Microsoft shows off IPTV plans, partners

As the convergence race heats up, Microsoft is not sitting on the sidelines, as last week at the IBC show in Amsterdam they shed more light on their plans for IPTV devices with SBC, Intel, Motorola, Linksys and others. Among the announcements made for NTSC markets were:

• Previously announced Scientific Atlanta set top boxes including SD and HD receivers and DVRs, as well as IP-over-coax and DVB support

• A Thomson/Intel box that is said to be commercially available, supporting Microsoft's IPTV Edition platform. Expandable to include DVR features, it also supports Windows Media 9, MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 encoded sources.

• A system-on-a-chip developed with Sigma Designs specifically intended to support all IPTV edition features and lower cost so that it can be included in set top boxes, TV's, DVD players and gaming consoles.

I don't think this nearly answers the question of where the Media Center Edition platform's future lies, but Microsoft is clearly doing everything they can to make sure they have their devices at the heart of your digital entertainment center of the future.