Posts filed under ‘HDTV’
Re-United (and It Feels so Good): Cable and CE Go Back to the Alter
One of the (possibly) monumental announcements from CES 2011 came from the Samsung keynote address where leaders from Samsung, Comcast, and Time Warner demo-ed a Smart TV that connected directly to cable TV services through the Internet without a set-top box. That means that cable customers will be able to receive their HD channels on their tablet/iPad, smartphone and connected TV/Bluray using their home networks. Customers will also be able to access on demand movies and the content stored on their DVRs. Verizon also announced a similar service for their FiOS customers.
Anyone who has ever tried to install a CableCard might be skeptical about another Cable-CE partnership, but this time there might be more than lip service. With the explosion of connected devices and the number of tablet PCs shown at CES (estimated at 50), the cable companies are facing a “we better do it or somebody else will” scenario. Streaming video over the Internet is becoming such a commodity and CableCos have been losing customers, so this move seems to make sense as both a defensive strategy as well as an opportunity to increase subscription revenue. For MoCA, the connection to the Smart TV will likely be through the coax cable to both the broadband as well as DVRs so this would be a big boost. Wireless devices could also be supported using MoCA through MoCA-WiFi Access Points installed in rooms where a strong WiFi signal is needed. We’ll see in the next few months whether this is just CES PR or actually will result in some exciting new services for 2011.
Google’s New TV?
A new TV has surfaced that works on the Google Android operating system, code named Scandinavia. The HD LCD TV comes in various sizes ranging from 42” to 55”. The Internet connected TV offers a variety of applications including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube apps, Gmail, and Google Maps among others. The TV also features a web browser. And because it’s using an Android base OS you can download applications and games from an App Store. This is an awesome device; you can download apps for the weather channel, play your favorite music, play games, listen to radio over the internet, and lots and lots more. Android is getting a lot of momentum in the phone world, and a lot of demand for faster Internet connections. If the same happens with TVs, MoCA will be there to provide the high-speed networking connection.
Read the article here
Parks Associates: PC and Game Consoles Extend Online Video to TV
Consumer interest for Web-on-TV applications is increasing, and consumers are rapidly making their own connection via PC and game consoles. According to Parks Associates, from 2008 to 2009, the number of U.S. households using Web-connected game consoles increased by 64%, and the number connecting a PC to a TV increased by 36%.
Over three-fourths of U.S. households with PC-to-TV connections and one-third of Xbox 360 owners are using these connections to stream online video. These households, as they extend online video and other Web experiences to the TV screen, are laying the foundation for future behaviors with connected CE and entertainment services.
This bodes well for connected Blu-ray players and networked digital media players such as Apple TV and Roku, says the article. With more consumers using these devices to stream HD videos, the demand for MoCA networks will increase as well.
Click here for the article.
Wal-Mart Buys VUDU – OTT in Every Home?
Wal-Mart Adds Its Clout to Movie Streaming – NYTimes.com.
In what seems to be a bet on the future of Over-The-Top (OTT) services, Wal-Mart acquired the VUDU online movie service in a deal estimated at $100M. The VUDU service is used in HDTVs and Bluray Players from LG, Samsung, Vizio, Sharp, etc… and is adding more vendors this year. VUDU is similar to the NETFLIX online streaming service, but is a Pay-Per-View service, offers up to 1080P HD movies, and usually offers a more recent catalog of movies.
Wal-Mart is one of the leading retailers for DVDs as well as HDTVs, so will be hedging their bets on the transition from packaged media to online media distribution. VUDU might also help increase sales of Internet-enabled HDTVs and Bluray Players, as well as the services to install them. Even longer term, Wal-Mart might also use VUDU to offer other online shopping services through the TV from digital music to household items from Walmart.com.
Whatever the future holds for Wal-Mart, VUDUs marketing power just increased exponentially and consumers will see and hear the VUDU brand a lot more. Since VUDU offers the highest 1080P streaming quality of any online movie service (up to 10Mbps), a MoCA home network will ensure that perfect quality throughout the house. Wal-Mart currently sells MoCA bridges on it’s website and with a VUDU-enabled HDTV, consumers will be the big winners in the end.
VIZIO’s Matthew McRae Discusses the Future of Connected TVs | eHomeUpgrade
VIZIO’s Matthew McRae Discusses the Future of Connected TVs | eHomeUpgrade.
You’ve probably seen them at your local Costco or Walmart and in 6 short years, VIZIO has displaced many of the Consumer Electronics titans as the king of flat panels. In this interview from NewTeeVee LIVE, VIZIO’s Matthew McRae discusses how VIZIO went from rags to riches in flat panel HDTV, it’s plan for connected Internet experience across it’s product line, and plans for the future of remote controls, TV apps, and creative places where people are putting TVs nowadays.
Blu-ray: 11 Networked Components at CEDIA Expo 2009, by Tom LeBlanc – Electronic House Info and Answers
What to add to your Home Theater for Christmas? Here’s the definitive list of latest and greatest connected HDTVs and Bluray players being offered with Netflix, Vudu, YouTube, Pandora and more. The guys at CEDIA (Custom Home Theater Installers) don’t fool around and usually price is no object, so if you have the dough this is where to spend it.
Variety: Television’s Killer App
Hollywood is standing up and taking notice of all the web-enabled HDTVs and Bluray players starting to show up in your local Best Buy. As the folks at Variety observe:
“These Web enabled TV sets are going to significantly increase the rate of video streaming,” Poltrack says. “I think you’ll see people experimenting with this by the end of the year. And, barring a bad experience, you’ll see content in this form by 2010. Five years from now, I think it will be a significant contributor of revenue to both content providers and distributors.”
One thing is certain: These TVs are coming, and fast.
With applications like YouTube, Picasa, Netflix, Blockbuster, Amazon and Yahoo Widgets accessible on your TV, the amount of new programming available will be virtually limitless. This will also cause a shakeup in who wins and loses in battle for your TV eyeballs between the TV manufacturer, cable company, Internet service, and content producer. With more video streaming coming into the living room, consumers will be looking for home networking solutions like MoCA to bridge the gap in their home networks.
Xbox 360 Gets Exclusivity on Netflix Streaming
Microsoft now has an exclusive partnership with Netflix, continuing the ability to instantly stream movies and TV shows from Netflix to your TV via Xbox 360. The Xbox will be the only game console to offer the Netflix movie experience, and is available to all Xbox Live Gold members who also have a Netflix unlimited subscription, all of this at no additional cost!
Vudu Moving to Embed Online Video Service into TVs
Vudu’s CEO Alain Rossmann says that Vudu will embed the new Vudu service directly into the TV, eliminating the expense and hassle of purchasing, installing or connecting another device to the TV.
LG TVs will, of course, have some of the first TVs with Vudu embedded that will be available to purchase. Rossmann also says that the platform will have features like instant start, instant fast forward and rewind and a faster and more refined user interface. The LG TVs, with Vudu built-in, should be available to customers sometime next month.
Kodak Theater HD Player Updated
For those of you with the Kodak Theater HD, an update has arrived, bringing 1080p! Kodak has also included more features in the update such as: YouTube access with search for videos by keyword, author, featured, top-rated, and more. Net Video access to online entertainment, and Discovery collage views, a new way to rediscover photos collected on your PC.
