Today the shared owners of Star Trek are making moves in the digital world. First up is CBS who announced they are offering ‘classics’ from their television library to a new “CBS Audience Network” of sites. The initial programming consists of The Twilight Zone, Hawaii Five-O, MacGyver, Melrose Place and (most importantly) Star Trek (TOS). Shows are streamed in their entirety for free, with advertising.
All three seasons of Star Trek The Original Series (non- remastered) is being made available to the Network. Star Trek is the only one of the five initial shows to get the entire series made available, with the rest only offering one or two seasons. The ‘CBS Audience Network’ consist of over 300 websites and social networks, such as AOL, CNET, Microsoft, and Ning. However not all members will carry all shows. So far the following sites already have the entire TOS series available:
CBS.com, AOL, Joost, Fancast
It appears that this is currently limited to the USA only. TrekMovie.com will update this list as more sites are identified. We are also looking into the digital future for other Trek series, paid downloads (iTunes, unBox, etc) and international distribution. So stay tuned for a follow up article, hopefully in the near future.
Star Trek and CBS Classics go online
Paramount makes it official – they are Blu
Two days ago Toshiba threw in the towel and announced it had ended production on HD DVD products, ending the HD format war. At the time the only two studios left in the HD DVD exclusive camp were Universal and Paramount (who distribute Star Trek films and TV series). As of now both have announced their adoption of Blu Ray. However, unlike Univeral’s, Paramount’s announcement was limited to a simple statement with no details on timing or titles. Here is the statement given only oo The Hollywood Reporter:
We are pleased that the industry is moving to a single high-definition format, as we believe it is in the best interest of the consumer. As we look to (begin) releasing our titles on Blu-ray, we will monitor consumer adoption and determine our release plans accordingly
Although Paramount are now Blu, they still have a number of HD DVD titles (but not Trek) in their line-up for the next three months. In fact they announced two new HD DVD titles yesterday (Sweeney Todd and There Will Be Blood). The future of Star Trek on HD DVD and Blu-ray is still unknown. TrekMovie.com will continue to monitor the story and provide any updates.
Wow. Don’t think I’ve ever managed to be first before. Assuming some enterprising person doesn’t beat me to it…
As for the HD/Blu Ray thing, I was just sosrt of sitting back and letting the two combatants fight it out, and see which one lost before I decided which format to throw my money at. Looks like I’ll just HAVE to go get that PS3 now, won’t I, for a certain movie that’s sure to hit BR-DVD sometime next fall….
Meaning, Fall ’09, of course.
It doesn´t work
technology is a wonderful thing. The more there is of it, the less I have. :(
Wow, it’s been a long road getting from there to here
In their entirety for free!!!! FINALLY!!!!
I don’t care how many ads they put in, as long as they’re in the right places and don’t chop into the story.
Now THIS is smart. Finally.
I still think the old early 1980’s RCA video record was the best format to watch movies. It used an old fashioned needle & the fun was even more enchanced by flipping the LP after an hour!
TO CBS, Paramount:
Bring Star Trek The Original Series Remastered to BLU-RAY by the end of 2008! PLEASE. I will be in line to purchase as I’m sure will many, many others.
Just watched part of “Arena”.
I LOVE YOU, CBS! Uncut original Trek. I’m in heaven. I’m going to lose my job watching this!
Well, I went HD-DVD early specifically because of Trek. Paramount said the 10 movies as well as TOS-R would be released on the format. Now it’ll make a nice cd player in the bedroom!
We should start a pool to figure out how long it’s gonna take Paramount to get TOS out on Blu. I’m thinking September/October.
I also hope they reauthor the whole thing to take advantage of 50GB discs.
I think if you live outside of the USA, you won’t get the videos. I just tried from Stockholm, and got “This content is currently unavailable.”
Bring out TOS-R on Blu-Ray!
CBS and TOS rock!
NICE!
I’m watching “A Piece of the Action” right now!
I’ve also found that ‘Fancast.’com has been offering TOS free (with advertising) for a little while now. I originally found it as a link from the ‘Comcast.net’ hompage, but you can go there directly, also.
However, they have some bugs to work out…the name of the episode is listed next to a picture from an episode — but the Ep name and pic don’t match. When you click the episode name, you get the one that is pictured. Luckily most of us fans can tell the episode from the picture (and that’s pathetic, in a way)
TOS has been on Joost for a couple of weeks now, I was dissapointed it wasn’t the remastered version. Maybe I should have tipped off TrekMovie to that when I first saw it =/
I do not appear to be receiving the footage. “The content is unavailable” according to the site.
Is anyone else having this problem?
I see the CBS Star Trek page has a series of links, one to Trektoday. But none to here, Trekmovie. How dare they!!
This is great and yes it will be hard to get anything done at work now…thanks to the minds behind this!
#12
I am also having problems trying to watch from scotland.
That Enterprise sihlouette is the movie era version, not the tv version! Are they out of their Vulcan minds??
11.
I would think it would come out this year, around the holidays, november perhaps….
unless they hold off to release it with the new film, which would be lame, but not suprising.
I don’t have HD yet, and got the season 1 set for the standard side only. I hope a standard def version is availible. as a poor college student, there’s no way I can afford an HDTV and player, lol
It’s not working for me. I get the episode title, with “click to play”, but nothing happens when I click. The Flash control goes black and stays block. Given I’m in Canada, I wonder if this is a US-only thing?
Again, guess I’m going to have to buy a new player. It seems inevitable.
it doesn’t work anymore …
# 22: “That Enterprise sihlouette is the movie era version, not the tv version! Are they out of their Vulcan minds??”
This is why we need strict canon on all things Trek!
#22 That is the first thing I noticed too. I bet the meeting went a little something like this…. “Hey bill, can you make me a banner for the new start tr”A”k thing we’re doing?” Bill…. “I love star tr”A”k. I’ll put it together right now!
I’m really enjoying Fancast!
I’ve been watching it for a few weeks now, watching classics shows like Hawaii 5-0, Twilight Zone, Lou Grant, Bob Newhart. I found some of the shows can be watched full screen and commercial free (like Hawaii 5-0), and others aren’t (like Bob Newhart). I wonder why the difference.
In any case, I’m hoping this is only the beginning. I would love for all shows to be available in this manner. It really is convenient and enjoyable (especially with the shoes being uncut and limited commercials!)
That would be shows….not shoes
Officially. Cool. News.
News Flash:
The Internet has been temporarily shut down from being overloaded by all the Trekkies simultaneously streaming free episodes of Star Trek.
Bandwidth consumption, almost like Napalm in the morning.
Smells like…………..victory!
Online presentation is the way to go.
I’m surprised CBS online hasn’t contacted James Cawley about going “formal” with NV and PII.
Can we get TOS remastered on regular ole friggin DVD please? Sheesh!
I’m still not paying any $125 per remastered season, no matter what the format. The same ol’ standard dvds and effects will do me just fine until paramount’s prices become reasonable.
Also in scotland having trouble viewing trek… Got sooooo excited there for a minute! DARN IT!
It amazes me how the crew behind the remastered original Star Trek series have stated again and again that they weren’t doing this to replace the effects like Lucas does on Star Wars, but good gosh. Where are the re-mastered episodes without the effects changes?
#37…
They didn’t remaster any episodes “without the effects changes.” This doesn’t mean the original versions shows have been “replaced.” It just means that they haven’t been remastered in high-def. (You wouldn’t want a high-def version of the original effects anyway… trust me. They’d look terrible.)
Clearly the original versions are still readily available, on DVD, on iTunes, and now on websites like CBS.com. So how does this mean they’ve been “replaced,” again? I kind of missed the logic you were using…
Star Trek and Twilight Zone, free, online….. two of the best Sci-Fi series of all time for free, online. This is a historic day.
Although it is sad that they only have the first two seasons of Twilight Zone….
This could be really great news if the material was also available in other parts of Earth. What upsets me most is that there is no notice it is only available to the US — for the rest of us it will just not play.
so..maybe i don’t really understand… since they’re not releasing anymore right now on HD-DVD, what’s my next step, buy a blue ray? will it play the HD season 1 that I have now?
I hope when TOS R is out on Blu Ray it’ll be the combo with standard dvd like the HD DVD of season 1…
I’m in Europe and I can’t watch it! CBS you suck!
Paramount had better offer a trade in program for the TOS-R on HD DVD to Blu Ray. $200 for season one was a lot of clams. I think, an even season one for a season one on Blu Ray sounds fair. Otherwise, Paramount executives might find themselves or their families in peril. One doesn’t know just how many crack pots are out their, willing to kill.
#38.
It’s not so much that they’re being replaced. I personally don’t care if the effects look terrible in High Definition. At least most of them would look 10x better than what we actually have in the remastered episodes. If Paramount is not replacing the episodes, than why not give them the same amount of re-mastering attention?
I live in the UK, so im pretty Donald Ducked arn’t I???
:(
Oh c’mon. LOL!!!
Well, I said here at the time that those paying $200 a pop for those sets would regret it…and paying that for an unproven format at that!
To me, that’s just nuts.
But…the chickens are coming home to roost now, eh?
LOL!!!! I hate to say “I told you so…but…I TOLD you so!”
CBS and Paramount totally SUCK for stopping the production of Trek HD-season two.
But bringing Twilight Zone to me via the information highway is a darn good step towards getting back into my good graces again!
Now more than ever it’s easy to fall in love with what started it all! This is great…