set-top box

Microsoft has filed a lawsuit against TiVo in a San Francisco federal court, claiming that the DVR company has infringed upon two of its US patents--which cover technologies for securely purchasing and delivering video and for displaying programmable information respectively, Bloomberg reported yesterday. Microsoft, which claims that TiVo is illegally using the technologies described by the patents in its set-top boxes, its software and its subscription service, is seeking unspecified monetary damages and a court order to prevent TiVo from using the technologies.

VOD technology provider, SeaChange International, announced last week that it has entered into a binding agreement to acquire all the outstanding shares of VividLogic, a privately owned, California-based provider of software and services to cable operators, set-top box manufacturers and consumer electronics suppliers, whose competitors include Alticast, ADB's Osmosys and enableTV. According to SeaChange, VividLogic's software products include tru2way, MHP and Globally Executable MHP (GEM)-based IPTV operability for set-top box and CE manufacturers, in-home content protection and funded software development for the creation of service provider-sponsored home media gateways.

UK incumbent telco, BT, has launched a new set-top box for its Microsoft Mediaroom-powered hybrid IP/DTT service, BT Vision.

Syabas, a Fremont, Calif.-based company that specializes in over-the-top set-top hardware and software (note: for more on the company's Popcorn Hour A-110 and C-200 OTT set-top boxes, see the article published on itvt.com, December 16th), today announced the launch of an open-platform OTT set-top box, dubbed the Popbox, which it says will stream music, movies, photos, games, social media updates and other content to HDTV's and will retail for $129.

Oslo-based browser specialist, Opera Software, and Raanana, Israel-based OTT media solutions provider, GooMe Interactive, on Monday announced a strategic technology partnership that they say will see them delivering "modular, Web-based solutions for experiencing TV, Web and home media for the set-top box and DTV industry via IPTV and/or hybrid IP/broadcast delivery."

Digital TV client software provider, ANT, said Monday that it has partnered with set-top box manufacturer, Humax, to bring what it claims is the first Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV (HbbTV) set-top box to market. According to the company, Humax has chosen the ANT Galio HbbTV platform for its new iCord HD+ satellite set-top, which began shipping to German retail outlets earlier this month. The box is billed as allowing viewers to access a range of hybrid services including ARD Mediathek, Tagesschau, ARTE, Internet radio, Maxdome and Wikipedia.

Telecom Italia on Wednesday unveiled a hybrid set-top box, dubbed CuboVision, that it says provides access to digital terrestrial TV channels, various Web-based video and information services (including YouTube and LA7.tv), and a library of on-demand pay-per-view films, and also allows users to organize personal content such as photos, videos and music.

Syabas, a Fremont, Calif.-based company that specializes in over-the-top set-top hardware and software, said Tuesday that it has signed a deal with Thinking Screen Media (formerly known as Frame Media) to offer the latter's FrameChannel content widgets on its Popcorn Hour A-110 and C-200 OTT set-top boxes and on its new DAVID platform, a "working prototype" of which it plans to unveil at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next month.

Geneva-based set-top box company, Advanced Digital Broadcast (ADB), announced today that it has demonstrated live that it can "deliver the promise of tru2way for cable system operators and consumers." According to the company, at a recent CableLabs Interop event it showed how its ADB-4820C HD set-top box can seamlessly support the full functionality of both Cisco and Motorola tru2way headends and CableCARDs: the box was first connected to a Cisco headend using a Cisco CableCARD, and displayed Time Warner Cable's TV channels and tru2way interactive guide.

A UK company called 3View unveiled a hard drive-equipped, broadband-connected HD set-top box, Tuesday, that combines the ability to receive standard- and high-definition linear-TV programming from the UK's free-to-air digital terrestrial platform, Freeview, with various Internet/OTT capabilities. The company says that the box--which is slated to be available in retail in March--will allow users to receive a range of over-the-top video services, as well as browse the Web and use Facebook and Twitter. It bills it as "the world's first Internet-connected HD free-to-air set-top box."

Over-the-top-TV specialist, Myka, has launched a Web-to-TV set-top box, dubbed the Myka ION, which it bills as "the first consumer Web-to-TV product that can easily run Boxee, Hulu and other leading Internet video services." The $379 device is powered by the Intel Atom Processor 330 and the Nvidia ION Graphics Processor.

Here is a round-up of some other interactive TV-related stories we didn't have room for in this issue:

Here is a round-up of some other interactive TV-related stories we didn't have room for in this issue (as well as some stories from last week's SCTE Cable-Tec Expo in Denver, which our editorial team was unable to attend):

Geneva-based set-top box company, Advanced Digital Broadcast (ADB), and Entropic, a fabless semiconductor company that specializes in home networking solutions, said Monday that ADB's ADB-6882CDMX set-top box, which is designed to enable MSO's to offer their customers home networking options, has become the industry's first MoCA 1.1-certified cable set-top.

Delivery Agent, a company that specializes in developing what it calls "shopping-enabled" entertainment (i.e.