Oh Google, TV? Really?
Television has come a long way since 1930s, and the medium continues to evolve as the world gets more wired. Now you don’t even need a cable to get “cable” from companies like AT&T, and you can watch some of your favorite shows online whenever you want with Hulu and Netflix.
So what’s the future of the telly? To hear Google tell it, “viewers will start using set-top boxes to stream on demand, store show preferences and surf the Web from their sofa in between episodes of “Family Guy.”“
And the Internet giant is determined to get this next-gen technology on the market this fall, branded as Google TV.
Google TV is unlike other Internet television products and services, as it technically isn’t a devoted set-top box or website like Hulu. It’s simply a software service that allows viewers to search through programming from cable, satellite and Web providers. Of course, it also lets viewers browse Web pages on their television — not a new feature or a surprising one but a function Google aims to streamline and make more than just a gimmick.
But there are some serious snags with this high-tech television revolution. First is that Google is just in charge of the software and needs third parties to get on board with building the hardware. Logitech and Sony are both shipping set top boxes sporting Google TV this fall to test the market – but you can bet they won’t hang on for long if they don’t see profits materialize.
Even more of a challenge for Google is that television’s major players aren’t on board. And who could blame them? Time Warner (TWX), Comcast (CMCSA) and every other cable provider in the country has had to transform from a classically styled broadcast platform to an on-demand portal in the post-TiVo (TIVO), post-YouTube world. Playing nice with Google would be like admitting that the industry has outlived its life cycle and is destined to become obsolete.
Given the trouble Google Inc. is having convincing major television networks to support Google TV, true Internet television might not be ready for prime time just yet.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, Google has met with Fox, ABC, NBC, CBS and executives from every network and cable group under the sun. And none of them will join Google TV until they know Web-based services will not sap customers from their conventional revenue channels through broadcast television.
You can read the rest of the article posted on MSN Here
So there is the question, are we ready to search not only the web but tonight’s prime time line up through Google?
