The online TV provider Joost is to abandon its desktop client in favour of a browser plug-in, as interest in the service seems to be waning. Although insiders expected the move, the company remained tight-lipped about a possible change of strategy. The story was broken by the GigaOm, but has so far not been confirmed by Joost.
Joost started as The Venice Project and raised many expectations, especially since Skype co-founders Janus Friis and Niklas Zennström were involved. But the TV business is quite different from telephony, as the company soon found out.
Joost has experienced trouble gin etting fresh content and navigation on the site is not very easy: people have trouble finding the programmes they want to watch. The service also has to face increasing competition from an ever growing number of online streaming and on-demand video sites. Also, people seem to be less willing to download special applications for each video sites they want to watch.
