• Vizio is Latest to Announce Broadband/TV Integration

    Broadband video integrated TVs got another big boost as Vizio, one of the top 3 flat panel brands in the U.S. announced its new "Connected HDTV" platform at CES this afternoon. The move comes on top of Netflix's LG announcement, and other chip-based announcements from Adobe with Intel and Broadcom. More broadband TV announcements are sure to follow.

    The new Vizio TVs will incorporate the Yahoo Widget Engine and support for Adobe Flash Lite. Importantly, the TVs will allow access to a very broad range of content including Netflix Watch Instantly, Amazon VOD, Blockbuster OnDemand, Accedo, Flickr, Pandora, Rhapsody and Yahoo. For Netflix and Amazon specifically, the Vizio deal continues building out the portfolio of 3rd party devices that play their video libraries.

    From a consumer standpoint, I think it's becoming increasingly clear that by late '09 into '10, buying an HDTV will almost always include the experience of bringing the set home, connecting it to your home wireless network and browsing a growing collection of paid and free broadband video choices. I envisioned for a while that 3 devices - game consoles, Blu-ray players and IP-enabled TVs - would be leading the charge into the "over-the-top" market. With these CES announcements and more to come, TVs could well become the most prolific of the three in the long run.

    What do you think? Post a comment now.