IPTV chugs along

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AT&T claims it has differentiated its service by enhancing these features and giving subscribers more. For example, while most cable operators support DVR recording for only two shows at once, AT&T allows up to four programs to be recorded. AT&T also claims to offer more high-definition programming--as many as 25 channels of HD in most markets. That said, AT&T's service is limited in the number of HD programs that can be recorded by the DVR at once.

AT&T has also touted its quick channel-changing feature as a big differentiator. And it allows for remote programming of the DVR through its AT&T Yahoo portal, so a subscriber can use any Internet-connected device, including a cell phone, to record or delete shows remotely.

Microsoft: Patience will be rewarded
Microsoft's director of marketing for MediaRoom, Ed Graczyk, said it's unfair to expect these services to leapfrog cable right out of the gate. He said the industry is evolving rapidly when compared with other developments in the TV world.

"Four years ago, the IPTV market barely existed," he said. "And we've already got nine operators that are deployed today and thousands of subscribers using the services. It took about 10 years for video-on-demand to be (available) in any meaningful way. And it's still not widely available in most of Europe."

Still, Microsoft and the operators using the software appear to be taking a measured approach to the features they add to the software and how they deploy it. The bulk of Microsoft's latest software upgrade will provide tools for operators to create more interactive program guides, storefronts and gaming platforms.

Microsoft has created a kind of browser optimized for the TV environment that will allow programmers to develop Web-enabled applications for the TV. And it's added a more advanced picture-in-picture functionality that can be used to allow subscribers to view clips of movies before ordering them from video-on-demand, for example.

While it's possible that carriers will be able to use this software to develop some cool and interesting applications, most of the functionality won't be seen by consumers for at least a couple of years.

The only major feature upgrade that consumers will see today with the new version of the software is the personal media sharing capability. IPTV subscribers will now be able to access all their non-DRM-protected digital music and personal digital photos from any PC in the home and listen to the music on their home entertainment centers or view the photos on their big-screen TVs.

Verizon has been offering a similar capability on its Fios TV service for nearly a year. But Microsoft's Graczyk said that Microsoft's version is much easier to use. The new feature will automatically appear as a menu item on any updated set-top box. And it will be able to access content from any Windows XP or Vista computer.

By contrast, Graczyk said, Verizon's solution requires subscribers to manually configure their PCs and download software to access the feature.

One feature that Microsoft's software still doesn't allow is multiroom or whole-home DVR. This capability allows people to use one DVR to record and watch shows through a regular set-top box in any room in the house. Again, Verizon has been offering this capability for almost a year. Satellite TV provider EchoStar Communications, through its Dish network, also offers the feature. (AT&T also resells the Dish service, which means AT&T Homezone customers can get multiroom DVR, but its U-verse customers can't.) And Time Warner Cable, the second-largest cable operator in the U.S., is offering it in certain markets.

Graczyk said features such as multiroom DVR are on Microsoft's IPTV road map and will soon make it into the software.

"It all boils down to prioritization," he said. "We can only do so much in any given software release. More updates will be coming, but we don't want to overwhelm users."

So what will be coming in the next 12 to 18 months? In addition to multiroom DVR functionality, Graczyk said a lot of enhancements will be made to improve search and navigation of the program guide. Microsoft is also planning to integrate IPTV with its Xbox game console to allow people to watch TV and chat using instant messaging over the Xbox Live system.

The new browser-like capabilities available in the latest software release will also allow Microsoft to build other features such as personal video portals that could allow people to customize their experience like they do on their PC or mobile phone. Subscribers could get personalized traffic information or be able to share recommendations over the network and integrate buddy lists from their PCs.

Mobility will also likely be added to the mix. Right now, AT&T allows subscribers to program their DVRs remotely using a Web-enabled cell phone, but eventually people will also be able to watch live TV on their phones.

AT&T said it is still testing the waters on many of these new features and applications.

"I think Microsoft and AT&T feel like all this stuff will happen in due time," said Michelle Abraham, principal analyst with In-Stat. "Every provider that rolls out a TV service has to start with the basics. Over the next year, we'll see a lot more things get added as they get their feet wet."

[KaplanMike]

Any support for Closed Captions?

As reported in Television Week today
<http://tvweek.com/news/2007/06/closed_captioning_exclude
d_dig.php> the great technical leaps in digital downloads, HD
and IPTV have all overlooked what many people consider a basic
function: closed captions. Yes, the FCC only requires closed
captions on cable and broadcast channels, but there's no reason
-- certainly no technological reason -- why captioning
shouldn't be included in IPTV. And yet, it's never mentioned as a
feature. As many as 30 million Americans have some sort of
hearing loss, and according to a BBC study, millions more
choose to watch with captions for a variety of reasons (noisy
environment, learning English, etc.).

Yet as of now, there's virtually no downloadable video content
available with either open- or closed-captions. Not iTunes. Not
ABC's highly touted media player. And nothing from Microsoft,
as far as I can tell.

This is a huge unserved market, and (until now) one of the big
unreported stories of the day. Before Apple and Microsoft worry
about what the next big thing is, please make sure that they
deliver on features that have been a part of broadcast television
for the past 15 years!!

[libertyforall1776]

Apple TV & AT&T; HANA?

I cannot wait to see Apple TV integrate w/AT&T -- ironic AT&T
developed UNIX, and Apple's box will finally bring UNIX back to
AT&T instead of M$...

I wonder if they will integrate HANA (High Definition Audio Video
Network Alliance) compatibility?
http://www.hanaalliance.org/