LiveStation is designed to bring live radio and television to your computer by using a peer-to-peer network. Think of it as a Slingbox, except without the box or Joost except live, or maybe a hybrid of the two. The LiveStation player is a free download. All the player needs to work is a broadband connection. There are several different broadcast channels available in the player and web streaming is live so you can catch a basketball game or news event as its happening rather than the delayed video streams that many other websites offer.

Currently LiveStation offers limited channel options with more planned to be added as they are able work out deals with broadcasting companies. While some channels are offered for free others require a subscription (although that subscription may be included in your current television package) and some other video may be available on a pay per view basis. LiveStation is currently available as a free trial before its public launch. If you're interested in giving it a try you have to sign up on the site with admission tickets being given out periodically in phases.

[via EmilyChang]

Joost 0.9 was officially released today and despite my anti-Joost tendancies I rushed to download the new version as soon as I could. Within the first 30 seconds I was logged in I managed to see an ad for Eclipse and T-Mobile which didn't exactly kick things off nicely.

After the initial ad scare however I have to say Joost is starting to get better and I didn't see any more ads. Here are some of the improvements you'll notice right off the bat:

New Username: If you've already got a Joost account then you can no longer sign in with your email address, you instead have to sign up for a username which to me seems somewhat pointless, but I'm sure they have their reasons.

More Channels: This is probably the biggest improvement in version 0.9. There are more channels available now and not more crappy channels you'll never want to watch, actual channels that have real programming you might have actually tuned in to see on TV. Big additions include Comedy Central and MTV which are currently showcasing a few B-list shows like Laguna Beach and Dog Bites Man but will probably add some better programming in the future. This was one of my hugest gripes with Joost up to this point, there was simply nothing good to watch.

New Invite System: Invites are now done through "My Joost" in the player window. You can invite someone to the system while you are watching a particular video. Their invite will say something to the effect "Hey I was just watching this great episode of Laguna Beach on Joost, you should check it out." You can also track your invites directly on the site.

Speaking of invites, we've gotten our hands on some shiny new invites to pass out and we're going to share them with you. Leave a comment with why you think you should be the recipient of one of our invites and we'll pick three people at random and give them a key to the kingdom Friday afternoon.

Update: We picked winners this afternoon (4/6) Congratulations to Rene, Doug, and Mike!

FreeTube lets you watch TV without cable, satellite, or any other transmission devices or paid subscriptions. Their online service provides anyone that cares to watch, free TV service.

FreeTube has 12 different channel categories ranging from News, Business, Music, Sports, and Movies, each with a dropdown of different stations. The videos start streaming when the channels are clicked on, with some stations can be a little slow and buggy--I had my browser freeze a few times when trying to view. I'm not too sure where they are getting a lot of their streams from, most likely from online streams, nonetheless, FreeTube is a pretty cool idea that is a little rough around the edges.