Live TV on the Internet
While you may know of several places to watch pre-recorded shows, you may not know where to see live TV on the Internet. Fortunately, there are a number of options for viewing television as it happens online. You generally don't need any kind of special equipment to do this, just a web browser with video plugins and a high-speed Internet connection.
Live TV on the Internet
Some stations make it easy to watch live TV on the Internet. These stations offer a live stream of their programming for all to see. Other stations can be a little more difficult and complicated to view, requiring you to know the IP address of the station's live feed. This can also present legal problems, as you may not be authorized to view content in this manner. For the sake of staying on the right side of the law and avoid problems with your Internet Service Provider, you will probably want to stick to the easier, more official channels for watching streaming television.
News
News is arguably the easiest thing for you to watch online. Many news networks offer streaming video of their channel to the Internet free of charge so that you can keep pace with current events as they happen.
- Al-Jazeera: This Qatar-based news network provides streaming content in Arabic, Farsi and English. The focus is on news from all over the world, rather than just news from the United States and the European Union.
- Fox News: For those who prefer a right-of-center world view with their news, the Fox News network is also available in streaming format on the Internet.
- MSNBC: The joint venture between Microsoft and General Electric / NBC allows you to get news as well as editorial analysis through your computer -- no television required.
- CNN: The first of the 24-hour cable news networks is also available to stream. You can tune in for news updates or find out when your favorite program is going to be on and watch it live.
Sports
While the news junkie has many options, the sports fanatic is largely at a loss for legal ways to watch live programming on the web. The rights to broadcast live sporting events are very pricey and television stations are not interested in giving it away. Furthermore, there are laws regarding the broadcast of live sporting events that cause some events to be blacked out on national television in certain areas so that local broadcasters can get the viewers and advertising revenue. Until a marketing model emerges that allows broadcasters to charge people for live streaming Internet television, sports fans will either have to get cable or hoof it down to the local sports pub.
Entertainment
Entertainment online is difficult, but not impossible to come by, at least in a live format. While national networks generally do not stream programming to the Internet, local affiliates may do so. This means that you need to find what network the program you want to watch is on and then find a local affiliate that streams live. You will generally find this on broadcast channels as opposed to cable channels. The latter is far more beholden to the revenue of DVD sales than the latter. Some websites, such as Live TV Streaming, World Wide Internet Television and TV Channels Free are good places to start looking for a local affiliate for the shows you want to watch. You can also go to the website of your local network affiliate and see if they offer streaming directly.
Streaming Television
You must make sure that your computer is capable of streaming video before you attempt to watch live programming over the Internet. Fortunately, your browser will walk you through any plugins that you may need to install. Note that this will likely be similar to anything you use to stream pre-recorded events over the Internet. Getting started with watching television on the Internet frees you from having to watch TV on the TV, allowing you to bring a television with you wherever there is an Internet connection.
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