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Analysis: Set-Top, Shmet-Top: TV Makers Take It Inside

Authored by Paul Sweeting on September 4, 2008 - 7:12am.
The annual CEDIA Expo has been underway in Denver this week, where consumer electronics manufacturers were unveiling their newest top-of-line hardware for an audience of custom home theater installers. This year's show was heavy on (very) high-end Blu-ray Disc players from Sony, Panasonic, Pioneer, JVC and others (not much for the Wal-Mart crowd there). But it also featured hardware makers' first substantial forays into Internet-enabled TV sets, which are designed to serve as their own bridge between the Web-delivered video and the big-screen TV in the living room without the need of a separate set-top box or PC.
tags: Video | TV | Sony | CE | JVC | Panasonic | Set-tops | Pioneer | CEDIA Expo |

Samsung, Partners to Develop Wireless HD Set-top Box

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 19, 2007 - 3:14pm.

Seoul, Korea - Korean electronics firm Samsung on Monday announced plans to introduce a wireless set-top box that will deliver high-definition TV on home networks. Samsung partnered with chipmakers STMicroelectronics and Metalink on the SMT-H6155, which currently has no release date.

tags: Video | TV | HD | Samsung | Set-tops | STMicroelectronics |

On This Week's Episode of "Leave it to TiVo"...

Authored by Kurt Scherf on February 7, 2007 - 11:31am.
There's a joke in this industry that you can always tell who the pioneers are from the arrows in the back of their back. I recall Peter Lee from The Walt Disney Co. using this phrase at last year's CONNECTIONS conference as he was discussing ABC's moves into online video distribution and how they were getting pushback from some local affiliates. Well, the ABC folks can take some comfort in the data as they bind their wounds. According to Disney's latest earnings information, more than 19 million streams of ABC programs have been requested through ABC.com, ad retention rates stand around 85%, and CPM numbers for the online videos are 4-5x those of primetime viewers age 18-49.
tags: Internet | Video | Downloads | TV | CE | Movies | TiVo | DVR | Commerce | Amazon | Set-tops |

TiVo, Amazon Enable Unbox Movie, TV Downloads to TiVo Boxes

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 7, 2007 - 11:05am.
Alviso, Calif. - TiVo announced on Wednesday that it has partnered with Amazon.com, to enable TiVo users to rent and purchase movies and TV shows from Amazon's Unbox video download service and watch them on their televisions.
tags: Internet | Video | TV | CE | Movies | TiVo | DVR | Commerce | Amazon | Set-tops | Unbox |

Orb Networks Releases Upgrade to PC-based Place-Shifting Software

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 7, 2006 - 4:06pm.
Emeryville, Calif. - Orb Networks on Thursday introduced Orb MyCasting 2.0, an upgraded version of its free service that lets users stream all of their PC-based media, including live and recorded TV, on any Internet-connected device. The application allows access from Windows XP PCs to music, photos, videos, documents, podcasts and other digital media, as well as live and recorded TV, provided users also have installed a TV tuner card on the PC.
tags: Video | Tech | TV | Broadband | CE | Orb Networks | IPTV | Software | Set-tops | Place-Shifting |

BT Launches Microsoft-Powered IPTV Service in U.K.

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 4, 2006 - 2:49pm.
Redmond, Wash. - U.K. telco BT on Monday debuted its Microsoft-powered digital TV service across the U.K. The BT Vision service uses the Microsoft TV Internet Protocol Television Edition software platform and a Philips set-top box to deliver more than 40 Freeview channels, digital video recorder capability and video-on-demand programming delivered over broadband.
tags: Launches | Internet | Video | TV | Broadband | UK | Europe | Microsoft | Philips | IPTV | Set-tops | BT |

Sling Media Hires MTV Veterans to Run New Group

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 30, 2006 - 2:42pm.
San Mateo, Calif. - Sling Media, a developer of digital media products, on Thursday said that it has hired former MTV executives Jason Hirschhorn and Benjamin White to run its newly created Sling Media Entertainment Group.
tags: Video | TV | Career | Moves | CE | MTV | Sling Media | Set-tops | Place-Shifting | Entertainment |

TiVo Debuts New "Program Placement" DVR Ad Format

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 28, 2006 - 2:47pm.
New York - TiVo on Tuesday introduced a new advertising format, "Program Placement," that allows advertisers to insert an ad after a recorded program is finished playing.

The ads, which appear in the form of clickable tags displayed on screen at the end of specific programs, are optional for viewers, and may include long-format content like promotional videos.
tags: Video | Marketing | Advertising | Tech | TV | CE | TiVo | DVR | Video Ads | Set-tops |

Sling Media Expands Portable TV Service to Mobile Phones

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 16, 2006 - 3:18pm.
London - Sling Media, the developer of a device that lets users access premium home TV channels while away from any Internet-connected device, announced on Thursday that it has developed a new version of its service for mobile phones.
tags: Mobile | Video | Mobile TV | TV | UK | Europe | CE | Sling Media | Set-tops | Place-Shifting | Cellphones |

TiVo Expands Lineup of Web Downloads to TV Set-tops

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 14, 2006 - 2:57pm.
Alviso, Calif. - TiVo on Tuesday announced plans to expand its service that allows subscribers to download Internet video to their TiVo set-tops for viewing on television. The software upgrade allowing user-generated and other non-copyright protected videos to be downloaded to TiVo boxes will be offered by the end of the year.
tags: Video | Downloads | TV | CE | Movies | TiVo | DVR | Set-tops | One True Media | Video-Sharing | UGC |

Report: Most Viewers Watch Recorded TV Shows Within 3 Days

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 10, 2006 - 2:53pm.
New York - Most owners of digital video recorders play back recorded TV shows within three days of their airing, according to a report from Nielsen Media Research. Seventy-eight percent of U.S. households with digital video recorders watched their recorded shows within two days of their airing, while 84% had watched them within three days.
tags: Video | Marketing | TV | Reports | Metrics | DVR | Nielsen | Set-tops | Cable | Viewers |

SES Americom Taps Amino Set-tops for Telco Satellite IPTV Service

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 2, 2006 - 2:53pm.
Princeton, N.J. - Amino, a maker of set-top boxes used for IPTV services, announced on Thursday that satellite services provider SES Americom has signed a multi-year agreement to deploy Amino set-tops for use with its IP-PRIME centralized IPTV distribution service for telephone companies.
tags: Video | Tech | TV | IPTV | Set-tops | Telecom | Video Tech | Satellite | Amino | SES Americom |

Gemstar Renews Japanese Program Guide License with Panasonic

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 26, 2006 - 12:32pm.
Los Angeles - Gemstar-TV Guide International, a developer of electronic program guides for digital TV services, announced on Thursday that Panasonic has renewed its licensing agreement to use Gemstar's interactive program guides in its products for the Japanese market. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
tags: Licensing | Video | TV | Gemstar-TV Guide | CE | Panasonic | Japan | Set-tops |

Akimbo Adds Movielink Titles to Internet-based VOD Service

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 25, 2006 - 12:56pm.
Santa Monica, Calif. - Akimbo, the provider of an Internet-based video-on-demand service, announced on Wednesday that it has signed an agreement with studio-backed movie download site Movielink, to make films available for download to the RCA Akimbo Player. Hundreds of Movielink titles will be available for rental for between $0.99 and $4.99, and can be downloaded over a broadband connection to the $199 RCA Akimbo Player set-top box for viewing on a television.
tags: Pricing | Video | Video Pricing | Tech | VOD | Movies | Commerce | Akimbo | IPTV | Set-tops | Movielink |

On Command Taps Amino for Hotel IPTV Set-tops

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 20, 2006 - 1:13pm.
Cambridge, England - Amino, a provider of IPTV delivery technology, announced on Friday that hotel video-on-demand service provider On Command has deployed its AmiNET set-top boxes in hotels that choose to use existing coaxial cabling to provide in-room interactive entertainment. On Command provides its services in over 800,000 hotel rooms worldwide.
tags: Video | Tech | TV | Hotels | IPTV | Travel | Set-tops | Video Tech | On Command | Amino |

Microsoft Details Advanced Set-tops Featuring IPTV Edition Software

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 10, 2006 - 3:51pm.
Paris - Microsoft announced on Tuesday that system-on-a-chip set-top boxes, which can deliver advanced services like HDTV, digital video recording and picture-in-picture functionalities, are now available to support its Microsoft IPTV Edition software. Such a set-top from Philips, running Microsoft's software, will be launched this fall by U.K. telco BT, while others from Cisco and Motorola will be deployed by customers including AT&T.
tags: Video | Tech | TV | HDTV | Microsoft | IPTV | Software | Set-tops |

Digeo Awarded 3 U.S. Patents for Moxi DVR Interface

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 5, 2006 - 2:58pm.
Kirkland, Wash. - Digeo, a developer of a set-top box and software that combine digital video recording with media center capabilities, announced on Thursday that it has been awarded three new U.S. patents for its Moxi DVR user interface. Kirkland, Wash.-based Digeo's Emmy Award-winning interface is currently deployed on nearly 400,000 set-tops through eight cable TV providers nationwide.
tags: Video | Law | Tech | TV | CE | DVR | Patents | Set-tops | Cable | Digeo | Moxi |

Cinea Debuts Digital Watermarking for Consumer Video Devices

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 30, 2006 - 12:35pm.
Reston, Va. - Cinea, a unit of Dolby that develops anti-piracy technologies for the movie and TV industries, on Wednesday introduced a new forensic watermarking application intended for use with consumer video devices.
tags: Video | Tech | TV | CE | Movies | DRM | IPTV | Watermarking | Set-tops | Video Tech | Cinea |

Cox to Deploy TiVo Digital Video Recorder Software

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 24, 2006 - 7:12pm.
Alviso, Calif. - TiVo, the maker of digital video recorders, announced on Thursday that it has signed an agreement with Cox Communications, the nation's fourth-largest cable TV provider, to customize its digital video recorder software for deployment on Cox digital video recorder set-tops. Cox Digital Cable subscribers with digital video recorder service will be given the option to subscribe to TiVo, and the TiVo software will be pushed to their existing digital video recorder set-tops. The service is expected to launch in select Cox markets in the first half of 2007.
tags: Video | Tech | TV | CE | TiVo | DVR | Software | Set-tops | Cable | Cox |

Sling Media to Launch "Place-shifting" TV Technology in Japan

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 23, 2006 - 12:45pm.
Tokyo - Sling Media, a developer of "place-shifting" technology that lets users access premium home cable or satellite TV channels while away from any Internet-connected device, announced on Friday that it plans to launch its Slingbox product in Japan next month.
tags: Launches | Video | Tech | TV | IPTV | Sling Media | Japan | Set-tops | CE Launches | Place-Shifting |
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