The television is one piece of consumer electronics that has largely resisted the rise of the Internet. Starting on Thursday, Google will try to change that.
On Thursday during the keynote presentation on the second day of Google’s annual I/O conference in San Francisco, Google and its partners talked about an effort called Google TV that involves Google, Sony, Intel, Logitech, Dish Networks, Adobe and Best Buy.
The live blog from San Francisco’s Moscone Center is below, with the newest updates first.
No one is talking prices here. That will be key. A companion box from Logitech priced at more than $100 would really be a nonstarter, and shoppers are quite sensitive about prices on high-definition TVs, so we’ll start looking into how much cost those high-speed Intel chips will add to Sony’s new TVs. Also interesting: whether Google can get other TV makers (LG, Samsung) on stage with Sir Howard next time.
Mr. Schmidt is now thanking his new partners. And that’s a wrap!
More partners..
From Logitech’s chief: The companion box will come with a keyboard controller and remote control. It will ship this fall. Any HDTV owner can buy the box and connect it.
From Charlie Ergen of Dish Networks, a longtime TV industry veteran who has seen his share of bloody industry battles: “We already know our customers watch TV and then go to another room and watch stuff on the computer. We know they want to combine those two things in a seamless way. We’ve been thinking about this for 10 years.”
Dish Networks started experimenting with WebTV 10 years ago. “It showed the path” but was ahead of its time, Mr. Ergen says.
