Officials from Joost wouldn’t state one way or the other to XBIZ on Tuesday, but Hollywood insiders say that once the new Internet-TV platform is established it won’t take long before it streams porn, whether soft, hard or in-between.
“At launch time, we’re not offering any ‘late-night’ content,” Brian Baumley told XBIZ. “But we’re constantly looking at opportunities.”
Joost operates by distributing streaming video over the Internet. It is seen as one of the many candidates to become a primary distributor of video to the Internet, competing against YouTube and BitTorrent, among others.
The service isn't quite open to everyone, however. Current beta testers can now invite as many people as they wish to join the service, but those without connections will have to wait a few days.
Consumers choose a channel through a software interface on their desktop that resembles a remote control.
Joost’s delivery system is being developed by Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom, the entrepreneurs who launched the Kazaa file-sharing service and then developed Skype, the Internet telephone system that was bought by eBay Inc. for $2.6 billion in 2005.
Friis and Zennstrom hope to capitalize on an audience that heavily uses the Internet. Like regular TV, it is free for viewers and eventually will be ad-supported, but with less advertising than on regular TV.
Tuesday’s launch coincided with new content deals with Turner Broadcasting System and Sony Pictures Television.
The company already has signed up Sports Illustrated for video shorts and interviews from this year's SI Swimsuit photo shoots.
In addition, the National Hockey League will begin broadcasting a selection of vintage games from their archives.