Showing posts with label service. Show all posts
Showing posts with label service. Show all posts

Netflix streaming service hit by partial outage

Message many Netflix customers are seeing Tuesday night. Screenshot by Steven Musil/CNET

Netflix's streaming service is experiencing a partial outage this Tuesday evening, preventing customers from watching some movies and TV programs.

The company said in a tweet that customers in all areas with the exception of Europe were experiencing streaming issues and it was looking into the matter.

We're aware of the streaming issues on all devices in all regions except Europe. We're investigating the issue. Thank you for your patience!

-- Netflix CS (

YouTube's rumored music service reportedly gets a name

YouTube

It's been a long time coming for YouTube's rumored subscription music service, but word has it that the final details are being hammered out, according to Android Police.

This new on-demand streaming music service will reportedly be called YouTube Music Key. It's said to have ad-free music with audio-only and offline playback, according to Android Police. The service will reportedly cost $9.99 per month and users will be able to test it out with a free 30-day trail.

Related stories YouTube's subscription music service said to launch this year YouTube set for 'Music Pass' subscription, app code reveals YouTube's music service said to be delayed until next year YouTube music chief leaving for undisclosed startup Google buys Songza, a Pandora-like player where context is king

It was revealed last summer that Google was planning to launch a subscription music service for YouTube. The service is said to work like Spotify but also come with videos. It's supposedly taken Google awhile to get the service off the ground because the company had to make deals with music labels for the rights to play their songs.

YouTube, which has more than 1 billion unique monthly users, is already the largest music service in existence, and for now it only makes money via ads. Throw in a subscription offering and it could be a game changer for music streaming.

While YouTube Music Key is said to be on the horizon, Google is also reportedly rebranding Google Play Music All Access as Google Play Music Key. The $9.99 per month price for YouTube Music Key is said to include Google Play Music Key.

CNET contacted YouTube for comment. We'll update the story when we have more information.

Tags: Internet Tech Industry Mobile Google YouTube About the author

EA Access subscription service hits Xbox One

Electronic Arts

EA Access is now available to all. Gaming company Electronic Arts announced Monday that its new subscription service is out of beta and ready for all Xbox One owners.

EA, the publisher and developer behind game franchises like Madden and FIFA, announced EA Access last month as an exclusive service for Microsoft's Xbox One console. The idea is that for a monthly fee of $4.99, or $29.99 per year, Xbox One owners get unlimited access to EA's growing library of recently released titles.

The gaming company calls its library "The Vault," which will initially launch with four games: FIFA 14, Madden NFL 25, Battlefield 4, and Peggle 2. Down the line, EA expects to add more titles to the list.

Related stories EA to bring gaming subscription service to Xbox One EA vows not to nix games from EA Access subscription service Play Battlefield 4 (Win) free for a week With EA Access, Microsoft brings Xbox One vision back from the dead Madden 15 only available prerelease on EA Access

"The Vault will evolve with games joining the collection over time so you'll always have something fun to play," EA wrote in a blog post Monday.

The subscription is an initiative aimed at bridging the gap between expensive full-price video games and services used for television and music. EA Access is not full-blown streaming -- like Netflix or Spotify -- since users must still download games to their Xbox One hard drive. Rather, the service is more in line with programs pushed by both Sony and Microsoft that turn monthly subscription dollars into access to titles that have started to lose their shelf life.

Other perks to EA Access include 10 percent off digital downloads, add-ons to EA titles through Microsoft's Xbox store, and access to new games up to five days prior to release. Membership is available through Xbox Live, in-store at GameStop, and online at Amazon.

Tags: Gaming Consoles Tech Culture Digital Media Electronic Arts Xbox About the author

EA vows not to nix games from EA Access subscription service

Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts' new subscription service, EA Access, is not intended to pull a fast one on gamers, a top company exec says.

Once a title is available inside what EA calls the Vault -- its list of available games for download -- players will always have access to it once they sign up.

"I think one of the key things is that once a game goes into the Vault it stays there, it's not going to be taken out, that's a commitment we've made," Chief Operating Officer Peter Moore told CVG, a gaming-focused publication, in an article published Thursday.

EA, the publisher and developer behind game franchises like Madden and FIFA, last month announced EA Access as an exclusive service for Microsoft's Xbox One console to a mix of trepidation and curiosity in the gaming community. On the one hand, it removes an ownership element for a form of media still subsisting on discs, which can be sold back to retailers like GameStop for cash. On the other, the service lets customers pay $29.99 per year or $4.99 per month to access full games like FIFA 14 and Battlefield 4, which still carry high price tags to the tune of $45 as standalone used games.

Related stories With EA Access, Microsoft brings Xbox One vision back from the dead EA to bring gaming subscription service to Xbox One Electronic Arts beats estimates after World Cup, but still cautious Electronic Arts pushes games new and old at E3

Down the line, EA expects to add more titles to the list, which currently contains four games: those latest FIFA and Battlefield titles alongside Madden NFL 25 and Peggle 2. EA has also thrown in discounts on digital items and game purchases in Microsoft's Xbox Store alongside access to new games up to five days prior to release to sweeten the deal. There is, however, no clear road map for which games make it into the Vault, and when, as EA maneuvers an untested business strategy.

"New game additions will be determined by franchise and timing," Moore added. "We have to make decisions along that way, so there's no template, like 30 days after a game ships it goes into the Vault."

The subscription is an initiative aimed at bridging the gap between expensive full-price video games and the kind of services we're accustomed to using for television and music. EA Access is not full-blown streaming -- like Netflix or Spotify, for instance -- as you still must download games to your Xbox One hard drive. Rather, the service is more in line with programs pushed by both Sony and Microsoft that turn monthly subscription dollars into access to titles that have started to lose their shelf life.

The industry undercurrent driving these new models is a direct challenge to the shaky relationship that console and game makers have with used-game retailers like GameStop, which buys back new titles, marks up the price, and sells the used product back to gamers without sharing the revenue as it does with full-priced purchases.

Sony has PlayStation Plus for $49.99 and Microsoft has Xbox Live for $59.99. Both services give gamers access to a slew of free games alongside access to online multiplayer options. However, Sony and Microsoft can and do remove the availability of certain titles month to month in an effort to get customers to sign up on the merit of what's available in the moment. EA has pledged not to do that with EA Access.

Sony revealed that it turned down EA's offer to feature the subscription service on the PlayStation 4 as "it does not bring the kind of value PlayStation customers have come to expect." That means, as of now, EA Access will remain an Xbox-exclusive service, available in beta until a wider release later this summer, the company said.

Update at 5:15 p.m. PT: An earlier version of this article mistakenly listed the cost of PlayStation Plus as $59.99 per year. It is $49.99 per year.

Tags: Gaming Consoles Digital Media About the author
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)