The race is on to merge the two most powerful entertainment boxes in the home.
The marriage of the television and the computer moved a step closer when Intel unveiled its vision for using a new technology that blends the two devices. Intel said it is working with more than 40 companies in the movie, music, television, gaming and photo-editing fields to deliver content to computers using the technology called Viiv (rhymes with five).
Due out early next year, Viiv-equipped computers are designed to turn a television into a computer screen capable of performing any computer task, including searching the Internet. Operated by remote control, the system will be able to show a movie on the television while downloading music for later listening. The computer will turn on instantly like a television and with an add-on feature will record live television programs.
Intel's announcement intensifies the competition among cable companies, game makers, computer manufacturers, software firms, retailers, entertainment giants and Internet search engines that are all scrambling to find a way to dominate – or carve out a niche in – the digital home-entertainment hub.
"It's an epic battle," said Ted Schadler, consumer-technology analyst at Forrester Research. "There are a lot of companies from a lot of industries who are trying to figure out where the power is and where the choke points are."
The digital-recording company TiVo recently teamed with Yahoo to allow customers to program their devices through the Yahoo Web site.
Cisco Systems has agreed to buy Scientific-Atlanta, a maker of set-top boxes.
CBS said recently that it was in talks with Google about video on demand and video searching.
Since 2002, PCs have been running Microsoft's Media Center Edition of Windows XP designed to play music, view photos and watch video from a couch across the room instead of a chair in front of the screen.
