A sign of things to come...
It shouldn't be too long before we see the WebTV/Satellite receiver hit the market.
Read the press release below and think internet.
WebTV Networks and EchoStar Communications Introduce First Internet TV
Satellite Product and Service Offering Provides Consumers With Digital Video Record and Playback, Internet and E-Mail, Video Games, Enhanced Satellite TV Viewing
LAS VEGAS - Jan. 7, 1999 - WebTV Networks, Inc. and EchoStar
Communications Corp. at CES today announced the Microsoft® WebTV
Network™ Plus service for satellite and the EchoStar Model 7100 satellite receiver, the world's first Internet TV service available through satellite. Scheduled to be available this spring, the combined service and product will revolutionize the TV viewing experience by integrating the DISH Network's digital satellite television
programming with the Internet TV experience from WebTV Networks, including digital video recording (DVR), advanced electronic program guide (EPG), broadband data delivery and video games.
New TV Features
The EchoStar 7100 satellite receiver is the world's first satellite receiver with a built-in ultrafast, multigigabyte hard drive, capable of recording and playing back simultaneously full-quality digital video. The disk drive makes possible a number of enhanced digital TV features, including TV Pause ("freezing" a TV show for up to
30 minutes, and resuming when the subscriber is ready to watch again), DVR (automatic recording of several hours of high-quality digital video) and downloadable video games. The DVR feature is planned to be available at the end of the year as a WebTV™ Plus and EchoStar service upgrade.
"The EchoStar 7100 satellite receiver is a milestone in the history of television," said Steve Perlman, president and co-founder of WebTV Networks. "The satellite's broadband delivery capability, combined with a massive disk drive, frees viewers from a fixed TV broadcast schedule, allowing them to watch what they want, when they want. This capability is seamlessly integrated with the WebTV Plus service,
expanding the viewing experience with high-speed Internet access and interactive television. This product is the world's first glimpse of 21st century television."
. . . .
"WebTV Networks and EchoStar have taken a huge step forward in designing the future of television," said Charlie Ergen, CEO and chairman of EchoStar. "WebTV Networks and EchoStar deliver a user interface within the EchoStar 7100 that makes it easy for television viewers to surf the Web, send e-mail or watch the best programming in satellite television."
Internet Experience
The WebTV Plus service for satellite is a broadband-enhanced version of the WebTV Plus service, the leading Internet TV offering worldwide. The WebTV Plus service provides an easy-to-use, robust Internet experience, offering up to six e-mail accounts and child-protection features. The EchoStar 7100 supports popular multimedia e-mail features in the WebTV Network service, allowing a subscriber to easily plug in a camcorder and send pictures and audio clips through e-mail. The WebTV Plus service for satellite will offer a variety of games such as Id Software Inc.'s "Doom," which can be updated with new gameplay features each month. The WebTV Plus service for satellite will be offered for $24.95 per month.
Check out the entire release at Microsoft.com
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