Call the cable TV provider in your area, because you’re going to want broadband Internet for the upcoming “Streaming Wars”.

When Dish Network satellite TV bought the failing Blockbuster video, many wondered how Dish would turn it into a money maker.   Well, the first attempt is being made as we speak.  After Netflix announced significant price hikes to come, Dish Network saw an opportunity to grab new customers.

Netflix took its single disc/streaming video product and broke it into two products.  What was once $9.99 a month for both is now $7.99 a month per product.  Obviously, Netflix users are miffed.  Dish Network offers a one disc rental package for $9.99, but the Blockbuster package does not include streaming video.  At least not yet.
However, according to a BizJournals.com article, Dish Network satellite TV / Blockbuster video feels customers would switch from Netflix for early access to new releases and video game rentals.  The Blockbuster package is $2 more a month than the single disc package from Netflix, so only time will tell.  What’s more important, saving $2 or having access to newer new releases and video games?

In recent years, we have seen a slow, but steady increase in available broadband Internet speeds.  It wasn’t that long ago that dial-up Internet access was all the rage.  Now, we’re talking about Internet download speeds of 50mbps or more.

A lot has changed with the ever increasing capability of high speed Internet.  Businesses have been made and businesses have been scuttled, all on the power of the Internet.  The latest make or break market appears to be online TV, or “TV Everywhere” as it is known.  While companies like Netflix are busy streaming thousands of movies and TV shows from multiple sources, networks like HBO are using broadband Internet to deliver their own shows to their subscribers.  It seems slow at times, but all of this happening at a rather rapid pace.

The latest company to attempt the TV Everywhere model appears to be You Tube.  According to an article on CNBC, You Tube will begin renting newer, big budget movie titles.  You Tube has been renting for a while now, but the selection has been slim and dated.  While Google has not turned You Tube into the money maker we all thought it would become,  this new online renting plan aims to add money to the bank.  CNBC claims “Google sees a problem with the fact that people spend an average of just 15 minutes on YouTube each day and five hours watching TV. So, it’s populating its movie rentals with behind-the-scenes movie extras and links to reviews, so its users don’t click away to IMDB.com or Rotten Tomatoes.com.”  The plan is to keep visitors on You Tube, increasing exposure to valuable advertising dollars.

Competition seems to offer the best products for consumers, so expect online movies and TV shows to only get better as the competition increases.