Updated: Updated with a response from Amazon.

After successfully storming the industry with successful e-readers and a line of tablets, Amazon is rumored to be launching its first set-top box for streaming media.

The information comes from a Bloomberg Businessweek report that cites three different anonymous sources familiar with the matter. Amazon declined comment to VentureBeat about the company’s set-top box plans.

While we obviously don’t have confirmation, the notion that Amazon would make its own streaming media set-top box isn’t entirely surprising. Amazon already had a successful Android app store that it could easily parlay into a set-top box. It’s also got a streaming video service (Prime Instant Video) that’s trying to compete with Netflix in terms of a collection of unlimited movie and TV shows and iTunes when it comes to rentals and video sales. It’s also brought its Prime Instant Video service to a slew of other set-top boxes like the Roku and Xbox 360.

The report indicates that Amazon, which has toyed with the idea of producing a set-top box for years, is producing the project via its Lab126 under former Cisco head of video products Malachy Moynihan and former TiVo and Vudu engineer Andy Goodman.

Bloomberg’s sources make no mention of a price for the rumored set-top box, or even a name — although the most likely choice would be Kindle TV. The set-top box is scheduled to debut in the fall, which would be just in time for the holiday sale season.

As for what an Amazon TV set-top box might look like, I’d imagine there’s be a heavy emphasis on video. The company is currently promoting its original content and recently released 14 pilot episodes that are available to everyone. Amazon is letting people vote on the shows before deciding which will gain a full season of episodes. And while there’s never been mention of advertising during these programs (or any others that it’s currently licensing from other media companies), it wouldn’t surprise me if the company ended up adding commercials and using data from their customer’s purchasing history to determine advertising that was appropriate for each individual.

Illustration by Tom Cheredar

Roku announced today that it has sold five million of its video and music streaming set top boxes, claiming that 25 percent of its users are using Roku as the primary way of viewing television.

In addition to having sold millions of Roku players, the company says it also has provided over eight billion streams of videos and music to date.

The company first started out with streaming service Netflix as its customers’ only option for streaming video, but quickly added more options such as HBO Go and Hulu Plus. In January, Roku rounded out its channels with PBS, Time Warner Cable, and Fox Now. On the music streaming side, it also added Vevo around the same time, and also includes Pandora among its music channels. There are now over 750 channels available on Roku.

In an earlier interview with VentureBeat, Roku chief executive Anthony Wood said that over a billion hours have been streamed as well.

According to Roku, Nielsen states that “the average American spends 34 hours per week watching live TV.” It went on to say that 25 percent of its customers use Roku 35 hours a week. Of course, anyone who buys a Roku box is going to have a predisposition to streaming content, but it does show a shift in attitudes around cable.

Roku launched its first player in 2008.

Roku image via Roku

In a surprising move today, Boxee has rebranded its flagship set-top box from Boxee TV to simply “Cloud DVR,” GigaOm reports.

The change is a clear effort to focus on the $99 device’s most unique feature: storing unlimited television recordings on Boxee’s servers. Boxee is also adding a new free tier to its Cloud DVR service, which makes the device’s core feature usable (albeit in a very basic way) for people averse to any sort of monthly fees. Now you’ll have access to five hours of DVR playback and 90 days of storage without paying a dime instead of paying $10 a month for the unlimited Cloud DVR.

Boxee believes the rebrand will help its set-top box stand out from other media players from Roku and Apple, GigaOm notes. That’s probably a wise move — as I mentioned in my review, the Cloud DVR simple didn’t hold a candle to existing media players. It was slow and surprisingly buggy at times. And even though the Cloud DVR feature is cool in theory, it’s not as easy to use as typical DVRs (for example, you can’t fast-forward or rewind content easily, and you can’t pause live TV).

The rebrand will likely help Boxee side-step much of the negative press around the initial Boxee TV launch. Aside from my review and Popular Science‘s (both incredibly negative), there aren’t any other in-depth reviews of the Boxee TV online. That’s because Boxee still hasn’t kicked off its official review program even though we’re now five months past the device’s launch.

In a conversation around my review in December, Avner Ronen, Boxee’s founder and chief executive, mentioned that the company was purposefully waiting on the review program until all of the device’s bugs were ironed out. With the rebrand, I have a feeling we’ll finally see more reviews rolling out soon.

It helps that “Cloud DVR” reviews will be ranked completely differently from Boxee TV reviews on search engines. Having both scathing Boxee TV reviews on the very first Google search page probably didn’t help sales much (Boxee hasn’t discussed any sales figures yet). I also noticed that neither negative review is on the first page of Google searches for “Cloud DVR” or “Boxee Cloud DVR.”

Boxee hasn’t yet responded to my requests for comment, and without hearing its side of the story, I don’t want to declare anything truly malicious. But it’s hard not to notice just how much the rebrand helps Boxee when it comes to wiping away negative publicity.

Intel is apparently making some progress on bringing content for its forthcoming pay-TV service that’s expected to launch before the end of the year.

The company is nearing deals with a handful of major media companies –  including Time Warner, NBCUniversal, and Viacom –  to provide access to current and old TV show libraries on the new streaming service, according to a Bloomberg report released today that cites unnamed sources familiar with the negotiations.

Information about Intel’s new TV service first started popping up about a year ago. But besides claims by the company that it’ll revolutionize the TV watching experience, we still don’t know exactly what it will look like. We do know that the service will only be available to those that purchase a Intel-branded streaming set-top box that will offer access to third-party applications (like Netflix) and feature motion-sensitive controls similar to Xbox Kinect or what the Roku offers via motion-control remote. We also know that Intel’s TV service won’t come cheap, and will cost you roughly as much as you’re paying for traditional cable or satellite TV.

Back in December, Intel wasn’t haven’t any luck getting the media companies interested in a deal, delaying progress on the entire project. (Apple, which may or may not be launching its own TV service/device,  is also rumored to have found negotiations with media companies difficult.) My guess is that Intel switched its strategy from wanting customers to buy only the channels/content they wanted to a more bundled package like cable TV service providers already offer, which is something vice president of Intel media Erik Huggers indicated at the Dive Into Media conference last month.

But if Intel’s Pay TV service is going to go a bundled channel route, it’ll need to get content from all the major cable and broadcast networks. Intel is  beginning discussions with News Corp. about getting Fox TV shows available on the new service as well as preliminary discussions with CBS and Disney’s ABC network, according to Bloomberg’s sources.

Within five minutes of turning on the Boxee TV, I was ready to return it.

It’s Boxee’s second stab at building a set-top box for the living room, but it’s far more focused on mainstream consumers than its predecessor. The $99 Boxee TV includes the usual apps, like Netflix and Vudu, as well as the ability to receive free over-the-air TV channels. But its real claim to fame is the cloud DVR, which allows you to store unlimited television recordings on Boxee’s server.

[Update: Boxee rebranded Boxee TV to simply "Cloud DVR" on April 9th, 2013. This review's title and tags have been updated to reflect the change.]

It’s a device that promised to reshape the way we view TV, a device that Boxee is basically betting its future on — and I couldn’t even navigate its menus without some sort of frustrating glitch or crash.

In its quest to conquer the next big thing, Boxee made a product that failed to get the basics right. The cloud DVR lacks simple features, like scheduling a recording from the channel guide. The remote is a nightmare. And it crashes, a lot.

This review was among the hardest I’ve ever had to write. I’m a huge fan of Boxee, from its hacker roots as a media player for modified Xbox consoles, to its rise as one of the most interesting media startups in New York City. (Mayor Michael Bloomberg recently made a major announcement at Boxee’s office, which former Google CEO Eric Schmidt also attended.)

When Boxee first announced this product, we called its unlimited storage “insane” and dubbed the product “amazing,” because it seemed so promising.

But after living with the Boxee TV for almost two months now, it’s time to call this thing a dud.

The good: Cloud DVR is an intriguing concept

It’s not hard to see why the promise of Boxee TV’s cloud DVR was so exciting initially. Instead of dealing with storage limits on a hard drive, Boxee’s cloud DVR promises an unlimited amount of storage on Boxee’s servers for $10 a month (it’ll eventually go up to $15). The cloud DVR subscription is optional and month-to-month, but as you’ll see, there’s practically no reason to get the Boxee TV with out it.

While you’re probably used to just recording new episodes of your favorite shows with a typical DVR and losing the oldest recordings as it fills up, Boxee’s service lets you record every episode as it airs, for as long as you want, across multiple devices. For media addicts who can’t wait for new show episodes to hit Hulu Plus or Netflix, but who don’t have time to watch everything in their queue, it sounds like a dream come true.

Unfortunately, Boxee TV is limited to recording over-the-air and basic cable channels. That means you’ll only be able to watch and record shows from major networks like ABC, NBC, and Fox — but not shows on regular and premium channels like FX, HBO, and ESPN. You could receive around a dozen channels, or just a handful, depending on availability in your area. Boxee includes a simple antenna inside the box, but upgrading to a more powerful antenna could net you more broadcast channels.

The limitation of free over-the-air channels is something cord-cutting aficionados are used to, since it’s a free alternative to costly cable or satellite subscriptions. And since Boxee TV includes Netflix and Vudu apps, you can augment the limited television channels with those larger content libraries.

Tuning between TV channels is fairly quick on the Boxee TV, at least compared to the way my Samsung HDTV handles tuning.  The device includes two tuners, so you can watch one channel while recording another, or have two channels recording at the same time. In theory, Boxee TV feels like it’s getting close to unifying traditional television and web video, an ideal first sketched out by Google. Google TV still wins out though, since it supports cable and satellite subscriptions, and it has a much stronger selection of apps.

You can stream live television to your computer’s web browser or your iPad with Boxee TV (iPhone and Android support is on the way, even though the company still advertises that it supports “any screen”). I found that cloud DVR recordings looked almost as clear as when they originally aired, while the live TV streaming looked a tad worse. It takes about 10 to 15 seconds for cloud recordings to begin, while tuning into the live stream takes around a minute. (But hey, at least Boxee warns you it could take that long.)

Boxee TV builds upon the interface developed for the Live TV stick, a USB dongle that brought TV functionality to the company’s previous device, the Boxee Box. The interface shows you an attractive display of shows currently on-air, as well as shows scheduled to appear over the next few hours. On your computer or iPad, you can view a more traditional channel guide by logging onto Boxee.tv. The company assumes you’ll be using an iPad or computer as a secondary screen — and you’ll need to, since it’s the only way to schedule DVR recordings.

Boxee has clearly built up an impressive amount of features around its cloud connectivity, it’s just a shame that it gets so many simpler things wrong.

Filed under: Business, Gadgets, Media

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Rumors are now circulating that Apple is currently in negotiations with Time Warner to bring the HBO Go app to its Apple TV set-top boxes later this year.

HBO Go is the streaming video service of the premium cable channel of the same name. This provides on-demand access to hundreds of movies and a complete library of all HBO original programming, such as the The Sopranos, True Blood, Newsroom, and Game of Thrones. The only catch is that you must already be subscribed to HBO through a cable or satellite TV provider, which costs anywhere from $15 to $40 on top of your regular monthly subscription bill.

The news, which comes from a Bloomberg report citing anonymous sources, might have been exciting a year ago when HBO Go first came to competitor Roku’s line of streaming devices, Xbox Live, iOS devices, and a handful of others. This is especially true when considering all of HBO Go’s setbacks.

In addition to not being able to pay for HBO Go as a standalone service (like you would with Netflix), it also requires authentication that you subscribe to a cable service before it gives you access. And not all cable providers enable their customers to access HBO Go seamlessly. Such is the case with Comcast, which only permits subscribers to use HBO Go via Xbox Live but not the Roku or iOS apps.

The point is, adding a HBO Go app to Apple TV isn’t going to make the device more exciting. At best, it’ll probably defer a few long-time Apple customers from buying a Roku or upgrading their television to a new Samsung Smart TV if they really want HBO Go.

Apple is clearly not making the Apple TV a priority, as we’ve previously pointed out, and the company dragging its feet on HBO Go is just another example.

Photo by Tom Cheredar

Here’s something you probably didn’t know: Netflix abandoned plans to sell its own streaming “Netflix Player” device just weeks before it hit retail stores. That device would later become the first iteration of Roku’s set-top box.

The revelation about Roku’s origin comes from a Fast Company report published today, which cites a “high-level” source as well as former Netflix employees Steve Swasey and Roku CEO Anthony Wood.

The Netflix Player device, initially code-named “Project Griffin,” started out as a streaming media box for Netflix’s Watch Instantly video service. Netflix apparently spent years developing both Griffin’s software and its bare-bones hardware to shift the business away from the traditional DVD-by-mail distribution model, according to Woods. Netflix even spent money on marketing plans, parody commercials, and such — meaning it was a huge part of the company’s overall strategy, Fast Company reports.

So, what happened? Well, Netflix chief exec Reed Hastings decided to abandon the Griffin Box just weeks before its official launch in 2007. Hastings decided that having a company-branded set-top box would do more harm than good, as it would prevent the streaming service from appearing on other set-top boxes. Hastings decided to spin-off the Griffin Box to Roku rather than jump into the hardware business.

“We were getting so close to shipping the hardware, and Reed decides, ‘I changed my mind — I don’t want to do hardware anymore. If we ship our own hardware, it could be viewed as competitive,’” Wood told Fast Company. “Putting all that money into it; getting it as far along as he did — and then deciding we’re not going to do it? Wow. I was surprised. There was so much momentum inside the company.”

Obviously, Hastings was correct in his early assessment to keep Netflix out of the hardware business and to remain device agnostic. As as result, Netflix’s streaming service is available on hundreds of devices across several platforms. That sort of availability has helped Netflix reach a commanding 30 million total streaming subscribers, with over 25 million of those being domestic.

Hastings’ decision also allowed Netflix to gain the best of both worlds. The company received preferential treatment on Roku devices (such as a Netflix button on the Roku remote control) while continuing to make deals with other set-top box makers to add support for Netflix.

In any case, the decision to spin-off Roku is undoubtedly more successful than Hastings’ plot to split up the streaming and DVD-by-mail services into separate businesses.

While the rise in set-top boxes is usually viewed as a sign that people are cutting their cable TV subscriptions in favor of streaming video, that may soon change.

Today, set-top box maker Roku announced a partnership with Time Warner Cable (TWC) that will allow cable subscribers to use their Roku boxes to watch television. This is something that Roku CEO and founder Anthony Wood said was coming back in May 2012, as VentureBeat’s Jolie O’Dell reported.

Essentially, TWC is adding its own Roku app, which Roku owners can download for free just as they would any other channel (Netflix, Hulu Plus, etc.). Once authenticated using TWC user name and password, subscribers will gain access to over 300 live streaming channels. The TWC TV app itself should be available sometime during the first quarter of 2013, the company said.

The new TWC TV app is already available via iOS, which allows subscribers to manage their DVR settings, view channel guides, and yes, watch live streaming channels. It’s unknown whether the new Roku TWC app will have the same restrictions as the iOS app, only allowing subscribers to access live streaming channels when connected to their home Internet connection.

“The availability of a service like TWC TV on an open platform represents significant milestones for both Time Warner Cable and Roku as well as for the industry overall,” said Roku founder and CEO Anthony Wood in a statement.

But TWC TV isn’t the only new app coming to Roku. The company is also announcing new channels for several streaming services, including, Amazon Cloud Player, Big Fish, Blockbuster On Demand, FOX NOW,  iHeartRadio, and PBS.

This isn’t the first time Roku has partnered with one of the traditional TV providers. Last year, the company added an app for Dish Network subscribers that also allows them to use their Roku boxes as a secondary way to watch television.

In an interview with VentureBeat, Wood said Roku owners have now logged over a billion hours of streaming content on their Roku boxes. These new channels should give the company a good head start in reaching its next billion hours, too.

If there is any weakness in security, you can guarantee the criminals will try to exploit it. And if a cyber criminal discovers a weakness in one community, it won’t be long before that isolated crime turns into a trend. The commercialization of malware is rapidly becoming a well-organized and highly lucrative business.

So what can we expect in 2013? Based on what crimes we are seeing around the globe, here is a list of the top six emerging cyber security threats we will likely see in 2013.

Criminals will enter your home using smart TVs – Smart TVs are extremely vulnerable to attacks especially as app stores for TVs become more prevalent. Hundreds of applications are becoming available for users to download, and an attacker needs to exploit vulnerabilities in just one of these apps to enter people’s homes. In 2013, the attacks may be geared more towards stealing content, like movies and games, but as Smart TVs become more sophisticated and integrated into home networks, you can be assured cyber criminals will find new ways to exploit this new avenue inside the home.

Virtual kidnapping of cellphones – Scarlett Johansson, Olivia Munn, Christina Hendricks, and Rihanna were just a few celebrities who got their phones hacked in 2012. Next year, you can expect this crime to go from celebrities to consumers. TopPatch has already seen hackers hold phones for ransom. It is a virtual form of hijacking your cell phone and we are expecting more of these crimes to hit the global consumer in 2013 as smartphone use continues to increase.

Attacks using bloggers will increase - Many content management systems that bloggers use, and the ad servers they are integrated with, don’t have enough security measures to protect content created by writers and bloggers, or the ad units served by advertisers. In 2013, hackers will exploit these security weaknesses further to spread viruses, conduct phishing attacks, and steal data from the audiences who visit these websites.

Virtual attacks end in human death - Nation-state attackers will target critical infrastructure networks such as power grids at unprecedented scale in 2013, resulting in human casualties from a cyber attack. Violent extremist groups have already attacked nuclear reactors, hospitals and assembly lines at automobile companies. These types of attacks are growing more sophisticated, and will soon enough lead to the loss of human life at an unprecedented scale.

Rogue regimes use cyberterrorism to attack their governments – In 2012 we already saw numerous government-sponsored cyber attacks, but next year we will see rogue regimes utilize the skills they have developed to attack their own governments.

Attacks will follow natural disasters - Cyber criminals like to attack when people are most vulnerable. Many networks go down during natural disasters, leaving security gaps for cyber criminals. With the rise of natural disasters in 2013, we can expect more systems to become vulnerable, leaving more opportunities for cyber criminals to exploit. If global warming leads to more hurricanes and weather changes, you can expect the opportunities for cyber criminals to grow during these down times.

Chiranjeev Bordoloi is the CEO of TopPatch. He has consulted government agencies, financial institutions and Fortune 500 companies on cyber security for more than 20 years. TopPatch was the first cyber security company to develop a patent-pending Peer-to-Peer Security Patch Management Software that exponentially improves on the “old” way of securing computers, which required all security to go through one server.

Cyber security photo via alexskopje/Shutterstock

Intel could officially unveil its plans to launch a new streaming TV service and set-top box at this year’s Consumer Electronic Show, according to a TechCrunch report that cites sources familiar with the chip maker’s plans.

Rumors of an Intel TV service/set-top box first surfaced back in March, a direct result of the company ceasing production of its high-powered (and expensive) chipsets for Google TV and D-link’s Boxee Box last year. Over the summer, details about the Intel TV service indicated that it could share lots of the same motion-control features found in Microsoft’s Xbox Kinect device, which is also making a play for the TV market.

TechCrunch’s source stated that Intel is dead set on jumping into the TV market, saying the company was frustrated with “everyone doing a half-assed Google TV, so it’s going to do it themselves and do it right.”

As for the service itself, Intel will apparently focus on launching the service in select areas where it won’t run into licensing complications from media companies that are hesitant to jump in on new platforms. I’m guessing this is the equivalent of a test run to show that the service is both viable and lucrative for these media companies. The Intel TV service will focus on grabbing customers who want to enhance their current cable TV subscription.

We’ve reached out to Intel for further comment, and will update this post with any new information once we hear back from them.

Roku has added two new channels to its vast library that should make music fans very happy.

Available today is a new channel for music video site Vevo, which accounts for the bulk of music videos and performances on YouTube. The channel allows you to sync up your Vevo account to gain access to all your saved videos and playlists. And if that wasn’t enough, Roku owners will now be able to use ultra popular streaming music service Spotify on the set-top box.

Previously, Spotify was only available on the (now discontinued) Boxee Box and WD Live set-top boxes. However, with Roku being much more popular, this will undoubtedly be a big win for Spotify subscribers.

The Spotify channel available for free in the U.S. and U.K, and will work on all Roku 2 players as well as the Roku Streaming Stick, with support for Roku HD and Roku LT players coming in the near future. The Vevo channel, also free, is available across all Roku devices.

Google’s quest to rid itself of Motorola’s set-top box business is at an end: the cable device-maker Arris Group announced tonight that it has agreed to buy the Motorola Home division for $2.35 billion in cash and stock.

If you have a cable or satellite box, there’s a good chance it’s from Motorola Home. Google landed the division as part of its $12.5 billion Motorola Mobility purchase last year, and while it seemed like it could be a potentially interesting fit for Google TV, the company has apparently been eager to drop it like a hot potato. (But seriously, Google TV still needs some love from its parent.)

The deal will give Arris — which offers a variety of back-end and on-site products, in addition to cable boxes — an even stronger selection of video devices and services to choose from. Additionally, Arris will receive patents from Motorola Home, and it will also be able to license other Motorola Mobility patents.

Arris will pay Google $2.05 billion in cash and $300 million in stock, giving Google a 15.7 percent stake in the company. The deal has already been approved by both Google and Arris’ boards.

While admitting that Motorola Home has been a strong financial performer, Motorola Mobility chief executive Dennis Woodside said in a statement today: “The industry faces its biggest technology transformation, and together ARRIS and Motorola will be able to accelerate related innovations such as the introduction of the IP Connected Home environments that service providers need and that their consumers crave.”

Photo via Scott Hingst/Flickr

With use at an all-time high for Xbox Live members, Microsoft could be planning to debut a new, cost-effective set-top box for streaming media.

The information comes from a report by The Verge, which cites unnamed sources familiar with the plans. The “Xbox TV” device would offer users a striped-down hardware version of the Xbox 360 console that’s optimized to play videos, music, and online games. It’ll run core components of Windows 8, and apparently scheduled for a 2013 holiday released date.

The new, cheaper Xbox TV is part of Microsoft’s plan to make sure its digital media efforts can scale across multiple devices, according to The Verge’s source. That makes sense because, if Microsoft wants to seriously take on Apple and Google, it’ll need to ensure that more people have access to Xbox Live through their television sets.

Apple and Google also have set-top boxes at a $99 price point, which is something Microsoft will need to remedy if the Xbox TV rumors prove true.

On a related note, Microsoft was also rumored to be working on a new Cloud TV service last week. It’s possible that these two rumors are related, but of course we won’t know until Microsoft makes an official announcement.

We’re reaching out to Microsoft for further comment, and will update the post with any new information.

Walmart will soon begin selling the awesome Boxee TV set-top box in more than 3,000 stores across the U.S., a move that will help Boxee get in front of lots of new customers this holiday season.

We wrote about the Boxee TV and its insane, unlimited cloud DVR a few weeks back, and we think it has a lot of potential.

The $99 Boxee TV will go on sale in Walmart stores and online tomorrow. Boxee CEO Avner Ronen told us earlier this month that Walmart will heavily promote and display the device in stores.

Boxee is betting the company on the Boxee TV, and it hopes to generate meaningful revenue from its cloud DVR service because the hardware itself won’t be profitable. The DVR service will cost users $15 per month.

New York City-based Boxee was founded in 2007 and has raised $26.5 million from investors including Union Square Ventures, General Catalyst Partners, SoftBank Capital, Pitango Venture Capital, and Spark Capital.

Check out more views of the Boxee TV in the slideshow below.

Late last week, the FCC enacted new rules that allow cable companies to encrypt basic cable for the first time ever. Turns out the new rules aren’t scaring prominent set-top box maker Boxee, which was glad some strings were attached.

Boxee CEO Avner Ronen (pictured, center) said in a blog post Sunday that he was “pleased” that many recommendations made jointly by Boxee and Comcast were adopted. These recommendations include that companies like Boxee can access basic channels accessible via IP, so third-party compatibility shouldn’t be a problem.

“The rulemaking ensures startups like Boxee can continue to invest in building products to innovate in the set-top box/connected TV space,” Ronen wrote. “We are also excited about the new opportunity to work with cable companies to provide next-generation experiences that will delight customers and push the industry forward.”

Boxee’s talks with the FCC were the first time the company fought to help shape public policy surrounding technology. “While initially doubtful our voice would be heard and we would be able to make a difference, we were pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong,” Ronen said.

New York City-based Boxee was founded in 2007 and has raised $26.5 million from investors including Union Square Ventures, General Catalyst Partners, SoftBank Capital, Pitango Venture Capital, Spark Capital.

Avner Ronen photo by Sean Ludwig/VentureBeat

Roku finally slapped a price and retail date on its new Streaming media stick today, along with a few other announcements.

The Roku Stick will debut at the top of the company’s high-end streaming devices, with a $100 price tag, and be available for sale online in October. The stick was first announced back in January, and is roughly the size of a USB jump drive. The stick plugs in to HDMI ports directly on your television and allows you to use your TV’s remote control to navigate. In terms of specs, the Roku Stick is on par with the company’s top-of-the-line Roku XS set-top box.

Given the size of the device and lack of remote control, I expected Roku to deliver a low-end product for about half that price. However, the company went the other direction. The Roku Stick can play video games and will use functionality from the Roku gaming remote control, which is sold separately.

In addition to the new product, Roku is also announcing support for Walmart’s Vudu digital video store front, which support’s the film studio’s standard UltraViolet platform. Roku is adding about a channel per day to its lineup, which is now at over 630 channels. Besides Vudu, the only major streaming video service not represented on the platform is YouTube, but the company did tell me that it was working with Google on an official app. (No word on when the YouTube Roku channel will be out, though.)

The other big announcement Roku is making today is an update to its iOS app. The previous version for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad basically functioned like a remote control. You could manage your personal channel lineup, but that’s basically all. The updated version lets you play music, videos, and photo streams from your device on a TV screen. I consider the Roku the most “parent-friendly” line of streaming media devices, and this new feature is definitely something both my mom and dad would end up using frequently.

The Vudu channel and iOS app update should be available today, and the company said it’s planning to release a new Android app with the added functionality in the near future.

Chinese hardware manufacturer Hisense is the latest to partner with Google on a Google TV set-top box, which was officially announced today.

The device, called the Hisense Pulse, will run the second version of Android-based Google TV software, and offer all the same content access of other GTV-enabled boxes, such as YouTube, Netflix, Pandora, and other apps via the Google Play store. The Pulse will feature a $99 price, which is similar to Vizio’s $99 CoStar box.

The Hisense Pulse device itself is expected to be unveiled during IFA Germany next week, with the device available to consumers in mid-November from select retailers.

The box’s remote is pretty full-featured, with a built-in touchpad and dedicated Netflix button on one side (like you’d find for some Roku boxes). The other side features a QWERTY keyboard.

Hisense is the fifth company currently partnering with Google on a GTV device. The others are Sony, LG, Vizio, and Samsung. Google, however, says it working with other partners, whose devices will be announced later this year.

While many people are waiting for Apple to drastically revamp the television service business, analysts aren’t predicting that this will happen any time soon.

Apple SVP of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue indicated that the company is sticking with its mantra of only entering a markets that it will be able to create great customer experiences as well as address key problems, according to a report from Pacific Crest Analyst Andy Hargreaves published today. Cue identified these key problems as poor TV user interfaces and forced bundling of pay TV content.

“Unfortunately for Apple and for consumers, acquiring rights for traditional broadcast and cable network content outside of the current bundled model is virtually impossible because the content is owned by a relatively small group of companies that have little interest in alternative models for their most valuable content,” wrote Hargreaves, who also had discussions with Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer. “The differences in regional broadcast content and the lack of scale internationally also create significant hurdles that do not seem possible to cross at this point.”

This information echos earlier rumors that Apple was indeed shifting away from building its own television set in favor of transforming its Apple TV set-top box into something that could replace the current cable boxes offered by TV service providers, as VentureBeat previously reported.

Based on Hargreaves’ report, I don’t think Apple is entirely over the idea of taking on the TV industry, but it does seem likely that we’ll be waiting quite a while before anything actually happens.

Apple iTV mockup by Guilherme Schasiepen/Flickr

Apple rolled out a software update for its Apple TV set-top box today that includes a new app for Hulu.

Apple TV owners have been waiting forever for Hulu service to land on the device. Previously, rumors indicated that a Hulu Plus app existed but hadn’t been approved by Apple. Some speculated that this was because a Hulu service would threaten Apple’s TV show sales via iTunes. And with OS X Mountain Lion’s new Mac Airplay feature, there’s really no reason not to put Hulu on the Apple TV.

To access Hulu content, users will need to have a subscription to the premium $7.99 monthly Hulu Plus service. However, Hulu is offering a free trial subscription (1-week of service) to all Apple TV owners. Hulu users should also note that not all content within their queue will be accessible via the Apple TV app, as many programs have web-only streaming licenses. (See photos of the new app in the gallery below.)

The more interesting thing about the new app is that it will allow you to sign up for Hulu Plus directly through Apple TV. Apple TV will use your iTunes account to process the payments. This is the same arrangement Netflix (and I’m assuming other subscription-based content channels) has with Apple.

It’s likely that Apple takes a cut of every subscription that’s paid for through a person’s iTunes account, but we don’t know the exact percentage of that commission fee. This detail is probably why it took so long for Apple to bring Hulu Plus to the Apple TV. If you take into account the possible loss from TV show purchases on iTunes as well as a dismal commission fee from bringing on new subscribers, it makes sense that Apple hesitated in bringing Hulu to its set-top box. If true, it could explain why Apple isn’t in any rush to bring additional streaming video services to the Apple TV.

Vizio announced its first Google TV set-top box product called the Co-Star today, which offers access to the Google Play App Store, live gaming, a slick remote, and much more.

Vizio first made clear its intentions to produce a Google TV box at CES 2012, where the company showed off an unnamed prototype device. The device announced today has 802.11n support, one USB port, HDMI in/out ports, and an option to use a wired Ethernet cable. The Co-Star box will come preloaded with Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, and iHeartRadio  as well as all the other perks that come along with Google TV. One big advantage the device has over other Google TV set-top boxes is its support for cloud-based gaming service OnLive, which lets you stream popular video games to other platforms. Essentially, this makes the Co-Star a legitimate game console competitor.

The Co-Star also has a full-featured Bluetooth remote control with all the standard TV buttons (channels, volume, number pad, etc.), a touch sensitive trackpad, quick buttons (Netflix, Amazon, M-Go), a full Qwerty keyboard, and gaming buttons. Pretty much anything you could possibly conceive of doing on your TV is accounted for.

But the biggest selling point of the Co-Star is probably its $99 price, which is competitive with both the Apple TV and the Roku 2 XS. By comparison, the recently announced Sony next-generation Google TV set-top box is twice that price.

So, when can you get your hands on this bad boy? Vizio hasn’t said, but pre-orders for the Co-Star open up next month.

Check out some images of the device below.

Sadly, a great number of television sets are currently suffering from bad user interfaces, which is something Motorola plans to change.

At The Cable Show industry event in Boston today, the company showed off its DreamGallery media concept that’s powered by Motorola’s Medios cloud service. Essentially, it’s a pretty way to navigate and share stuff on your television set in a way that currently isn’t possible — assuming that all future televisions will have internet connectivity.

DreamGallery focuses on making the television a cross-platform media center that works between computers/web browser, tablets, and smartphones. It will also serve to aggregate all the content from cable TV services, the internet, and Video-on-demand services (like Neflix), into a single location.

Motorola describes the DreamGallery with edgy catch phrases like “Your media your way” in its demo video, which we’ve embedded below.

The only thing that Motorola didn’t mention? What will end up happening to DreamGallery when Google swallows the company? I say this because Google kind of already has a division in place working on the future of television with its Android-based GoogleTV platform. (Maybe you’ve heard of it?)

Let us know what you think of the video in the comments section.

Comcast is finally rolling its new X1 cable/DVR set-top box for the Boston, Mass. market, with a handful of other major markets following soon after, the company announced today.

We first heard about Comcast’s enhanced TV service nearly a year ago, with the cable giant touting a new line of cable boxes featuring a brand new channel guide user interface, integration with social services (Skype, Facebook, Pandora, etc.), and the ability to update software without returning to the physical service center. Well, the X1 is that cable box, which promises an eventual end to the crappy UI and Playskool toy-like remote that’s currently being used the majority of subscribers.

The X1′s UI is very similar to the look and feel of Comcast’s Xfinity TV web services, which is good because there was quite a huge gap in presentation quality.

The X1 box will also interact with mobile phone apps that act as remote controls, which is similar to what Roku, Apple TV, and Boxee already offer to their customers. It’s nice to see Comcast finally taking notice. You’ll also be able to navigate what’s on the screen using the app’s gesture controls. Right now Comcast is only making an iOS app available, but I’m sure Android and others will follow as the X1 launches in additional markets.

Check out a gallery of screenshots showing off the X1′s slick new interface, as well as the new iOS remote control app.

Via Engadget

Intel has released a new processor targeted at set-top boxes and smart TVs, the company announced today.

The new Atom CE5300 media chip is optimized for broadcast video, Internet access, and video communication through a smart TV or set-top box connected to a TV. The new chip marks Intel’s effort to target the living room.

Previously, the company was involved in producing the chipset inside the first generation of Google TV devices as well as the Boxee Box by D-Link. However, Intel ceased production of the chips for those (and other) set-top boxes back in October 2011. Part of the reason for this was that manufacturers couldn’t justify raising the cost of the device to pay for the old chips — pushing them to go with ARM technology instead. Consumers also didn’t take notice of the more powerful chipset.

The new Atom CE5300 chip isn’t targeting manufactures like Sony, Logitech, and others. Instead, the company is focused on putting the chip into set-top boxes offered by cable and telecom service providers. The first product to feature the new chip will be Amino’s Freedom Live Media Gateway, which is much less impressive than the majority of Google TV devices when it comes to available features.

Intel is also rumored to be building its own line of set-top boxes that would launch with its own streaming service. If true, the business strategy will likely be similar to what Roku is doing.

Via The Verge

Networking titan Cisco has agreed to purchase Israeli video software company NDS for a cool $5 billion, the company announced Thursday morning.

NDS focuses on software that delivers video and interactive entertainment to set-top boxes and across other devices. The company said it can “enable subscribers to intuitively view, search and navigate digital content anytime, anywhere and on any device.” Private-equity firm Permira owns 51% of NDS, while media company News. Corp owns 49%.

The acquisition will most likely help Cisco with its many video and content delivery initiatives. The company offers products like Videoscape for set-top boxes and TelePresence for video conferencing.

“Our strategy has always been driven by customer need and on capturing market transitions,” Cisco CEO John Chambers said in a statement. “Our acquisition of NDS fits squarely into this strategy, enabling content and service providers to deliver new video solutions that leverage the cloud and drive new monetization opportunities and service differentiation.”

Cisco will pay around $5 billion, including the assumption of debt, for NDS. The company expects the deal to close in the second half of 2012.

Cisco’s shares are trading down about 1 percent in early trading on the NASDAQ exchange.

Woman hugging money photo: suravid/Shutterstock

The latest company to throw its hat into the streaming video service business might be chip manufacturing giant Intel, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.

The move would mark a new direction for the company in regards to the television industry. The report indicates that Intel will produce its own set-top box along with a subscription-based TV service that could launch by late 2012. If the report is true, Intel would be pitting itself against a growing number of set-top competitors, including Boxee, Roku, and Apple TV.

Previously, the company was involved in producing the chipset inside of the first generation of Google TV devices and the Boxee Box by D-Link. However, Intel ceased production of the chips for those (and other) set-top boxes back in October 2011.

My guess is that Intel realizes there is money to be made in the streaming media business, but only when you’re able to control all of the factors. For instance, the Google TV’s original price was too high due in part to Intel’s chipset. The Google TV software also leaves much to be desired. Apple TV, meanwhile, suffers from limited content selection.

If Intel does come forward with its own set-top box and accompanying service, I’d expect it to look very similar to Roku’s business model. Roku generates revenue from advertising, commission fees for services offered on the Roku (Netflix, Wealth TV, etc.), and hardware sales.

Via GigaOM

Roku is raising a $50 million round of funding in the next three months to help push its streaming media set-top boxes into more international markets, the company told Reuters today.

The company’s set-top boxes allow people in the U.S. to stream over 350 content channels on their televisions, including video, music, social and gaming services. Some of the channels offered include Netflix, Hulu Plus, Crackle MLB.tv, UFC, Classical TV, TuneIn, Facebook, Flickr, and others. Following Netflix’s lead, Roku launched its line of streaming media set-top boxes in the U.K. and Ireland back in January with a fraction of the channels offered by its U.S. counterpart. Now, the company wants to expand further.

Roku has already sold 2.5 million of its set-top boxes in the U.S. alone. That number is likely to rise, according to Roku chief executive and founder Anthony Wood, who recently interviewed with VentureBeat about the future of the company. “The Internet is clearly going to revolutionize the way we get video,” he said.

Wood told Reuters that the new round would be necessary for Roku to launch a major advertising campaign in the U.K. leading up to next year’s winter holiday season. The campaign would give the company plenty of time to assemble a large library of content channels. Wood also said the new round is needed to expand into several new countries such as France, Germany, and Japan.

Founded in 2002, the Saratoga, Calif.-based startup has raised a total of $32 million in funding to date — making the new round the largest in the company’s history. Roku, which generates revenue through hardware sales, advertising, and channel subscription fees, made over $100 million in sales last year. The company intends to become profitable in 2013.

Update (11:25 PST) : Roku’s new funding efforts were originally reported by Bloomberg’s Peter Burrows earlier this week.

Following Netflix’s lead, Roku launched its line of streaming media set-top boxes in the UK and Ireland back in January with a fraction of the channels offered by its U.S. counterpart. The company’s set-top boxes allow people to stream over 40 channels of content on their televisions, including video, music, social and gaming services. Some of the channels offered include Netflix, Crackle MLB.tv, UFC, Classical TV, TuneIn, Facebook, Flickr, and others.

The BBC iPlayer, which offers public television programs on an on-demand basis, is one of the biggest streaming video services in the country, with people consuming over 187 million shows per month on average. While most people in the U.K. consume iPlayer content on a desktop via web browser, I’d imaging it will be a nice option to play it on the big screen with all the other streaming channel options.

Many are still speculating that Roku will eventually add another big channel to its lineup in the next few months—Netflix competitor LoveFlim, which is owned by Amazon.

The information about the Google-branded device comes from a Wall Street Journal report that cites unnamed people briefed on the project. If true, it would mark the Google’s first attempt at creating a hardware product without the aid of an electronics manufacturing partner. The search giant has historically concentrated its resources on developing web-based services, and more recently its open-source Android operating system software for mobile and streaming media devices.

The report indicates that the device is being developed by Google’s Android department, which has previously worked with consumer electronics companies HTC and Samsung on a Google-branded smartphone running a “pure” version of the Android OS. The report also states that the device would allow people to make purchases through the Android Market, which may not be restricted to just music—meaning video, podcasts, etc.

In addition to the word-of-mouth rumors, there are several reasons to believe Google is indeed developing its own streaming device. Last week, an FCC application from Google was unearthed requesting permission to use an undisclosed new “entertainment device” in four major cities over the next six months. As I previously theorized, the data transfer process for the device described in the application would probably allow people to grab video or audio content from the Internet and then distribute it to all their other mobile devices or set-top boxes using Bluetooth technology. The benefit of this would be that people aren’t exhausting their overall network or racking up expensive data charges from wireless carriers.

Also, The timing of the news coincides with Google nearing approval from federal regulators on its acquisition of prominent consumer electronics company Motorola Mobility.

The information came from a FCC application Google submitted in December, which was uncovered by Gigaom. The mystery device will connect to the Internet over a home Wi-Fi network and then sync up with other (probably mobile) devices via Bluetooth.

While details of what the actual device is aren’t included in the application, it almost certainly has something to do with Google TV. Using the data transfer process described in the application, the device could be a way for people to grab video content from the Internet and distribute it to all the other mobile devices. The benefit of transferring content in this way would be that people wouldn’t be exhausting their broadband Internet connections, meaning it wouldn’t slow down the connection for anyone else on the network. Also, people with wireless plans wouldn’t have to worry about hitting data caps just because they wanted to download a few episodes of a TV show once or twice a week.

The application indicates that over 250 devices will be used in Mountain View, Calif.; New York City; Los Angeles Calif.; and Cambridge, Mass.

We’ve pasted the full description from the FCC application below. Let us know your theories in the comments section.

Testing throughput and stability of home WiFi networks using an entertainment device. Testing will include functional testing of all subsystems, including WiFi and Bluetooth radio. Users will connect their device to home WiFi networks and use Bluetooth to connect to other home electronics equipment. This line of testing will reveal real world engineering issues and reliability of networks. The device utilizes a standard WiFi/Bluetooth module, and the planned testing is not directed at evaluating the radio frequency characteristics of the module (which are known), but rather at the throughput and stability of the home WiFi networks that will support the device, as well as the basic functionality of the device. From this testing we hope to modify the design in order to maximize product robustness and user experience. Utilizing the requested number of units will allow testing of real world network performance and its impact on applications running on the device, so that any problems can be discovered and addressed promptly. All devices will be used by and registered to specific individuals (all Google employees), and Google will maintain a record of each device, so that they can be easily recalled at any time during testing and when testing is complete. The devices will be tested at Google facilities and within employees residences in the following areas: Mountain View, CA: 37.421265 N, -122.085314 W; Los Angeles, CA: 33.995388 N, -118.477035 W; Cambridge, MA: 42.362754 N, -71.088023 W; and New York, NY: 40.741872 N, -74.004579 W.

The company’s set-top boxes allow people to stream over 350 channels of content from video, music, social and gaming services — provided they have a television set to hook a box up to. Some of the more popular Roku channels in the U.S. include Crackle, Pandora Radio, Last.fm, Hulu Plus, Amazon Prime Instant, Facebook, Flickr and many others.

The move makes sense for Roku, since its largest media partner, Netflix, launched its streaming service into the UK and Ireland Monday. Furthermore, Netflix has been an integral part of Roku’s success since launching in 2008. The partnership helped Roku sell over a million set-top boxes last year. It’s no wonder that the company has waited until now to enter international markets, as I mentioned in a previous report.

But while Roku may owe a lot to Netflix, it’s by no means the only media partner that the company will likely pursue within the UK — especially since many of Roku’s popular U.S. channels aren’t necessarily available abroad.

One big possibility is that the Amazon-owned Netflix competitor LoveFilm will make its way to the set-top boxes via its own branded channel. Roku already has a relationship with Amazon in the US, and the Roku boxes are available for pre-order through Amazon’s UK site, (which Roku even mentions in the press release).

It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out.