I’m doing some interviews with people who are playing with different reality media, and Justin.TV is a great example. The site recently got its one millionth user. Most are like me, I’m guessing, and just sign up so they can navigate the site better. But some are doing what Justin.TV is set up to do: broadcasting some or all of their lives, in real time, via a fixed or mobile webcam. Many of these “lifecasters” also maintain a running chat with viewers, or have interactive games and contests. Then there are what appear to be streaming TV channels, such as canal rcn colombia.
As of a few days ago, the site can be read in traditional and simplified Chinese characters. A search for “China” reveals 22 hits, and a 中国 search, 0. However, either I am missing the boat on how to get these things to play, or almost all the China channels are inactive, such as this from user “hello china” which as far as I can tell was done 9 months ago and has not been added to since then.
Let’s keep an eye on this and see 1) who the first Chinese lifecasters on Justin.TV will be; and 2) how lifecasting will show up on PRC websites, not on Justin.TV. Probably some people are already doing it and I’m just not aware of it.