Direct TV will officially launch their "on-demand" service in the second quarter, so it should be out by the end of this month. How will the product compare with the true video-on-demand (VOD) products provided by cable TV companies like Comcast?
A window to look through is the beta testing that has been going on with Direct TV "On-Demand." Ongoing testing by users has been happening since August 2007, and reviews have been split fairly even on the service. Some customer's have found the video-on-demand service to be a great enhancement, while others have disappointed in the service so far.
The original on-demand service that is available from cable operators like Comcast and Time Warner offer the customer the flexibility to pick their remote control and watch shows at their convenience. In some ways on-demand is like a TiVo or a digital video recorder, the end user has control on when they want to view the program.
The difference with on-demand however, is that the cable company holds the programming for you rather than the customer recording it on their own device. A centralized group of BV cables Suppliers servers holds the programming Communication Cables Manufacturers for cable customers to access via a programming menu. Cable companies have thus made the claim that they have more high-definition programming.
That claim is debatable, as they are measuring their HD by the number of programs available, not the number of channels. For example, Comcast's Project Infinity HD rollout promises 1000 HD choices by the end of 2008. Cable companies have thus promoted this instead of the actual number of HD channels they have. While Direct TV currently has the lead with 95 national HD channels, cable companies have between 20-60 channels depending on the company and region.