Dish Network eying deal with Microsoft for HTPC TV cards

We figured they'd come around, and sure enough, it looks like Dish Network is now the one in talks with Microsoft to bring satellite programming to the media PC. After DirecTV began this same journey, finally inked a deal with Gates and Co., and actually started playing nice with Viiv-enabled PCs, Dish Network couldn't just stand around hoping that its fabulous deals on the ViP622 HD DVR would be good enough. According to a brief, albeit informative, interview that DBSTalk had with Dish, the company is reportedly "working with Microsoft" to bust out HTPC TV cards, which could steal the thunder from the uber-pricey CableCARD and give DirecTV's rendition a run for its money. Of course, there's "no set timeline" just yet, and if you already had a hunch what the holdup was, you'd likely be correct -- apparently, "DRM issues" are still lingering, and until both companies come up with a solution that "satisfy the copyright holders," we'll all be parking it on the bench waiting for this to move forward.

[Casual Observer @ Feb 6th 2007 12:54PM]

Technologically speaking, the hardware already exists. The last hurdle left really is just the DRM stuff. I just hope they don't come up with a new org (called "SatelliteTVLabs") and then spend 10 years developing the thing because execs can't sit down and agree on reasonable terms.

[Tom @ Feb 6th 2007 1:36PM]

Dish Network was working with Gateway around 1998 to add a PCI satellite tuner as an option to the Gateway Destination HTPCs. For a while, Gateway computers were shipping with deals for Dish due to this, but none of the hardware ever shipped. The boards were made, and were being used in hotel TV systems, so some people tried to get it working, but with so little support, not much happened.

Guess Dish and Gateway were just 9 years too early.

[tcc3 @ Feb 6th 2007 2:21PM]

Inability ot use my Media Center is whats keeping me away from Satellite. Hope they get this out soon.

[matto @ Feb 6th 2007 2:23PM]

You're giving DirecTV way too much credit. All their "ViiV" announcments were for playing _computer_ media on their _DVR_. No HTPC integration there, and no hope at all on the horizon for a DirecTV tuner-on-a-card for HTPCs.

In fact, the software that allows a DirecTV DVR to be a "ViiV-enabled media adapter" is still in beta, doesn't work very well, and last I checked, not able to play video at all- just JPEG slideshows.

[Russell @ Feb 6th 2007 2:32PM]

Since right now Dish has the most HD channels/content, I would be all over this.

Even if there is some sort of DRM for vista media center files I still want the ability to archive shows on DVD and watch them later.

[Jim @ Feb 7th 2007 2:09PM]

If only this were true. The problem is, when Dish actually announces this, then shows it to us (sometime a year later or so), it will still be a year or so off for their customers.

So, given their track record, we are probably looking at Vista 2010 before we will see such a product.

[aliceof74 @ Feb 11th 2007 11:16PM]

After the Leader in satellite tv got the ball rolling, as they always do dish finally got off there duffs huh?? Boy aren't they just really cutting edge huh? Now if we could just get them to support there products and little stuff like that we would really have a scoop huh?? Smile pinhead ssmileee.

[Chad @ Feb 27th 2007 3:25AM]

What about Linux users?