Ian D. Nock › Comments

Why would you spend $399 (or more) on a Windows 7 netbook when you can get double the performance for the same price? That’s the question I asked myself after reading our full review of the Acer Aspire 1410, which kicks Intel’s sluggish Atom processor to the curb in favor of a dual-core ULV Celeron processor and packs 2GB of RAM instead of the typical 1GB. Like most netbooks, you’re stuck with 160GB of The storage device that holds your OS, programs, and data. Learn Morehard drive space, but we think a lot of buyers will be willing to put up with that much storage in exchange for more muscle. The battery life was pretty strong, too, at 6.5 hours. To me, that spells trouble for netbooks. - Ian D. Nock

Pay-TV provider BSkyB is to show live Premier League matches on Apple's iPhone. - Ian D. Nock

BBC plans to copy protect Freeview high definition (HD) data have been dealt a blow by regulator Ofcom. - Ian D. Nock

EchoStar Europe has announced the integration of the Latens cardless CA and middleware solutions for its hybrid HDX-600 platform. - Ian D. Nock

Last month, I lashed out against cable companies and their cable boxes because they are junk. Absolute trash. The hardware is slow, the UIs are terrible, and the remotes are like Fisher Price toys. This is 2009, not 1989. - Ian D. Nock

Dell has launched the Adamo XPS over in the States, a laptop which the company is billing as the world’s thinnest. - Ian D. Nock

In a collaboration between UPC and the set top box seller Thompson a new and green set top box is in development. - Ian D. Nock

Mobile phone maker Nokia is jumping into the Netbook pool with its recently announced Booklet 3G laptop (as seen in the video). We've just gotten our hands on the final version of the system, and here are our initial impressions. - Ian D. Nock

The line between netbooks and laptops will continue to blur. That's according to Leila Martine, head of the Windows consumer division at Microsoft UK. - Ian D. Nock

The European Commission has called on member states to speed up their switchover from analogue to digital television, to free up spectrum for wireless broadband services. - Ian D. Nock

The concept of 'TV middleware' has always been a bit of a movable term. Some companies use it to refer to the software at the playout or head-end of a cable or IPTV service, others use it to refer to the software on the box, others to all three. - Ian D. Nock

Finding what you want to watch on TV is going to be a big problem in the coming years as more video choices crowd into your living room. As a result, recommendations will play an increasingly important role in our video discovery. To that end, NDS, which makes middleware and applications for multi-service operator set-top boxes, announced today that it has launched its Recommendations Engine Partner Programme, and video recommendation service Jinni is the first company to join. - Ian D. Nock

Sometimes a rumour is thrown around so many times that there comes a point where it becomes faded and blurred. However, one rumour involving the free-to-view satellite provider, Freesat, appears to be about to be proved true. - Ian D. Nock

The Cortex A9 MPCore processor and the Mali 400 Graphics Processor made by ARM will be used in the production of STMicroelectronics’ next generation of set top boxes and digital TV system-on-chip ICs. - Ian D. Nock

The Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement (CIMM) will be meeting to discuss how the industry can better use the data collected from set top boxes. - Ian D. Nock

The transition to a new world of online television authentication a la TV Everywhere may not be all that bumpy — from a consumer readiness standpoint anyway. A new study from Interpret Research shows that 89 percent of “online television streamers” (they don’t specify what that means, exactly) also subscribe to a cable or satellite service. Additionally, 72 percent of active streamers use the web specifically to catch up on broadcast TV episodes they missed. So, since TV Eveywhere will be free (for now) to subscribers, a large chunk of the MSO base is already primed to watching television online. - Ian D. Nock

BSkyB is seemingly pressing all the right buttons in terms of product offerings, says a new report from investment bankers Morgan Stanley. And while HDTV is seen as key, the bank has adjusted forecasts for Sky – and significantly upgraded HD forecasts for the company. 3D is also in the pipeline, and Sky might go for a Pay-As-You-Go financial model for 3D. - Ian D. Nock

This week BBC Watchdog, that bastion of covering technology stories almost as badly as The Gadget Show does, had an item on WiFi Hotspots and how easy it is to hack into someone's sessions when using e-mail or other authenticated services: - Ian D. Nock

Ocean Blue Software is pleased to announce a collaboration with Rovi to integrate Rovi’s Connected Platform software for Digital Living Network Alliance capabilities into its mature Sunrise digital video broadcast stack. Ocean Blue Software’s and Rovi’s combined technologies provide a solution designed to make it easier for consumer electronics manufacturers to develop DVB TVs that can access digital content from networked and DLNA compatible devices. - Ian D. Nock

In its ongoing dance to acquire the remaining portions of OpenTV that it does not already own, Kudelski Group disputed an assertion made by OpenTV investor Arcadia Capital Advisors that a Kudelski affiliates $1.55 per share bid for OpenTV's Class A shares was not high enough. Arcadia responded negatively after Kudelski issued an open letter to OpenTV investors reminding them to act on the bid from Kudelski Interactive Cayman by Nov. 6. - Ian D. Nock

The internet-based TV platform Canvas, which is being developed by terrestrial TV companies based in the UK, could reach around 3.5 million households by 2014. - Ian D. Nock

Light Reading's Cable Digital News reported that cable TV giant Comcast is pursuing an IPTV-related project called Excalibur with the intent of putting video and other services on an IP overlay. This may not come as too much of a surprise, as Comcast and other cable TV companies have been working with IP in various respects for a while. IPTV architectures and capabilities in particular have been presumed to be in their future plans in one way or another. - Ian D. Nock

I’ve always believed in the separation of church and state: My desktop computer stays in my home office, and my TV and entertainment gear stay in the living room. Sure, sometimes there’s crossover between the two — I like to view Web-based streaming video or shows I’ve downloaded on my big-screen TV, for example. But I’ve never been tempted to make my desktop PC my home entertainment center. - Ian D. Nock

Mobile operator Three (3) UK has cut the cost of its new Mobile Wi-Fi device (aka - MiFi). This is essentially a battery powered wireless router that has been designed to distribute the operators Mobile Broadband ( 3G ) service over a Wi-Fi link and was first revealed at the beginning of August (here). - Ian D. Nock

OpenTV CEO Ben Bennett has countered criticisms from the Kudelski Group that the middleware company is not investing in the future. While reiterating that OpenTV management is remaining neutral on Kudleski’s $1.55 per share offer, Bennett told a conference call that investment in R&D was a case of perspective. “If you look at our plan for 2009, where other companies have been letting people go, we’ve been recruiting quite heavily both in the US and in China. Our plan is to call for an almost 20% increase in that headcount.” - Ian D. Nock

The BBC iPlayer will be trialled to a limited number of Freesat viewers at the end of November. - Ian D. Nock

This post is in response to a post from Euan Semple - go check it out first! I don't disagree with his main point - there's no doubt that many organisations are hindering their peoples' performance with an outdated attitude to new technologies. However, what I don't think gets nearly enough recognition is that not all individuals want to use social software or new technology, or care about why they should. - Ian D. Nock

Latens has launched its newest conditional access product, the Secure Distribution System (SDS). Programmers and broadcasters are increasingly taking advantage of the cost and transport efficiencies that faster, high-capacity terrestrial distribution networks provide over satellite, the company said, especially in the delivery of heavy, valuable HD content. Working with U.S. programmers, Latens developed the SDS to address content security over the fiber backbone connecting content owner and service provider networks. - Ian D. Nock

Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) has an underground IPTV and video convergence project underway, code-named "Excalibur," Cable Digital News has learned. - Ian D. Nock

IPTV specialist Amino Technologies has warned of a second half loss after the company experienced order slippage and component shortages. In a statement the company said it expected its financial loss in FY 2009 to be significantly below market expectations. - Ian D. Nock