TV on the Cheap (or for Free)

OK. So watching the ad-sponsored Mediacorp channels is relatively cheap. But what if you don't like waiting for the programmes' scheduled times? Or if it's just more convenient to watch movies or videos on your computer? Is there an alternative? Well the founders of Skype and Kazaa have the solution for you: Joost.

Joost is a couple of years old and downloads of the application that run it used to be by invitation only but it's been made freely available to the masses since October 2007. The user interface of the application is easy to navigate and user friendly. Users select a channel (just like TV) and then the programme they want to watch. The content is ad-supported so this keeps it free. I really like this because it's TV on demand. I don't have to worry about missing segments of a programme if I'm late and if I need to step away from my computer, the pause button is available.

Joost also has an excellent variety and number of channels available, the only problem being that many of these channels are only available to people living the USA. Check out OnTheToob for lists of channels, programmes and their availability. In a nutshell: great control over the programmes, excellent picture quality (sound is a bit dodgy), excellent mix of channels and programmes. All you need is a fast internet connection.

Another source of free movies I found is MovieFlix. They have a subscription based service as well and this opens up their entire library for USD9.99/mo. The problem with MovieFlix is that all of their movies are old. And by old, I mean before I was born kind of old. The ones that are available for free are the oldest ones, so we're talking black and white old. Picture quality is another issue. MovieFlix provides streams with 2 different bit-rates but even the higher-resolution stream isn't all that high. Other than that, MovieFlix is great in that users do not have to download any additional software to watch their movies (I'm assuming everyone has either RealPlayer or WMP) and they have movies available for free. In a nutshell: this is for the desperate and lovers of old black and white movies.

I'm still looking for more sources of free TV-on-demand where access isn't limited to specific geographic locations, but haven't had much success. For people in the UK, BBC has 4oD with free access to repeat programmes from channel 4 so you might want to check this out if you haven't yet.