Last week R. Scott Raynovich’s Contentinople blog posted “Online HD: Coming Faster Than You Think”, in which he shares his surprise at how quickly HD is coming online—and how great it looks. Raynovich is right: HD is coming fast, and in many cases, it’s already here.

For instance, ESPN 360 is streaming tonight’s Lakers vs. Suns game live and in HD to those with ESPN 360 access. This is not the first time HD has been streamed live. Fox and ABC have both streamed live content with Move in the past (Fox streamed the Sarah Conner Chronicles live to rave reviews, the Oscars were streamed live, ABC carried the presidential primaries live, etc.); however, this is the first regular season NBA game to go live with HD.

If your ISP is AT&T, Verizon Communications, RCN, Frontier, Cavalier Telephone & TV, Charter Communications, Mediacom Communications, Conway, Grande Communications or some of the other smaller carriers, you should have access to ESPN 360. (If not, you should ask your cable provider to become part of the family!)

Go to ESPN 360 and check it out! If you can’t watch now, take a look at the other HD events at ABC and FOX. When it comes to high-def online viewing, the future is now.

According to analyst Chris Morrison at Venture Beat, Move Networks has differentiated itself from standard video streaming platforms (such as Flash and Windows) “in terms of its quality.” And Shelly Palmer recently said in MediaBytes that Move offers “without question the best online video experience” he has seen.

However, Move isn’t the only streaming provider that claims to stream video with high quality. So, what’s the difference? Move defines quality as (1) fast starts, (2) continuous playback, and (3) high fidelity. Our experience and reporting systems tell us that users stay more engaged with the video and visit the Web site more often if these three elements are maximized. Our streaming solution ensures that video is adapted to every kind of platform, regardless of bandwidth or processing power. Our reporting and analytic services show that when these are maximized, viewing lengths are extended. Most recently, our stats indicate that we have extended maximum viewing length from under 15 minutes to over 50 minutes. The bottom line: quality leads to increased viewership and is a must for advertisers. This makes perfect sense—media’s history demonstrates over and over that quality is the key to viewership. More on this idea another time . . .

Move is interested in hearing what you have to say about video quality and what creates a high-quality viewing experience for you.

Welcome to the Move Networks blog. I’m John Edwards, CEO of Move Networks, and I’m pleased to spend some time with you discussing the current state of video streaming and other technology.

In this blog, I hope we can have open and frank conversations about the technology behind video streaming, the revenue possibilities, and how our services and others can help broadcasters find reasonable, cost-effective, and high-quality solutions.