Today the founders of Skype and Kazaa launched the beta version of their newest product, Joost—one of the world’s first free global online television services. Initially known as “The Venice Project” (named after the hotel conference room in which they first thought of the idea), the product was publicly announced with its official new name “Joost”, found at www.Joost.com.

The founders, Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom, succeeded in the online global file-sharing industry with Kazaa, then succeeded in the online global telephone industry with Skype; now they are tackling and pioneering a new industry—online global television. According to their website:

Joost is a new way to watch TV, free of the schedules and restrictions that come with traditional television. Combining the best of TV with the best of the internet, Joost gives you more control and freedom than ever before—control over what you watch, and freedom to watch it whenever you like. We're providing a platform for the best television content on the planet—a platform that will bring you the biggest and best shows from the TV studios, as well as the specialist programs created by professionals and enthusiasts.

Broadband Internet access and a powerful enough computer (remains to be seen how powerful) will be needed to fully experience Joost. It is currently in a private beta-test phase, with plans to offer the full-scale working product to the general public within the first 6 months of 2007. I recently applied to become a beta-tester, but there’s a long waiting list, from what I understand, and I’m a little late to the party, with over 50,000 testers apparently already testing it.

Unlike YouTube.com, however, the content on Joost will not be user-generated, but will be provided by existing media companies such as Warner Music, TV production company Endemol, September films, and others. The user will have the ability to flip through channels, watching their desired programs on demand, at the time and pace that suits them. On occasional advertisement will be shown. Some heavy-hitting advertisers—T-Mobile, Wrigley, and Maybelline—have already signed on to complete this TV-to-Internet content and revenue model.

Will this succeed? Or will it be a colossal waste of money? Is it possible to take what has been done with music and telephone on the Internet and successfully apply it to TV? Or is this a forced extension of online technology that is doomed for failure? I think the demand exists for TV on the Internet. The success of Joost comes down to execution. If the product delivers, the customers are there for the capturing. I would love to find programming I don’t find on my regular cable TV provider (such as international programs), or find the same programming for free and on-demand, and find it in a nice non-grainy, smoothly-delivered, easily-accessible manner. If Joost can deliver on this, I think the founders have another huge winner on their hands.

Here are some screenshots of the current Joost offering: