MHEG-5 included in Windows® Media Center TV pack update

Thursday, October 9th, 2008
|

LONDON, UK — IMPALA, the International MHEG Promotion Alliance, has expressed its delight at the recent announcement from Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) that it has released an update to the version of Windows® Media Center included with Windows Vista® Home Premium and Windows Vista Ultimate, which includes support for MHEG-5.

The update, called Windows Media Center TV Pack, was released to OEM partners on July 16, 2008, and will only be made available from OEM’s in order to provide consumers with the best experience possible.

“This update was primarily targeted at adding support for additional international broadcast standards, and MHEG-5 support was critical in our efforts to provide the best possible PC-based TV experiences in Europe through Windows Media Center,” said Ben Reed, Product Marketing, Windows Media Center, at Microsoft. “We’ll continue to work with our OEM partners as they roll out Windows Media Center TV Pack solutions, in a joint effort to ensure that users get the best experience possible.”

Giri Valliappan, Director of Market Development with IMPALA, adds, “Given the potential of Microsoft’s Windows Media Center and its TV capabilities this is significant further endorsement for MHEG-5. We are very pleased the Microsoft has specified it.”

Originally developed and standardised by ISO in the mid-1990s as part of the DAVIC effort to support interactivity and navigation for video-on-demand services, MHEG-5 has achieved significant success. In the UK alone over 30 million MHEG-5-equipped receivers have been sold*. The latest version is also an ETSI standard.

It is now also deployed in New Zealand and has been specified by TVB in Hong Kong with services now rolling out.

*Ofcom Digital TV Report, Q1 2008.