Your move Apple and Microsoft
The NY Times is reporting that Google has enlisted Intel, Sony and Logitech to collectively develop a new platform called Google TV.
Google TV will be based on the Android OS, will use the Atom CPU platform - either embedded in the TV or in a set-top-box - Sony-designed TVs and Logitech remote controls and peripherals.
The aim will be to bring full web functionality to TVs, as opposed to the limited options available now. The open Android platform will, in theory, enable third-party developers to make apps specifically designed to run on the TV. Some kind of SDK is expected to be available within a couple of months and the NYT reckons we could see end-products by the summer.
This has the potential to be an important initiative for Google in its battle with Apple and Microsoft to dominate the way people interact with the Internet. Apple has been trying something with Apple TV for a while, but it hasn't really taken-off and rumours that it was going to make its own TV have so far proved groundless.
Microsoft has has a ‘three screen' policy of focusing on the PC, phone and TV for some time, and the recent launch of its VOD service shows it still have plenty of initiatives up its sleeve in the TV market.
It would be surprising if Google didn't intend to open-up this platform to other partners after Intel, Sony and Logitech have done their job in providing a stable launch platform. On the chip side especially, Android currently runs exclusively on ARM-based silicon, and Google's ad-based business model will require Google TV to appear on as many TVs as possible.
Intel already has some form in the STB market. Last year, Imagination Technologies showed us the prototype below made by Gigabyte and we're probably looking at Sodaville for this platform. For Sony, this marks an opportunity to differentiate itself in the mature TV market, while Logitech has been making smart remote controls for a while, and could be about to cash-in on these efforts. Apparently the platform will also use a version of Google's Chrome browser.
