at CES 2014 next week. The royalty-free codec is Google's alternative to H.265 - what's currently one of the most prevalent 4K standards - with YouTube's involvement just one of a number of companies intending to support VP9, the site told GigaOm. That's in an attempt to avoid a re-run of the last streaming codec Google tried (and for the most part failed) to launch.

That was VP8, which Google billed in 2010 as its solution to making video streaming headache-free by removing the need to force users to install plugins. Google even used VP8 itself, in its Hangouts video conferencing, but failed to get any significant traction with other companies.

You can't accuse the firm of not learning from its mistakes, however, and now it has a group of display and chipset companies lined up with support already pledged for VP9. That includes Samsung, Toshiba, and Sharp on the screen side, and Intel, ARM, Marvell, and Broadcom on the silicon side. IN fact, there are now nineteen hardware partners already onboard.

According to a YouTube spokesperson, the big benefit from VP9 is a significant reduction in how much data is transferred during streaming, and not just with 4K content. Compared to existing codecs used for HD video, in fact, VP9 is said to cut the data demands in half, leading to a significant reduction in buffering.

It's not the first time YouTube has offered 4K content. In fact, the streaming video service added 4K support all the way back in 2010, though videos actually taking advantage of the higher-resolution were relatively rare.

That's changed a little over the intervening years, though finding good 4K content to watch on Ultra HD displays and projectors still remains the primary limiting factor of the technology, beyond of course cost.

YouTube expects the changes to still be relatively gradual, predicting VP9 hardware decoding in PCs and mobile devices initially, followed by TVs with support for the codec by around 2015.

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Xbox One users face streaming issues with HD content

There are a lot of people who have their hands on the Xbox One game console despite early shortages of the console. In my local area, the availability for the console seems to be much better with Walmart and other retails having them sitting on the shelves. A report has surfaced that Xbox One users are having issues with streaming video.

According to the report, many users have taken to Twitter to complain that quality of streaming video on the Xbox One is poor. Users have reported that they are getting inconsistent streaming quality on the Xbox One with Amazon Video.

One user claims that he gets stable 1080p streaming from Amazon Video on the PS4, but the Xbox One offers sub-SD resolution. Other users are complaining that they are having issues with Netflix as well.

One report indicates that there is an issue with Netflix where the streaming service gets struck at 99% on some movies streamed on the Xbox One. Users have compared streaming between the PS4 and Xbox One and are saying the PS4 is smoother. Microsoft has offered no details on what might be causing video issues at this time. Read our review of the Xbox One for more details on the console.





SOURCE: Gaming Bolt

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iTunes Radio September launch tipped with full-screen takeover adverts

Apple’s iTunes Radio streaming service will launch in September with at least four high-profile brands including McDonald’s and Pepsi, sources claim, and listeners should expect to hear an audio advert every fifteen minutes and a video ad every hour. Announced at WWDC 2013 back in June, iTunes Radio takes on Pandora, Spotify and other streaming music services and will presumably be launched alongside iOS 7; according to Advertising Age, McDonald’s, Nissan, Pepsi, Procter & Gamble, and potentially up to two more brands will be first out of the gate with multi-million 12 month advertising deals.

According to the insiders familiar with Apple’s negotiations, there will be three types of advert users of iTunes Radio can expect to see. Most familiar are the audio and video adverts, which will interrupt playback periodically; Apple has supposedly tuned the video advert system so that the promotional content pops up when the user is most likely to be looking at their display, such as just after pressing play or skipping through tracks.

However, the third type of advert may be more controversial. Dubbed “slate” ads, they are apparently a full-screen takeover, bringing up an interactive iAd-style page that completely covers whatever the user was looking at before. These will be supported not only on iPhone and iPad, but on Apple TV, and iTunes on both Macs and Windows PCs.

It’s unclear how frequently the full-screen adverts will be shown, though it may be down to how much each brand is willing to pay. The sources say that Apple has a sliding scale depending on screen size: iPhone advertising will be cheapest, with Apple TV the most expensive.

From 2014, advertisers will be able to choose which devices their promotions show up on. The 4+ initial partners will have exclusivity until the end of the year, but as of next year Apple will be opening up its books, it’s said, with a minimum $1m buy-in tipped.

Those not keen on adverts but still wanting iTunes Radio support will be able to bypass the promos by subscribing to iTunes Match for $24.99 per year. A “buy track” button will also be displayed along with every song playing. 

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