REDMOND, Wash., and LOUISVILLE, Colo. – An agreement announced Wednesday between Microsoft and CableLabs means Microsoft’s dream of easily delivering high-quality TV signals to PCs is right around the corner.
The world’s biggest software company and the North American cable industry’s research and development organization today announced they have reached an agreement that will allow Microsoft and PC manufacturers to bring to market digital-cable-ready Windows Media Center-based PCs in the holiday 2006 time frame.
These Media Center PCs, capable of supporting a CableCARD module, will allow consumers to enjoy one-way cable programming, including premium high-definition cable content, on their personal computer and throughout the home on compliant network-connected devices, such as Xbox 360, while protecting cable operators’ investments in high-value content in a digital environment (read: no file-sharing possible).
Microsoft is working closely with CableLabs to document final approval of Windows Media Digital Rights Management (DRM) as a content protection technology for OpenCable products that receive one-way cable content under the terms of this agreement, says the press release.
“This agreement is an important milestone for our customers who want access to high-definition digital cable content on their PCs and a major step toward enabling a solution for the delivery of that content,” said Joe Belfiore, corporate vice-president of the Windows eHome Division at Microsoft.
“The cable industry is very interested in having the PC serve as another means to allow consumers to enjoy cable programming,” said Richard Green, president and CEO of CableLabs. “By working with Microsoft and the IT industry, we have come up with a solution to enable consumers to enjoy the wide range of entertainment options they want.”
“This agreement carefully balances the need to preserve the flexibility of the personal computer for consumers with the need for cable operators to be confident that the hardware and software shipped with compliant Media Center PCs will function like a CableCARD-enabled digital television,” said Glenn Britt, chairman of CableLabs and chairman and CEO of Time Warner Cable.
CableLabs members include all of the major cable companies in North America. Canadian members of CableLabs include: Rogers Communications, Shaw Communications, Videotron ltee, Cogeco Cable, EastLink, Access Communications, Westman Communications, CRTV, Aurora Cable, CRRS-TV, Mountain Cablevision, Northern Cablevision, and Seaside Communications.
This agreement is the culmination of more than two years of extensive evaluation and technical reviews performed by the two entities under the CableLabs OpenCable process to develop specifications and test suites for the new solution.
The specified OpenCable architecture allows for multiple DRM systems to be used in the device and ensures content providers of protected delivery of content to the PC. Microsoft Windows Media Digital Rights Management is the first major DRM system to complete the due diligence necessary for approval by CableLabs.
“The OpenCable project will continue to play an important role as the new agreement moves forward, allowing the cable industry to work closely with the consumer electronics and IT industries to innovate rapidly on the new specifications developed by Microsoft and CableLabs,” adds the release.
CableLabs will host interoperability events to enable vendors working on products based on these specifications to test products in CableLabs facilities and conduct more formalized certification testing. More information about the OpenCable project is available at www.opencable.com.
