Motorola's Blackbird will contain DVD. Positioned to compete against WebTV. They say they have orders for 1 million units. See Blackbird photo in the link (it's black)......
news.com
Motorola debuts set-top
computer
By Jim Davis
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
September 14, 1998, 12:50 p.m. PT
update Motorola launched its first effort at making
a TV set-top computer for cable companies that
will provide a variety of multimedia features
including Internet access and movie playback,
underscoring a strategy that differs significantly from
Microsoft's in some respects.
According to Motorola, its "Blackbird" set-top box
provides a platform for developers to launch
products and services with 3D gaming,
DVD-based games and movies, in addition to
Internet browsing. On paper, this is more than
current Internet set-top boxes such as Microsoft's
WebTV at a similar cost.
Motorola Blackbird set-top box
Motorola said this is made possible by using a
programmable PowerPC processor in conjunction
with high-end multimedia processing technology
from VM Labs.
It's possible to watch "video from a broadband
network, from cable, or from a satellite, or from a
DVD disc. If you'd rather play a game, we turn the
same [processing] engines into game playing
engines, and will outplay the latest, greatest game
console," said Jim Reinhart, general manager of
Motorola's media processing and platforms
division.
Motorola introduced the device at the International
Broadcasters' Convention in Amsterdam after a
two-year development period and start-up costs
ranging into the tens of millions of dollars.
This dovetails with Motorola's cable modem
business, which is the technology that enables
high-speed Internet access. Motorola is one of the
largest suppliers of modems for connecting to the
Internet via cable TV lines, but Blackbird marks the
company's initial foray into set-top boxes.
The Blackbird design
breaks ground due to its
flexibility and openness,
in contrast to technology
by other sector giants
Microsoft (which owns
WebTV) and Intel,
Reinhart claimed.
"Microsoft does not want hundreds of companies
going off and developing proprietary services that
don't need Microsoft software," he said, in
reference to the company's efforts to use its
Windows CE operating system in cable set-top
boxes.
Microsoft's current offering--the Web TV service--
is sold through retail outlets and requires a $200
set-top box. The device, which must be used in
conjunction with WebTV's service, allows viewers
to surf the Internet over their TV screen, send
electronic mail, and shop.
It differs from Motorola's design in several
respects. First, it does not have the additional
applications--such as DVD--Blackbird offers,
Motorola said. Second, and maybe most
importantly, Motorola is selling circuit boards or
completed boxes for other companies to sell under
their own brands.
In that regard, Motorola's main competition will be
cable set-top box manufacturers like General
Instrument and Scientific-Atlantic, which are also
working on digital set-top boxes that enable
enhanced cable TV services.
Motorola said it already has orders for the first
million units of the multimedia set-top computer and
sees huge additional demand.
"Our biggest challenge in 1999 is ramping
manufacturing. The demand is there to consume
virtually anything we're capable of fielding," said Jim
Reinhart, general manager of Motorola's Media
Processing and Platforms division.
Although the set-top box business is not likely to
have an immediate impact on Motorola's $30
billion in annual revenues, Brown Brothers
Harriman analyst Robert Wilkes said jumping into
the market is a positive step.
Motorola has been plagued with softening demand
in its principal semiconductor, wireless phone, and
pager businesses, due in part to the economic crisis
in Asia, and is undergoing a restructuring. The
company recently reported second quarter
operating earnings of $6 million, compared with
$392 million last year. |
