Betting that consumers are ready to accept PCs as entertainment devices on par with televisions and stereos, Microsoft on Tuesday announced it would roll out its entertainment-center
version of Windows XP in time for Christmas.
The Windows XP Media Center Edition, currently in beta testing under the
codename “Freestyle,” promises consumers a suite of remote control-accessed
multimedia tools, from a personal video recorder (PVR) to digital music,
videos and photos. Currently in beta, XP Media Center will hit stores in the
North America and Korea by Christmas, and in Japan during the first half of
2003. The company has not announced pricing.
“The PC has evolved from a tool for productivity to a device capable of
entertainment, communications and so much more,” Michael Toutonghi, vice
president of the Microsoft’s Windows eHome unit, said in a statement.
“Consumers desire more fun and enjoyment from their PC and want it to
contribute to their lives even more creatively than it does today.”
With XP Media Center, Microsoft hopes to cash in on the growing wave of
digital media applications and content, and the slowly building penetration
of broadband into the home. The media hub will be loaded onto the PC, with a
remote control to make it work in a similar fashion to a TV or stereo.
The XP Media Center has the ability to combine the computer, TV and DVD
player. It comes with a PVR, with which Microsoft hopes to capitalize on the
popularity of digital-recording devices like TiVo and it’s own UltimateTV. The system also has a
digital-music center, allowing for cataloguing and playing of MP3s and other
music files; a digital photo album; a video collection; and a DVD player.
“I think it’s timely,” said Ryan Jones, a media and entertainment analyst
with The Yankee Group, a research firm. “You’re not going to see all PC
users rush to this, but it’s timely for the early-adopter and even
secondary-adopter segment.”
Specifically, Microsoft sees great opportunity in the college and teen
market, which is already savvy to digital media and also operates in space
constraints of dorm rooms and bedrooms.
The XP Media Center will compete with the suite of multimedia tools on offer
from Apple, which has pushed hard into offering digital entertainment tools
on its Macs. Perhaps looking to steal some thunder from its rival,
Microsoft’s announcement comes a prior to Steve Jobs’ keynote at the
MacWorld Expo in New York City.
As Microsoft announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, HP, NEC
and Samsung have signed on to include XP Media Center preinstalled in PCs.
Microsoft’s drive to put itself at the center of home entertainment has been
fitful. In 1997, the company shelled out $425 million for WebTV, which was
converted into MSN TV. However, despite the early promise of marrying the
Internet with television, MSN TV has mostly fizzled, drawing about 1 million
subscribers. In June, Microsoft announced a cut-rate
pricing plan, with two months of free service, to entice customers to
try MSN TV, which allows users to access the Net on their TV through a
wireless keyboard.
In a separate announcement yesterday, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said
Exchange 2000 server would have an “incremental upgrade” available by the
middle of next year. The upgrade, codenamed “Titanium,” would allow users
easier access to information between their PCs and wireless devices.
