Yahoo Net service comes to Samsung TVs
Yahoo TV Widgets are now available on Samsung TVs.
(Credit: Yahoo)Yahoo technology to bring Internet services to TVs has fledged from the demonstration realm to become available in an actual product, Samsung TVs.
Yahoo calls the technology TV Widgets, but Samsung is branding it as Internet@TV. It provides access to a handful of Yahoo services--news, stock quotes, Flickr photos, weather--as well as the Twitter microblogging service, sports scores, eBay shopping, and CBS content. (CBS is owner of CBS Interactive, which publishes CNET News.)
People tap into the services through applications called TV widgets that can be overlaid across the bottom or left of the screen; there's also a gallery that lets people download new widgets. A remote control is used to operate the service.
Samsung's Web site indicates the feature is available on four LED TVs that definitely won't be found in the bargain basement. They are the 55-inch, $3,800 UN55B7100 and UN55B7000 models and the 46-inch, $3,000 UN46B7100 and UN46B7000.
Yahoo and Intel jointly brought the TV Widgets technology to market, with a splashy debut at the Consumer Electronics Show in January. However, Yahoo plans to make TV Widgets available on TVs that don't use Intel processors, too.
Yahoo plans to offer advertising through the technology, too, though not initially. Advertisements don't have to go through Yahoo, however.
The technology is "coming soon" to TVs from Vizio, Sony, and LG Electronics, Yahoo said on its Web site.
Yahoo, perhaps overoptimistically, believes the technology will eliminate contention over who's the TV boss. "No more arguing over the remote, as everyone gets to enjoy what they want at the same time! You can check out the latest news from the New York Times, while other family members are still enjoying the TV show," the company asserts.
Stephen Shankland writes about a wide range of technology and products, but has a particular focus on browsers and digital photography. He joined CNET News in 1998 and since then also has covered Google, Yahoo, servers, supercomputing, Linux and open-source software, and science. E-mail Stephen, or follow him on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/stshank. 
