Sometimes I think that if I describe some cool idea on the Internet somehow it eventually ends up happening. Previously I asked for a portable Internet streaming radio device. And now I carry around an iPod Touch and use it as my portable Internet streaming radio device using Wunder Radio and Pandora as my “tuner”. Now I want something to replace the old fashioned cable box.
I just ordered my first HD LCD TV and have started to dream about having a user controlled, highly automated, and user friendly RSS reader like mechanism to collect Video content for playing on my new screen. I still keep picturing a device something like an Apple TV/Mac Mini/Airport Express/Time Capsule that would put out video and music to the TV and speakers.
I don’t think my dream system exists, mainly because it relies on content creators and the current crop of content providers who probably wouldn’t want to participate unless they had total control.  But I think with an EyeTV type device along with RSS tools like Frontier (OPML Editor), BitTorrent tools like Miro, Hulu, a Netflix account I could simulate my dream in a partially automated, not so easy to use, not so user controlled version.
I’d be willing to micro pay via a RSS subscription to video content. Â Imagine combining Netflix and a TV tuner with your RSS reader. Â I would go to my subscriptions which could include TV, Movies, YouTube, Sporting Events, TED Talks, Conference videos, etc. and setup some items to always automatically download, say live events like sportscasts, TV shows or other “realtime” broadcasts and others to queue up and download the most recent 4 or 5 episodes. Â Miro does some of that but only for free content. Â I would love to be able to pay per view, at a reasonable cost for things like the recent NU night at the cubs game, or an ESPNU broadcast of the NU Womens Lacrosse games as the drive for a 5th national championship.
Maybe I should pose this to Mark Cuban, I think he was investing in HD content of some sort a while ago. Â He could create the backend systems that would allow the content monopolies to bypass the current crop of distributors and provide a pay per view or subscription RSS mechanism where the creators could easily provide using BitTorrent technologies.
Dave Winer might be interested in this kind of thing, although I think Dave already has most of this already using his EyeTV/MacMini/Frontier world.