Television networks are taking sharply different approaches to the iPad.
One network, ABC, has readied a fully functional app for the eagerly awaited Apple tablet. Another, NBC, has ditched its plans to stream full television episodes onto the device.
From MSNBC.com to People.com, buyers of the iPad will be able to watch plenty of ad-supported video despite Apple's decision to ban Flash, the dominant software for online video viewing, from the device.
Many Web sites have raced to convert their video files from Flash to HTML5, a different computing standard. And Netflix, the popular movies and TV subscription service, is expected to release a free streaming app for subscribers on Saturday, the day the device goes on sale, according to a person briefed on the plans.
But users shouldn't expect the iPad to simulate a laptop or desktop computer's full range of professional video options. The Web site for the CBS network, for instance, will stream only one TV show, “Survivor," on the iPad on Saturday, even though the site streams many other shows online in Flash form. CBS says other TV shows will be made available for iPad viewing later.
One network, ABC, has readied a fully functional app for the eagerly awaited Apple tablet. Another, NBC, has ditched its plans to stream full television episodes onto the device.
From MSNBC.com to People.com, buyers of the iPad will be able to watch plenty of ad-supported video despite Apple's decision to ban Flash, the dominant software for online video viewing, from the device.
Many Web sites have raced to convert their video files from Flash to HTML5, a different computing standard. And Netflix, the popular movies and TV subscription service, is expected to release a free streaming app for subscribers on Saturday, the day the device goes on sale, according to a person briefed on the plans.
But users shouldn't expect the iPad to simulate a laptop or desktop computer's full range of professional video options. The Web site for the CBS network, for instance, will stream only one TV show, “Survivor," on the iPad on Saturday, even though the site streams many other shows online in Flash form. CBS says other TV shows will be made available for iPad viewing later.
