Oscars 2012 Date and Time: How and When to Watch Live Coverage Online

Every year Hollywood comes together to celebrate itself at the Oscars, and in 2012 more people than ever will be planning to watch live online coverage. The problem is there is no official stream of the broadcast, so online viewers will have to visit the Oscargo.com Web site for updates and behind the scenes action. The broadcast starts on ABC at 4 p.m. Pacific Time with an Oscars Red Carpet Live segment, and the awards ceremony will start around 5:30 p.m. TV Guide has a handy tool here for those who need to find their local station that will have the live broadcast.

To see behind the scenes action and watch the red carpet entrances of your favorite film stars, there is the , Oscars. It's available for free on iTunes, and it gives users access to more than a dozen cameras around the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, Calif. where the show takes place. The Android app is from Comcast, and it's aimed at the red carpet action as opposed to any behind the scenes peeks. Instead of the ABC red carpet greeters, the E! Network will do their own event, and that content is available on that channel and from the Android app. Furthermore, the Facebook app Free Cast gives access to the red carpet action as well, and that way it's easy to chat with your Facebook friends while you watch the show on television.

Obviously, there will be Web sites who pirate the broadcast, but Ustream, Livestream and others like them vary in the quality of the broadcasts. You may have to go to several to find one that is really watchable. The 2012 Oscars is produced by Don Mischer and Brian Grazer, with Billy Crystal hosting his ninth ceremony and first since 2004. Enjoy the show, and tell us in the comments if you think it's a mistake for ABC not to stream the Oscars awards ceremony live online.