iTV: The Next Killer App? - Page 2

It's All About the Software

The idea of marrying the Internet and TV has been a goal for many companies over the years. Microsoft TV, for example, has gone through several failed iterations before settling on the software that now runs on the set-top boxes it plans to market.

Finding compelling content is the goal of would-be iTV carriers these days. Companies are heavily investing in software that will get TV users to click on, and click through, their money-making services.

The Dish Network, for example, has developed a range of interactive children's games and a trivia game for the grownups, similar to the trivia games found in sport's bars around the country that pit one locale against another.

Other companies are getting into the content act themselves. Earlier this month, Comcast , Time Warner Cable , Cox , Sun Microsystems and others launched an OpenCable Applications Platform (OCAP) development contest at the JavaOne conference to find the best iTV app.

The goal is to get new applications for the set-top box that go beyond the news ticker, instant messaging and programming guides that exist today and deliver products that increase sales, target audiences, allow for one-click voting (a la "American Idol"), switch camera angles or whatever the developer can imagine.

"Cable television is the next frontier for Java developers, and the open cable platform is a blank canvas for iTV artists; for serious developers there is no richer medium than cable," said Kevin Leddy, Time Warner senior vice president of strategy and development, in a statement.

Outside the cable industry's OCAP development standard, many other application providers are looking at the benefits of XML , the markup language that allows the same information to be disseminated in different ways, as a method to develop iTV content.

The Advanced Television Systems Committee, European Telecommunications Standards Institute, Society of Radio Industries and Television Engineers, the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers -- they all have their own standard, which could make developing applications for cable, satellite and telecom companies difficult. Only one, the Advanced Television Enhancement Forum, is being developed to work on any type of network.

Careful What You Ask For

While industry experts and carriers alike say the mainstream adoption of true iTV is years away, once it comes it will bring its own bag full of privacy issues.

"The sexy thing about iTV is that [carriers] are disrupting the traditional business model for television," the ITA's Dollar said. "It's not just a matter of watching what you want when you want it, or [ordering] new things or all of that stuff...it's really market-driven, it's a marketing play."

And that's what has privacy advocates worried. They fear that once iTV rolls out, the TV you watch won't be your expected "idiot box," passing information to the viewer. Instead, it'll be watching you and your viewing habits, your likes and dislikes, and passing them along to marketers, advertisers, political organization or anyone else who can benefit.

"This is the first time that we are really inviting people to observe us in our own homes, so there's a threshold of privacy that's being crossed here," said David Burke, author of the book, "Spy TV," which questions the extent iTV will play in our decision-making lives. "It can be used not just to sell deodorant, but to sell George Bush or John Kerry; it can be used to change people's attitude towards nuclear energy, or foreigners."

Organizations around the world have just started to chime in with their concerns. Privacy International (PI), the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) and Whitedot.org have all come out to warn consumers and legislators alike of the possible dangers posed by iTV.

As far back as June 2001, EPIC issued a report about plans for "reshaping American television, transforming it into a vast data collection and interactive direct marketing machine." The report also notes the Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984, which governs the Fair Information Practices of the cable industry, only applies to cable customers -- not telecom or satellite.

Critics of the privacy concerns say it's no worse than the personalized information stored in cookies when surfing the Internet. But Burke said iTV's pervasiveness, and use of the TV as a medium, catches people at their most vulnerable -- when they're channel surfing.

"People get on the Internet, get what they want and leave," he said. "How does the TV work? You get on the couch and let your mind wander: It's like psychoanalysis. you're in a very vulnerable frame of mind, you're just invited to let your guard down and that's what advertisers count on."

Regardless of the privacy issues, iTV is coming and will be here to stay, Burke concedes. Whether it truly becomes the world's next killer app remains to be seen.