IP Democracy: Microsoft's Old Wine in a New Bottle

In a move that is generating more press than it should, Microsoft has renamed its IPTV (interactive TV software for telcos, basically) platform Microsoft Mediaroom. At the U.S. telephone industry’s giant annual show NXTcomm, Microsoft is unveiling new enhancements to what was formerly its “IPTV Edition” of its set-top-based interactive TV software.

Most of the enhancements, it seems, center on the platform’s greater ability to manage digital terrestrial TV signals. The rest of the features being touted — picture-in-picture, whole-house media sharing and multiple camera angle viewing — have been part of the Microsoft TV package for years.

The problem with Microsoft’s interactive TV products is that few multichannel video providers actually like them. Cable operators have implemented only token launches of the software giant’s TV system and phone companies, from AT&T and Verizon in the U.S. to Swisscom in Europe, privately and sometimes not-so-privately grumble about dealing with Microsoft’s clunky software.

Although little-noted, Verizon’s impressive new FiOS TV software is a product that the telco basically developed itself, despite initially tapping Microsoft for the job.

And yet, and yet…year-in and year-out since around 1998, Microsoft has managed to stay in the interactive TV software game. Even with its snazzy new name, Mediaroom, Microsoft is likely to make little headway with this IPTV platform. Unless I’m missing something, it’s just old wine in a new bottle and most TV providers probably still won’t drink it.

Posted by Cynthia Brumfield on June 18, 2007 8:33 AM to IP Democracy