Cartoon Network has hopped on board the TV Everywhere bandwagon. The company has updated its iOS app to provide a live feed of its channel for authenticated cable/satellite subscribers. You can also access the feed from your computer using Flash player on the Cartoon Network website.
I was surprised to see my provider, DirecTV, as one of the options, but found the experience to be limited. I assume that Comcast users would receive preferential treatment since it seems like most content deals are with them. The live feed ends at 9pm EST, so I was not able to view the feed at the time of this writing.
I was not able to access all the full episodes from within the app or the browser. I wanted to watch some of the DC Nation shows, but tapping on the episodes area did nothing. Some of the shows did have full episodes available, but they appeared to be at random. For example, the only ThunderCats episodes available to view were Season 2 episodes 26, 25 and 22. Clicking on an episode will greet you with an preroll ad. Your selection will play after that.
The app is well designed and easy to navigate. I found the text to be a bit too large, but that has to do with the way the channel brands itself. The app design remains consistent with the channel’s television presence.
It is nice to see some effort on the part of the television networks to make their content available beyond the television screen, but the authentication debacle still remains one of its biggest hurdles. Much like the folks over at TakeMyMoneyHBO.com, I am hoping for a future where we can pay à la carte for the content we want and stream it over the web. This would be the ideal situation for cord cutters.
The app is free in iTunes. I say give it a shot and see if it works with your subscription-based television provider.