Smart Home (connected home, home networking) News

CEA to discuss standards for portable and handheld devices
Aug 4, 2008 – The CEA has announced the formation of a discussion group to weigh interest in establishing industry technical standards for portable and handheld devices. CEA will hold a Discovery Group meeting at its Industry Forum on Tuesday, October 21, 2008.
News categories: Consumer Electronics Association, Automotive, Mobile, Portable, Smart Home, USA

Macrovision Strengthens Connected Platform Solution with Support for DLNA 1.5 Guidelines
Jul 29, 2008 – Macrovision (NASDAQ: MVSN) has launched the latest version of its Connected Platform with full support for Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) Interoperability Guidelines version 1.5.
News categories: Macrovision, Content Protection, Digital TV, Middleware, Set Top Box, Smart Home, Smart TV

As Online Video Enters the Living Room, User Interfaces Begin the Transition to Web Based Technologies
Jul 29, 2008 – While the rest of the consumer electronics and pay-TV worlds are still stuck in more traditional native code environments, the push for online video and social communities in the living room has resulted in ever-increasing interest in HTML and other web-based technologies on consumer TVs.
News categories: ABI Research, Digital TV, Market Research, Middleware, Set Top Box, Smart Home, Smart TV, Streaming

Ruckus Wireless Delivers First Carrier-Purposed 802.11n System, Enabling Picture-Perfect High Definition IPTV Without Cabling
Jul 28, 2008 – Ruckus Wireless has announced that Belgacom has selected its new MediaFlex™ 7000 series, an 802.11n system developed to distribute IPTV content throughout a subscriber's home without costly and time-consuming cable installation.
News categories: Ruckus Wireless, Belgacom, Belgium, Digital TV, IPTV, Router, Smart Home

Samsung's MediaLive: the Ultimate HDTV Accessory, Bringing Digital Content from the PC to the Big-Screen
Jul 23, 2008 – MediaLive from Samsung (Seoul:005930) delivers digital content in real-time from Windows Media Center on a PC running Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows Vista to the big screen of a Samsung HDTV via a wireless or wired home network.
News categories: Samsung Electronics, Digital TV, Media Player, Smart Home, Smart TV, Streaming, USA

Leaders in Consumer Electronics and Wireless High-definition Video Delivery To Discuss the Next Wave of Wireless Audio/Video Connectivity
Jul 23, 2008 – AMIMON, Hitachi (Tokyo:6501), Motorola (NYSE:MOT), Samsung (Seoul:005930), Sharp (Tokyo:6753) and Sony (Tokyo:6758) have announced the formation of a special interest group to develop Wireless Home Digital Interface (WHDI™) technology.
News categories: AMIMON, Digital TV, DVD, Gaming, Peripherals / Accessories, Semiconductor, Set Top Box, Smart Home, Smart TV

Etisalat and France Telecom agree on a partnership covering strategic technological and marketing fields
Jul 2, 2008 – Etisalat and France Telecom (Euronext Paris: FTE) have announced their intention to collaborate in a number of fields of strategic importance for the telecommunications industry, notably in home services, content, as well as international networks.
News categories: Etisalat, France Telecom, Digital TV, Fibre, IPTV, Set Top Box, Smart Home, UAE

DIRECTV On Demand Now Available Nationwide
Jun 30, 2008 – DIRECTV (NASDAQ:DTV) has launched its highly anticipated DIRECTV on Demand service to customers across the country. The platform is available at no additional charge to customers with a DIRECTV Plus® HD DVR or R22 DVR receiver.
News categories: DIRECTV, Broadband, Digital TV, DVR, Satellite, Smart Home, Streaming, USA

From the Google Desktop to your TV
Jun 26, 2008 – In the old days, we used to watch a simple device called a television. Nowadays, all the stuff worth watching and listening to tends to be stored on or accessed through a computer. To help remedy this, Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) has released the Google Media Server.
News categories: Google Desktop, Digital TV, Home Server, Smart Home, Software, Streaming