I finally managed to score a Joost beta test invite. Joost is a new project from the people who brought you Skype. They aim to create an on demand TV system on the Internet. The really interesting thing though is that they are only allowing invitees to beta test, and like Gmail, the best way to get an invite is to know someone who is already on it. Members get so many invites to share (and no, I don’t have any yet before you ask).

My first impression is very good. The video skipped a bit at first, but only at the very beginning so I assume it figures out your line’s capability over a short period. The user interface is very slick and there are “widgets” that allow you to do things like chat with people about the show you are watching.

The content, so far, is better than you’d expect, but not stellar. National Geographic channel has lots of interesting stuff. Saturday Morning TV has Rocky and Bullwinkle, Mr. Magoo, and other favorites. A lot of the programming seems slanted at folks younger than me (MTV-fare) but that isn’t surprising since these people are more likely to watch TV on their PCs, I suppose. But this is a beta, so I expect more and more programming to come online. Even for someone my age there is plenty to watch! Of course, everything is on demand and you can control the video stream.

Like real TV, there are ads. I read that they are improving the technology they use to decide where to insert the ads, which is good. Sometimes the interruption for ads seems abrupt.

But don’t get me wrong, the service is very cool and has a lot of potential. Now how to get a beta invite… well…. use your network of buddies, I suppose. If that fails, try http://www.joostswap.com [dead link] where you can offer things of value for invites (people offer things like postcards from their location, a few dollars, CD cases, or even just gratitude). Once in awhile someone shows up with free invites but as you’d expect those go quick.