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Intel Television The Internet

Intel To Launch Paid Web TV Service With Set-Top Box 70

Posted by Soulskill from the watching-you-watching-tv dept.
New submitter kdryer39 writes "In an unexpected but kind-of-makes-sense move, chip-maker Intel has decided to delve into the TV world by creating a set-top box and a paid Internet television service. The box will contain an HD camera and microphone for various 'novel applications.' Intel expects to provide various live and on-demand content, as well as re-inventing the wheel by changing the way people search for content. How will they do this, and where will they get the content from? Unfortunately, we don't know...and apparently neither does Intel. Erik Hugger, head of the newly-created Intel Media group, has stated that negotiations with content providers are in process, but gave no specific details. Is this an effort for the company to re-invent itself? Perhaps, but either way, it'll be one of those things that will be interesting to follow as it develops." The "novel applications" for the on-board camera include identifying who's watching the TV and providing programming it thinks they'll like. At one point, Huggers said, "There's a scenario where the TV recognizes that it's you and says 'Hey, I know what you like. I know what you want to watch', versus the environment we're in today where the TV literally is not interested in you at all.' Maybe I'm getting old, but I like that my appliances aren't particularly interested in me. (Haven't they seen Maximum Overdrive?!)
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Intel To Launch Paid Web TV Service With Set-Top Box More

Intel To Launch Paid Web TV Service With Set-Top Box

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  • Not going to happen. (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Frosty Piss ( 770223 ) * on Tuesday February 12, 2013 @11:19PM (#42878799)

    Let me start off by predicting failure.

    Look, itâ(TM)s been tried. Apple, Microsoft, others⦠The Cable Giants have the real estate, mind share, contracts with entertainment producers, and they are not giving it up. Indeed, many of the cable giants OWN the content producersâ¦

    Not going to happen.

    • Re:Not going to happen. (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Stan92057 ( 737634 ) on Tuesday February 12, 2013 @11:32PM (#42878889)
      I know i wont buy one i don't want my TV spying on me. I know what i want to watch and when i don't , I enjoy flicking through the channels. I don't need yet another advertiser spying on what i do and try to tell me its for my own good. Nope not happening
      • You could always just stick some tape or something over the camera if it bugs you that much.

        • Re: (Score:1)

          by Anonymous Coward

          Or (and I know this may sound kinda extreme and too "out there"), you can simply choose not to buy it.

          Have you ever heard of the concept of "voting with your money"? If you don't like a product, or some of its quirks, you simply don't buy it, to reduce the incentive for companies to come up with shitty crap that nobody wants.

      • Your cable company already knows what you watch. Even on analog cable they can monitor signal strength and reflections and get a good idea of who's tuned into what.
        • I'm sure they do, but don't advertise it since they are not allowed to by law. We wouldn't have the 200+ channels we have because the advertisers wouldn't advertise on channels where no one is watching.

      • I know i wont buy one i don't want my TV spying on me.

        Given your grammar and spelling, one wonders if you are a typical product of the American educationa system, or simply a moron?

        • lazy is more like it but you are a true troll congrats there all mistakes were on purpose just for you feel better now

    • Re:Not going to happen. (Score:5, Informative)

      by Hamsterdan ( 815291 ) on Tuesday February 12, 2013 @11:36PM (#42878915)

      And those giants are also ISPs, so don't think they'll give higher caps so you can stream their competition

    • Re: (Score:2, Informative)

      by Anonymous Coward

      Strange, pretty much the same things were said about Apple entering the phone market....

      Apple has yet to make serious play , but their Apple TV is starting to sell in reasonably serious numbers for a "hobby".

      My DVD collection is growing because I am getting sick of the adverts, they are all ripped to my Mac Mini which has a 12TB RAID array attached to it so my movies and TV series stream really well to the multiple Apple TVs we have. We are all watching less and less live TV.

      And at the moment I buy DVDs fro

    • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

      by Anonymous Coward

      Same thing all over again.

      First, all of you need to understand that world is a lot bigger than you think. USA is just a part of it, with it's cable networks. The rest of 7.7 billion people really do not dig this cable stuff. That is (partly) why torrent sharing is so successful.
      Secondly, XBMC has already done it, and it is free.
      Thirdly, thefact that big money does not want to back down simply means that we have not made them realise that they can not step in our living room as they please. Therefore, wote w

  • Oh great. Just what I needed. (Score:5, Funny)

    by paiute ( 550198 ) on Tuesday February 12, 2013 @11:33PM (#42878901)
    "Hi there! This is Bippy, your personal interactive video helper! I see you have your pants off! Shall I show you what's on Cinemax?"
    • More like,"Hi there! This is Bippy, your personal interactive video helper! I see you have your pants off! Would you like me to open a Spice subscription for you? I already have all of your personal and billing information available, I just need your verbal acknowledgement."

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by tyrione ( 134248 )

        More like,"Hi there! This is Bippy, your personal interactive video helper! I see you have your pants off! Would you like me to open a Spice subscription for you? I already have all of your personal and billing information available, I just need your verbal acknowledgement."

        How about, in a huskier female voice:

        ``Welcome to the Spice Channel Trial Package deep immersion experience. Just sit back and relax as our girls blast you off. Let us know how you like it and we'll make sure your service is uninterrupted.''

        On the lower part of the screen is a Question Mark.

        `Hi. My name is Bippy and welcome to your subscription to the free Spice Adult immersion experience. If any time before this free trial is over you are not happy with this service please feel free to contact me and I'l

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by paiute ( 550198 )
          Followed by a little avatar with cauliflower ears and a 5 o'clock shadow: "Yo! This is Vinny! It'd be a shame if your wife and boss found out about dat program youse was watchin' the udder night. Hows about you sign up for our privacy protection program?"

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by AmiMoJo ( 196126 ) *

        More like,"Hi there! This is Bippy, your personal interactive video helper! I see you have your pants off! Would you like me to open a Spice subscription for you? I already have all of your personal and billing information available, I just need your verbal acknowledgement."

        Naturally while this happens a preview of the Spice channel will be playing on screen.

        Enticing bimbo: "Oh yeah, do it! Do it now!"
        Bippy: "Thank you for subscribing to Spice. Your credit card has been debited. Would you like to see a selection of toys and cleaning materials from our partners?"

  • LOL, i wonder, what kind of idiot would fall in this trap.....wait a minute, but, but, they are EVERYWHERE!!!

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Anonymous Coward

      LOL, i wonder, what kind of idiot would fall in this trap.....wait a minute, but, but, they are EVERYWHERE!!!

      They are everywhere. They're the ones falling all over themselves to give away their privacy for some search results and a fart app.

  • Hmmm (Score:3)

    by msauve ( 701917 ) on Tuesday February 12, 2013 @11:36PM (#42878921)
    Products which provide something you didn't know you needed create successful new markets. Products which provide something you know you don't want, don't. This is the latter (for me, anyway).

  • Cameras (Score:3)

    by girlintraining ( 1395911 ) on Tuesday February 12, 2013 @11:36PM (#42878931)

    Listen, Corporate Overlords, you know that little buzzer or dinger that goes off incessantly whenever I leave the lights on or don't buckle up and you think it's a "feature"? The first week of every car I've ever owned is spent taking apart the dashboard and removing that feature, and then pulverizing it with a hammer and throwing the remains on a base of burning coals. I shit you not, I'm serious about that crap.

    Try putting cameras and microphones in things, and you'll find them equally under-appreciated in my household. That is, assuming I feel there are no better choices on the market... if even one of your competitors opts out, that's where my dollars go. Don't tempt me.

    Signed, Interested Customer

    • I'm not fond of those bells and buzzers either, but I'm not so angry about them that I have to destroy things.

      Instead, I just read the owner's manual and followed the instructions to disable them. What, you can't disable them on your car without the destruction, and you hate them that much, and yet you still bought that car? Why?

    • Listen, Corporate Overlords, you know that little buzzer or dinger that goes off incessantly whenever I leave the lights on or don't buckle up and you think it's a "feature"? The first week of every car I've ever owned is spent taking apart the dashboard and removing that feature, and then pulverizing it with a hammer and throwing the remains on a base of burning coals. I shit you not, I'm serious about that crap.

      Or you could, you know, turn the lights off and buckle up. It's illegal in most developed countries to not buckle up. Also, it takes you a week to dismantle a dashboard?

      • Do I have to buckle up the box of books that triggered 'A person must be in this seat', so you have to buckle up sensor.

        Only, that sensor doesn't activate until you are already driving, so you will be on the road, and a loud pinging will start, and you will wonder just what the hell went wrong with your car, glancing at your dash to see what light came on. DId you leave the emergency brake on? Crap, maybe it's the engine.

        In the meantime, what you aren't doing is giving your full attention to the road. Ev

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 ) *

      It's actually illegal not to belt up in the UK, so that warning is pretty useful. Especially if you have kids.

      Having left my lights on a couple of times I installed a warning alarm.

    • you know that little buzzer or dinger that goes off incessantly whenever I leave the lights on or don't buckle up and you think it's a "feature"?

      It's absolutely a feature. Unlike the good ol' days I no longer mistakenly leave my lights on (although it's always been a big of a puzzle to me why the lights don't turn off with the ignition, like the wipers and fan, but whatever), never leave the key in the ignition and I always wear my seatbelt, so the seatbelt beep is irrelevant.

      PS Oh yeah and next ti

  • Stalking (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Master Moose ( 1243274 ) on Tuesday February 12, 2013 @11:46PM (#42878999) Homepage

    This open us up to a whole new way of stalking!

    No more will we be going through people's garbage to find out about them. We will pint out pictures of their faces, wear them as masks and see what they like watching when they are alone.

    Hmm its 6 o'clock, I wonder what Natalie Portman would like to watch?

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Anonymous Coward

      roflmao

      The way you think scares me just a bit...

      But that IS pretty damn funny.

    • Hmm its 6 o'clock, I wonder what Natalie Portman would like to watch?

      Something involving statues and hot grits, I would guess...

  • ISP can just data cap to jam this up also why there own box and not just a software that can be loaded on to any pc?

  • Network them! (Score:5, Funny)

    by deimtee ( 762122 ) on Wednesday February 13, 2013 @12:02AM (#42879141) Journal
    If they talked to each other they could play your preferences wherever you are. Think of the fun when you are visiting family and the TV starts playing.
    "Is that yours?"
    "Nope, not mine. Dad?"
    "Never seen it before"
    "Uncle Fred have you been watching this stuff?"
    "Uh-uh, not me, I don't like midgets"
    All together : "GRAAAANDMAAAA!!! "

  • "1984" Telescreen (Score:3)

    by Bing Tsher E ( 943915 ) on Wednesday February 13, 2013 @12:09AM (#42879185) Journal

    All this device needs now is for it to be impossible to shut it off, and for the audio volume to be possible to reduce slightly, but never fully silenced,

    I know I will be looking for that corner of the room that the lens can't see.

  • I am getting irritated with Youtube , and other services lately, that are making recommendations to me based on what I looked at in the past.

    Just because it caught my interest once, does NOT mean I'm looking for a steady diet of it. So a 'cute cat' video caught my attention once... I DO NOT want to see a list of 100 'cute cat' videos staring me in my face the next time I go into YouTube!!

  • Awkward.... (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward

    Well that's fun until you sit down to watch with the teenager and you hear - 'hey johnny! I know you like lesbian decaptation tentacle porn - got it queued up and ready to go!"

    All kidding aside - let's not kid ourselves by saying this is anything more than a lead in to the "this content is only licensed for one person, or X Person"
    "You need to purchase more licenses" or "you; Person Y are not authorized to watch this"

  • Does that mean that when I walk into a room with a suitably equipped TV, it will turn off?

  • "Set Top Box" Makes No Sense (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Arcady13 ( 656165 ) on Wednesday February 13, 2013 @12:21AM (#42879263) Homepage

    Look. We all have flat panel televisions now. Exactly how are we supposed to put these boxes on top of them?

    You need to call these something else.

    Under set box?
    Accessory box?
    Smart TV box?

    Or start building a shelf on top of the TV.

  • Probably will fail because... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Funk_dat69 ( 215898 ) on Wednesday February 13, 2013 @12:34AM (#42879411)

    Intel is kind of a no compromise company. They want the power..and the margins. Look at the rest of their businesses:
      They own a huge chunk of the margins on PCs and servers, and basically dictate to OEMs what their products will be.
      They kicked Nvidia out of the chipset/motherboard market because, y'know, can't have that.
      They wouldn't budge on prices for chips in the original Xbox, which doomed it to failure and havn't sniffed the console market since.
      They're in and out of mobile, mostly because they can't line up any partners.

    And now they're going to play nice with the content/distribution cartels? The path to their door it littered with the corpses of start-ups and wunderkinds that only needed the Ace of Content for the staight flush.

    Don't blame me if I don't hold my breath there.

  • These would be features that PS3, Wii or Xbox would be sporting in this or the next generation.
  • I mean honestly, what century are we in? Who pays for internet content anymore? Who wants the content created and distributed by the media cartels? The cartels are becoming less and less relevant and Intel is really swinging at shit in the dirt with this device.

    Even if Intel manages the impossible and talks the media cartels into playing nicely with it, who would want to care about 'Intel Inside' set top boxes? Especially with cameras and microphones in them (that's some stupid and scary shit). Every ISP

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Skapare ( 16644 )

      I'd pay for internet content ... if I was certain it was of good quality ahead of time, and worth the price. Very little actually is. Oh, and it has to work on BSD and Linux.

  • We've all got flat panel TV sets now. There's no more 'top' to put the box on.

  • They gotta be kidding, I don't want my damn tv watching me.
  • The entire reason I ever watch TV at all anymore is for something unexpected, even sometimes to watch the latest commercials. If i know what I want ahead of time, I'll watch it on netflix or something. If I want some random entertainment I sit in front of the TV, please don't take that away from me.
  • "Maybe I'm getting old, but I like that my appliances aren't particularly interested in me."

    Well, I'm not old, but I still don't like such trends. I could settle with something like optional voice-based identification (i.e. on demand, when you explicitely say you want to be identified), but other than that, thanks but no thanks. And, maybe I'm weird that way, but I don't like to have a device in my home that has a hd camera, is enabled to automatically identify me, and be internet-connected. Such a device

  • ...and you want me to pay for the hardware?

  • You can keep your camera and mics.

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