Blinkx's BBTV player moves to the browser
Date : 2008 09 18 Category : Web Webware.com
Blinkx's BBTV product has been given a Web overhaul as of today. Gone is the need to download a special application and instead BBTV-indexed clips will show up in normal Blinkx search results. The company is also maintaining a directory of each content provider and their various shows so you can scan BBTV-indexed shows in one central location.
The real draw of BBTV over traditional video indexing is that Blinkx has gone over each video and pulled out text transcripts so users can jump to specific parts of the video based on what's being said. Compared to newcomer VideoSurf, which was previewed at last week's TechCrunch50 conference, this promises to bring a little more utility to things like news reports as opposed to professionally produced content.
The updated BBTV experience follows suit with other "lean back" video products with shows taking up the entirety of your browser real estate. There's no "full screen" option unless your browser has such an option (like Firefox or Internet Explorer), however this ensures user interface is readily available, including a special Blinkx search bar that lets you do a quick search no matter what you're watching.
Blinkx is still making the software version of BBTV available for those who want to download it. The company has made no mention of whether this will be discontinued in favor of the Web version. In either case, both products are still advertisement free, although it's sure to be an eventual part of the equation considering BBTV-scanned shows can be plugged into Blinkx's contextual ad platform AdHoc.
Blinkx's BBTV technology scans over videos and pulls out the text transcript. To jump to that part of the video you can simply click on the scene or word you want. This technology formerly required a software download, but as of today you can check it out on the Web.
(Credit: CNET Networks)