Yahoo, Intel have high hopes for Internet TV
Posted by nstar612
Yahoo and Intel built their success upon widespread use of personal computers, but the two companies hope products to be shown at the Consumer Electronics Show next week will mark the beginning of their Internet-fueled expansion to the world of TV as well.
The two companies have attracted several significant manufacturing and content allies in the attempt to bring new smarts and interactivity to a part of the electronics world that has remained a more passive part of people’s digital lives.
What exactly are they trying to achieve? For Yahoo, it’s establishment of the Widget Channel, a software foundation that can house programs for browsing photos, using the Internet’s abundant socially connected services, watching YouTube videos, or digging deeper into TV shows — and through which Yahoo will be able to show advertisements.
For Intel, it’s a foothold in an industry whose microprocessors have typically been cheaper, less powerful, and less power-hungry.
Yahoo is confident the products will catch on, in part because it’s set “very low” licensing requirements, said Patrick Barry, vice president of Yahoo’s Connected TV initiative.
Internet TV is becoming more popular now that most families have broadband access at home. However, the internet infrastructure in US still lags behind in bandwidth compare to some other countries. I believe as long as they prove Internet TV to be a cheaper alternative to Cable or Satellite TV, Yahoo should have no problem to promote it.