Seesaw will cease to exist

So is TVoIP still the future? Maybe in another 20 years, but I think it still have a long way to go.

Pity - but also they were annoying in that they didn't support Linux, whereas the Beeb and Channel 4 do...

Gutted. Good service and far higher picture quality than 4oD.

Yeah- they did.

Here's hoping that something will rise from the ashes at some point in the future...

I reckon the old Kangaroo service would have been good... shame to see this happen..

it is a shame for SeeSaw, I liked this service when it launched but lost interest as time went on, because they weren't developing any kind of capabilities which would allow it to work on a TV (personally I don't want to watch television programmes on my laptop all the time)

I've not got a PS3 so can't tell if it worked over their browser, but I'd tried to get it to run on the Wii and it wouldn't work with their very limited browser, and the iPhone/iPad apps were effectively declared no-goes on the SeeSaw forums, so was pretty much stuck to either spending 3hrs in front of a computer watching the old Dr Who shows, or don't bother and SeeSaw loses another potential customer of their limited service

it's a shame because they got onto Boxee which is "cool" but I'd say too niche for what they could have had, if at the very least they'd got some kind of deal with Virgin Media to host their stuff on VM as another front end into their system, but it's going now.... ah well, a great concept/idea suffers because of poor takeup of market technologies

I'm more intrested on the technology behind it but imo its not any different from other content aggreators like msn Video Player etc

i was not that impressed with Seesaw anyway to be honest, never got it working on the PS3 for some reason.

Not going to be missed

I find it quite interesting that all of today's VOD systems seem to be focused and optimised for PCs (yes that's a VERY large market share) but why don't these organisations look at what people WANT to watch TV on - the TV.....

I have an Xbox 360, a DVD player, a V+ HD and a Wii set up under my TV so why would I want to go and sit in front of a computer to watch a programme??? If BBC iPlayer can be configured to work on the Wii, why did no-one look at systems like the PS3 and the Wii and test it against those consoles, or mobile phone formats like the iPhone or Android handsets??

Well what about YouView


it all takes time and money - and then what is an affordable cost - bearing in mind the BBC has limited funds..
(And did not charge extra for Iplayer ..)
Traditional Linear broadcasting is simple - few platforms and very similar coder needs ..
But "new media" platforms are numerous , highly unique, proprietary and not totally controllable ..

The main reason for SeeSaw's failure is that Arqiva had banked on being able to license the underlying technology platform to other broadcasters and aggregators. As this was conceived at a time when the landscape looked very different, it was a higher-cost, less versatile platform than those which have since emerged. The consumer-facing SeeSaw site in the UK was only really a proof-of-concept.

Arqiva took its gamble and came to recognise two points: that nobody was interested in licensing the platform for the amount of money it wanted (presumably to get a decent ROI) and that the company's core competence is in managing transmission masts, not content aggregation.

Tesco was sniffing around for its own aggregation play and Blinbox's price was more attractive than Arqiva's.

Agree with earlier comment that SeeSaw's failure to extend its reach to connected TVs / consoles was a flaw but the numbers on these platforms and corresponding returns don't yet justify the investment (though will, in time).

Has it been saved?

Good question. Some talk of Criterion Partners expressing interest but not seen any reports since. SeeSaw's social media agency were still posting on Twitter as of earlier today though.

Yes and the site's still working.

Consortium of investors including former Channel 4 chief Michael Jackson take stake in firm - today's Guardian.

Seen something about it on think Broadband. Another TV internet type service that have almost failed.

so, has Seesaw been saved after all, or is it just taking a while to bring down to the site?? it's still working today and it's August, which makes me wonder what's happening to this "closing down in June" announcement

See my earlier post just two above yours for the answer.

Yeah it's been saved which is good. I just wish they's adapt it to suit other platforms such as PS3, Xbox, iOS

I'm tempted to buy a Boxee (not sure if it's a wise investment though...) and there's a Seesaw app on there, I wish they'd revamp the Seesaw site so it works on the Nintendo Wii's Opera browser, as I already have one of those connected to my TV so if I could get it to work on there, I'd be able to enjoy watching some Seesaw shows on a TV instead of being tied to a computer....

Depends what you'll use it for. If you want a well-engineered box with a reasonable user experience, but accept that it will likely remain confined to niche content providers (iPlayer aside) then go for it.

If you want to go for something mainstream with the greatest range of content, then you're pretty much stuck with the household brand gang.