Did DirecTV Just Serve Media Center a Fatal Blow?

RICHARD GUNTHER

Nearly three years ago at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show, Bill Gates unveiled a deal with DirecTV that would open Windows Media Center to a whole new market—satellite customers. Two agonizing years later at CES 2008, DirecTV quietly released news about their two-tuner interface for Media Center. But just days ago, DirecTV announced it is suspending further development of this device, and I have to ponder the impact: Is this the end of the line for Media Center?

Windows Media Center has faced continued challenges from the start. Spawned from Microsoft's lackluster Ultimate TV, Windows XP Media Center Edition was greeted with mixed reactions. The Windows PC as a DVR. But why would you want a DVR on your desk? Or a PC in your living room?

And so Media Center evolves, eventually finding its way onto devices from the likes of HP, Gateway, and Sony that look more like and fit better with consumers' home entertainment equipment. CE companies produce Media Center remotes and build extenders that let you use the Media Center from any TV in the home. Except that nobody buys them because the boxes are priced on par with similarly capable computers instead of similarly capable set-top boxes. Why pay $1000 for a PC when you can spend $300 for a TiVo—or just rent a DVR from your cable or satellite service provider?

Meanwhile, HDTV is gaining ground, and while TiVo seems entirely incapable of delivering its long-promised Series 3 HD recorder, consumers start looking toward Microsoft—and Microsoft is starting to look better. With several revs of the platform, suddenly Windows Media Center supports HD! Over the air. Only. But it's more than TiVo's offering, save for a select few early-adopting satellite customers. And it's far better than what most local cable providers can provide at the time.

So Microsoft puts the moves on. Windows Vista overhauls the whole on-screen experience, once again rejuvenating interest in Media Center as a home entertainment platform. Microsoft talks about a future with CableCard support for HD cable tuners, your HD DVD movie collection right on your hard drive, and TVs with Media Center built right in. And then, in early 2006, Gates announces the entry into a largely untapped market with deals to support DirecTV and Sky.

But when Vista comes out, the CableCard support isn't there, and consumers soon realize that their Media Center PC is using more CPU cycles to protect the interests of the content providers than to provide the engaging access to media that they were sold. Available extenders don't support HD content yet, Sony introduces and retires a few more overpriced living room devices, HD DVD tanks, and HP scraps all support for Media Center PCs and TVs. Once again, the consumers aren't buying, and Windows Media Center is not staking its claim to the living room as Microsoft had so hoped.

Imagine the impact that DirecTV's abandonment of Media Center must mean for Microsoft. CableCard support for Media Center PCs is largely encumbered by licensing, certification, and cost. Analog tuner support offered in earlier Media Center PCs is all but useless come February's digital transition. Set-top box tethering has never really been a good option—especially without any high definition video connection between devices. And now support for satellite TV on Media Center seems entirely unlikely. That leaves over-the-air HD broadcasts. And that's it. Now how much would you pay?

Nowadays, it's a challenge to even find a Media Center PC for the living room. Most of those available today are from specialty PC manufacturers catering to high-end home theater systems. And certified CableCard support adds even more expense for consumers, starting at about $300 per tuner. Somewhat ironically, custom installers often shy away from Media Center home theater solutions. The margins are too low, and the system is so complete out of the box, there's little opportunity for the kind of consulting revenue that a complex solution like Crestron might yield.

In many ways, Microsoft offers a superior home entertainment platform. It provides multi-tuner recording capabilities from multiple sources with no monthly fees; it delivers a visually engaging and intuitive on-screen experience; it provides seamless access to music, video, and photos on your network; it presents a platform that third-party developers can and do use to expand its capabilities; and it doesn't spam you with ads at every turn.

Nonetheless, it's pretty clear that Windows Media Center is flailing. Licensing, pricing, certification, content protection, poor vendor hardware support, and now economic trends have all played a part in Media Center's failure to attract the audience it deserves. It's probably fair to assume that a handful of poor business decisions have also contributed to this mess. This week's announcement from DirecTV has to be the worst possible news at this point.

So is this it for Media Center? Windows 7 promises to enhance the media experience with a refreshed interface and integrated online content. But it may be too late. And if the next wave of Media Center devices remains overpriced and encumbered by corporate jockeying, Windows Media Center could go the way of Web TV, remaining a niche product for a very small market. One thing is certain: I'm not believing anything I see at Microsoft's Media Center kiosk this January until it's on my own home theater PC.

Feedback for the D.C. Government

I love that D.C. sends alerts to my phone and e-mail account. I just wish they didn't seem like they were written by someone without any education. From today:

DDOT reports at 295 Southbound  there’s a two vehicle accident with injuries all lanes are block at this time and all on coming traffic is Being rerouted on to East Capitol St.

If I were grading this in English class, I'd mark seven problems with this short message. Can you find them?

D.C. Parking Enforcement Sets an Example

Parking is at a premium in D.C.'s busy Georgetown shopping district, so the local Chevy Chase Bank posts clear and reasonable restrictions on the parking available for its customers. Oh...the car parked behind the sign? That's an official vehicle from the Parking Enforcement division of the District of Columbia's Department of Public Works. It's parked there. And the bank was closed at the time this picture was taken, so...it seems unlikely that the parking enforcement officer was "banking at Chevy Chase Bank." It seems more likely that the parking enforcement officer was violating Chevy Chase's parking policy by using this private lot rather than seeking out oh-so-hard-to-find legal street parking in Georgetown. Precious, isn't it?

Marriott Understands Travelers' Technology Needs

After finally giving up on the Sheraton Stamford, I strayed from my Starwood roots to stay at Marriott's Courtyard Stamford Downtown earlier this week. I was surprised and delighted to find the room appointed with many perks, including an LG high definition LCD TV, and a desktop interface with power, communication, and media connections galore!

Check out the options here:

• 4 outlets, specifically oriented to accommodate multiple wall-bricks
• 1 telephone jack
• 1 Ethernet jack
• 1 3.5mm stereo audio jack
• 1 set of RCA audio/video jacks
• 1 S-video jack
• 1 VGA connector
• 1 HDMI connector

The A/V connectors all feed into the widescreen LCD TV, which auto-detects and selects the connected source. Of course, if you want to go wireless, you can do that, too. The hotel provides wired and wireless Internet access in the rooms at no cost. The only negative: the hotel's television and video service offers just standard definition programming and content.

CompUSA Closes. Is Anyone Really Surprised?

After months of liquidation, CompUSA's operations will cease this Friday. Analysts are debating the cause of the company's demise, but there’s really no mystery here. CompUSA failed for two main reasons:

(1) Their customer service sucked. I can’t tell you how many times I wrote to or spoke with CompUSA’s unapologetic management about the poor customer service in their stores. Staff were often unavailable, uninformed, and unhelpful. Advertised specials were often unavailable. Clerks were clearly more interested in selling computers than helping customers with the bulk of the store’s merchandise.

(2) They lost their focus by trying to sell home video electronics. Most CompUSA stores reconfigured their space to sell TVs, DVD players, DVRs, and other home electronics. Put aside the question of why they believed they could attract TV-buying consumers. Or maybe you shouldn’t. In fact, because they couldn’t move this merchandise, most of their home video inventory was woefully outdated.

Macworld Predictions Recap

OK, so let's quickly review my Macworld predictions and see how I did....

• Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac releases - check; it wasn't a surprise to anyone, but it happened today nonetheless. Of course, this was a no-brainer.
  

• New features for existing iPhones and discussion about the iPhone SDK - check; Apple pushed another iPhone (and iPod Touch) update today that adds great new features to the iPhone, including mapping, messaging, and home page improvements. Other manufacturers please note: this great platform doesn't stagnate, thanks to continued software updates.
  

• No announcements of new iPhones, except possibly for added memory for the existing line - check; lots of news about the iPhone's popularity, but no new product announcements. Sadly, no additional memory yet either.
  

• No new iPod devices - check; After a major refresh of the iPod line last fall, there's no need for new devices yet. The iPod Touch, however, did get some additional functionality (for a nominal fee).
  

• New life for Apple TV with movie rentals through iTunes and other new capabilities - check; With a firmware update in just a few short weeks, my Apple TV will become an in-home movie rental store--with titles from every major studio (even Universal!). And a music store. And a full HD/5.1 video playback device. Sweet! Want in? Get one yourself at over 20% off the original price!
  

• A new addition and form factor added to the Mac computer line - check; MacBook Air is a new 3-pound ultra-portable notebook that (according to Apple) is the thinnest notebook computer in the world. I just might have to get one.
  

Hmmm...considering I posted these over a week before the big event, I'd say I did pretty well! As an added bonus, today's Apple TV announcements addressed 3 out of 4 of my earlier product feature wishes for that device.

Related posts:

• My Macworld Predictions
• What's Next for Apple TV?
  

DirecTV Tuner for Media Center Closer to Becoming Reality

Yesterday DirecTV started officially talking about its upcoming new PC tuner. At CES, product sheets outlined the features of a stand-alone, USB-connected, two-tuner device called the HDPC-20 (think external CableCard tuner). Specifically, this product provides significant new options for Media Center and DirecTV customers alike. It delivers DirecTV HD content to Windows Vista Media Center, opening new markets for Media Center and (finally) an alternative to DirecTV's own less-than-spectacular DVRs. DirecTV isn't offering up any information about dates and cost, but price-wise, I'd expect it to fall somewhere between their set-top HD tuners and HD DVRs. Whatever the schedule, it's nice to see that this relationship between Microsoft and DirecTV, first announced by Gates at CES two years ago, is real.

SmartLabs a No-show at CES

SmartLabs, the company behind the INSTEON home automation technology, is noteably absent at this year's Consumer Electronics Show. In the space listed as their booth--the largest in the Home Automation section--stands...nothing. Vast emptiness. Hopefully it's not indicative of anything going on at the company.

One Remote to Beat Them All?

From the floor of CES this year, the single most interesting item to me so far is Logitech's new Harmony One remote. After years of industrial design mis-steps, it appears that the Harmony line is back on track with this great new device. It looks great, it feels great, and, from my initial hands-on experience, it seems to remedy every annoying quirk I've disliked in recent models. Expect it in stores this February and expect to hear more about it from me.

My Macworld Predictions

As I'm packing to leave for CES, I thought I'd jump ahead a little and throw my chips on the table with my own predictions for Macworld announcements. Yes, you read it right--not CES...Macworld. Here's what I think we'll see this year at Macworld:

• Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac releases
• New features for existing iPhones and discussion about the iPhone SDK
  
• No announcements of new iPhones, except possibly for added memory for the existing line
• No new iPod devices
  
• New life for Apple TV with movie rentals through iTunes and other new capabilities
  
• A new addition and form factor added to the Mac computer line

OK, granted, some of these are no-brainers (e.g., Office is releasing on 1/15), but hey...I aught to get some of them right!

NBC and the Business of TV Downloads

Apparently, NBC Universal thinks that consumers should pay more than the going rate of $1.99 per episode to download single episodes of television shows...as much as $4.99!

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. HA ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!

Wow...they just really don't get it, do they?

What's Next for Apple TV?

Now that I'm used to surfing through YouTube videos on the television with my remote, I have to wonder: what's next on the horizon for Apple TV?

I've been a fan (and owner) of Apple TV since its introduction earlier this year. Just as the iPod completely changed how I consume media while commuting, at work, and on travel, Apple TV has transformed video viewing habits in my home. Apple TV makes iTunes a more viable option for buying movies and episodic television shows, but it also brings Internet video to my TV and remote. I hate sitting in front of my PC to watch video content, which only leaves air travel and car waiting time for catching up on Ask A Ninja, MacBreak, and other Internet short-form content. But with Apple TV, my Internet video subscriptions are in my Den, up-to-date, waiting for my enjoyment. Apple TV and iTunes sync automatically through my home network; it all happens seamlessly and invisibly. And with iTunes' ability to note and share my last play position for video content, I can pick up where I left off if I want to finish watching a TV show in another room or catch the end of the movie on my morning flight.

Is Apple TV everything I want it to be? No. Will it be? Maybe. With this device, Apple has created a platform that it can expand with both hardware and software. Happily, the signs point to just that plan. A few months ago, Apple released a new Apple TV model that bumps its introductory local storage capacity of 40GB up to 160GB. Now we're talking about some decent room for video content. Shortly thereafter, Apple introduced YouTube on Apple TV. It's a good start, but hopefully it's just that: a start.

What's next? Here are some options I hope that Apple is considering:

iTunesHD. Apple TV has the ability to deliver high definition video and multi-channel sound to your television, but where is the content? While the Xbox Marketplace is offering movies for paid download in 720p, movies on iTunes are still limited to sub-DVD quality. I'm hoping we'll see high definition movies and TV shows for purchase through iTunes before the end of the year.

iClick&Buy. Just how much can I do with that tiny little remote? Not enough. Yet. I'd argue that I should be able to browse and purchase content on the iTunes Store right from my sofa. Apple could take iTunes Top Movies and similar features on the Apple TV to a new level with just one little option: Buy this Movie.

Appleflix. Netflix and TiVo never managed to get it together, but why not go for the same effect with Apple TV? The Apple TV is the ultimate device for PPV content - be it movie rentals or special programming. Its iTunes Top Movies and Theatrical Trailers features demonstrate that direct-to-device streamed content is already possible, and much of the back-end storefront architecture is in place today to support iTunes.

iDVR. With added capacity and a software update, the Apple TV could be the perfect platform for a completely new type of flexible DVR solution. Stackable, add-on components that share the Apple TV's footprint could deliver channel-specific single and multi-tuner cable, satellite, or IPTV content right to the device for real-time or shifted viewing. How do you get your TV: DirecTV? CableCard? Digital cable/QAM? With swappable TV modules, it wouldn't matter. This kind of solution could make Apple TV the first fully-integrated provider-independent DVR. If nothing else, I'd love to see the UI they'd create for a TV programming guide.

So that's what I hope to see out of Apple over the next year or so for Apple TV. Clearly, Apple has been heavily focused on the iPhone and the Mac hardware and software updates recently. My hope is that they'll come up for some air when Leopard goes to market and focus their creativity on the largely unrealized potential of this new entertainment platform.

Nate's on CNET.co.uk

My fellow Backstage Crew buddy Nate Lanxon liked CNET so much after CES, he became an employee! Just weeks after starting at CNET in London, he has written and video reviews published on CNET.co.uk. I'm excited for him, I'm grateful to know him, and I have to admit that I'm pretty envious. You can read and view his work at cnet.co.uk.

RIAA Calls Jobs' DRM Plea Doubleplusgood

Hiding behind its own well-tuned reality distortion field, the RIAA has twisted Steve Jobs' railing against DRM into an offer for the industry to license Apple's DRM solution - and they applaud it! Wait...am I missing something? Oh, no...it's just the RIAA doing what it does best: spinning fact and reality to benefit their interests.

Thanks, Ken

The World According to Richard received a shout-out today on Ken Ray's macinfun podcast, Mac OS Ken. Thanks, dude. You ROCK!

An e-mail message to Ben Woods

I just read your article about the RIAA's crying over CD prices. I'm not one to defend the RIAA on anything - especially their absurd argument about CD prices. CD prices were, however, MUCH higher when they were introduced. This isn't surprising - it was entirely new technology, and the initial production costs were very high. The initial CDs typically cost about $24.95! Seriously. I bought a few when they first came out, and it was a significant investment. That said, this happens with all media. Even blank, recordable discs were astronomical when they were first available; now they cost just a few cents apiece. It would probably be interesting to consider the cost trends of vinyl and cassette "albums" over their respective lives. Or an even more telling trend—the consumer-driven drop in initial release price of DVDs. Once listed at $34.95, DVD titles are now introduced at street prices of around $15. And now we're seeing high introductory prices again with high definition disc formats. This is basic economics! When is someone with the necessary clout going to finally debunk the RIAA's desperate arguments and claims about the recording industry? I am so sick of their whining....

The BUI* Gallery

One of my technology passions is the analysis and improvement of user interface design. It's truly amazing, with all of the tools, standards, and examples out there how many developers manage to produce software that delivers truly horrible user experiences. Finally, I've created a gallery to display the various examples of bad user interfaces I've encountered and collected over time. This is a collaborative effort with a close friend and colleague who shares my passion and appreciation for these abominations. We hope you enjoy and learn from our efforts.

* bad user interface

2007 Consumer Electronics Show coverage for CNET

At CES this week, I created two short photo blogs for CNET, available here and here. Additionally, you can see the two video reviews I did for CNET: one with Molly Wood on the Moxi Multi-room HD Digitial Media Recorder and one with Veronica Belmont on the SideLink remote control for Windows Vista Media Center.

For CNET's complete coverage of the 2007 Consumer Electronic Show, visit http://ces.cnet.com.

RIP Marshall Field's

This weekend, Federated Department Stores celebrates as it blankets the country with its Macy’s brand, leaving a trail of now-defunct local retailers in its wake. Federated’s acquisition of May Department Stores’ holdings resulted in a sell-off of about 100 store locations like discarded scrap. Furthermore, their Macy’s expansion has decimated time-honored and respected family brands like Strawbridge’s, Hecht’s, Kaufmann’s, Filene’s, and (most horrifically) Marshall Field’s. The arrogance of this move just astounds me, as it disrespects local communities’ rich retail heritage, while damaging the economies of shopping outlets where large storefronts now sit shuttered.

How is this good for anyone but Federated and its shareholders? Though not officially deemed a monopoly, Federated’s recent moves leave consumers with far less choice when shopping mid-range retail department stores. It would be one thing if a new Macy’s in town was something that people could value, but Macy’s just isn’t the store it was years ago. The Macy’s brand continues to decline as it becomes further diluted. It lacks the quality, diversity, and character that were once part of its heralded trademark. Consumers are now left with Macy’s sign of mediocrity hanging where communities once shopped their familiar local department stores.

Luckily, consumers still have some choices. Here are some of the choices that I’ll be making:

• When visiting Chicago, I will pointedly go to Carson Pirie Scott.


• I will purchase clothes at retail outlets like Eddie Bauer, Orvis, and other independent companies.


• I will purchase housewares at Bed Bath & Beyond, Linens ’n Things, and Crate & Barrel.


• I will shop more online (it’s amazing what you can get through amazon.com).


• I will no longer shop at Macy’s or Bloomingdale’s.


• I will let the world know why I’ve made these changes to my shopping habits (you're reading it).


• I will let Federated know that I’ve let the world know why I’ve made these changes to my shopping habits.