GigaOM directs our attention to an interesting video interview with Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, who dissects Netflix's role as the premier application for broadband. Hastings discusses how the future for Netflix is bright, given the tendency to embed every consumer device with a $10 Wi-Fi chipset, and the fact that bandwidth prices continue to drop. He doesn't get into specific bandwidth costs for the Netflix streaming service, but he cites the fact that "Moore's law is an amazing thing" in a world where Amazon now charges 5 cents a gigabyte for bandwidth and you can transfer a movie for about a nickel. "What's fueling the whole system is the end users, who are paying $40-$60 to their ISP, and that's funding the whole system," says Hastings.

When last we checked in with Comcast's Internet video "TV Everywhere" initiative, it was looking more like "TV in some places, some of the time," given there were hints the service wouldn't be available to customers who weren't using a Comcast cable modem for broadband access. The idea of course is to provide existing TV customers access to free Internet video so they won't cut the cord -- but as we've explored, if the industry screw things up it could have the exact opposite effect.

It has been interesting watching Blockbuster video adapt to the broadband age, with the company seemingly not trying very hard out of fear of cannibalizing their brick and mortar revenue and losing control. Early efforts to mirror Netflix's success at broadband video delivery have seemed relatively lackluster, and the company's CEO, when announcing such broadband initiatives, seems to almost expect them to fail.

According to Media Memo, Apple is pitching the idea of a new, "over the top" $30 a month subscription broadband TV service. The service, which would not be tied to Apple's Apple TV device, would simply be an extension of the iTunes video store. According to the report, Disney is one likely possible partner -- an interesting mention given they're supposedly having some trouble agreeing with cable companies over payment for their "TV Everywhere" online video initiative. Of course cable operators will fight like hell given this would be a direct competitor to both regular cable and TV Everywhere, and broadcasters may not sign up out of fear of threatening their relationships with cable companies.

Nintendo Wii owners were recently left feeling a little under appreciated with the news that Playstation 3 owners will be getting Netflix broadband video streaming next month. Blog rumblings indicate that Netflix streaming will be coming to the Wii eventually, but may not arrive until next year with the shipping of a modified, HD-capable Wii variant. This image was sent out to some Wii owners in a survey last march, and the console owners have been eagerly anticipating the streaming service ever since. The blog's leak sources insist that it's not entirely impossible the launch could also happen before the holidays.

According to a post over at the Playstation Blog, Netflix broadband video streaming -- currently the exclusive territory of Microsoft's Xbox 360 -- will be coming to the Playstation 3 in November. Interestingly, a post over at the Netflix website indicates that PS3 users will need a free DVD in order to make the functionality work -- at least until the next PS3 system update comes along and embeds it via broadband. Those interested can also check out this press release.

The good news? Netflix CEO Reed Hastings says the company is cooking up a broadband video delivery service that doesn't require that you sign up for the company's mail-delivered DVD service. The bad news? It won't be made available in the United States, and Netflix isn't saying which country will get the service.

"It’s time to start getting paid for broadcast content online," proclaims News Corp. Deputy Chairman Chase Carey, who this week indicated that Hulu would probably start charging for access in 2010.

Calling it "video on demand on steroids," Comcast CEO Brian Roberts today gave new details on the cable industry's "TV Everywhere" initiative, which will offer existing cable customers access to a limited selection of online video. According to the sneak peak shown at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco, the service will have content only from broadcast partners who've agreed to the deal, and will only be accessible via your home computer.

Remember back in March when countless bloggers and journalists were over-hyping a service known as ZillionTV? The idea behind the new new set-top broadband video service was that they were going to partner with ISPs, who were going to distribute the video set top for them. Kind of lost in all the hype was the annoying fact that most ISPs offer TV service themselves, and few if any wanted to erode those revenues.

According to the latest information from the cable industry, just 443,000 American consumers are using CableCARDs, designed to allow users to break free of the obligation of using a rented cable (or phone) industry TV set top box. That fairly pathetic number is up from just 407,000 in June, despite the fact the cable industry says they've shipped more than 16.7 million set-top boxes with CableCARD functionality.

Based on apparently no substantive facts of any kind, the Wall Street Journal wonders if Verizon might have an interest in acquiring satellite TV juggernaut DirecTV. As recently discussed, Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg has stated his desire to make video the "core product" for its fixed-line business, and acquiring the company would make Verizon the second biggest TV player behind Comcast. But the Journal seems to forget that FiOS TV is pretty clearly the carrier's centerpiece, and the telco's been busy selling any rural markets that aren't nailed down. An AT&T acquisition of DirecTV has always been the rumor du jour, given they have more rural customers and less bandwidth for TV delivery, but that too has never materialized despite at least one rumor a year.

If you've paid attention, you know the modern "network neutrality" debate took off in 2005, when then AT&T CEO Ed Whitacre proudly, though dumbly, proclaimed that Google got a "free ride" on his network. According to Ed, this unfairness could only be rectified by charging companies who already pay for bandwidth money to ensure their traffic reaches AT&T consumers quickly.

So far Disney isn't playing along with the cable industry's "TV Everywhere" project, which aims to offer existing customers free Internet video as an incentive not to cut the cord. Speaking at an investor's conference, Disney this week complained the new system doesn't deliver "proper compensation," while Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes fired back, saying that broadcasters are "not the ones who are going to the effort and expense of making this possible." Meanwhile, there continues to be a push to take the offline ad model online:Disney and Time Warner's lover's quarrel comes on the heels of news that TV Everywhere is so far a jumble of non-standards, with each carrier approaching implementation of the system differently. Ironically, bickering between broadcasters and TV operators, limited selection, walled gardens and unskippable ads are exactly the sort of thing that will drive consumers to alternative video operations or piracy -- the very thing TV Everywhere was supposed to stop.

It has been interesting watching Blockbuster video adapt to the broadband age, with the company seemingly not trying very hard out of fear of cannibalizing their brick and mortar revenue. Early efforts to mirror Netflix's success at broadband video delivery have seemed relatively lackluster, and the company's CEO, when announcing such broadband initiatives, seems to almost expect them to fail. But the company's also struggling with debt, cable VOD, and outfits like Redbox and Netflix -- leading Blockbuster to tell the SEC they'll be doubling the number of upcoming store closures. Blockbuster says 18% of its stores are unprofitable, and 47% more are only "mildly profitable."

The Pittsburgh City Council today voted unanimously (9-0) to give Verizon a FiOS franchise in the city, after the two sides haggled over local TV funding and the installation of a small local support center. The agreement requires that Verizon deploy FiOS to the entire city within six years, though such agreements generally include plenty of wiggle room for Verizon.

After quietly soft launching their new video portal earlier this month, AT&T has now officially announced their new "AT&T Entertainment" video portal. According to the AT&T press release, the portal offers free TV shows and movie clips "via an agreement with Hulu," which is apparently why it looks very similar to Hulu itself. As it stands, the offering is little more than a placeholder for AT&T's future Internet TV ambitions, be they online content that's integrated with their U-Verse service, or part of an authentication "TV Everywhere" system. So why not just go to Hulu? Good question, and one that AT&T's going to have to answer in short order.

Comcast Chief Operating Officer Stephen Burke today told attendees of an investor conference that the company would be rolling out "TV Everywhere" as part of a national pilot within 30-60 days. The TV Everywhere model has carriers taking TV content and putting it online behind an authentication wall free for existing customers -- as a way to help prevent customers from cutting the cord. Burke also this week chimed in on Comcast's rebranded Clearwire service, telling attendees Comcast is "significantly ahead," of projections, while insisting Comcast was "hard core about 4G." According to Burke, Comcast plans to launch WiMax in "most markets by the end of next year," though that obviously depends on Clearwire's network build speed.

AT&T has launched a beta version of a new video portal dubbed "AT&T Entertainment." The fairly basic-looking website joins an increasingly crowded field, offering access to free TV shows and movie clips to both Windows and Mac users. According to the website FAQ, the site also should allow users to manage and schedule their U-Verse IPTV DVRs. According to a statement AT&T sent out to dozens of websites, they're finalizing a few elements of the site before an official launch "soon." AT&T has shown no limit to their interest in delivering both the pipe and the content, with a slew of projects ranging from 3D Browsers to their now-defunct VideoCrawler project. Remember when ISPs just concentrated on running networks? Yeah, good times.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Google and YouTube are in talks with major movie studios to allow the streaming of full movies over the video service. The Journal claims that some films would be available for a rental fee, while others would be provided free, but with advertising. "Negotiations are continuing and there are no guarantees the deals will be struck," says the paper. Citing anonymous sources, the report says that YouTube is pushing the studios to allow streaming on mobile devices, something the studios are resisting. Current plans have 10,000 Google employees testing the system for three months once (if?) negotiations are completed.