>What impact will the new TCI/SUNW Personal JAVA on setup boxes
>have on Wind, if any?
The Cable industry, no doubt aided by Sun and perhaps others, has done what the DOJ probably cannot do, namely, stand up to Microsoft and just say NO. The Cable industry will not allow Microsoft to provide the sole OS and application software for the set top box. This decision at least delayed Microsoft's buying a complementary monopoly in digital TV that compares with its PC monopoly. On top of that industry decision, TCI is going with Sun's PersonalJava, presumably a critical blow to Microsoft.
Meanwhile, MSFT is investing a billion in just about any company that has the word "cable" in its name. Somehow, I don't think Microsoft is out of the game, but the juggernaut has been slowed down, and probably made to say "please".
The door is officially open for a variety of digital set top box (STB) solutions to be won through competition, although one expects Windows CE to be an odds-on favorite for many design wins. That TCI has endorsed PersonJava is of minor consequence, since all the major competition is Java-capable, including Microsoft. The important decision is that they have not endorsed Windows CE along with a Microsoft STB design.
Who is the competition? Practically everybody. Besides Microsoft, obviously Sun has jumped into the fray. NCI probably will take a shot, using their Navio products resting on top of VxWorks. NCI has all the server software to make the STB really work, and lots of experience with a close relative to the STB, the NC. Remember OpenTV from the SunThompson partnership? Both WIND and INTS announced ports of OpenTV. INTS claims about 30 STB design wins. MWAR used to own this arena, at an earlier definitional stage, with their tailored version of OS-9 called DAVID. WIND had at least one full-scale STB design win with Hyundai Electronics of America, and many cable modem design wins.
As posted recently on this thread, even Spyglass is joining the STB competition. Spyglass smartly has targeted just the application level of STB, maintaining flexibility by claiming to run on top of virtually any RTOS, including VxWorks, OS-9, etc. (Notice that they mentioned MWAR's generic RTOS, not DAVID.)
Even companies like Geoworks have suggested the appropriateness of tailoring their operating systems and applications suites to implement STBs.
The keys to a successful STB design consist of an adequate (1) OS, preferably real-time, (2) Java-capable (I'm not sure this will be a forever lasting requirement, even with TCI, but it is now), (3) User Interface graphics compatible with Java, and (4) all kinds of communications protocol capabilities, i.e., cable modem interface drivers, TCP/IP, etc.
Through partners, WIND has been able to deliver all these requirements. After last week's announcement of the NCI technology buyout, however, WIND now is fully capable of providing a complete standalone STB solution. Although I am certain that MWAR, and probably INTS, also claim they have complete capability to deliver any level of STB, I suspect that WIND will begin to win STB designs because of the authenticity and quality of the Navio graphics technology they just bought (remember that Navio was founded by principals of Netscape to develop embedded browsers and related software) and WIND's experience working with Navio and NCI, SunThompson, JavaSoft, lots of cable modem makers, including HP and 3Com. Further, choosing WIND means your microprocessor choices are as wide-open, and changeable, as possible.
It is still early in the emerging STB market, and nothing to get too excited about quite yet-other that to continue rooting for the Cable Industry's willingness to keep saying NO to Microsoft, despite Microsoft's willingness to invest directly in cable companies.
Allen |
