I’ve been using the Joost beta since about mid-April, and I really like where it’s going. It’s not perfect, as there are still a few kinks to work out, but what’s beta software without a few bugs? (Answer: it’s “official release,” although this doesn’t preclude it from having a lot of bugs. Just use any version of Microsoft Windows for proof of this statement.)

What is Joost?

Joost is a program that allows you to watch TV programs, in an on-demand fashion, on your computer. The folks at Joost are adding new channels often (they currently have around 200), with current channels including the likes of Comedy Central, MTV, VH-1, CNN, and National Geographic. There are quite a number of dedicated music channels that include some of the major record labels, on down to some of the smaller indie labels. They have numerous movie channels, that include one by Paramount Pictures, where you can watch some of the older, full-length movies from their collection. They also have some pretty good cartoons channels. There are dedicated Transformers, G.I. Joe, Adult Swim, and Ren and Stimpy channels.

How does it work?

I’m so glad I you asked that! Here’s the gist of it. You start the program, you pick a channel, you then pick something to watch from that channel, you sit back, relax, and watch the TV, the Internet, the computer screen. More specifically, Joost uses the a distribution capabilities of p2p to make the downloading of shows quicker, and more dependable. It also has the added benefit of keeping the load on their servers from being so high, allowing them to serve more people. Joost uses a secure platform (fancy name for DRM) to keep things attractive for the content owners. It’s not obtrusive though, so it’s not really a big deal.

The only major beef/worry I have with Joost is the advertising. I will say this in their defense. It’s probably some of the most unobtrusive advertising that I’ve experienced. Depending on the length of the show I’m watching, I normally only see one ad, and it’s normally pretty short. I don’t really fault them for the ads, because they’ve got to make money somehow. In that context, my beef, isn’t so major. My worry, on the other hand is. I’m willing to watch one or two ads of 30-seconds or less in return for being able to watch something when I want, and as often as I want. That seems like a win-win to me. My fear though, is that it could turn into regular TV, where a “half-hour” comedy actually only consists of about 9 minutes if ads versus 21 minutes of comedy, and a “hour-long” drama is roughly 18 minutes of ads versus 42 minutes of drama. If you do the math, ads take up about 30% of a TV show’s time slot.

The picture quality is still a little on the low-side, but I’ve definitely seen it improve since I first began using it. It all comes down to how much you pay though. If going out to by a DVD, they better have done a really good film transfer, otherwise I’m not going to be real happy. Since Joost is free, I’m willing to sacrifice a little quality. It’s an acceptable trade-off, but it’s also a compromise I don’t expect to be long-term.

How can I join in on the fun?

If you aren’t already experiencing Joost, then shame on you. I kid, I kid! But seriously, that’s sad. If you want to try out Joost, and you have a fairly new PC or and Intel-based Mac, then leave a comment below. I’ll be happy to send you an invite. Make sure you use a valid email address in the comment form, as that’s the email I’ll send the invite to. DO NOT post your email address in the body of the comment, unless you want the wrath of spambots on you. If that’s the case, by all means… go for it. Otherwise, things like, “hey, your super duper,” and “you’re the best” look really nice as comments.

Tags: Cartoons, Internet TV, IPTV, Joost, Movies, Music, TV