Can I get it on my iPhone?..the wonderful world of fragmented media

As more traditional media programming becomes available online and mobile media devices, applications and services proliferate, there continues to be much confusion over what content is available when and where. By way of example, this past Sunday I was at my daughter’s soccer practice when it occurred to me that I could probably be listening to the Redskins game or, better yet, the Giant game via streaming audio on my iPhone. Having just listened to the first half on ESPN980 AM in the car on the way over, I decided to launch the ESPN Radio app on my iPhone (I did this not only because the UI would be better that going to espnradio.com in the iPhone Web browser but because I thought there was a good chance the streaming audio would be in Flash, which isn’t supported on the iPhone. I was chagrined to find out that ESPN980’s webcast did not include the game, however, which I erroneously attributed to ESPN not wanting to cannibalize its radio broadcast with streaming audio where they don’t make as much advertising revenue. Although that was a plausible explanation, I’ve since realized that the NFL must have held back the streaming audio rights for its own, $39.99/yr. subscription online NFL Field Pass service.

As I continued to toil away at trying to find the Redskins audiocast, I noticed one of the other parents (a Mom, no less), watching something on her iPhone. I was further surprised to see that it was a football game. Thinking it was the Redskins game, I inquired whether she might be watching Qualcomm’s FloTV mobile broadcast service through AT&T or Verizon (I know those services have some Broadcast Network programming but I doubted they’d be airing the games). However, it turned out that, as a subscriber to DirecTV’s $300 NFL Sunday Ticket service (which broadcasts every NFL game) and the $100 NFL SuperFan upgrade, which offers those games in HD plus some other perks, she could stream any/all NFL games live through DirecTV’s NFL SuperFan app on her iPhone (also available on Windows Mobile, Palm Pre and certain Blackberry smartphones) – and the picture quality was reasonably good. AND she was watching the Giants game, which was the game I really wanted to watch, anyway!

This experience, combined with my prior day’s experience of frantically searching for on-demand access to some missing episodes of the great AMC series Breaking Bad, which I had stored up on my old Tivo box (it turned there were two options – to download the episode on iTunes for $2.99 and watch on our PC-connected TV or download it directly to our Tivo box using Amazon Unbox for $1.99), reinforced my opinion that, despite making great strides toward on-demand media anywhere, there is going to be a lot of confusion for some time to come about what media is available when and where.

Now, just don’t get me started on the 24-hour time limit that Hollywood Studios impose on on-demand new release film rentals once you begin watching them on iTunes, Amazon Unbox, Cable VOD or other on-demand services – has there ever been a worse customer experience than starting a movie on your iPhone/iPod and then losing access to the ending because you didn’t have time to finish it within the 24 hour window?!..after all, haven’t the Studios leaned anything from the failed subscription music services in which the licenses to all of your music would always seem to expire at the most inopportune moments (like the minute you leave for vacation).

I am sure this discussion will be continued…and continued…and continued…