Here's an article I came across in Interactive Week from May.
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DigitalDevices: Free to surf the Web from a TV
By Karen J. Bannen
May 13, 1999 1:43 PM ET
Wouldn't it be great to surf the Web and send e-mail without paying for the privilege? PowerChannel is offering free Internet access using a vehicle that most consumers are already comfortable with: the television.
The company this month plans to offer free set-top boxes that let users connect to the Internet, send and receive e-mail, and chat with other subscribers. The cost? Nothing, aside from surrendering a few personal nuggets of information.
PowerChannel (www.powerchannel.net) is following in the footsteps of the WebTV service, which has more than 800,000 subscribers. However, it differs from WebTV, which costs $24.95, in that its users "pay" for the service by filling out a personal survey each month and agreeing to have that information released to outside companies. PowerChannel promises that the advertisers and marketers that get its subscriber information will send out lots of, "samples, discounts and special offers" (read: junk mail).
The PowerChannel PCTV hardware includes a small, black set-top device that ships with a remote control and wireless infrared keyboard. Setting up the equipment is simple, and users can get connected to the service in about 10 minutes. PowerChannel is keeping mum on the innards of the system, but an educated guess would put the connection device in the 28.8-kilobit-per-second range.
Once the setup process is completed, users enter the service's default main menu. Some might be surprised that the graphical user interface is almost an exact replica of the WebTV GUI, aside from a PowerChannel small logo in the upper left-hand corner.
"We're trying to emulate the typical Web page, with menus on the left side and content in the center," a PowerChannel spokeswoman says.
Users can navigate the main menu to check e-mail and send several test messages using either the remote control or the keyboard. While the keyboard is easy to use, the remote may seem a bit clunky.
The e-mail portion of the service, however, is simple, although it doesn't handle attachments well -- some aren't rendered; others may get corrupted. In addition to e-mail, the service offers users Web access and chat capabilities. However, access to some sites may be limited because PCTV doesn't support Java, a problem, a spokesman says, the company is well-aware of.
"I hate to say the service is a work in progress, but that's just what it is right now," he says.
Aside from the lack of plug-in support, most pages rendered well and maintained the same look-and-feel of a typical Web browser.
RANDOM ACCESS
Thomson Consumer Electronics (www.nipper.com) last week announced a $200 portable digital music device that will go head-to-head with Diamond Multimedia Systems' Rio player. The RCA-branded device will allow users to download music in the form of MP3 files directly from the Internet.
VTech Information (www.vtechinfo.com) unveiled a line of personal digital assistants. The Helio includes a voice recorder, phone book, scheduler, to-do list, memo function, e-mail manager, sketch pad, expense manager and calculator.
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PowerChannel PCTV
Description: Internet access set-top box
Company: PowerChannel (www.powerchannel.net)
Price: Both the device and the service are free.
Upshot: The interface is slightly clunky and the browser needs some work, but it's free.
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