New Video Deals: PBS On Google Video & Download To Own; MSN’s “Arrested Development”

Jaded as we may be with the constant cavalcade of online video deals, today’s inbox contains some worth noting including PBS downloads for sale and and an ad-supported syndicated sitcom for MSN:
— PBS has two new online video options; both include download to own. Episodes from PBS primetime and children’s programming — including “Nova,” “Antiques Roadshow” and “Arthur” — are now on Google Video. Each download includes a spot urging viwers to join their local PBS station. Most of the episodes run $1.99 but “Nova” is $7.99 a pop, a hefty price for less than 60 minutes. Release.
— PBS also announced today that programs from the same series are for sale on the public service-oriented non-profit Open Media Network, which also provides free programming through TiVo. Downloads can be viewed on multiple devices including, portable media players, cell phones and set tops. Same pricing. Release.
— Meanwhile, MSN has an unusual agreement with Fox for exclusive online rights to the late, lamented “Arrested Development” for three years. MSN has all three seasons of the show, a total of 53 episodes. The portal will create an online community around the eccentric Bluth family; AD had a cult-like following during its run and has a passionate fanbase. Fox and MSN The ad-supported show will be streamed free and on demand through MSN Video. The online syndication was part of a multiplatform announcement from Fox; HDnet will have exclusive HD rights to the series, while — this is the strange part — Comcast’s G4 network, which started life as a gaming channel and is aimed at males 18-34, has basic cable rights. (Sidenote: G4 bills itself as “the number one podcasted cable network in America.”)

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