streaming

How YouTube could ignite streaming music: Go mobile, go free

Google's YouTube, the entertainment industry's longtime "frenemy," is emerging as an important component of record label plans to adapt to consumers who are taking their music mobile.

A part of the streaming-music service that Google is aiming to launch this summer is a new YouTube product that would be designed for the desktop and mobile devices, according to a person familiar with the negotiations between Google and the major labels. Such a mobile offering, coupled with the powerful YouTube brand, could ignite the nascent streaming-music business, now led by Spotify for on-demand music and Pandora for … Read more

Stream media from your Galaxy S3 to a Samsung Smart TV

Maybe it's not as streamlined as Apple's AirPlay, but Samsung's AllShare system is an often-overlooked feature that lets you wirelessly beam content like music, videos, and photos among your devices at a moment's notice.

So, you find a video you shot on your phone, tap a few buttons, and voila -- there it is on your TV screen.

Though AllShare lets you share media among your phone, TV, computer, and tablet, its most practical use can be harnessed by those who own both a Galaxy smartphone (like an S2 or S3), and a Samsung Smart TV. … Read more

Beats raises $60M to spin off music streaming service

Beats Electronics, the company founded by hip-hop producer Dr Dre and music mogul Jimmy Iovine, confirmed this evening it had raised $60 million in funding to spin off its forthcoming streaming music service into a separate entity later this year.

Codenamed "Daisy," the service was revealed in January by Iovine at the AllThingsD Dive Into Media conference. Iovine said he had 100 people working on a "curated" music subscription service he expected to launch this summer.

The funding round was led by Access Industries, an investment group founded by billionaire Len Blavatnik), Marc Rowan, James Packer … Read more

TWC TV app turns Roku into a cable box for Time Warner customers (hands-on)

Roku streaming boxes can now be used as cable boxes for Time Warner Cable subscribers.

The feature upgrade comes courtesy of the free TWC TV app, which went live in the Roku Channel Store earlier today. The app was first announced at CES in January.

Once installed, the app provides access to hundreds of live channels, including most major broadcast and cable networks. The only requirement is a valid Time Warner Cable username and password; that security feature verifies that you're a current paying customer, and that you're accessing the stream from within your own home via your … Read more

YouTube to launch its own music streaming service, says report

YouTube may tune in to the online music world this year with its own streaming service.

The service would likely offer free music streaming paid for by ads as well as an ad-free subscription option, according to Fortune, which says it was briefed by sources in the record industry and by an unnamed person at Google.

A YouTube representative told CNET that "while we don't comment on rumor or speculation, there are some content creators that think they would benefit from a subscription revenue stream in addition to ads, so we're looking at that."

YouTube's … Read more

Sorry, BlackBerry 10. No Netflix app for you

Netflix's video-streaming application is available on a slew of devices and operating systems. But don't expect it on BlackBerry 10.

All Things Digital reported yesterday, citing people who claim to have knowledge of Netflix's plans, that the company will not be developing a native or ported streaming application for BlackBerry 10 users. All Things Digital's source said that the vast majority of Netflix's subscribers already have subscribed to its service from a mobile device, making the additional work to support BlackBerry 10 unnecessary.

In a follow-up statement to All Things Digital, a Netflix spokesperson confirmed … Read more

Get a Roku 2 XS for $64.99 shipped

There are two kinds of TVs in the world: smart and dumb. The smart ones have Netflix, Hulu, and other streaming-service apps built right in. The dumb ones, well, they need a little help.

Arguably the best help you can get comes in the form of a Roku box, which brings pretty much every streaming service known to man (except, annoyingly, YouTube) to your TV.

Today only, and while supplies last, 1SaleADay has the refurbished Roku 2 XS for $64.99 shipped. The same model sells new for $99.99.

This is the premium Roku model, the one with every … Read more

Best music and audio apps for iOS

Slacker Radio (free) This is a great option for listening to streaming radio, with an intuitive interface that makes it easy to find what you want quickly. To use Slacker you must sign up for an account or log in with your Facebook credentials.

You can search for artists using a field at the top; check out the Music Guide curated by Slacker; or search by genres, stations you've previously listened to, specialty stations, or news, talk, and sports stations. Each selection on the first screen leads to another list where you can swipe to browse selections to find … Read more

Hype Machine Time Machine shares most popular tracks since 2007

Music-streaming services can help you find new artists after giving them suggestions on bands and artists you already like. However, if you want to skip listening until something new plays for you to favorite and look up, try Time Machine on the Hype Machine Web site. The Time Machine feature shows you what was popular over the last five or more years.

Start your music journey by heading to the Time Machine landing page.

Here, you'll find the most popular tracks from last week. But don't stop there; two simple clicks on the year and month that interest … Read more

Pair your YouTube app with an Xbox 360

Want to toss YouTube videos from your phone to your TV? You got it. It's called "Send to TV," and it's a feature of Google's YouTube app that Android users have had for some time.

But now that Google has rolled the feature out to Apple's iOS devotees, and expanded support for more streaming devices, the feature is seeing a second wind.

But how do you do make it all work? Well, I gave it a shot with an iPhone 5 and the YouTube App for Xbox, but it could just as well have … Read more