Yahoo! Watching Net-connected TV with Widgets
As
most tech players want to leverage TV’s reach and popularity to attract
more consumers, they’re integrating their offers with the TV box. So
Yahoo!'s Connected TV group has roped in top consumer electronics makers
to launch a widget platform for TV that brings Web to living room
devices.
Using
Yahoo! Widget Engine, these devices will enable the discovery and
enjoyment of the Cinematic Internet via a new class of interactive
applications called TV Widgets. TV Widgets enable popular Internet
services and online media to reach viewers with applications
specifically tailored to the needs of the television watcher.
In
fact, Sony has announced its first new networked BRAVIA LCD HDTV models
that will use widgets.
Bravia Internet Widgets will use the
Yahoo! Widget Engine.
In
August, Yahoo! and Intel announced the
Widget Channel, a joint initiative to
foster innovation in the connected TV space. Building on that
initiative, Yahoo! is announcing partnerships with top consumer
electronics manufacturers including Samsung, Sony, LG Electronics and
VIZIO.
Products produced by these partnerships will enable the industry to
bring Internet and TV experience to millions of consumers globally,
starting in the spring of 2009. Reinforcing Yahoo!'s open strategy, the
company, in partnership with Intel, released the Widget Development Kit
(WDK). Yahoo! believes this will enable developers to create TV Widgets
and effectively reach consumers and help foster the creation of a
connected TV ecosystem.
"Yahoo!
has combined key attributes of the Internet, including openness,
community, and personalization, with the power of television," said
Patrick Barry, vice president, Connected TV, Yahoo!.
The
Yahoo! Widget Engine is based on the popular Konfabulator widget
platform for PC, which has been re-engineered specifically for consumer
electronics devices.
Yahoo!
informs that along with Yahoo! properties -- including Yahoo! News,
Yahoo! Weather, Yahoo! Video, Yahoo! Finance and Flickr, other content
providers are already developing and planning to deploy TV Widgets. They
include eBay, MySpace, CBS, The New York Times, Netflix, Amazon,
Blockbuster, Showtime, USA TODAY, and Twitter.
