VUDU Adds Web Content

All of the new web content will be offered via VUDU Labs. The open platform that will be available to developers in early 2009.

The box now offers Flickr, YouTube and 120 channels of web content to fill your TV time.

http://www.vudu.com” target=“_blank” title=“VUDU”>VUDU just keeps hanging on—and now they are hanging with some of the competition as well. Today, they announced a new feature that will add more than 120 channels of web-based content to its set-top service.

The new platform is called VUDU RIA (Rich Internet Application). Basically, this just means that you will be able to view web content via the VUDU box, optimized for television. Initial offerings include Flickr, Picasa the entire YouTube library, and about 120 on-demand TV selections.

Don’t expect to find “Lost” or “30 Rock,” though. Some of the current TV offerings include “MTV News,” “Today” and “Anderson Cooper 360,” as well as high-def shows such as “Nova” and “National Geographic.” VUDU is also opening up the whole shebang to third-party developers, which means more applications and services should come next year.

“Our goal in creating VUDU RIA was to allow anyone with Web development skills to easily author Web-driven applications for the TV,” said Prasanna Ganesan, VUDU’s CTO. “We are very pleased with the results and look forward to opening up VUDU RIA to the developer community.”