Understanding the change currently underway in the way consumers watch TV in the living room, the cable industry is one step closer to opening up and allowing independent developers to create applications for set-top boxes.
Cable company Comcast is currently in final preparations to release a new Starz widget that will pop up an interactive menu for people who are watching the Starz channel. "One button lets you start the program you are watching. One switches to the same program in high-definition. Another shows you a list of the others available. And one simply displays the next show on the regular channel," according to a report published in the New York Times.
The author of the NYT's article applauds Apple for its iPhone development that has opened up the door for developers interested in creating applications. Indeed, if this is a sign that cable companies are going to create widgets and third-party applications -- with Yahoo, Intel and others entering the living room -- it's a sign that the days of simply watching TV are over.
The idea is to make TV more interactive so viewers will spend more time watching content if they are able to customize their own viewing experience. To do this, however, there needs to be collaboration between software developers, set-top and TV manufacturers, and consumers -- something I'm not sure is ready to happen as of yet.
As more of us begin to have access to streaming content through set-top boxes, cable providers, Blu-ray players and video game consoles, I think it's an important first step towards the interactive living room.
