Internet TV on the way: Microsoft, Intel align; Sun brings Java home

The slow trickle leading to Internet/TV convergence could become a flood by the end of the year if announcements from last week's National Association of Broadcasters show in Las Vegas are any indication.

Leading the charge could be heavyweights Microsoft and Intel, which agreed to align their Internet TV efforts. One of the first tangible results of the alliance will be Microsoft's support for Intel's Intercast streaming video technology in Web TV for Windows.

"This will bring interactive TV programming and consumer applications in volumes, achieving ubiquity," said Ron Whittier, senior vice president and general manager of Intel's content group.

Additionally, the two will collaborate on models to bring broadcast-type programming to PC users. However, the companies will not join to create such content, said Craig Mundie, senior vice president of Microsoft's consumer platforms division. "This is strictly a software announcement," he said.

In a separate announcement, Scientific-Atlanta said it would license Sun Microsystems' PersonalJava application environment for its Explorer digital set-top boxes. Additionally, PowerTV Inc., which provides Scientific-Atlanta with an operations system for its digital boxes, said it would port PersonalJava to its platform.

The addition of PersonalJava will open an entire new class of applications for cable operators, including IP telephony, said Allen Ecker, president of subscriber systems for Scientific-Atlanta. "This gives you a middleware layer that provides access to the widespread Java development community."

Scientific-Atlanta's current plan calls for porting the scripting language over the next six months, after which "we really want to wring it out and put it in ROM," said Ecker. Current digital set-tops will be upgraded via software downloads.

Despite vendor efforts, though, one analyst's recent study claims Internet/TV convergence is still years away. More important than the technical advances will be creating a compelling business case and changing consumer attitudes, said Will Strauss, president of Tempe, Ariz.-based Forward Concepts.

"It's a lifestyle issue," he said. "Most people don't like to have to make a decision or interact with their TV except channel surf. Making it easier is going to help, but we still think that the PC is going to be the information appliance for as far as we can see."

The combination of Intel and Microsoft, however, has much greater potential than previous efforts, said Whittier. "This industry tried five years ago putting tuners on PCs simply for the purpose of watching television on PCs," he said. "This goes well beyond that. It's compatible with linking to the Internet. That allows for things where there's a transaction at the back end."