Next: Interactive TV, With No Set-Top Box: Comcast and Panasonic Will Unveil Plug-and-Play Flat-Scre

Jan 07, 03:36 AM

Jan. 7--In anticipation of booming television sales from the nation's transition to digital broadcast signals, Comcast Corp. and Panasonic Corp. plan to announce today a new generation of cable-ready interactive flat-screen televisions at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

The plug-and-play TVs, in 42-inch and 50-inch versions, are expected to reach retail stores later this year. Prices have yet to be disclosed. The main convenience for consumers: no need for digital set-top boxes leased from the cable company, the accompanying tangle of wires, and the extra remote.

Instead, anyone could buy one of the new TVs and simply plug in the cable -- no matter which cable company is involved. Moreover, the TVs can be set up to display programming guides, view on-demand movies, record shows, and play simple interactive games.

"We have now pledged as an industry that we will roll out two-way technology," Comcast chief executive officer Brian L. Roberts said in an interview.

Comcast and Panasonic hope the technology, recently branded as tru2way, will be approved as an industry standard. It was developed by the cable industry's research arm, Cable Television Laboratories Inc. in Colorado, as "open cable." Other electronics companies supporting the standard are LG Electronics Inc. and the Samsung Group, Cable Labs officials say.

The Federal Communications Commission has not taken action on tru2way, and there are concerns that the government agency will force changes in it. The Consumer Electronics Association, which includes Sony Corp. and others, is supporting a competing two-way digital-cable-ready technology called DCR Plus. This technology would be less expensive to offer consumers, the group says.

The set-top-box issue is heating up as the nation prepares to transition to digital broadcast signals in February 2009.

As this date approaches, television sales are expected to zoom because consumers will replace older TVs that would need a special converter.

In addition to the convenience for consumers, Comcast and Panasonic say tru2way will make it easier for outside vendors, entertainment companies and software firms to develop interactive features for cable TV.

Until now, cable technology has been highly specialized among cable systems. This has forced suppliers to develop new products for individual cable systems, which gives these products a limited market.

Comcast says that several hundred programmers and outside vendors participated in two conferences explaining the tru2way standards in 2007, a sign that a standard is generating excitement.

Roberts is expected to participate in the announcement today on the new Panasonic plasma TV, sharing the stage with Panasonic officials at the huge Consumer Electronics Show.

Roberts also is giving a keynote speech at the show tomorrow, a first for a cable industry executive. After the speech, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is holding a panel discussion at which he is expected to discuss the transition to digital TV.

Tru2way plays to cable's strength, which is interactive communication between a viewer and a content provider, Roberts said in an interview last week. With it, the cable industry can "leapfrog the competition" from satellite services such as DirectTV, he said.

"We think that, by being open, we can harness the innovation" in the electronics industry, Roberts said. His message to other TV and electronics manufacturers: "We want your innovation to let our customers do more with their televisions."

Cable companies could lose some revenue from set-top boxes, which are leased to customers. But officials say set-top boxes are a highly regulated part of the cable industry and not very profitable. Plus, cable companies will benefit through greater efficiencies and innovation with the standardized and open tru2way technology.

For years, televisions have come hardwired for one-way digital and analog reception. Those televisions can't be used for two-way communication needed for video-on-demand, interactive program guides, and other new services now offered by cable companies.

Panasonic expects to have the new televisions in retail stores by the 2008 holiday shopping season. The first models are likely to be 42-inch or 50-inch plasma televisions, Panasonic officials say. The current price at Best Buy for a 42-inch Panasonic plasma TV is $1,400; a 50-inch model costs $2,800.

Panasonic moved quickly on tru2way because it believes that it will distinguish its flat-panel televisions from competitors', the company said.

"I don't know anyone who thinks that the set-top box is a wonderful piece of furniture for their home," said Paul Liao, chief technology officer for Panasonic Electronics. In repeated consumer studies, he said, Panasonic found the responses "off the charts" from people who would like the cable industry to do away with them.

With standard and open technology, Panasonic can develop products to sell to cable subscribers.

Comcast and Panasonic also are announcing today a new portable DVR player, powered by tru2way. The device is called Anyplay, and it allows a consumer to download 60 hours of Comcast video programming in standard definition and watch it away from the television set.

Anyplay initially will be available for lease from Comcast, beginning in early 2009. It eventually could sell in retail stores, because the tru2way technology would allow it to communicate with other cable systems, a Comcast official said.

Cable Labs, a nonprofit group that is financially supported by cable companies, has invested tens of millions of dollars in open cable. Comcast's Roberts is the chairman of the board at Cable Labs.

Richard Green, Cable Labs' president and chief executive officer, said development work on open cable began in the late 1990s. "Our goal is to bring new services to customers, and we think we got the timing right" for interactive television, he said.

Contact staff writer Bob Fernandez at 215-854-5897 or bob.fernandez@phillynews.com.

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