The Anime Network website has recently relaunched their online streaming section, & while it was done to make the section new & improved, it can be argued that the change is actually for the worse. Sure there are a lot more shows available now (highlights include Clannad, Princess Resurrection, Elfen Lied, Azumanga Daioh, & more), but you can't get them all for free anymore. Depending one what kind of visitor you are is what decides how much you can watch- free, registered, or subscribed.
Videos for free users means you don't have to do anything to watch the episodes. Just click on a free episode & enjoy. The downside to this is that there are extremely few episodes that fall under this category. Some shows have the first ep for free users, but not all. For registered users though, all you have to do is sign up for a free account & stay logged in on the site. This gains you access to a few more episodes, but not as much as you might think.
If you really want to watch a lot of anything, you have to get a premium subscriber account, which will cost you $6.95 a month. Many shows you can only watch if you pay for a membership. Take for example, Kiba, a series that
previously aired for free on Toonami Jetstream before Cartoon Network
got rid of it. The Anime Network's online player only has about the same number of eps up that Jetstream showed, but you can't watch any of them unless you get a paid membership. It's your only choice.
I can see where ADV is coming from with this approach, & I guess it works well in theory. After all, they have to make money off of doing this kind of free. & it's been working well for Crunchyroll. But here's the difference. Crunchyroll charges for new anime series that come straight out of Japan immediately after they air. & it's in HD quality to boot. For Anime Network, you're paying for older titles & not in HD. Why pay for that when Crunchyroll has so much more to offer? Well I wish them luck for their new player. I just have to wonder how many people would actually pay for such a service. Check it out here:
http://www.theanimenetwork.com