Aug 10, 2010 4:42 AM
Viewing animes online 2 - Anime VoD with KZPlay
Anime Relations:
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
A while back I wrote about the advantages and disadvantages of watching animes on the Web. At the time, I was trying to watch Fullmetal Alchemist - Brotherhood on DailyMotion and MTV.it. These were perfectly legal streaming, but kind of visually and technically not very comfortable.
I'm now trying a different type of online viewing, using a new VoD platform started by Kaze, a European DVD publisher who has been specializing in animes since 1994. Called KZPlay, it offers a complete access to the company's catalogue for a reasonable monthly or yearly fee.
Although I can't comment on the technology being used by Kaze and how it differs from DailyMotion or other video streaming platform, as I don't have the right knowledge for this, what I can say is that it definitely works differently and looks better. Working as a streaming service, the website host each episode of an anime on its own page, with summary and description. The page display a small-size video screen, with a tool bar that makes it possible to choose between a dub version (in French) or the original version with subtitles. Once you click on the "start" button, the video is launched automatically in full-screen mode, which you can cancel only by clicking on "Esc".
Although each video is in HD, I have had the pleasure to experience an almost completely fluid animation, with no staccato due to overload on the server or slowdown on my end of the line. Yes, it does occasionally briefly freeze, especially during the episode opening credits, but I can still watch each episode completely in the normal time span. With DailyMotion or MTV.it, each episode of Fullmetal Alchemist - Brotherhood would last a minimum of 35-40 minutes, when the real running time is only 23 minutes, credit songs included.
Visually, the HD editing is making the whole thing very pleasant in full-screen mode, with much less pixellization than with usual videos. The visual quality is pretty much the same as on a DVD.
However, no matter how much more comfortable than average video platform this VoD service is, I still find it far from being able to compete with the DVD technology. One of the reason is probably because I have become so accustomed to using discrete video technologies like the VHS tapes and the DVD. For example, on an online video interface, it is always a pain in the neck to go forwards or backwards, something you can do much more easily on a DVD or a VHS. Since on this VoD platform, each episode of an anime has its own page, you can't watch them one after the other, by simply clicking "next" like on a DVD. You need to lean forwards on your computer, click on "Esc" to exit full-screen mode, take your mouse, click on the top menu to get back to the list of episodes of the anime and click on the link to the page of the next episode, then launch again the video interface. You can't either switch between dub and subs tracks when you're in full-screen mode.
Concerning the usual choices offered by DVD, here again, the VoD system proposed by Kaze doesn't come close to it. Thus, there are no other sub languages but French, nor any choice of dub languages besides French. On any DVD, because they sell them in several countries in Europe, they often add subs in other languages (English, German, Dutch, etc.) or even other dub languages. Apparently, either they didn't want to or the they didn't get the right to offer the other language versions on their platforms. KazePlay doesn't offer any bonus material either. Thus, gone are the interviews with members of the Japanese teams and sometimes the French teams, the image galleries, the making-of, etc. The trailers can be found on the website itself, but not attached to the page of the anime you're watching.
In the perspective of Kaze, I don't think they expect people to watch the animes they get to license in Europe only on their VoD platform. I'm pretty sure that, along with their other platform KZTV (a new digital channel they have launched last year on the "Free.fr" box), it only serves as a tool to promote new and old animes, by allowing the subscribers to watch them online and get a good idea of the series. Their hope is probably that people will realize how much more comfortable for anime viewing a DVD is and by the box that they also publish.
I'm now trying a different type of online viewing, using a new VoD platform started by Kaze, a European DVD publisher who has been specializing in animes since 1994. Called KZPlay, it offers a complete access to the company's catalogue for a reasonable monthly or yearly fee.
Although I can't comment on the technology being used by Kaze and how it differs from DailyMotion or other video streaming platform, as I don't have the right knowledge for this, what I can say is that it definitely works differently and looks better. Working as a streaming service, the website host each episode of an anime on its own page, with summary and description. The page display a small-size video screen, with a tool bar that makes it possible to choose between a dub version (in French) or the original version with subtitles. Once you click on the "start" button, the video is launched automatically in full-screen mode, which you can cancel only by clicking on "Esc".
Although each video is in HD, I have had the pleasure to experience an almost completely fluid animation, with no staccato due to overload on the server or slowdown on my end of the line. Yes, it does occasionally briefly freeze, especially during the episode opening credits, but I can still watch each episode completely in the normal time span. With DailyMotion or MTV.it, each episode of Fullmetal Alchemist - Brotherhood would last a minimum of 35-40 minutes, when the real running time is only 23 minutes, credit songs included.
Visually, the HD editing is making the whole thing very pleasant in full-screen mode, with much less pixellization than with usual videos. The visual quality is pretty much the same as on a DVD.
However, no matter how much more comfortable than average video platform this VoD service is, I still find it far from being able to compete with the DVD technology. One of the reason is probably because I have become so accustomed to using discrete video technologies like the VHS tapes and the DVD. For example, on an online video interface, it is always a pain in the neck to go forwards or backwards, something you can do much more easily on a DVD or a VHS. Since on this VoD platform, each episode of an anime has its own page, you can't watch them one after the other, by simply clicking "next" like on a DVD. You need to lean forwards on your computer, click on "Esc" to exit full-screen mode, take your mouse, click on the top menu to get back to the list of episodes of the anime and click on the link to the page of the next episode, then launch again the video interface. You can't either switch between dub and subs tracks when you're in full-screen mode.
Concerning the usual choices offered by DVD, here again, the VoD system proposed by Kaze doesn't come close to it. Thus, there are no other sub languages but French, nor any choice of dub languages besides French. On any DVD, because they sell them in several countries in Europe, they often add subs in other languages (English, German, Dutch, etc.) or even other dub languages. Apparently, either they didn't want to or the they didn't get the right to offer the other language versions on their platforms. KazePlay doesn't offer any bonus material either. Thus, gone are the interviews with members of the Japanese teams and sometimes the French teams, the image galleries, the making-of, etc. The trailers can be found on the website itself, but not attached to the page of the anime you're watching.
In the perspective of Kaze, I don't think they expect people to watch the animes they get to license in Europe only on their VoD platform. I'm pretty sure that, along with their other platform KZTV (a new digital channel they have launched last year on the "Free.fr" box), it only serves as a tool to promote new and old animes, by allowing the subscribers to watch them online and get a good idea of the series. Their hope is probably that people will realize how much more comfortable for anime viewing a DVD is and by the box that they also publish.
Posted by
abeldi
| Aug 10, 2010 4:42 AM |
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