Microsoft ready to take on Apple, Google with TV set top box

[Jagi]

Microsoft ready to take on Apple, Google with TV set top box



Reports indicate that Microsoft is prepared to show off a connected television solution of its own, and will demo a TV set top box this week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The device will be similar to those already offered by competitors Apple and Google.

The Seattle Times reports that the device will come in at a price point below $200, and is expected to go on sale later in the year. In the simplest terms, it is an effort by Microsoft to bring its Windows Media Center concept to the masses.

It could be argued that the Redmond company was one of the first major companies to invest in the idea of a "connected TV" when it launched the Media Center platform back in 2002. However at the time, digital content had only begun to catch on, and the platform did not have broad-based appeal.

These days, it's certainly a different story. According to research firm DisplaySearch, the market for connected televisions is expected to triple to more than 124 million units by 2014.

Microsoft's entrant into the space will be built on Windows Embedded, with a UI similar to its Media Center platform. The company's plans are nothing new -- the devices made an appearance when Microsoft announced its plans for embedded software last year, and during an Intel conference last September.

The fact that the devices appeared at the chipmaker's gathering may give a strong indication that the devices themselves may use Intel chips.

If the Times reporting is true, it would mean a quicker timetable for Microsoft's connected TV plans than had earlier been reported. Reuters said in November that the company had been in talks to turn the Xbox 360 into a cable TV set top box for a monthly fee, although it was said at the time any service was a year away from becoming a reality.

 

[redemption]

Microsoft has to be THE MOST reactionary company in the world today. It's a shame given all the resources they have at their disposal

 

[Non-StopJFK2TAB]

Microsoft has to be THE MOST reactionary company in the world today. It's a shame given all the resources they have at their disposal

Theyve been in the game since 2002 and they are reactionary?

 

[JD Walker]

Theyve been in the game since 2002 and they are reactionary?

Microsoft has been in the game way longer that 2002, and they still suck.

 

[Tha Baldavenger]

Microsoft software runs many of the cable providers DVR's....don't sleep.

 

[redemption]

Theyve been in the game since 2002 and they are reactionary?

They've been in the game waaay longer than 2002 buddy. And even if you just count 2002, nearly every product they have introduced since then has almost ALWAYS been in response to someone else's success... ESPECIALLY Apple.

- You think Windows 7 would be what it is if OSX didnt exist and they had to keep up?
- Would there be an Xbox if Sony wasnt so successful with the PS2?
- You think Microsoft would of gotten rid of Windows Mobile if the iPhone didnt come out?
- Zune?
- Search has been around for YEARS, yet Microsoft didnt even care about it until Google's success. Now we have Bing!?
- You think IE would of seen ANY improvements if Firefox didnt exist?

I could go on and on, but hopefully you get my point. With all the resources they have, they rarely ever venture outside of their Windows/Office ecosystem (as far as consumer markets are concerned). But when they actually do, they are usually the last in line.

Any business who's gameplan is:

1) Wait for the competition to innovate and/or be successful
2) Copy (to the best of their ability)
3) Throw hundreds of millions of dollars at the product
4) Hope to gain a small percentage of the market

Will be gone in a couple of years. Microsoft is the exception given the money they made in the 90's, but theres no way scrambling to respond will keep them afloat forever..

 

[AwwSchitt]

Just like they were taking on Apple & Google with Windows Mobile 7. How has that gone so far?

 

[JD Walker]

I believe in the not so distant future Windblows will die at the hands of Chrome OS.

 

[RoomService]

who's going to ces this year

 

[Ryokurin]

If they actually are making it, then yes bring it on. If they are just showing what a company will release later this year, then whatever. Too many people remember the HP Slate and the Courier to be fooled by that again.

 

[Jagi]

They've been in the game waaay longer than 2002 buddy. And even if you just count 2002, nearly every product they have introduced since then has almost ALWAYS been in response to someone else's success... ESPECIALLY Apple.

- You think Windows 7 would be what it is if OSX didnt exist and they had to keep up?
- Would there be an Xbox if Sony wasnt so successful with the PS2?
- You think Microsoft would of gotten rid of Windows Mobile if the iPhone didnt come out?
- Zune?
- Search has been around for YEARS, yet Microsoft didnt even care about it until Google's success. Now we have Bing!?
- You think IE would of seen ANY improvements if Firefox didnt exist?

I could go on and on, but hopefully you get my point. With all the resources they have, they rarely ever venture outside of their Windows/Office ecosystem (as far as consumer markets are concerned). But when they actually do, they are usually the last in line.

Any business who's gameplan is:

1) Wait for the competition to innovate and/or be successful
2) Copy (to the best of their ability)
3) Throw hundreds of millions of dollars at the product
4) Hope to gain a small percentage of the market

Will be gone in a couple of years. Microsoft is the exception given the money they made in the 90's, but theres no way scrambling to respond will keep them afloat forever..

 

[Jagi]

Report: Microsoft to reveal new Windows TV boxes at CES 2011

Microsoft will reportedly unveil a new operating system designed specifically for televisions in a bid to enter the race for bringing the Internet to television.

The announcement, which is expected to be made during the company's opening keynote at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) starting in two days, will see the company pit itself against competitors including Apple with their Apple TV offering, the Rokyou box and Google, who recently launched their own product called Google TV.

According to The Seattle Time' Brier Dudley, Microsoft's offering -- to be dubbed something along the lines of Windows TV -- will run a modified version of the software giant's embedded device software, with a Windows Media Center interface to be integrated into the operating system. The boxes, which may be shown off at CES, are expected to retail in the United States for around $200 and were apparently spotted at a number of press events last year.

"They'll pose a serious challenge to the new Apple and Google TV devices, largely because the Windows boxes have a polished and familiar TV-program guide that makes it easy to blend and navigate both online and broadcast content," Dudley suggests.

The operating system will likely work hand-in-hand with Windows computers and Microsoft's Windows Media Center software which is already available, and will allow users to stream media from third-party devices to their television sets in a similar fashion to Apple's recently released Airplay functionality. Users will also likely be able to control the Windows TV device from third-party devices, with Windows Phone 7 support likely but not confirmed.

It's thought that Microsoft will not manufacture any Windows TV devices themselves, with the company understood to have instead opted to offering the operating system to third-party manufacturers although this remains unclear at this stage. It's also not clear if or how much the company will be charging for licensing fees for the use of their software but if the software giant wants to compete with the likes of Google TV -- which can be licensed for free adding little in the way of extra overheads for manufacturers -- for pricing, they won't be charging much.

 

[BrownTurd]

They've been in the game waaay longer than 2002 buddy. And even if you just count 2002, nearly every product they have introduced since then has almost ALWAYS been in response to someone else's success... ESPECIALLY Apple.

- You think Windows 7 would be what it is if OSX didnt exist and they had to keep up?
- Would there be an Xbox if Sony wasnt so successful with the PS2?
- You think Microsoft would of gotten rid of Windows Mobile if the iPhone didnt come out?
- Zune?
- Search has been around for YEARS, yet Microsoft didnt even care about it until Google's success. Now we have Bing!?
- You think IE would of seen ANY improvements if Firefox didnt exist?

I could go on and on, but hopefully you get my point. With all the resources they have, they rarely ever venture outside of their Windows/Office ecosystem (as far as consumer markets are concerned). But when they actually do, they are usually the last in line.

Any business who's gameplan is:

1) Wait for the competition to innovate and/or be successful
2) Copy (to the best of their ability)
3) Throw hundreds of millions of dollars at the product
4) Hope to gain a small percentage of the market

Will be gone in a couple of years. Microsoft is the exception given the money they made in the 90's, but theres no way scrambling to respond will keep them afloat forever..

Dude you are delusional. Microsoft owns 98% of the market they are not reacting to anyone. Apple owns less then 5% of the market and always taking L's. Android about to body them and that is another L Apple is taking. With the new Windows 7 phones now having the ability to play XBox and Xbox live games it is about to be a wrap

 

[kingcam]

microsoft spends like 7 billion annually on research and development.

apple spends like 900 million.

microsoft is coming out with something fucking huge. and think about it. we just got office 2007 at work. there are like 10 computers in my office and i own just two at home. business >>> consumer and microsoft owns business.

 

[redemption]

Dude you are delusional. Microsoft owns 98% of the market they are not reacting to anyone. Apple owns less then 5% of the market and always taking L's. Android about to body them and that is another L Apple is taking. With the new Windows 7 phones now having the ability to play XBox and Xbox live games it is about to be a wrap

Delusional? I dont think so pal. First off, Microsoft's 98% of the worldwide marketshare pertains to the Windows OS (not phones, tablets, gaming, set top boxes, etc.). And that 98% figure was back in 2006, as of now they are somewhere around 93%.

Also keep in mind, their vast install base has little to do with the dominance of their OS, but rather them having an entire decade (the 90's) with little to no competition.

Let me also point out that, MICROSOFT DOESNT MAKE COMPUTERS! The money they make from their $30 a pop OS licenses business, is reliant on sheer volume. The more inroads Apple, Linux, and eventually Google make in this area has catastrophic ramifications for Microsoft in the long run if they cant maintain their decade long lead (which is becoming more evident that they are having trouble doing so).

Now as far as Apple taking L's, where the hell did you get this figure? They went from being a company that was 6 months away from bankruptcy, to the 2nd most valuable company on the planet (behind Exxon). As of last quarter, Apple actually MAKES MORE MONEY THAN MICROSOFT.

And finally, as far as Android "ABOUT" to body Apple. It's coo if youre a fan of Google and their OS. Nothing wrong with that. But the reality is, all the recent growth of Android (and iOS) was at the expense of RIM and Microsoft, not Apple. Android's growth is reliant on the ability of other manufacturers to deliver home-run products. Unfortunately, most of them seem to be having trouble doing so (hell, Google cant even sell their own phone). Just look at this year's CES event. It's like a cluttered tea party rally of Android devices (all chanting iPhone/iPad killer), and none of them really stand out, and not a single one of them are gaining mainstream interest.

And Windows Phone... Seriously? Now I actually like the OS they came up with, but regardless, NOBODY IS BUYING THE PHONES. The most profitable portion of their company is the Xbox, and unfortunately it's not bringing in enough $ to sustain the entire company. For the simple fact that Microsoft is doing all kind of sneaky tricks with their profit reporting (like mixing the Windows 7 numbers in with the Xbox & Gaming numbers to show profitability), and their stocks have been teetering around $30 a share for the last 10 years, its obvious the L's are being taken by Microsoft.

 

[redemption]

microsoft spends like 7 billion annually on research and development.

apple spends like 900 million.

microsoft is coming out with something fucking huge. and think about it. we just got office 2007 at work. there are like 10 computers in my office and i own just two at home. business >>> consumer and microsoft owns business.

Given they've been investing so much in R&D for almost 20 YEARS, I wouldnt be too excited about this figure. If youre spending 7 billion on R&D and you can only bring a few items to market that in most cases dont sell, yet NASA can get us to space and back for $169 Million, THIS IS A REASON TO BE CONCERNED.

As far as Apple and the business market (I really wasnt intending for this discussion to be a Apple/MS comparison). You are right, Apple definitely has little prominence here. But then again, they havent really tried either (outside of Xserves, they've only tried pushing their consumer products to businesses).

However, Apple is already preparing to change this. They have brought on people from Oracle, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, etc. and I would assume they plan to make a push in the coming years. So we'll see what happens.

But in all actuality, Apple seems to be doing just fine without the business market.