the trials and tribulations of innovation
we just found out that Hulu blocked the boxee browser from accessing the Hulu site. this is a disappointing development since their RSS feeds are publicly available, and our browser, while optimized for a great 10 ft video experience, is no different in how it accesses this content than Internet Explorer, Firefox, Flock, Opera or any of the other browsers out there.
to our users: if you choose to use boxee as your media browser to view legal and publicly available content on the internet, we will do everything we can to ensure that you can access it, no matter what the source.
we’ll keep you updated as things happen here and via twitter (@boxee). and while some of the best things in life are free, sometimes you have to work hard to get them…
UPDATE:
now there is a status message on the top-right corner indicating whether Hulu is currently available on boxee.
[if you’re in NYC on March 24th then you should come to the boxee meetup. we will release a new alpha version during the event and share some concrete plans for the beta.]
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This only hardens my resolve to continue to use boxee. If only just to spite big media for being so dumb and not seeing where the future is taking us.
I love Boxee on my ATV, but what’s the end game here folks? For all you bit torrent fans out there, how can the networks afford dramas at $3 million an episode if no one is watching the ads or paying for the content in any way?
Free TV (over the air) has been available for 60 years and now it’s digital and HD *FOR FREE* Yet people still want to “steal” the content.
Yes, the business model of MSM is dying. Just ask the 150 year old Rocky Mountain News — oh you can’t, because it’s dead. The NY Times has more readers than ever (on line) but its losing money hand over fist. How long can this continue?
At least Boxee plays the ads from Hulu and gives NBC et al a revenue stream.
Before we celebrate the death of the mainstream media, we should ask, “who is going to keep making all the good and expensive programs out there?” And are blogs going to field reporters in Afghanistan and around the globe? Gee, those ads we used to watch were the cheapest price to pay for all that content — FREE.
I dumped cable tv and newspapers years ago. I guess they’ll see me as part of the problem.
I don’t mind watching ads at all. They (whoever “they” are) need to get together with facebook and start customising ads to the viewer.
I have gotten real tired of the hulu message that blames ME for bandwidth/software/hardware requirements when it’s obvious they just don’t have enough paying advertisers.
I totally agree with you,
Even the status shows “available”, I still can’t watch any video on Hulu (boxee windows)
So the rss feeds are blocked AGAIN even though the boxee app says its available in the top right
Boxee PLEASE just make them think your rendering engine (webkit??) is just a regular browser safari konquerer what ever
Thanks for adding Hulu back. Hopefully those executive fossils in big media will realize new ways of thinking are needed or else they’ll end up like the music industry.
Fuck Hulu
It doesn’t work here in Canada anyways…
TVRSS is the Shit!
They only encourage more piracy. Idiots.
So be it…
what’s the deal with these feeds? is it hulu, or is it just janky feeds? it’s this cat and mouse game is ridiculous to follow, even with twitter.
We should boycott the sponsors that advertise on Hulu, I say hit them where it hurts!!!!
Can anyone add a list of the sponsors to this post?
Reminds me of the great IM (instant messenger) wars of ‘99 / ‘00. Ah, memories. Plenty of knuckles were swelled during those many great and pointless code updates. And in the end what hath it wrought?
screw hulu.
Screw em up.
Just disguise the user agent as Firefox 3, they can’t block that, that’s probably 30 percent of their traffic.
Here’s why Hulu blocked Boxee:
http://www.cfnews13.com/News/Local/2009/3/9/bright_house_networks_introduces_primetime_on_demand.html
All those same shows that Hulu has are now lo and behold being offered through on demand channels on Brighthouse. This move was meant to block people from getting that content to their TV without a cable subscription. Well, Hulu, why the hell do you even exist then? So we can get crooks in our necks and backs hunching over a laptop? Lame.
It is really annoying how the writers of this blog purposely avoid capitalizing the first word of every sentence. Are they trying to be cute? It is the equivalent of dotting “i”s with little hearts.
we get many complaints about the use of all lowercase. it is/was a corporate policy. It seems to annoy quite a few people. We may have to reconsider.
people with old money hate that shit.
I agree with everyone here. I think there is some supervisor at Hulu afraid to lose their job and is breathing fire down the back of the coders to render boxee’s access null.
Make it impossible for them to block boxee. Go with the user agent of ALL the other browsers. Have it rotate through them and even randomize the characters every so often. They can’t block everyone.
To the big networks. TELL HULU IT IS OKAY FOR BOXEE TO ACCESS THE VIDEO. You’re still getting your showtime…
damn, now I’m all mad. Someone needs a punch in the head.
This is checkmate. Brilliant.
Seriously, the next obvious step is for the Boxee browser to use (spoof is simply too strong a word) the UA string from IE or FireFox (I’d suggest IE)
Hulu now has a choice. Give up, or block half the net. My suspicion is that the “Content Providers” will insist on the latter. Game over.
Boxee should add search to their torrent functionality. Make it a full featured client, then gloat about how boxee was forced to drop hulu support but it’s ok because it has been replaced by the new torrent features.
Be like “you see what you made us do hulu!”
Seems like a very bad business decision by Hulu. Boxee is destined to be the next step in media, so Hulu could only gain by it. Not clear what their angle is here.
Well, another approach would be to start documenting all the other devices/apps that also facilitate Hulu viewing at the TV.
What about TheMediaMall’s PlayOn UPnP server? XBMC’s Hulu plugin? etc…
boxee is being singled-out not only because it facilitates viewing at the TV, but because it’s such a superior solution for doing so. For boxee to be singled-out in this fashion seems criminally anti-competitive.
great post,i like this.
Thats not good thing..
We should block hulu too !!
Really don’t understand why hulu do that.
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