Today, Google TV revealed more details of its Google TV Platform.
Google TV has two significant innovations. First, it is the first internet adaptor that is designed to coexist with pay TV, based on the agreement with Dish network. Second, it is the first consumer-electronics (CE) oriented internet adaptor platform that supports the full internet. PC-company “nettops” have largely failed to grab customers. Other internet adaptors, such as Roku, Apple TV, and the soon to be relaunched Boxee box don’t support the full internet.
Google’s announcement of agreements with Turner Network Television and HBO shows that some content providers are interested in extending their PC-based strategies onto the TV. The failure of Google to announce agreements with Hulu Plus, ABC, NBC (except for a limited news application) or Fox shows that content providers are still reluctant to allow television content to bypass traditional networks – this will likely continue until internet advertising platforms can show similar revenues as traditional TV.
YouTube’s new Leanback experience, which will generate a Pandora-like video stream based on a subject recommendation, until you “change the channel” should enable the stitching of many short videos together into a custom channel.
The total market for internet connected digital media adaptors, digital TVs, set-top boxes and Blu-ray players in the United States is 36 million in 2010, growing to over 90 million units in 2015. If the Google TV platform is highly successful, it will capture about 1-2 million units in 2011, representing 2.5-5% of internet connected video devices.
