Comcast introduces open-cable platform

[Gesslar]

Kind of annoying that it comes a couple years after I buy my 42" LCD TV, but still pretty cool, in my eyes.

http://www.news.com/Comcast-introduc...0-20&subj=news

Few probably would have expected the chief executive of the world's largest cable company to stand on stage at the Consumer Electronics Show and announce that we no longer need cable boxes.

[Aristotle]

The platform is Java-based with open APIs, so that software developers can write applications once that will work across nearly every device and any cable system.

TiVo is demonstrating here at CES how its DVR, or digital video recording, service works as an application on a Comcast set-top box, and Microsoft is working to enable all cable services to be received directly to a Media Center PC without need for a cable set-top box, according to Roberts.

Wow. This is great. So TiVO can work on their software and not have to worry about finding someone willing to license their software in a set top box.

Then customers who have cable can simply buy/download the TiVo software, load it on their TV, and use it as their OS for their cable.

This sounds like a great move.

It also gives cable a big gain over satellite.