Apple’s iTunes Store now offers free video podcasts of CitrusTV shows. Students can download current episodes of some CitrusTV programs, including On The Bench, Syracuse After Hours and CitrusTV News.

Students are able to download the shows onto their computers and can also transfer them to their iPods.

‘Podcasts are an exciting new way to show students our content,’ said CitrusTV General Manager Rich Levy. ‘You see new video iPods around campus all the time. Now you can download our programs into iTunes and watch it on the go. I really think it’ll take off.’

Podcasts are accessible from the CitrusTV Web site, www.citrustv.net, Levy said. And the portability of a video iPod allows students to watch shows on their own time.

Because podcasts offered through iTunes are a free service, most programs can generally become available on iTunes. CitrusTV submitted its shows that were approved by Apple to be offered on the iTunes Web site.

‘CitrusTV is always looking into trying different ways to distribute its content,’ he said.

CitrusTV gains most of its viewers from the online content medium, said Clark Van Der Beken, the co-director of CitrusTV promotions. Demographics show that most viewers, especially members of the Syracuse community, are interested in downloading sports-related programs.

‘This is a smart and creative way for CitrusTV to reach out to students,’ said sophomore retail major Sarah Weisman.

A lot of university television stations offer downloading of their show content, however, it is rarely through iTunes. CitrusTV is the first Syracuse University student-run organization to produce content available on iTunes.

‘This is a tremendous leap into the technology world,’ Van Der Beken said. ‘It turned out great and I am really happy with it.’

The podcasts are a way for station alumni to stay updated on CitrusTV’s latest programming and be able to watch it at their own convenience, Van Der Beken said. Additionally, by subscribing to a podcast, the latest episodes of a show will automatically be downloaded.

The next project CitrusTV is currently working on is joining the Open Student TV Network as a way to syndicate its programming nationally, Levy said. OSTN is a collection of university television shows that are offered through a global Internet channel.

Published on November 28, 2006 at 12:00 pm