Vdio Ready to Take On Netflix
Skype founder Janus Friis has a new start up in the works, which aims to compete with sites like Netflix and VUDU. The new site, Vdio (pronounced vee-dee-oh), will allow consumers to instantly watch popular TV shows and hit movies.
For years now, Friis has been assembling a team composed of media and web experts from companies like Skype, Napster, Microsoft, TV Guide, and Apache. The group has been secretively working on the site for more than two years and recently posted some teasers on Vdio.com.
Vdio’s homepage features screen captures from TV shows like Breaking Bad, Justified, and Mad Men with the caption “Are you watching?” On the site, users can log in with Facebook connect, but logging in produces a message stating that the site is only available to the U.K. Those who log in from the U.K. receive the message that Vdio is “coming soon.”
According to a Q&A sent to tech news site GigaOm, Vdio will indeed be initially launched in the U.K. before becoming available to users in the U.S., though the company does plan on an international service.
So far, there are no further details on pricing, plans, content, or release dates. One answer states the difference between Netflix and Vdio, from the team’s point of view “We think people will love Vdio.”
This sounds like a promising project, especially with the talent that’s currently on board. We look forward to hearing more about this new video site, and we’re eager to see if it truly is an improvement from Netflix.