Netflix Performance on FiOS Dropped Another 17 Percent in June

Verizon Internet customers who want to watch Netflix at high quality and without interruption just can't catch a break. While Comcast subscribers saw near-immediate speed improvements after Netflix paid for a direct connection to the Comcast network, Netflix performance on Verizon remains poor-and it's getting worse. Netflix's latest ISP speed rankings, released today, show that the average prime time streaming speed on Verizon FiOS dropped from 1.9Mbps in May to 1.58Mbps in June, a decline of 17 percent. Verizon DSL dropped from 1.05Mbps to 0.91Mbps, a decrease of 13 percent. Verizon FiOS previously dropped from 1.99Mbps in April to 1.9Mbps in May, while Verizon DSL had dropped from 1.08Mbps in April to 1.05Mbps in May.

Read the full story at Ars Technica.

Amazon Says It Passed Hulu, is Now the Third Largest Video Site

Amazon's been trying to turn Instant Video into a major player in the streaming space, and it looks like its dedication is starting to pay off: Amazon says that Prime video streams have nearly tripled year over year, and it cites video-delivery firm Qwilt to say that Instant Video is now the third largest video site overall, behind Netflix and YouTube. If correct, that would mean that Amazon has jumped ahead of Apple and Hulu to take the number three spot. Amazon likely only controls a small percent or so of the market even so, with Netflix retaining its position as one of the largest sources of internet traffic - not just video streams. With the launch of Fire TV last week, Amazon is certainly hoping that figure will continue to rise now that even more people will have a simple way to browse, rent, and buy movies and TV shows on Amazon.

Read the full story at The Verge.

Report: Apple’s TV Service Would Let You Skip Ads and Still Pay Media Companies

Apple has a new trick up its sleeve as it tries to launch a long-awaited television service: technology that allows viewers to skip commercials and that pays media companies for the skipped views. For more than a year, Apple has been seeking rights from cable companies and television networks for a service that would allow users to watch live and on-demand television over an Apple set-top box or TV. Talks have been slow and proceeding in fits and starts, but things seem to be heating up. In recent discussions, Apple told media executives it wants to offer a "premium" version of the service that would allow users to skip ads and would compensate television networks for the lost revenue, according to people briefed on the conversations. Consumers, of course, are already accustomed to fast-forwarding through commercials on their DVRs, and how Apple's technology differs is unclear.

Read the full story at JessicaLessin.com.

Full Steam Ahead: Court Refuses to Rehear Case Against Aereo

In another victory for Aereo, the controversial TV-over-the-Web startup, a federal appeals court on Tuesday refused to rehear an earlier decision allowing the service to continue in the New York City area. Aereo, which is backed by IAC Chairman Barry Diller, uses antenna/DVR technology to let consumers watch live, local over-the-air television broadcasts on some Internet-connected devices, including the iPad and iPhone. That capability provoked a lawsuit from TV broadcast giants including NBC, ABC, and CBS (the parent of CNET), which allege that the service violates their copyrights and that Aereo must pay them retransmission fees. Today's decision lets stand a ruling in April in which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denied a preliminary injunction (PDF) from the TV networks preventing Aereo from transmitting recorded broadcast television programs to subscribers.

Read the full story at CNET.

Report: Google is Working on a Streaming TV Service

Google has approached media companies about licensing their content for an Internet TV service that would stream traditional TV programming, people familiar with the matter say. If the Web giant goes ahead with the idea, it would join several other companies planning to offer such "over-the-top" services, delivering cable TV-style packages of channels over broadband connections. Chip company Intel and Sony are both working on similar offerings, while Apple has pitched various TV licensing ideas to media companies in the past couple of years. If launched, the Internet TV services could have major implications for the traditional TV ecosystem, creating new competition for pay TV operators that are already struggling to retain video subscribers. Existing online video players like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon offer on-demand TV, but the latest efforts are aimed at offering conventional channels, allowing consumers to flip through channels just as they would on cable.

Read the full story at the Wall Street Journal.

Reports: Apple Close to Adding Live Time Warner Cable Service to Apple TV

As we've heard for the past month, Apple and Time Warner Cable are close to inking a deal that would bring a TWC app to the Apple TV's homescreen - for the first time bringing live TV broadcasts to the device. But some recent reports are bringing things into sharper focus, giving us some more insight into what the future of Apple's service is going to look like. Earlier this week, the New York Times wrote that the app would allow "some of the company's 12 million subscribers to watch live and on-demand shows without a separate set-top box." Friday, Bloomberg adds that "while the deal would add a Time Warner app, that just means viewers won't have to switch from Apple TV back to their cable box: They'd still need to subscribe to Time Warner Cable and wait around for a technician to install it." The TWC app would likely be based on its existing iPhone and iPad software.

Read the full story at The Verge.

Netflix Launches the ‘Flixies’, Award Results Coming March 11

Just two days after the 84th Academy Awards came to its conclusion in Los Angeles, Netflix has announced a brand new awards initiative of its own - the Flixies. As you'd expect, the Flixies will honour all the top movies and TV shows on the streaming service, with both Netflix members and non-members able to cast their votes. Voting is open now, and will run all the way through to Sunday March 10 (5pm PST), with categories including Best Tantrum Tamer (aimed at parents of troublesome young 'uns), Best Hangover Cure, Best Bromance and Best Marathon TV Show. So yeah, not your typical entertainment categories you'll no doubt agree. Netflix says that the awards are designed to celebrate "the new viewing habits of today's entertainment watchers," in other words those who like to sit at home and stream hours of TV shows and movies.

Read the full story at The Next Web.