Despite all the post-CES hoopla surrounding the prospect of broadband video stores and search services, no one is sure what consumers will respond to or how soon. Web evangelists have been parading
around promises of "anywhere, anytime" entertainment since well before the dotcom bust, and though the technology may be ready, broadband providers don't appear to be, which means consumers probably
won't be either. Currently, there's not much to the video databases provided by Google, Yahoo!, et al, and the business strategies sound a bit cumbersome--especially if users have to sift among five
different sets of subscription fees and user names and passwords. However, there will be big competition from the majors this year to shore up this video market; expect large ad campaigns that try to
explain the benefits of anytime, anywhere entertainment to consumers.
Read the whole story at San Jose Mercury News »
