Lightbox press event release

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#1112609 21-Aug-2014 09:04

reven:
syousif: is Lightbox at $15 worth it? would you still keep Netflix, Hulu or Amazon Instant/prime?

Personally I think its worth trying for that, only time will tell if the content is kept fresh and how delayed it is. If they do get new content, hopefully as it airs, or 1 day after the US. then absolutely.

also they need to support more devices for playback. I don't think I'll actually subscribe until I can watch without using a computer (and no I don't have any apple products so airplay is useless, chromecast would be a temporary solution, need to access easily via a remote).

and I'll keep netflix, havent used hulu in ages due to lack of content + ads.

I think it is a good start.
I will be keeping Netflix for the time being (main reason is that I bought a year of UnoTelly using the Geekzone discount code).
Once Lightbox gets SmartTV support, I will re-evaluate, and at the price, I'd probably sign up (even better if there is a Spark customer discount). Compared to Netflix (which we access from AppleTV) Airplay from the iPad is not Wife-Friendly enough, and there is no way we are watching TV on a laptop/PC or connecting either to the AV system.

Agree with reven on Hulu+, cancelled that subscription months ago for the same reasons.

dclegg

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#1112616 21-Aug-2014 09:16

trig42:
I think it is a good start.
I will be keeping Netflix for the time being (main reason is that I bought a year of UnoTelly using the Geekzone discount code).
Once Lightbox gets SmartTV support, I will re-evaluate, and at the price, I'd probably sign up (even better if there is a Spark customer discount). Compared to Netflix (which we access from AppleTV) Airplay from the iPad is not Wife-Friendly enough, and there is no way we are watching TV on a laptop/PC or connecting either to the AV system.

Agree with reven on Hulu+, cancelled that subscription months ago for the same reasons.

We'll still be sticking with NetFlix and Hulu + for a while yet. Apart from the obvious reasons of more content, there are a few rough edges that Lightbox needs to smooth out in order for it to gain SWMBO sign-off. Most importantly it needs to have the ability to resume partly watched shows.

And because using the iPad/AirPlay combination is the most feasible way for us to get it onto our TV, we'd need to see some improvements there too. In particular, streaming should not stop if the app is pushed to the background. And it also shouldn't stop if the iPad automatically goes to sleep.

But I'm very encouraged by what we've seen in the beta. There seems to be a reasonably decent amount of content, and the picture quality was the best I've experienced from a NZ based SVOD service. While we don't yet see it as a direct replacement for the services we currently parallel import, it makes me feel a lot more confident that we can ditch Sky. If we do this and access to our overseas providers is blocked, we can subscribe to Lightbox and still be ahead in terms of content compared to what we had with Sky. And at a fraction of the cost too.

PhantomNVD

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#1112627 21-Aug-2014 09:28

If we do this and access to our overseas providers is blocked, we can subscribe to Lightbox and still be ahead in terms of content compared to what we had with Sky. And at a fraction of the cost too.

Please DONT promote the idea that local companies should lobby to block parallel imports, if they make a product worth having, the parellel import is no longer required. 'blocking' parallel imports just allows another crippled service like Sky to continue gouging the local population without needing to up its game = bad for consumers!

trig42

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#1112632 21-Aug-2014 09:38

In my dream world, Lightbox is a great success, and Spark pump more money into it, meaning it can buy rights to stream some sports (like Rugby :/).
Or, Sky smell the roses, and make Rugby PPV and good value (and no, $19 to watch a game on Igloo is not good value, I'd happily pay $10 to stream it in HD though).

/dreaming.

dclegg

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#1112634 21-Aug-2014 09:43

PhantomNVD:
If we do this and access to our overseas providers is blocked, we can subscribe to Lightbox and still be ahead in terms of content compared to what we had with Sky. And at a fraction of the cost too.

Please DONT promote the idea that local companies should lobby to block parallel imports, if they make a product worth having, the parellel import is no longer required. 'blocking' parallel imports just allows another crippled service like Sky to continue gouging the local population without needing to up its game = bad for consumers!

After the whole Slingshot "Look at our Global Mode!" episode, I'm reasonably confident that I'm not putting any new ideas into TV network executives heads. The reality of the situation is that when we signed up to geo-blocked overseas SVOD providers, it was done so at the risk of access to these services one day being blocked.

Of course the right answer to this problem is for decent local services to become available here. And in that regard I see Lightbox as an excellent starting point.

NonprayingMantis

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#1112649 21-Aug-2014 09:45

I'll be keeping both Netflix and Lightbox, and finally ditching sky.

Netflix, (ironically) for me, just isn't wife friendly enough - she gets too confused by having to sometimes reset the IP address with unblock-us, search through mountains and mountains of terrible content to find what she likes, and she doesn't like using remote controls at all (even the apple tv remote)

She loves using the Lightbox ipad app to select the content, then a single button push to send it to airplay and she is done. For her, that is easier than using a native app (bizarre I know, but there you go). The content range on Lighbox also doesn't have thousands of hours of rubbish, whereas Netflix does.
It all seems good quality, so its actually a lot easier for her to find something she likes.

And there is also some content on Lightbox that Netflix doesn't have - Homeland, Vikings are two I have noticed.

dclegg

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#1112650 21-Aug-2014 09:45

trig42: In my dream world, Lightbox is a great success, and Spark pump more money into it, meaning it can buy rights to stream some sports (like Rugby :/).
Or, Sky smell the roses, and make Rugby PPV and good value (and no, $19 to watch a game on Igloo is not good value, I'd happily pay $10 to stream it in HD though).

/dreaming.

Oh, that would be awesome! I'd be prepared to pay as much as $10 to stream live All Blacks games (and lesser amounts for Super Rugby or ITM cup matches).

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tdgeek

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#1112669 21-Aug-2014 10:15

dclegg:
trig42: In my dream world, Lightbox is a great success, and Spark pump more money into it, meaning it can buy rights to stream some sports (like Rugby :/).
Or, Sky smell the roses, and make Rugby PPV and good value (and no, $19 to watch a game on Igloo is not good value, I'd happily pay $10 to stream it in HD though).

/dreaming.

Oh, that would be awesome! I'd be prepared to pay as much as $10 to stream live All Blacks games (and lesser amounts for Super Rugby or ITM cup matches).

Per game?

dclegg

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#1112686 21-Aug-2014 10:52

tdgeek:
dclegg:
trig42: In my dream world, Lightbox is a great success, and Spark pump more money into it, meaning it can buy rights to stream some sports (like Rugby :/).
Or, Sky smell the roses, and make Rugby PPV and good value (and no, $19 to watch a game on Igloo is not good value, I'd happily pay $10 to stream it in HD though).

/dreaming.

Oh, that would be awesome! I'd be prepared to pay as much as $10 to stream live All Blacks games (and lesser amounts for Super Rugby or ITM cup matches).

Per game?

Yes.

NZtimbo

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#1113161 21-Aug-2014 21:31

Hi All

Thank you Lightbox for giving me a trial...

Although I've not been able to spend too much time trying it out I do like the service and a number of the shows would mean I'd spend the $15 a month to consume them. The service is/was easy to use and all, picture quality was a bit poor here and there though.

However, due to our congested Chorus ADSL1 service we can only reliably watch during the day meaning when we want to watch, or actually should be watching, we get buffering and reduced picture quality so sorry can't justify the $15 a month at the moment.

The service is great, I already subscribe to Digitally Imported Music and Google All Play Music so this is a great fit but due to congested interwebs won't be subscribing anytime soon sorry.

Keep up the good work though.

Tim

old3eyes

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#1113276 22-Aug-2014 09:10

Yep thanx for the trial. Not signing up until you get an app for my Apple TV or Chromecast. Not going to watch on a PC..

Regards,

Old3eyes

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#1113308 22-Aug-2014 09:44

Yes, many thanks. Similarly, watching on the PC is a no go - so will wait for the Samsung Smart TV app.

Stu

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#1113321 22-Aug-2014 10:03

Thanks for including us in the beta testing. I can see our household signing on when you go live.

An app on the TV itself would be handy, although if you partner with Samsung as others seem to do and ignore other manufacturers I'll be rather peeved.

People often mistake me for an adult because of my age.

Keep calm, and carry on posting.

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#1113384 22-Aug-2014 11:16

Lightbox:
PhantomNVD:
Does this mean Friday will be the last day it works, or the first day it WON'T work? Just checking 'cos Friday is our kids "movie night" and I'll need to download something from iTunes if L/box dies that night :)

We'll most likely take it down Friday afternoon, so you may have to look at other options this Friday. But next Friday, we'll have you sorted again.

A little update on this - we've now scheduled the take down for 11 PM tonight, so your kids can watch stuff tonight.

Lightbox - we are online TV.

reven

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#1113386 22-Aug-2014 11:20

Lightbox:
Lightbox:
PhantomNVD:
Does this mean Friday will be the last day it works, or the first day it WON'T work? Just checking 'cos Friday is our kids "movie night" and I'll need to download something from iTunes if L/box dies that night :)

We'll most likely take it down Friday afternoon, so you may have to look at other options this Friday. But next Friday, we'll have you sorted again.

A little update on this - we've now scheduled the take down for 11 PM tonight, so your kids can watch stuff tonight.

cool, now I have to binge watch the last 9 episodes of Boston Legal :P

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