Cable giant Comcast is getting offensive, and I'm not just talking about rates.

As Americans surround themselves with video screens that stream movies and TV shows from different websites, Comcast is going after the challengers.

Comcast had to do something. It can no longer rely on the near monopoly provided by government franchises and content-licensing deals to hold on to its cable TV customers.

So the Philadelphia-based company is giving itself a makeover, in the style of Hulu, Netflix, iTunes and other popular digital-video portals.

Over the past year, Comcast has rolled out new hardware, Web services and mobile applications that extend its video content well beyond the TV and set-top box.

It looks like the company is trying to stem the tide of "cord cutters" who are turning to broadcast and Web video, but managers behind the new initiatives denied that's the case.

"I would say the reason we're doing a lot of this stuff is because our audience is moving to different devices," Tom Blaxland, senior director of product management, said during a recent media tour highlighting the new services.

Blaxland (below) manages a Comcast team in Philadelphia that's building new Web interfaces and mobile apps.

"We just keep following that thread of where our customers are going, so we can give them tools they appreciate," he said.

It may be working. Earlier this month, Comcast announced it's losing fewer cable TV subscribers this year -- 443,000 through the nine months ending Sept. 30, compared with 622,000 lost during the same period last year.

Comcast's big growth area remains broadband Internet service. Content and video services add value to the broadband business, and prevent the company from becoming a simple utility.

Customers benefit because the rise of Web alternatives is pressuring Comcast to provide new and improved services to subscribers, but it hasn't gone so far as to lower rates. Instead it's offering more ways to consume content you're paying for already.

With nearly 4 million users, Comcast's video-streaming apps are hits. But that's still only a small portion of the 20 million digital TV subscribers who could get their content on mobile devices through the free apps.

About 8 million people are using Comcast's video site, XfinityTV.com. That includes 5.5 million subscribers and 2.5 million others who use the site to stream free broadcast content.

One goal of the site is to provide a unified console for TV shows and movies available via Comcast. Listings show what can be recorded to a DVR, streamed over the Internet or played from Comcast's "On Demand" collection.

Blaxland said this content may be available from various other websites, but it can get complicated for avid viewers to bookmark and track dozens of sites to get their shows online.

For a while, Microsoft was heading in this direction with its Windows Media Center video guide, which can blend cable, broadcast and online video sources. But the company now emphasizes the Xbox for video consumption.

Comcast also is developing a new app that will stream live TV shows to Web tablets in subscribers' homes, matching a capability offered by other cable companies. Comcast announced the live TV streaming in January and disclosed last summer that it will use a Motorola device that connects to home routers and handles the streaming. Reports last week said the service will enter testing in a few weeks and initially work only with iPads and Motorola Xoom tablets.

Comcast also is preparing to release a new cable box that plays cable TV, Web video content and some Web apps. Dubbed "Xcalibur," the set-top box is being tested in Georgia, with plans to roll it out across the country starting next year.

Tying these apps and products together is a new interface design dominated by thumbnail "cover shots" of movies and TV shows. It looks more like iTunes or Netflix than the traditional Comcast menu. The interface was added to the XfinityTV.com site in October and is used on the new Xcalibur box.

Elements of the interface will also appear on the new Comcast app coming this month to the Xbox 360, Blaxland said. Comcast subscribers will be able to stream stored -- but not live -- video content to the consoles, after Microsoft rolls out a new software dashboard for the consoles Dec. 6.

Some of these changes reflect what's happening behind the scenes. Comcast is now streaming content over the Internet from a central hub in Denver, which could eventually replace the local "hubs" that Comcast uses to store and distribute video over its traditional cable.

Meanwhile, the company is using both cable and Web systems. That's why subscribers will see some shows available "On Demand" -- from Comcast's regional hubs -- and others available for Web streaming. Different licensing deals affect what's available from the two systems.

You'd think Comcast would be able to abandon regional hubs and just stream everything via the Internet, as Netflix or Hulu does. That would eliminate the need for set-top boxes, and let customers stream live and on-demand content straight to connected TVs, tablets and game consoles.

Blaxland said "you could foresee that being the case" but for now the cable system still works well for distributing high-quality video.

"Eventually the IP (Internet protocol) stuff will catch up so that we can do some pretty cool stuff," he said.

Having one central hub could also lower Comcast's operating costs dramatically.

So does that mean subscriber rates will come down? Not likely.

"There's no way you can speculate on that," spokesman Steve Kipp said, explaining that content costs will keep going up even if distribution costs fall: "Those rates keep going up year after year, especially sports."

If you're among the millions of Sony Bravia TV owners affected by last week's recall, here's what to expect from the process.

I went through the process this morning to be sure that the 40-inch LCD set I bought at Costco a few years ago won't overheat and catch fire.

The first step was scheduling an appointment through Sony's Web site, which unfortunately requires that you block out four to eight hours to wait for the technician. Sony contracts with a service agency that mostly handles PC repairs for companies such as Lenovo and Dell.

My appointment was for between 8 a.m. and noon, and the tech called around 8:30 to say he'd be there after 10. He arrived at 10:30 and the actual process took about 30 minutes. The appointment took a bit longer because the tech's meter failed and he had to run down to Radio Shack for a new one.

Most surprising was how big the components are inside an LCD set that's only three or four years old. It's amazing that the industry is able to produce such sleek, inch-thick sets nowadays. It's similar to the way phones have become slimmer and faster over the same period, but with displays ten times smaller.

The recall is actually a test to see that two pathways on the circuit board have between 42 and 60 ohms of resistance. If so, the set's fine and nothing needs to be done. Otherwise you're looking at having parts replaced during the visit.

There was no problem with my TV and it wasn't a huge problem to unhook everything and dismount the set. Fortunately the adhesive strips in the Nintendo Wii sensor bar still worked after pulling it off for the servicing, and everything's back in place.

My only gripe is that you can't narrow down the scheduling window. Sony shouldn't make people sacrifice four to eight hours to wait for a brief service call to fix a potentially dangerous manufacturing defect.

Ceton's going outside the box.

The family-run Kirkland hardware company today announced an external, plug-in version of its TV tuner for Windows PCs.

Called the InifiniTV 4 USB, the $299 gadget has four tuners that can simultaneously stream four live high-definition channels at once.

It's designed to work with Windows 7 PCs that include Media Center. It also accepts CableCard devices provided by cable companies.

The setup lets you replace cable company set-top boxes with a PC, which can stream the live and recorded TV around the home using "extender" devices such as an Xbox 360 console.

Pre-orders for the device begin Aug. 19 from a few online retailers. Broader available is expected in September, and shipping is planned to begin Sept. 19.

It looks like a cool device but buyers may think about waiting until shipping begins. Ceton's tuners are much appreciaed by Media Center enthusiasts but the company's initial production last year took than expected.

The company also announced today that the price of its internal quad tuners is now $299, down from $399 when they debuted in May 2010.

TiVo is jumping into the connected TV market, offering its interface and search software to TV manufacturers.

The sets have the look and feel of a TiVo set-top box, but they don't have DVR capabilities. Instead they use the TiVo software for navigating the program guide and online services accessible through the TVs.

The first sets with "TiVo Design" were announced today by Best Buy, which is using the software in its Insignia house-brand TVs. It's offering a 42-inch model for $1,000 and a 32-incher for $600. (The news release said they were $700 and $500; maybe there's a launch premium ...)

UPDATE: A spokesman said Best Buy's online pricing as of Monday morning was inaccurate and the actual price of the sets is $700 and $500 - actually $699.99 and $499.99. If anyone bought the sets at the higher prices posted on the store's Web site, they can bring receipts to a store or call 1-888-Bestbuy for a "price adjustment," he said.

Apps available for the TVs include Netflix, CinemaNow, Pandora and Best Buy's Napster. Their TiVo software can be used to search online video content by title, actor, director and keyword, the release said.

Unlike TiVo set-top boxes, the TiVo-powered TVs don't require a monthly subscription fee.

TiVo investors are apparently unenthused. Its stock is down 1 percent, to $9.30 today.

Michael Dell was the winning bidder in the auction of a Seattle TV station last week.

As I reported in June, Dell's personal investment company submitted the opening bid for bankrupt station KFFV TV, which broadcasts Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese and Korean language shows on channel 44.

The station's biggest asset may be its spectrum, if the FCC buys the spectrum back and then auctions it to wireless broadband companies.

During the bankruptcy proceeding, Dell's OTA Broadcasting offered $3.45 million for the station. Another bidder, affiliated with a national broadcasting group, joined the auction and OTA ended up paying $5.05 million.

KFFV had debts of around $2 million and about six employees at an office south of downtown Seattle.

The station's future is unclear. A call to a spokesman for Dell's investment group wasn't immediately returned.

Now the transfer of ownership must be approved by the FCC, a process that could take up to 90 days, according to broker Frank Higney.

LOS ANGELES _ Microsoft will partner with regional cable companies to bring live TV onto the Xbox, a new feature that it announced Monday at E3.

That means the TV services will be provided through cable and satellite companies, and Xbox owners will need to subscribe to their services to get the live TV onto their game console.

That's according to Mike Delman, vice president of global marketing for Microsoft's interactive entertainment business group.

During an interview in Microsoft's elaborate, two-story booth at the show, Delman also talked about Skype on the Xbox, Kinect's new capabilities and how Xbox Live is going to become an entertainment service for Windows 8 PCs.

Here's an edited transcript of our conversation.

Q: Do you feel you've got as much at E3 as the other guys?

Definitely. We don't have an announcement like a new console but the combination of the games for the hardcore, starting to answer the question about the Kinect for the core, and having a lot more Kinect for broader audiences and the live television has played real well.

Q: Some of your announcements were just a tease, like live TV coming this fall to Xbox. Did you hold back details because partnerships aren't done yet?

We have partnerships in certain places. It's kind of ironic we have a lot of international partnerships before we got some of our U.S. partnerships done. The reason we talked about it is doing the platform work - doing voice, doing Bing search, getting the UI to be a modern UI, is really the hard work. Layering in the content isn't as hard, so it's a natural sequence.

Q: The interface seems designed to plug in another tile when you get a new content partner.

Yes, bringing in the live content - a lot of people are just layering in tonnage, they're not putting interactivity and discoverability in it. Getting the interactivity and discoverability built, so the content can sit on top of it - getting the platform work done is the hard part.

Q: Will live TV be universal, or will it be regional TV services provided by whoever your cable provider is?

It will be tied to either a satellite broadcast company or a cable company. So in international markets, you'll just have one provider. In the U.S., it will be bifurcated by region, by market. You'll be a Comcast guy (in Seattle), for example.

Q: So you'll have to be a Comcast subscriber, similar to the way you need a subscription to get the ESPN content on the Xbox now?

Yes.

Q: Will the Bing search be full Web search or just for entertainment?

It will be full search on what you have on Xbox Live. So anything that's available on Xbox Live if you're a gold subscriber it will search all of that, it won't go out and search the Web.

Q: Why not add Web search as well?

Listen, when we've got tens of millions of pieces of content just on our service, being able to search that - music for example, we've got 11 million music titles now - just mastering that in a bunch of different languages is a big priority. People at this point have other ways to get out to the Web.

Q: It seems like you could point the search at Bing's entertainment channel.

It's just not in the plans.

Q: Because you are using Bing, can you also serve ads against the results?

That's not part of the plan but it can be done. A lot of it will probably be serving ads within the content more than within search.

Q: It seems to be mostly about utility, making search easier than pecking out letters on the screen.

People will be doing stuff with their voice in probably a quarter the time it takes to go through the menu with the controller.

Q: With hardcore games, Kinect is still doing auxiliary things mostly, rather than controlling the main action. When are we going to see that?

People need time to build a core, triple a title from the ground up with Kinect. People are starting to build core games from the ground up. The core doesn't want the controller to come out of their hand, necessarily. ..In a way I think voice (with a controller in hand) will be as powerful or more powerful to the core than will gestures, and the gestures won't be the sweeping gestures you have in the broader Kinect. I think they'll be more pointed gestures like a head-fake or a head-butt. ... People are being very smart about doing something that will enhance the core experience rather than totally change it.

Q: So will "Halo 4" be a Kinect game?

I'm sure we'll have some Kinect in it but we're not that far along.

Q: We've seen voice and gesture controls but not much use of Kinect's scanning capability.

The scanning actually wasn't fully enabled until the "Fun Lab" stuff unveiled (Monday).

Q: I also wondered if scanning or the finger tracking you've shown here would need new hardware with better sensors.

No, you can actually do that stuff now. Some of the things that will be interesting in the next generation of sensor will maybe a more high-definition RGB camera so the video conferencing is better than it is now. Skype, if it comes to fruition - you can see a lot of possibilities.

Q: I was surprised we didn't hear about Skype in your E3 press conference, but I guess the deal hasn't closed yet ...

I'm probably out of bounds talking about it.

Q: Maybe you'll announce Skype on Xbox at CES in January?

Whenever it clears, there's a lot of possibility with that.

Q: Because there's a new Nintendo console that runs hardcore games coming, will people hold off buying an Xbox or adding Kinect to their console?

I don't know what the reaction's going to be relative to their own platform. All I know is we're in the fifth to sixth year of our platform and platforms have never grown in the fifth or sixth year at what we're seeing. Other platforms is not what we're focused on, we're focused on how do we make Kinect, how do we make Live as compelling as possible. In a way a lot of what's going to happen is the box doesn't become the focus going forward, it's what is the sensor, what is the handheld, what is the phone companion, what is the service companion and what are the experiences.

Q: Speaking of phone, I was surprised we didn't hear about connections between Xbox and Windows Phone here at E3.

Live has been successful on the Windows Phone, Live will be built into the PC; it will be the service where you get your entertainment. We were talking about it - you will not just see consoles and handhelds at this show next year, this show's going to morph into other devices.

Q: Will Xbox offer games on certified phones, similar to what Sony's PlayStation is doing with Android phones?

We think there's a lot of potential on the Windows phones. With the Nokia relationship, we're going to have a lot more distribution of phones and Live will be the primary entertainment service. I think that's going to be a good play for us. If we have that and the PCs to leverage, that will be a big Live base. It's our job to make 'buy a movie in one place and play it everywhere, buy a game in one place and play it everywhere.' Making things portable through the devices will be a big focus of ours.

Q: Will Microsoft's Zune service continue building up its video and music stores, or will you be working more with partners running content stores?

We're very committed to offering music and video and TV shows on our own service through Zune.

Q: I don't think I heard the "Z" word in the keynote. Are you phasing out the Zune brand?

In general I think what you're going to see is us talking about 'music' and 'video.' I think what we're coming to the realization about is putting brands on top of brands on top of brands is not as, you know - if you want to look for music, just knowing it's under a category (music) is a good thing.

Q: Speaking of branding, Xbox brands are all over Qwest Field. Are you going to go the next step and name the whole stadium, taking that over from CenturyLink?

Not that I know of. I'm a little worried we might own the whole city of Seattle if we keep doing sponsorships with everybody.

Q: How will your services and content be part of Windows 8?

There will be a lot of similarities in design and service philosophy. Whether it's us or Apple or anybody else, people want to be able to navigate through multiple devices in a certain ecosystem very seamlessly so we're committed to that.

Q: Will Xbox Live be your cloud media service that works with your Windows PC as well as your phone and Xbox?

Xbox Live will the pervasive media service across devices.

Q: Right now it's a little confusing - you've got Xbox Live, SkyDrive storage and other online places for media.

We have a ton of assets. Unifying the assets will be good for us and good for consumers.

Microsoft hasn't said a lot about the new TV products and services it's developing this year, but the company has revealed the executive chosen to lead the effort.

Tom Gibbons, a vice president who had been working on mobile device strategy, is now leading the TV and service business within the Interactive Entertainment group.

The move comes as Microsoft is working with computer makers on a range of devices for connecting TVs to the Internet to stream TV and video services, building on the company's Media Center software that's being challenged by new products from Apple and Google.

Simulatenously, Microsoft is working on a range of video services for the Xbox platform, which has been offered in some countries as a modified cable box.

Gibbons has experience releasing gadgets and consumer products. Earlier he was VP of the specialized devices and applications group, leading strategy for groups that built Microsoft's automotive software, Surface computers, hardware and Macintosh software.

His new position was disclosed in a bio updated March 16 on Microsoft's press site, which was called out by Mary Jo Foley at ZDNet.

A new report from NPD says Netflix has 61 percent of the streaming video market in the U.S.

That means six of 10 streamed movies are delivered by the Los Gatos, Calif.-based company.

The nearest competitor is Comcast, with 8 percent of the market. Tied in third place with 4 percent of the market apiece are DirecTV, Time Warner Cable and Apple.

Still, most home-video revenue still comes from the sale of physical discs.

"Sales of DVDs and Blu-ray Discs still drive most home-video revenue, but VOD and other digital options are now beginning to make inroads with consumers," Russ Crupnick, NPD entertainment industry analyst, said in the release. "Overwhelmingly digital movie buyers do not believe physical discs are out of fashion, but their digital transactions were motivated by the immediate access and ease of acquisition provided by streaming and downloading digital video files."

NPD looked at movies downloaded or streamed between January and February, drawing on 10,618 survey responses.

Frontier Communications today dramatically raised the cost of hooking up to its FiOS TV service for new customers -- from $79 to $500.

The company also notified regulators in four Oregon cities that it's opting out of franchise agreements there, clearing the way to stop offering Frontier TV services in those cities.

Combined with plans for a big FiOS TV rate hike that surfaced in January -- but which hasn't taken effect yet -- Frontier seems to be on a path to phasing out its FiOS TV service altogether.

But spokesman Steve Crosby denied that's happening, and said the company's still evaluating its options.

"I wouldn't jump to that conclusion yet," he said, adding that "we are stil analyzing the business and figuring out what our cost structure is and the best way to treat our customers."

Frontier is using the "opt out" period of the Oregon franchises "because we have to continue to analyze the business" before committing to another 12 years of service under those agreements. The company has "no current plans" to opt-out of franchise agreements in cities other than Dundee, McMinnville, Newberg and Wilsonville, Ore.

The Connecticut-based company took over Verizon's wired phone, broadband and TV service in the West last year. Locally its service area includes parts of the Eastside of King County and parts of Snohomish County.

New hookup fees and the franchise changes affect only the TV service provided directly by Frontier. The hookup fees are for new customers, and are spread out over the first three months of service.

In January, when it disclosed plans to raise FiOS TV monthly rates by about 50 percent, the company suggested customers could switch to DirecTV and offered them free DirecTV service through 2011.

Crosby said the rates were disclosed prematurely but are still in the works.

"I imagine these rate increses will take effect at some point," he said.

Renton TV application developer L4 Systems has given itself a makeover and a new name that will stand out, even in a world of tech companies with wacky names.

The company is now called Splat Interactive. That follows the name of its entertainment website Splat TV, which is distributed through Yahoo's connected TV platform.

L4 "no longer adequately represents our business," Chief Executive Tom Freeman said in a release.

"The Splat Interactive name embodies our ability and our commitment to continue helping media companies and millions of consumers globally interact with rich content on the device of their choice whether in their living room or in their purse," he said.

Splat was started in April and now has 14 employees in downtown Redmond. Freeman formerly co-founded Bellevue's VoiceBox Technologies, and Chief Technology Officer Stephen Fishburn was vice president of UIEvolution.

Deeper reporting turned up the rest of the story of Splat.

Officially, the name stands for Songs, Places, Locations and Things -- the information drawn from TV shows for the company's Yahoo TV application, according to Neslihan Toraman, product marketing manager.

But the real genesis of the name was a company meeting, Toraman explained via e-mail.

Freeman was trying to describe the stars used in a program rating feature "and the only term he could think of was the old Unix term 'splat,' " which refers to an asterisk.

LAS VEGAS -- Here's a demonstration of how content can be streamed from a Windows Phone to the new set-top boxes based on Windows Media Center running on an embedded version of Windows.

The devices take advantage of a "play to" capability built into Windows and based on DLNA media networking standards.

Mark Pendergrast, senior program manager, is showing the technology here at CES.

LAS VEGAS -- Here's a new plasma TV on which you can draw pictures and manipulate images with a pen.

Actually it's a stylus that receives infrared signals from the screen. LG will begin selling the displays in about six or seven months. It would be great fun in a rec room, but it's intended for retail and commercial displays.

LAS VEGAS -- Here are a few TVs that caught my eye on a partial walk through the show floor. I'll post more as I have time.

Mitsubishi showed a prototype 155-inch OLED display that could be used at home, but it's really intended for commercial displays. The set is huge, but it could get much bigger; it's made up of 5 x 9 inch panels, and more panels can be added to make the set as big as you want. Its resolution is 640 by 1152.

Here's the world's slimmest OLED display at 2.9 millimeters thick, according to LG, which is selling the 15-inch diagonal model for $1,700. A 31-inch model below is a prototype that may not go on sale for a year or two.

Here's an overhead view of the thinnest OLED:

A dual-screen Mercedes:

Sony's prototype, glasses-free OLED 3-D TV with a 24.5-inch screen and 1920 x 1080p resolution:

Another shot of the OLED 3-D prototype, which was displayed in a dark alcove:

I think there are some cool TVs over there somewhere:

LAS VEGAS -- Here's a quick video of the trippy video display that greets visitors in the central hall of CES and captures the frenetic feeling of the show floor. The effect is especially strong if you've just come from the Bob Marley iPod accessory booth.

The LG sets on display are about a half-inch thick and connect to Web services like Hulu Plus, by the way.

If you're a FiOS TV customer with Frontier Communications - the company that took over Verizon's phone service last year - you'll be facing a steep rate increase.

Frontier is raising rates for its most common TV packages by $30 per month. That's nearly a 50 percent increase for the most common package, the $65 a month plan with 220 channels. It will now cost $95.

Frontier notified local franchising officials of the change on Monday. The increase was first reported today by The Oregonian.

Customers affected by the change will be notified by mail later this month.

Rates are going up because the cost of content is increasing, and Frontier doesn't have the scale to absorb those costs, spokeswoman Stephanie Beasly said.

"The pricing is going up - the cost of providing content is going up," she said. "We're not able to offset that pricing in our market."

Premium TV plans will increase $30 per month. The basic, local TV package will increase $12 per month.

Higher rates took effect Monday for new customers just signing up. Existing customer rates will go up Feb. 18, except for those with contracts. For people who have contracts - for one or two years, for instance - rates won't change until the contract expires.

As an alternative, Frontier will be offering customers the choice of getting DirecTV satellite service, including deals when bundled with phone and Internet service. DirecTV content will be free through 2011 to customers who switch from FiOS; in 2012 a package with 225 channels and HD service would cost $63 per month.

Frontier provides the TV service in Washington, Oregon and Indiana. The Connecticut-based company acquired Verizon's phone lines last July in a deal first announced in May 2009.

Beasly said there are no current plans to increase the cost of FiOS broadband rates.

Here's a chart showing the old and new rates:

Upstart TV maker Vizio jumped the CES gun today by announcing new TVs, a Web tablet and a smartphone the company will be showing in Las Vegas this week.

Vizio also disclosed that several of its new sets will include the GoogleTV software, even though Google has asked electronics companies to hold back on releasing new GoogleTV products until the product is refined.

Details are still skimpy about the phone, but the device and the Vizio tablet are both based on Google's Android operating system. Both include infrared transmitters and software so they'll work as universal remote controls for TVs and other electronic devices.

The handheld gadgets extend the "Via" Web application platform that Vizio has added to its higher-end TVs and Blu-ray players, "delivering on the multi-screen, unified ecosystem others have talked about for years and never delivered," Vizio Chief Technology Officer Matthew McRae said in a release.

Vizio isn't disclosing prices yet but a spokesman said the phone and tablet will be available this summer.

The phone has specs comparable to the latest smartphones -- a 1 gigahertz processor, 4-inch screen, 80211n Wi-Fi, a 5 megapixel camera and a front-facing camera for video chats -- but Vizio didn't announce which wireless phone technology it will use.

Vizio's tablet has an 8-inch touchscreeen, 1 GHz processor, an HDMI port, HD video output, a MicroSD card slot, three speakers and a front-facing camera for chats.

Irvine, Calif.-based Vizio also announced new "Theater 3D" TVs ranging in size from 22 to 71 inches diagonally. The line doesn't require the battery-powered "active shutter" glasses used in last year's models and its displays are twice as bright, the company said.

Prices of the 21 new TV sets have yet to be determined. A chart accompanying the release lists two "Via Plus" sets -- a 47-inch and 55-inch -- suggesting that they'll be the two with GoogleTV software.

Google is buying Widevine, a Seattle vendor of digital-rights management software that's widely used by broadcasters to safely transmit video content online.

The move comes as Google is pledging to do a better job protecting copyrighted material and fending off a renewed lawsuit by Viacom over copyright violations.

By acquiring Widevine, Google will instantly become a dominant player in the market for protecting video content broadcast over the Web. The company is already the largest distributor of online video by far but it currently doesn't have its own streaming-video DRM technology other than a "content ID" fingerprinting system developed for YouTube.

A Google spokesman declined to say whether the company will apply Widevine's DRM technology to the vast amount of video the company hosts and distributes. Having a more robust system to track and protect streaming video could help the company if it decides to renew efforts to create pay video services and other content subscription services.

Widevine may also help Google build new relationships with wary broadcasters resentful of the way Google's platforms have been used to distribute unauthorized copies of their material.

Widevine's DRM technology is used in more than 250 million Web-connected devices, including TVs and Blu-ray players made by Samsung, LG and Panasonic. Its DRM technology is also used in GoogleTV devices, the Android operating system, Apple's iOS platform and Nintendo's Wii.

In a blog post announcing the deal, Mario Queiroz, Google's vice president of product management, said Widevine has "worked to provide a better video delivery experience for businesses of all kinds," from studios to cable systems and hardware manufacturers

"By forging partnerships across the entire ecosystem, Widevine has made on demand services more efficient and secure for media companies, and ultimately more available and convenient for users," he wrote.

A price wasn't disclosed but Widevine has raised more than $65 million from investors including Cisco Systems, Samsung, Charter Ventures, Dai Nippon Printing, Constellation Ventures, Liberty Global, PaceSetter Capital, Phoenix Partners and VantagePoint Venture Partners.

Widevine's 60 employees will relocate from the company's offices in downtown Seattle to Google's Kirkland campus.

The release quote from Widevine Chief Executive Brian Baker, who co-founded the company in 1999:

By working with Google, we are even further committed to the consumer Internet video experience and to the needs of content owners. Widevine will continue to supply the industry with leading video optimization and content protection solutions. We are excited to have access to Google's vast resources as we continue to improve our products, support our customers, and meet the future needs of consumers, content owners, service providers and device manufacturers everywhere.

Another co-founder -- who is now teaching in California -- was former Microsoft and AT&T cryptography researcher Jeremy Horwitz.

Google has been negotiating with Widevine for several months as pressure on the search giant grew from copyright holders.

Google announced Thursday that it's stepping up efforts to remove content that infringes on copyright from its sites and will more promptly remove infringing material.

Then earlier today, Viacom resumed its lawsuit over YouTube hosting pirated material from its networks, including Comedy Central and MTV. Viacom is appealing a June ruling in Google's favor, made by the U.S. District Court in New York.

Meanwhile, Google continues to draw millions to its video services. Its sites drew 146.3 million unique viewers who conducted 2 billion viewing sessions -- averaging 271.6 minutes per viewer -- in October, according to comScore.

ESPN service on the Xbox 360 may be just the start.

Microsoft is in talks with other networks about bringing additional subscription TV services to the Xbox and other devices, according to a Reuters report today based on anonymous sources.

Microsoft has tried for decades to increase its presence alongside the TV. That has led to all sorts of partnerships with networks and cable companies, including some that are now offering a modified version of the Xbox to subscribers as an alternative cable box.

Meanwhile consumer-electronics companies from Apple down are offering a range of new gadgets that connect TVs to the Internet and provide a platform for TV and movie companies to offer rentals and subscription services.

An excerpt from the Reuters story:

The maker of the Windows operating system has proposed a range of possibilities in these early talks including creating a "virtual cable operator" delivered over the Internet for which users pay a monthly fee.

Other options include using the Xbox to authenticate existing cable subscribers to watch shows with enhanced interactivity similar to how pay TV operators have sought to do over the Web, said these people.

Microsoft has already been building up the lineup of entertainment options on the Xbox, which is becoming more of an entertainment hub and an option for people trying to get Internet video content onto their TV.

I'll bet the latest round of talks are focused particularly on new digital TV boxes based on Windows Media Center that Microsoft and hardware companies will unveil at January's Consumer Electronics Show. These $200 to $250 boxes function as TV tuners and gateways to online video services such as Netflix.

After lots of testing, the hit online video site Hulu today launched its Hulu Plus pay service for $7.99 per month.

The price is $2 less than originally planned and undercuts, by a dollar, the entry cost of Netflix, Hulu's biggest competitor in the market for streaming premium video content.

Since 2008, Hulu has streamed current and past TV shows and movies to PCs free, a service that in October drew nearly 30 million viewers who spent an average of 208 minutes on the site, according to comScore.

What differentiates Hulu Plus is the availability of full seasons of current TV shows, such as "Glee," "Modern Family" and "The Office," provided by the networks that started Hulu. It's now offering more than 240 seasons of TV shows with 2,400 episodes.

The availability of network shows has made Hulu a useful service for consumers moving away from cable TV services, although the free version of Hulu may lose some of its appeal if the site moves more premium content behind its pay wall.

Hulu is taking its time with the Plus launch, though. For now the premium service will only be available on streaming media devices made by Roku (shown above) and Sony's PlayStation 3 game console. The company said that covers more than 50 million devices in the U.S.

It's aiming to be as ubiquitous on Web-connected TV devices as Netflix. Hulu Plus will be available "in the months to come" on the Xbox 360, TiVo Premiere DVRs and Internet-connected TVs and Blu-ray players made by Vizio, LG and Panasonic.

Hulu Plus is also coming soon to Western Digital's WD TV Live Hub Media Center and WD TV Live Plus Network Media Player.

Later, it's coming to mobile phones, tablet computers and additional devices.

Here's a list of devices supporting Hulu Plus.

Hulu's management team includes a number of veterans of Amazon.com, Microsoft and other Seattle tech companies. It's based in the Los Angeles area but is opening a Seattle office this year.

Google is leaping into the television set-top box business this holiday season with its new GoogleTV software platform.

After trying one of the first models for a few days, I'd say it isn't yet worth the $300 to $1,400 that GoogleTV systems cost.

There are plenty of cheaper and simpler options available if you want to connect your TV to the Internet and watch Netflix and YouTube videos.

Technophiles wanting their TVs to have the power of a PC may be frustrated by the limitations of GoogleTV. It's nowhere near as polished and flexible as the Media Center software built into most versions of Windows and it lacks the digital video recording features of Media Center.

It's too bad because I just love the remote control on the GoogleTV system I've been testing, the $299 Logitech Revue.

The remote is a light but sturdy wireless keyboard with a trackpad and TV controls on the right side, where you'd find a numeric keypad on a regular keyboard. Its big buttons are easier to use than the mini-keypads used on some remotes nowadays.

It connects to a set-top box that's about the size of a netbook computer and runs the same kind of Intel Atom processor. Set-up is pretty easy, with a step-by-step menu on the TV screen.

GoogleTV will disappoint people looking for a way to "cut the cable" or reduce the clutter of boxes connected to their TV. It's designed to supplement, rather than replace, a cable company's set-top box.

In a surprising departure from Google's democratic approach to product design, GoogleTV really only works if you pay for premium cable. It also requires broadband.

If you have barebones basic cable -- the kind that requires no cable box -- or use free broadcast TV, you're basically out of luck. There's no way to connect an antenna or coaxial cable. The only way to get TV signals into the box is through an HDMI cable.

So what does GoogleTV do? It's basically a layer of software that can be added to your TV. This layer can be used to browse the Web, display Web video content and run applications, although there are only a few available so far. It runs on the tiny Intel processors in a set-top box or built into special flat-panel TV sets.

The big feature is, of course, Google search. When a GoogleTV device is connected to a TV, you can call up a search box on the screen to look for content available on the Web and your TV. Search results are tailored, so a search for a particular actor may return links to a bunch of video snippets where the actor appears.

When I searched for "Jamie Oliver," GoogleTV displayed links to the chef's Web site and Web videos. But it didn't find the collection of his shows that I'd already recorded on a TiVo connected to the GoogleTV box.

At the Food Network's Web site, I was able to play its parsimonious selection of free video clips. But they were off center on the screen, and GoogleTV's vertical scroll bar is so narrow -- the width of a pencil on a 40-inch TV -- that I had trouble moving the page to the right place.

I was able to use the browser to do work e-mail on the TV in my living room. But GoogleTV wouldn't let me press the "close" button to exit the Web mail program, which remained open on the TV's "desktop."

Despite all the content protection and cable coziness, GoogleTV's still getting the stink eye from TV networks. Most are blocking GoogleTV units from accessing their free, online video offerings, including the free TV shows and movies at Hulu.com. If you point the browser at Hulu, you get a message saying you'll have to pay for its $10 per month premium plan, through a GoogleTV application that's being developed.

Google says lots of applications will be available in 2011 but for now there's a meager selection, including the standard YouTube, Netflix, Pandora and Twitter apps. There's also an NBA application that displays scores and highlights, if you still care after the Sonics debacle.

I've tested all sorts of gadgets with Netflix lately and GoogleTV was the first one that failed to work out of the box. The system hung up and directed me to Netflix support, where I was advised to do a hard reboot -- unplugging and restarting the GoogleTV box. It worked afterward.

Google's being cagey about its plans to connect GoogleTV to its advertising delivery system. That may be the biggest reason to wait before investing in a GoogleTV system. If Google's going to use the system to make money off of you, with ads, the system should be cheaper or even free.

It also needs a pop-up blocker so the browser doesn't put this sort of thing on your TV:

The Revue media player connected to the Twonky server on my home network but not Windows Media Connect. It couldn't play videos taken with my camera and stored on the network. The player also froze when I tried to rotate a photo stored on the network, using its rotate button:

The freebie of the day, if you're an app developer, is coming from Google.

The company today announced that it's giving 10,000 GoogleTV devices to developers building software for the fledgling platform. It started by giving 3,000 away today at the Adobe Max conference.

Here's Google's announcement, with details on where professional Web developers can apply for one of the devices, which start at $299.

Hopefully they'll send one to Hulu.com, which doesn't allow access from GoogleTV devices to its free TV shows and movies.

The first set-top box running Google's new TV software was unveiled today by Logitech, the Swiss peripherals company that also makes Harmony remote controls.

Logitech is taking pre-orders for a $299 kit that includes a wireless keyboard/remote control and a set-top box.

Google TV adds a search bar to the TV screen and a collection of applications through which videos and other content is distributed, similar to the applications available on newer TVs from Panasonic, Samsung, Vizio and others.

Google is working with content providers to develop custom applications for the platform, but what's most notable is that the Google TV software includes a browser for viewing Web pages directly, unlike most new connected TV devices, which funnel everything through applications.

Logitech is the first of several partners rolling out Google TV products. On Oct. 12, Sony will announce new Blu-ray players and TVs with Google TV software built in.

Don't look to Google TV to replace your cable TV service yet. The Logitech device requires you to also have a cable or satellite set-top box with an HDMI connection (or DirectTV service). It also requires a TV with an HDMI input to connect to the Logitech box.

Inside, the box has an Intel Atom processor designed especially for set-top boxes. In a way it's similar to the mininature Atom-powered Media Center PCs from Asus, Lenovo and others that are designed to be mounted on the back of a TV, but those are full-fledged computers that let you load, store and share content.

Logitech's "Revue" device has a USB port for connecting to external hard-drives and devices storing content, and it's DLNA compliant, meaning it should be able to stream music, photos and videos from DLNA media servers on a home network.

Today's column is a review of Apple TV. Here's a version with a few pictures of the devices mentioned and their remote controls:

With the appropriate level of awe and reverence, I carefully removed Apple's latest magical product from its apple-sized box and marveled at its sleek design.

Had Apple done it again? Did it revolutionize TV and reveal the future of video entertainment?

The TV platform that Google is developing with Sony, Intel and Logitech will debut in the U.S. this autumn, Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt told reporters at a Berlin trade fair.

Schmidt also said Google will be announcing deals with computers makers to use the company's Chrome operating system on tablet computers, according to a Reuters report.

A number of tablets have already appeared with Google's Android operating system, which was designed primarily for phones, but the Chrome OS has been mostly vaporware so far.

It's a little confusing because Chrome is also the name of Google's browser.

Samsung is mulling whether to add Google software in its TVs, according to a Bloomberg report from Seoul. Samsung is already selling TV sets with similar capabilities, including an application platform for developers.

Google is having a press event Wednesday in San Francisco but it sounds like an update to Google search technology and not the Chrome tablet announcement Schmidt previewed.

The Reuters report said Schmidt declined to comment on the music service Google's expected to announce soon. He did say he was "angry" that Google Street View camera vehicles collected private data from WiFi networks, prompting action by German regulators.

"I was very angry about that," Reuters quoted Schmidt as saying.

On the eve of Apple's fall product announcement Wednesday, Amazon.com is surfacing with plans for a subscription video service that could appear by the holidays.

Both The Wall Street Journal and Associated Press are reporting that Amazon is talking with studios about streaming their catalog of older content, perhaps through a monthly service affiliated with its $79 per year Amazon Prime service.

If nothing else, the reports could get Amazon mentioned in the wave of news coverage coming Wednesday when Apple is expected to announce a new version of its AppleTV device and a video subscription service.

Amazon already competes in the space, offering video rentals on demand to PCs and connected devices such as TiVo digital video recorders.

Next we'll be hearing about Microsoft's Zune Marketplace and the video it offers through Windows Phone 7 and the Xbox.

And don't forget Hulu and its pay service, or rumors that YouTube will offer a video rental service soon.

Just in case there's nothing to watch on TV.

Citing "three people with knowledge of the plans," Bloomberg is reporting that Apple on Wednesday will announce a $99 version of its AppleTV device that streams video from Netflix.

Other expectations are that Apple will present a new version of the iPod Touch with a forward-facing camera and perhaps a redesigned nano, its low-end iPod.

There's also been talk of a "cloud" version of iTunes. Maybe it will update iTunes so it's easier for users to manage and access their pool of rented and purchased material on different devices, including a TV.

The AppleTV device could then be more of an adapter than a standalone video storage and playback device -- more of a connector for securely transmitting protected content.

The new AppleTV will join a huge crowd of devices in the same price range that connect televisions to online video stores and subscription services.

It also comes as TVs and Blu-ray disc players are increasingly connecting directly to those services through Wi-Fi or wired Internet connections. If you're planning on buying a new TV, game console or disc player in the next three to 12 months, you might want to see if a device like AppleTV will duplicate the capabilities of what you'll be buying.

Access to Netflix has become a nearly universal feature on set-top devices, similar to having HDMI connections on a TV or Wi-Fi on a computer.

Every current game console connects TVs to Netflix, as do TiVo boxes, Windows PCs with Media Center capabilities and various gadgets that add connectivity to current TVs. The latter includes the $69 Roku box and the $100 Western Digital TV Live devices.

What's really intriguing, I think, is the rise of $200 to $300 Media Center computers the size of a box of frozen spinach, designed to hang on the back of a TV.

In addition to providing access to Netflix, iTunes and all the other Web video rental services, these tiny PCs also work as digital video recorders with slick channel guides. They also give viewers access to all the content and sites on the Web -- taking TVs beyond the restricted pipeline created by applications designed for video rental and sales.

Apple will no doubt introduce a beautiful new piece of hardware, but the real advance would come if the device makes it easier for people to access the whole Web through their TV, and not just pre-screened applications and subscription video services.

Sezmi, an ambitious TV startup led by veterans of Sony and Clearwire, is finally launching its service in Seattle next month.

The company offers an alternative to cable and satellite TV services, using special hardware that receives TV content over-the-air and via broadband Internet connections.

Sezmi tested its service in Seattle in 2008, in part because of the region's challenging topography. It also helped that three of the company's managers were based here at the time.

Here's a story I wrote in 2008 when the company announced its plans.

Service in Seattle will start with a basic $4.99 per month plan offering local broadcast channels in high definition, a library of on-demand movies and cable shows, and access to YouTube and other Web video shows.

To use the service, you've got to buy the hardware - including a receiver and a DVR with 1 terabyte of capacity shown here - for $150. There are no equipment rental fees.

In other markets, Sezmi offers a premium plan for $19 that includes access to 15 cable channels but not ESPN, Food Network or HGTV. A spokeswoman said the premium service should be available in Seattle at the end of the year or the start of 2011 and the company's working to expand the cable lineup.

Sezmi, based in Belmont, Calif., raised $75 million since it was started in 2006. It launched its service earlier this year in Los Angeles.

Seattle's part of an expansion push that's extending Sezmi from 15 to 36 markets on Aug. 2.

Maybe I should have waited before running a column on Hulu Plus and the roughly $10 fee that media companies are charging for buckets of online content.

Content owners are refining Web strategies and tinkering with release windows for their latest material. Hulu Plus - the new subscription service announced last week - is one outcome. Another is studios delaying the release of current movies to Netflix.

Today Netflix offset that a bit by announcing a new arrangement with Relativity Media, the studio behind movies such as "The Fighter" and "Get Him to the Greek."

Instead of waiting for its movies to work through the pay TV pipeline before reaching Netflix, Relativity is giving Netflix earlier access. Its movies will still come out on DVD before they stream on Netflix, but the companies said their deal is a new approach that will get the movies streaming sooner.

From today's Netflix release:

The deal marks a continued shift in the distribution of major motion pictures in the U.S. Under the agreement, an increasing amount of popular contemporary movies previously encumbered by pay TV agreements with premium channels such as HBO, Showtime and Starz will become available to be streamed from Netflix months - and not years - after their release on DVD. It will be the first time that studio quality theatrical feature films will be streamed via subscription by Netflix instead of being broadcast by the traditional pay providers, and it opens up a new revenue stream for such movies.

It doesn't sound like the number of recent movies on Netflix will change a whole lot but it shows progress - or positioning for a future where streaming replaces DVDs.

The deal could also influence consumers trying to decide what to do with that extra $10 or so they're paying for Netflix or a premium channel on their increasingly expensive cable plan, especially if they're getting tired of the limited selection available to stream from Netflix.

Adding fresher content could also help Netflix keep some subscribers tempted by Hulu Plus, which promises fresher content from the major studios behind Hulu.

While consumers are sorting out their options, studios are exploring new ways to monetize their content. The Netflix deal signals this change, Relativity President Michael Joe said in the release:

"The growing number of Netflix subscribers streaming first run movies is very exciting and presents another viable option for us to maximize the long-term business behind our properties. We're delighted to partner with them on this incredible new opportunity, which has great promise for our industry - reshaping Pay TV deals going forward."

Here's Monday's piece exploring the subscription fees for Hulu, Netflix and other digital content:

The digital-media business has a new mascot: Alexander Hamilton, the treasury secretary on the $10 bill.

Hamilton sorted out the nation's financial policies during its chaotic early days.

Entertainment companies are doing the same thing now that the digital revolution has happened -- they're finding their footing and figuring out standard ways to make money. Their solution appears to be charging $10 a month for access to the most desirable content.

This crystallized last week when Hulu announced a $10 per month premium service. Hulu Plus offers full collections of current TV shows in high definition, making them available through some phones, game consoles and TVs with Internet connections.

OK, it's not quite Star Trek's holodeck, but Samsung's displaying a 40-inch holographic display at the SID conference in Seattle this week.

It's based on an LCD panel and a set of mirrors in a case that's about 30 inches deep.

A Samsung representative wouldn't explain exactly how it works or when it could come to market. The demonstration featured a 3-D spinning cube and Samsung logo that appeared to float in space before bursting into a shower of light.

"We are witnessing the demise of television," Ken Lowe, VP and co-founder of bargain TV maker Vizio declared at the SID conference in Seattle this morning.

Lowe said television is being replaced by the "entertainment display" -- devices that output high definition content, connect to the Internet and are increasingly built with LED lighting that uses about the same wattage as a light bulb.

Just don't use the potentially confusing acronym "ED" for these things, he said.

Lowe had other pronouncements. Although 3-D content is getting lots of hype, there still isn't much content so he's expecting it won't really take off until 2011.

In the meantime, the must-have feature on new TVs -- "like 1080p was" -- is now LED backlighting, which uses less power and enables thinner sets.

"2010 is the year of the LED backlight," he said.

About a fifth of Vizio's sets are now LED, but the mix should be 40 percent by year-end.

Helping make the transition are two new sets Lowe showed off -- throwing down two price gauntlets for the world's major TV makers represented at the show. They also illustrated the sort of "entertainment device" that's replacing the usual TV (ED TVs?).

One was the M220NV, a 22-inch LED set with 802.11n Wi-Fi, 1080p resolution and Vizio's suite of Internet applications, including Netflix, Flickr and social networking for $360. Lowe said it's intended to be placed in kitchen, bedroom or other room in the house where it will be simple to connect wirelessly and access online content.

Later this year, Vizio is releasing a 55-inch LED set with 3-D, full HD, 480Hz refresh rate and Internet apps for "over $2,000," he said. An image of it shown during his presentation:

Paul Gagnon, DisplaySearch TV research director, suggested earlier at the show that 2012 may be the year of LED -- or at least the year that the majority of sets sold worldwide are LED lit. A slide from his presentation:

Apple's iPad is "cannibalizing" sales of e-readers like the Kindle and Nook and netbooks, DisplaySearch analyst John Jacobs said this morning at the SID conference in Seattle.

Jacobs predicted 10 million iPads and other slates will be sold in 2010.

The research firm expects "slates will take a healthy bite" out of the e-reader market.

But that's still just a fraction of the growing market for devices with displays in the range of 4" to 12.5" -- including slates, e-books, netbooks, mobile Internet devices, game players and portable DVD players. Jacobs said that market will see 40 million to 80 million units sold per quarter.

Jacobs followed Sony Electronics President Stan Glasgow, who talked up the potential of 3-D in TVs and other devices, including Sony cameras and computers.

Sony surveys found that 38 percent of consumers will buy a 3-D TV within a year and 67 percent say their next TV will be 3-D, Glasgow said.

Content will be key to uptake, he said, noting Sony efforts such as its work with sports broadcasters (he played a 3'D clip from the Masters during the speech) and upcoming Sony 3-D movies, including "Spiderman 3D," "Men in Black III" and "Green Hornet." Glasgow said the 3-D business aims won't distort the movie's artistic development, saying that Sony's mantra is that the "technology must serve the story."

But a 3-D preview of "Resident Evil Afterlife" -- a movie coming out in September -- had all sorts of 3-D tricks like martial arts throwing stars spinning toward the viewer.

Glasgow called on the display industry, gathered in Seattle, to follow three principles:

-- "Don't let inferior quality own the marketplace."
-- Work together and with broadcasters and cable and satellite companies to adopt a set of 3-D standards "that makes sense for consumers."
-- Companies in the business are going to have to put effort into educating consumers about the benefits of 3-D.

Meanwhile, Sony expects the 3-D TV market to grow to 100 million units globally over the next three years.

The LA Times has another scoop on the fate of Hulu. It's reporting that the hit online video service will start charging a fee by May 24.

Hulu's an indicator of mainstream media's thinking about free ad-supported content versus paid subscriptions.

Its free online broadcasts of current and archived TV shows also made it a factor for many people who decided to alter or dump cable service after Comcast's digital conversion last year. Best of all, it provided a decent alternative delivery system for those who didn't get certain shows after free, over-the-air signals went digital.

Now, Hulu's apparently going to cost about the same as Netflix streaming or barebones cable service.

From the LAT's Company Town blog, which is relying on "people with knowledge of the plans":

Under the proposal, Hulu would continue to provide for free the five most recent episodes of shows like Fox's "Glee," "ABC's "Lost" or NBC's "Saturday Night Live." But viewers who want to see additional episodes would pay $9.95 a month to access a more comprehensive selection, called Hulu Plus, these people said.

Ads will continue to appear during Hulu shows, even after the fee is imposed. Sounds Comcastic.

The same blog broke the news in January that Hulu was considering a fee. Hulu is based in L.A. but its management team is loaded with veterans of Amazon.com and Microsoft.

Netflix officially made its streaming video service available on the Wii today, after several weeks of soft-launching the service.

It provides instant play of selected movies and TV shows through the Wii when a special Netflix disc is playing in the console. Netflix is providing the discs free to people who subscribe to plans starting at $8.99 a month. Here's a link to the Netflix Wii registration site.

The Wii is late to the Netflix party. Instant-play Netflix streaming has been available for a while on the Xbox 360, PlayStation3 and all sorts of Blu-ray players and Web-connected TVs.

But it's still a nice addition for Wii owners looking for a simple way to get Netflix streaming to their TVs. It's also a big step forward for the Wii, which otherwise lacks the movie playback capabilities of the Xbox and PS3.

I've been testing it at home and prefer the Wii setup over Netflix on my Tivo HD, even though the Wii service is lower resolution. That's because I've got weak DSL service at home and the lower res video streams just fine on the Wii, but pauses to buffer now and then on the high-def Tivo.

For families who already have Netflix and a Wii, the service could become an auxiliary DVR in the family room, providing a big library of on-demand movies and TV shows. The service also includes Netflix DVDs by mail (although note that Netflix recently agreed to delay new releases from a few major studios for up to 28 days).

Panasonic turned a corner of Pike Place Market into a mini Consumer Electronics Show today, setting up demonstrations of its high-def 3-D televisions, Internet connected TVs and cameras.

To lure people into the free showcase, the company is holding a drawing for a free 3-D home theater setup to people who drop by the event. It's a little hard to find; when heading west on Pike, turn left at the pig and look for stairs going up.

Or you could ask for directions from Chris Bell, one of the fish throwers at Pike Place Fish Market, who brought a fresh Alaskan wild king up to the showroom. The fish was nearly as lifelike as the 3-D images -- it was caught Monday, Bell said.

Panasonic's event runs today until 6 p.m., Wednesday from 11 to 6 and Thursday from 11 to 4.

It's a little ironic that the event is being held upstairs in the Economy Market building. The highlight is a mini theater where visitors can sit in a home theater and check out 3-D movie clips on a 54-inch plasma 3D HDTV that retails for $2,999, including one pair of 3-D glasses. Additional pairs are $150.

The system being given away is a 50-inch 3-D HDTV with a 3-D Blu-ray player and glasses -- a package worth $3,050.

Kirkland startup Ceton has finally nailed down a release for its multistream TV tuners for PCs.

The company will begin shipping the four-tuner, $399 PCIe devices on May 31, it announced today. Pre-orders began a few days ago at the several online retailers.

That slipped a bit from the April 1 release date the company announced in January.

Ceton also said the devices will be called "InfiniTV," a name chosen from among more than 1,000 submitted in a "name that tuner card" contest held earlier this year.

(Today's column looks at the online broadcast of the Vancouver Olympics and how it may preview cable TV business practices coming to the Web. This version also includes some images from my testing.)

You'd think the Vancouver Olympics would be a great time to shift from viewing the games on TV to viewing them online.

NBC is delaying broadcasts of major events until prime time, and Canadian TV coverage is largely unavailable here this year.

Networks instead are delivering live event coverage online, plus on-demand replays, in high-definition video using a special Web player built by Microsoft.

This comes as all sorts of new gadgets are making it easier to display Web video on a TV.

Some 52 million people watched 600 million minutes of the Beijing Olympics online in 2008, and Vancouver's Web video will be even better, streaming in 720p high-def with better controls to pause, fast-forward and rewind.

It sounds terrific, and some may find it's the best way to watch the Games.

But don't expect an online utopia, free from the shackles that networks, cable companies and the Olympics organizers put on event coverage.

Although the technology for streaming video is getting better, it's also enabling content owners to apply more restrictions and controls to online video.

In some ways, online broadcasts of the Vancouver Olympics preview what's coming from media companies, as they explore ways to charge for online content that used to be free.

This will be apparent when you try to watch a Vancouver event live online at NBCOlympics.com, the Games' official, exclusive broadcaster in the U.S.

For the first time, viewers will have to prove that they subscribe to premium-cable service to access "live and full-event replay video."

During previous Olympic Games, you only had to provide a Zip code to identify yourself as a cable customer.

This time, you've got to register for access through your cable or satellite company, which checks to see that you have a cable package that includes MSNBC and CNBC.

People without cable or those who subscribe only to limited basic cable can watch video highlights, commentary and feature stories at the site, but not live events or full replays. The delivery system has progressed from a ski jump to a bobsled course.

It's basically the cable model extending to the Web, where improved authentication systems enable broadcasters to limit the really good stuff to paying subscribers. If this is what NBC does now, I can't wait to see what it's like after Comcast finishes acquiring the network.

Maybe I'm being crotchety.

The vast majority of people still prefer to watch the Games on TV, and most online viewers watch only the highlights that are available to everyone, according to Perkins Miller, digital-media senior vice president at NBC Sports and Olympics.

NBC's research after the Beijing Olympics found that 93 to 95 percent of people would rather watch the Games on a TV than a PC.

"Given a choice that's what they want ... they've got the big screen, they've got the couch, they've got the fridge," Miller said.

Miller believes the online broadcast is complementary - something people do when they can't get to the TV - as opposed to competing with regular TV broadcasts.

But he's not stuck waiting until prime time to see events happening earlier in the day in Vancouver. For those who can't wait, or who want to see more than NBC chooses to broadcast, online video becomes must-see TV.

The exclusive Olympics broadcaster in Canada, CTV, appears to be a bit less strict about checking whether you have premium cable. But its live video and full-event replays are restricted to people whose computers have Canadian Internet protocol addresses.

If you're willing to fudge during the sign-in process and spoof your IP address, you may be able to connect through a proxy server in Canada, but you'll have to find one that's fast enough to handle the video.

The easiest part may be connecting your TV to the Web. Most new PCs have powerful enough graphics and outputs for connecting directly to a TV, and you can buy a tiny home-theater PC for under $400 nowadays.

One option is the new "WiDi" wireless display technology that Intel, Netgear and Best Buy announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.

In preparation for the Olympics, I've been trying an $899 bundle from Best Buy that includes a Toshiba laptop with built-in WiDi and a hand-sized Netgear "Push2TV," which fits behind the TV.

The wireless system is a breeze and a nice feature to have on a new PC. After connecting the receiver with an HDMI cable, it connects by pushing a button on the laptop. Whatever is on the laptop screen then appears on the TV, with audio.

Watching videos streamed from NBCOlympics.com worked pretty well over my slow DSL broadband. There wasn't buffering but there were some jagged edges during fast action.

But the Olympics' "full-screen" playback isn't quite as promised.

I was hoping for a true full-screen display, as you would get from YouTube and Hulu.com. Olympics videos are shown inside a PC-like media player frame, with a banner ad permanently appearing on the upper right corner of the screen.

Here's a screen shot of what appeared on my TV when using the WiDi setup:

NBC is trying to strike a balance between entertaining users and making sure companies paying for the coverage get exposure, Miller said. He's hoping the quality of video is so good the "frame won't be a distraction."

You'll get a similar frame if you find a way into CTV's Olympics video stream.

I'm stubborn about not paying for premium cable so maybe I'll just keep the WiDi pointed at Hulu.com until it starts charging, and hope for the best from the London Games in 2012.

Nintendo announced this morning that it's finally getting Netflix service on the Wii, so owners of the hit console can stream movies and TV shows through the console to their TV sets starting this spring.

It's the last of the current-generation consoles to get Netflix, which has become almost a standard feature on consoles and Internet connected set-top boxes and TVs.

Nintendo has still sold more than 26 million of the consoles, including 3 million in December despite a general slump in the game industry through 2009. U.S. game hardware sales were down 16 percent through November, according to NPD.

Netflix had 11.1 million subscribers at the end of September, paying $8.99 or more per month to receive DVDs mailed to their home and videos streamed via broadband.

"We believe that this will not only add fantastic value to existing consumers and have them spend more time with their Wii console. its another beneift for those consumers considering which console to buy," Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime said in an interview.

Netflix Chief Executive Reed Hastings told the New York Times that it took longer to develop the application for the unique Wii platform.

To initiate the feature, Wii owners will need to request a free disc from Netflix that will load the software. Discs can be requested at netflix.com/Wii. There will be no additional charge to extend a Netflix account to the Wii.

The disc is the same sort of disc used for Wii games and "allows the application to be very robust -- much more robust than what migh be made available simply through an application loaded onto the Wii console,'' Fils-Aime said.

"In order to create that type of application it takes time. Also to fully utilize the Wii remote takes time," Fils-Aime said.

Netflix subscribers can manage their full accounts on the Wii using the consoles remote.

Fils-Aime declined to say whether the company will also add the other de rigeur connected TV applications -- Facebook, Twitter and Pandora -- to the Wii.

"We certainly look at all of the activities the consumer is doing through the Internet and we constantly think about where are the opportunities to add value,'' he said.

Nor would Fils-Aime comment on speculation that the company may up the Wii's resolution from standard- to high-definition. He said the Netflix service works well with the current output.

"We don't believe that the non-HD resolution of the Wii console will hold back Netflix adoption through the Wii at all,'' he said. "The fact of the matter is the vast majority of the instant streaming content that Netflix has available is non-HD and the fact is that ... many consumers who have an HD television still aren't watching HD content through that television."

Fils-Aime said Netflix enhances the console's position in the home.

"Nintendo has always said that we compete in the entertainment industry so we fight minute by minute for consumers' entertainment time," he said. "This partnership with Netflix will help us get more of that consumers' entertainment time on the Wii console."

Today's column:

LAS VEGAS -- With my ears still ringing from the roar of a thousand TVs on the floor of the International Consumer Electronics Show, I'm going to use this week's column to answer a few questions readers asked about new products at the annual gadget bazaar.

Q: I just purchased a 46-inch HD LCD TV and now am hearing about 3-D television making a big splash at the CES. I feel like I got a pretty good deal, but do you think it would be in my best interest to return it and wait for 3-D? I have no idea what prices will be, as I paid around $900 for mine.

A: I'd keep the LCD and not worry much about 3-D yet. Most won't be out until later this year and they'll generally be more than twice as expensive as the TV you bought. Also, 99 percent of the stuff you'll watch in the next few years won't be 3-D.

Here's a sample of the new televisions that caught my eye walking the CES show floor, starting with the entrance to the LG booth:

LAS VEGAS -- Instead of playing DVDs in the car, how about live digital TV broadcasts?

All sorts of portable TVs using a new ATSC mobile broadcasting standard are appearing at the show, including budget TV maker Vizio, which just announced three "Razor" brand LED TVs going on sale toward the end of the year.

Razor sets are less than an inch thick, have 7-inch, 9-inch or 10-inch screens and range from $150 to $230.

I'll bet sports fans will start taking these to games.

Here's a collection of LG mobile phones that receive digital over-the-air broadcasts:

A closer look at one of the LG TV phones:

LAS VEGAS -- Samsung Electronics introduced a line of snazzy new 3-D televisions today at CES, including a pencil-thin model with a polished metal bezel, but the most amazing tidbit in its press conference may be its sales projections.

The company -- whose slogan is now "Inspire the World, Create the Future" -- expects to increase sales from last year's $110 billion to $400 billion in 2020.

"We believe that the recovery of our industry will be strong,'' said David Steel, head of its North American marketing group.

The company expects sales of its LED TVs to increase from 2.6 million last year to more than 10 million this year.

To keep up momentum in the company's Web connected TV business, Samsung announced a software developer kit to encourage developers to write applications for its products.

"If you thought it was fun building apps for a 3-inch phone screen, I have a 55-inch LED I'd like to show you," cracked Tim Baxter, president of Samsung Electronics Americas.

Gadget highlights of the session included the LED 9000 TV, with a touchscreen remote that displays a stream of video sent from the TV.

"Yes, the remote is now a TV," Baxter said.

The company also introduced two electronic book readers with touchscreens, a special Vancouver Olympics edition of its Mythic phone sold by AT&T and a phone that receives over-the-air digital TV broadcasts. The DTV phone will enter testing this year in Washington, D.C.

Also shown off was the Omnia2, a Windows Mobile phone that works as a remote control with Samsung TVs and can wirelessly load video content from the TV for watching on the go.

Further showing off the connected TV's tricks, Baxter said PCs on a home network can work as remote controls with the sets and be used to watch a second channel tuned by the TVs and wirelessly streamed to the computer.

And, like Toshiba, Samsung announced that upcoming TVs will be able to upconvert 2-D content to 3-D.

Even budget TV maker Vizio is getting into the 3-D game with a batch of new sets featuring 3-D capabilities and wireless systems for connecting to the Internet.

The Irvine, Calif.-based company today announced its "XVT Pro" series of LED sets in four sizes -- 47 inches, 55 inches and 72 inches, plus a 58-inch "cinema wide" model that displays content in a 21 by 9 format. They'll go on sale in August.

The sets include most every cutting-edge feature appearing on new TVs at CES this year. In addition to displaying 3-D and 2-D content in 1080p resolution, the sets display Internet applications, have built-in 802.11n dual-band wireless radios, Ethernet jacks, Bluetooth universal remote controls with slideout keyboards and a "wireless HDMI" system that can connect the sets to video and audio systems without wires, using an optional accessory device.

They also have 480Hz refresh rates, 10 million to 1 contrast ratios and cases under three inches thick.

"We at Vizio are setting new standards for picture quality and user experience," Vizio co-founder and sales Vice President Laynie Newsome said in a release. "Fifty percent of consumers want a 3-D home theater, according to Quixel Research, and our new XVT Pro Series brings the latest technology to consumers who want the absolute best in class."

The 47-inch model will list for $1,999, the 55-incher is $2,499 and the 72-incher is $3,499.

Throw in a hot dog and a soda for another $1.50.

An image of one of the 3-D sets:

The 2-D "cinema wide" set:

Ceton, a Kirkland startup developing advanced TV tuners for Windows 7 PCs, is finally announcing prices and a release date at the Consumer Electronics Show.

An early glimpse at the company's press release indicates the company's four-tuner cards will cost $399 and go on sale by April 1.

The cards will be be manufactured in the PCI Express Low Profile form factor so they'll fit into slim entertainment PCs, as well as larger desktop systems.

They're designed to be use with Cablecard devices provided by cable companies; with a "multistream" card the Ceton devices will allow a PC to play and record up to four high-definition channels at once.

You'll be able to watch more than "Avatar" and "Up" on the new 3D televisions being unveiled this week at CES.

TV networks are lining up to offer all sorts of 3D content later this year, including ESPN. Disney's sports network is going to launch "ESPN 3D" in June and broadcast at least 85 sporting events in 3D in the first year, according to this USAToday report.

The article notes that you may need a new set-top box to get the 3D broadcasts, and there may be a premium charge for the extra dimension. That may be hard to digest if you're already paying a premium for high-def, but sports fans are used to ponying up for the latest broadcast services.

From the article:

Paul Liao, CEO of the CableLabs consortium of cable operators, says that while 3D movies are paramount to the success of 3D in the home, live sports "will engage the consumer to a degree that has been unprecedented."

ESPN's debut 3D event will be a June 11 World Cup soccer match. Sony and FIFA announced Dec. 3 that they're working together to broadcast matches in 3D.

Sony's also working with the Discovery Communications and Imax to produce a 3D network that will begin broadcasting in 2011. They disclosed details today, ahead of Sony's CES press conference on Wednesday, according to this New York Times report.

David Zaslav, the chief executive of Discovery Communications, said in an interview that the 3D move is part of "this overall quest that we're on for closest-to-real."

"With Sony promoting it on their sets and Imax promoting it in the theaters, and all of us contributing content, we think we can have something that will be pretty strong for consumers," Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav told the paper.

Maybe Digeo's Moxi DVR has a chance after all.

The Kirkland company on Tuesday is cutting the price of its high-end digital video recorder from $799 to $499 and adding a new model with three tuners.

A price cut was desperately needed for Moxi more competitive with TiVo and Windows Media Center PCs, but it only happened after Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen sold assets of the struggling company to industry giant Arris in September.

The dual-tuner model's cost is now less than most Media Center PCs and comparable to the cost of a $300 high-def TiVo when the TiVo's monthly fees are factored in (Moxi and Media Centers don't have a service fee).

The three-tuner model will cost $799, including one "Moxi Mate" device that streams content from the DVR to additional TVs in the home. Mates are now $299 instead of $499, and a software upgrade is enabling them to stream live video as well as recorded content.

Additionally, the company announced a new bundle with a three-tuner Moxi DVR and two Mates for $999.

Moxi systems are intended for cable subscribers with digital service. They use CableCard tuner devices, which are provided by cable companies in lieu of set-top boxes.

Mercer Island billionaire Paul Allen is asking for federal bankruptcy protection as he liquidates the remains of Digeo, a Kirkland set-top box company that was mostly sold off this fall.

Allen filed for Chapter 11 protection Monday for a holding company that encompasses the remains of Digeo. It has assets of less than $50,000 and debts of $10 million to $50 million, according to the filing.

Among the nine unsecured creditors include Comcast - owed $632.42 - and Datec Inc., a Tukwila IT vendor owed $48,206.27.

A spokesman for Allen said the filing does not indicate the Microsoft co-founder is in financial straits and unable to pay the debts of his startup.

"No, not at all, it's not about Paul's personal wealth,'' said David Postman, spokesman for Allen's investment company, Vulcan.

"That is the prudent forum for winding down a remaining business," Postman said. "That's not unusual and it's the method to do that, to take the last piece of this company and liquidate."

Allen sold Digeo's key assets - including its brands and technology for its "Moxi" advanced set-top box systems - in September to Arris, a Suwanee, Ga.-based company that's a major player in the cable hardware business.

Arris paid $20 million for the assets. Allen had invested more than $110 million in Digeo since it was started in 1999.

Digeo had reorganized several times before Allen, his sister and others on the Digeo board decided last spring that it was time to sell or find a strategic partner for the company.

That was around the time Allen's biggest investment, St Louis-based cable company Charter Communications, filed for bankruptcy with $21.7 billion in debt.

Comcast's digital switch - the one that's requiring expanded basic subscribers to put converter boxes on every TV - is proceeding on schedule, spokesman Steve Kipp said today.

The switch is largely done in Washington and now moving into remaining pockets within Seattle. Conversion began today in West Seattle and Georgetown. The rest of Seattle will begin seeing the changes by the end of the week.

Comcast is moving channels 30 to 70 from analog to digital, a move that's freeing up bandwidth that will be used for additional services. The company's also providing 33 new channels to affected subscribers, although most are high-definition versions of current channels.

It's converting 30-70 to digital in blocks of 20 channels at a time, with the first 20 moving in Seattle this week and the rest going on Nov. 10 and 12. This is the same schedule that was first disclosed in June.

Channels for "limited basic" customers will continue to broadcast in both digital and analog format, Kipp said.

More than 1.3 million boxes have been issued or 95 percent of the total needed to finish the project, he said. The whole state should be done by the end of the year.

Here are a few links to earlier stories on the switch.

Here's some info for people adding Comcast DTA converter devices to a TV setup using a Windows Media Center PC.

It's based on an exchange with a Seattle guy having trouble getting his new DTA converter to work with his PC. As he describes it:

The DTA worked fine on my TV. It was really actually easy. I tried to put a DTA on my Vista computer and failed miserably. For some reason the IR [infrared] blaster would not transmit well and Media Center would not recognize the signals. It tried to learn my remote over and over with no success. I went online and found other people with similar problems. Their suggestions revolved around moving the IR blaster around but that didn't work for me. It should have worked, but didn't. I already rent one DVR from Comcast, but I am trying to avoid renting a 2nd.

I relayed the question to Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices division, which is responsible for Media Center. The response from a spokesman:

Some Comcast DTA converter boxes use the IR code C1982, which consumers can select using "Find from List" in the IR setup. However, this code may not be applicable to all Comcast DTA converters. Microsoft MVP Barb Bowman has also published a detailed description of the DTA setup, which goes through the steps required to use a Comcast DTA with Windows Media Center, which you can find online here: http://digitalmediaphile.com/index.php/2009/04/17/setup-a-comcast-dta-with-mce/

Here's some earlier info I received from Comcast on how Media Center PCs are affected by the cable company's digital switch. Let me know if there are other ways to make these things work.

The sale of Digeo to cable hardware provider Arris looks like a mixed bag for everyone except perhaps cable customers.

Paul Allen is taking a big loss selling the company for $20 million, after investing more than $110 million in Digeo since he started it in 1999.

Arris investors saw their stock fall 8.5 percent to $12.53 today on the news. Apparently they're not as enthused as Arris management about the Suwanee, Ga., company adding Digeo's set-top box technology to its portfolio of broadband modems and technology widely used in cable company networks.

There are also the approximately 10 employees -- including Chief Executive Greg Gudorf, a former Sony TV executive -- who are losing their jobs (we broke the layoff news here).

About 245 other people lost jobs as Digeo shrank from a high of about 320 employees in 2002 -- when Allen acquired Silicon Valley startup Moxi and merged it with Digeo -- to its current 75 positions.

Winners may turn out to be cable customers, who are now more likely to get Digeo's excellent Moxi software on their set-top boxes. The software includes a slick program guide and interface for Moxi-brand set-top boxes that function as both digital video recorders and gateways for digital content coming into a home via broadband.

Moxi is designed for cable subscribers, who connect the boxes via cable cards. It's a nice alternative to high-def cable boxes, especially since there's no rental fee.

The downside to Moxi has been the price -- $799 for the box, plus $399 for smaller units to wirelessly connect additional TVs. There's also a $999 bundle that includes one box and one extender, and the stuff is sold only via Moxi.com and Amazon.com. Below are the box and a screenshot of the Moxi interface from January.

But Arris has more leverage with component manufacturers, because of its scale, so should be able to quickly bring down the retail price of Moxi gear.

"I think they'll be able to bring the price down,'' said Gudorf, who is staying with the company until after the sale closes in October.

Gudorf wouldn't talk about the haircut Allen took on Digeo, but he did clarify the timeline of the Kirkland company's recent transformations and sale.

The big shifts began in late 2007 when Digeo began restructuring, leading to a move in January 2008 to cut its hardware and chip development efforts and focus on building (higher margin) software for industry-standard hardware.

That shift cut employment in half, to about 90 people, who were able to finally release a new version of the Moxi box for cable companies in late 2008 and a retail version in January 2009. Last month, the company released the extender device, and additional features are expected to be released later this year, Gudorf said.

Meanwhile Digeo's board -- which includes Gudorf, Allen and Allen's sister, Jody Patton -- met last spring and decided it was time to sell or find a strategic partner to get the software into more homes, Gudorf said.

This also came amid Allen's growing troubles with Charter, the bankrupt cable company in which he invested $8 billion as the centerpiece of his vision for a "wired world" of broadband services, a vision that also included Digeo.

The board's decision eventually led to the deal with Arris announced Tuesday afternoon.

Monday's column on upcoming Comcast changes prompted a few questions. Here's how I've been answering the calls and e-mails.

-- Will Comcast also encrypt "Limited Basic" channels?

No. Spokesman Steve Kipp told me Limited Basic won't be encrypted. That includes channels 2-29 and 70-99.

-- Will Limited Basic remain analog, so I don't have to use a Comcast converter?

Yes, those channels will continue receiving both analog and digital signals, Kipp said.

-- I'm so mad at Comcast I want FiOS, but it's not in my Eastside neighborhood. What's happening?

Verizon and King County are negotiating a franchise agreement affecting unincorporated areas. Here's a link to the King County cable office with an update and contact info.

-- The Ceton video card sounds great but it sounds expensive. How much will it cost?

The $250 per tuner number in the column was vague but the best I could get from Ceton, which is still trying to get the device certified and sorting out marketing plans. I'll provide more specifics as they are available. I think it will be a hit if they keep it under $300 it will be a hit, but if they want $600 or more it won't be a game changer at all.

-- Where did you get the $22 price for an "additional HD DVR" from Comcast?

That was in the Sept. 2 legal notice announcing price changes effective as of Oct. 6. It includes the monthly cost of an additional box and cable outlet.

-- What about all those new HD channels Comcast promised?

Here's the announcement from Comcast with more details. Note that the additions include current channels that are being sent at a higher resolution.

-- What are you talking about here? I don't understand any of this jibber jabber.

Comcast is converting some of its channels from an analog format to a digital format. This will free up bandwidth for the company to deliver more channels and services on its network. Here's the original story disclosing how this will affect "expanded basic" customers and a March item with links to FAQs and more info.

Check out the networked media setup in this house in Odessa, Texas.

There are six Windows Media Center-based servers, one Windows Home Server, five dedicated theater-style rooms, 12 media racks, 98 speakers and 30 zones of distributed audio.

The installation, by Dustin Anderson at Vision Audio in Lubbock, won the 2009 Windows Media Center Ultimate Install Contest that Microsoft announced at the CEDIA conference in Atlanta this week.

Anderson will have his work cut out upgrading the place to Windows 7 next month. Maybe he'll be able to consolidate the servers using shared libraries.

Comcast is shuffling a bunch of channels in early August in King County, including a few moves related to its digital conversion.

Mostly affected are customers who already have digital cable service.

Starting around Aug. 5, Digital Starter subscribers will start getting high-definition versions of 28 channels such as MTV, Comedy Central, Travel, BET, CNN, MSNBC and Fox News. The full list was printed in the paper's legal notices section.

Digital Preferred customers will get four additional sports channels - NBA TV, NFL Network, NFL Network HD and NHL Network - but lose ESPN Classic to the optional "sports entertainment" tier that costs an extra $5.99 per month.

Also being added is an HD version of CBUT, at channel 619. It will be available to "Limited Basic" customers using an HDTV and a digital tuner.

Comcast spokesman Steve Kipp also provided a little information on the Clearwire 4G/WiMax mobile wireless bundles that Comcast began selling in Portland on Tuesday.

Comcast plans to offer the Clearwire bundles in the Seattle area in 2010, Kipp said.

Portland's promotional price, at least, doesn't sound too bad.

Comcast is offering a $50 per month bundle that includes 12 megabits per second home broadband plus Clearwire mobile service in the metro area, offering up to 4 Mbps. After the first year promo, the plan will cost $73 per month.

Subscribers to Comcast's triple play phone/TV/broadband plan can add Clearwire for $30 per month. It's also offering a Clearwire/Sprint combo that provides local 4G and national 3G via Sprint for an additional $20 per month.

Comcast invested in Clearwire in 2008.

A number of people have asked today about the Comcast digital switch and how it's affecting their ability to record shows with a VCR or Tivo.

Here is an earlier column about the Comcast-VCR situation and a blog entry with more info.

Here is a piece on Tivos and Media Center PCs and a companion blog entry.

After mentioning Comcast's digital switch on Monday, I heard from several "expanded basic" subscribers who said they're losing channels.

What's happening, according to spokesman Steve Kipp, is that Comcast has started converting blocks of channels 30 to 70 from analog to digital.

As reported earlier, expanded basic customers will need to have some sort of Comcast converter box to get the digital channels, even if their TV has a digital tuner. Comcast is providing converters or a free set-top box to affected customers.

Comcast hasn't yet scrambled the digital channels, so subscribers with a digital TV tuner may still be receiving them without a converter device. Subscribers with a non-digital tuner who haven't yet added a converter may start "losing" channels as the conversion proceeds.

Channels 50 and 61 -- Oxygen and CMT -- went digital in mid-May under agreements Comcast made with those networks.

On Monday Comcast also began converting more channels in Bellevue and Spokane, moving a block of 20 channels to digital. The remaining 20 will be moved at the end of July in those areas. The conversion is already complete in Everett and some smaller suburbs. The process should begin in Seattle in October.

The same process is going to happen throughout Comcast's network eventually. Moving from analog to digital will free up spectrum, increasing the capacity of its system so it can add new services such as faster broadband and additional channels.

But it's still a hassle for customers who have to add a converter.

Here are the blocks of channels being converted to digital. This list was provided by Kipp, who said the block on the left converted Monday in Bellevue and Spokane:

Here are a few resources if you're having the KCTS reception problems reported in today's column on digital TV. KCTS has quite a bit of informational material here at this blog.

This antenna advice "cheat sheet" was provided to an Eastside customers who lost Channel 9 after the DTV switch on June 12. This sort of tweaking could help if you're having trouble with other channels such as KCPQ and KSTW that are also broadcasting VHF signals:

Here's what viewers should know in order to make changes to receive our signal at KCTS 9 on VHF channel 9. - Indoor VHF?UHF antenna (within 5 miles of Capitol Hill viewers should NOT use an amplified antenna first) - Indoor amplified VHF/UHF antenna (further than 5 miles or, if non-amplified antenna didn't work) - Outdoor VHF/UHF antenna (over 15 miles from Capitol Hill viewers will likely need an outdoor antenna) - Outdoor VHF/UHF antenna with antenna amplifier (over 40 miles from Capitol Hill you may need an antenna pre-amp.) When using indoor antennas it sometimes helps to set the rabbit ears to approximately 20" long. (Not fully extended). Try adjusting the antenna or moving its location while watching the signal strength meter on the DTV converter box or Digital TV. If viewers have an existing outdoor VHF/UHF antenna and cannot receive KCTS 9, try adjusting the antenna while watching the signal strength meter. If needed viewers can try installing an antenna pre-amplifier or buy a bigger, farther range, outdoor VHF/UHF antenna. There is no guarantee and these are only general guidelines.

Here's the first story I wrote about the Comcast switch in December and some FAQs.

The sky did not fall, and American households have survived the transition to digital broadcasting.

Pretty much everyone knew it was coming, and the most common problems involved people getting their signals and antenna setups sorted out, apparently.

At least that's what it sounded like, talking to Kris McGowan, director of the FCC's Seattle office. She's been working at a call center providing toll-free help (1-888-CALL-FCC).

So far she's heard of nobody calling because the digital switch took them by surprise. I wonder if all the DTV hand-wringing and educational outreach was effective and worthwhile, or overblown.

An example of the calls McGowan has handled:

"One person came home and he'd scanned and just wasn't getting everything that he thought he would get, but then told me that his friend had taken the amplifier off the antenna,'' she said.

McGowan had a good tip for people who rely on broadcast TV: Have your digital receiver rescan for signals later today, even if you already scanned this morning.

Some people scanned before all the stations switched over, she said, so it's a good idea to scan again later today and even once more on Saturday to be sure the receiver has tracked all the new signals.

The number of calls was relatively low in other communities, according to a release from the National Association of Broadcasters. Its survey said stations that converted earlier today received an average of 130 calls "with rescanning and converter box hook-up being the top issues for viewers."

As of 1 p.m. Eastern, stations in Washington, D.C., received an average of 110 calls, the majority with questions about rescanning. Houston stations received an average of 675 calls, Atlanta stations averaged 50 to 60 and Philadelphia stations averaged 140, the NAB reported.

Dish Network and Fisher Communications announced they have settled a contract spat that kept Fisher stations such as KOMO-TV off the satellite service since December.

The agreement comes on the eve of the digital broadcasting transition, when cable and satellite customers across the country will have the option of getting ABC and other networks' broadcasts free in high-definition.

In their announcement, the companies said they have reached "a multi-year agreement that provides for the distribution of Fisher stations in seven markets on Dish Network. As part of the agreement, ongoing litigation between the two companies was ended."

With haggling over contract terms resolved for now, Dish resumed broadcasts of Fisher stations at 10:25 p.m. Wednesday. Stations back on the network are KOMO and KUNS in Seattle; KATU and KUNP in Portland; KIMA in Yakima; KVAL in Eugene; KBCI in Boise; KIDK in Idaho Falls; and KBAK and KBFX in Bakersfield, Calif.

Netflix connections are on Xbox, TiVo and all sorts of Web-connected consumer electronics nowadays, so it's a little anticlimactic that the video rental service is being integrated into Microsoft's Windows Media Center.

Unless you're a Netflix customer using Windows Media Center, of course. In that case you'll love the slick integration and search features. Netflix appears as a "tile" in the TV and movies section of Media Center.

Microsoft is announcing the addition Wednesday. It works only on Windows Vista and not XP Media Center Edition.

Tiles for additional video rental services could be added in the future but Microsoft isn't previewing those plans yet, according to Ben Reed of Microsoft's Connected TV business group.

The latest way broadband TV is getting to be an attractive alternative to cable: Hulu is adding content from its newest investor, Disney, including current and archived ABC and Disney Channel shows.

Disney already offers a bunch of this stuff online, but having it alongside other networks' material at Hulu makes the online video site feel even more like a free, cloud-based cable box.

Here's some of the Disney content, from a blog post by Hulu Chief Executive (and Amazon.com vet) Jason Kilar:

One of the most troublesome questions that arose after Monday's column on Comcast's digital switch involved the apparent downgrade of cable signals after customers install the "free" converters that Comcast is providing to expanded-basic customers.

It turns out the devices don't support high-definition content. So customers who had been getting high-def channels with their expanded basic package are seeing those channels downgraded to standard definition after they install the converters.

When they complain to Comcast, the company suggests they pay $6.95 a month for an HD-capable device. Apparently, you get what you pay for with these free converters.

Comcast spokesman Steve Kipp defended the company's practice and suggested a workaround. He said expanded-basic customers that were receiving high-def channels must have been getting them because they have TVs with digital tuners.

Comcast will provide a free splitter, he said, so they can split the incoming cable. One input will go to the converter device, and the other will go directly to the TV, so it can still get high-definition channels that aren't scrambled.

"It's not resulting in a degraded service because all they have to do is have a splitter and they'll be able to see all the service they currently receive,'' he said. "It's an additional, very minor piece of equipment that has to be added."

But it also adds a hassle for consumers. Not only do they have to figure out the splitter, they will have to change the TVs input if they want to change channels to one that's high-definition.

The simpler solution, of course, is to drop the free converter and start paying Comcast for an HD capable box.

Seattle's GridNetworks is being sold, a knowledgeable source told me today, confirming rumors that surfaced earlier in the week.

The $40 coupons for digital TV converter boxes are available again, officials managing the program announced today.

After coupon funding ran out in January, Congress added $650 million to the federal stimulus plan for more in February.

Now the waiting list has been cleared and coupon applications are being accepted. Households that did not use their coupons before they expired can also reapply, according to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

Coupons can be used only for converter boxes that allow older analog "rabbit ear" TVs to receive digital signals over the air. TV stations will must convert their broadcasts to digital by June 12, freeing up bandwidth the government has auctioned to telecom companies. All the major Seattle area stations are now broadcasting both digital and analog signals.

For more information about applying, here's the official DTV site and here's a visual primer on connecting the converter boxes that ran with a February column on the broadcast situation.

Continuing pace of announcing upgrades about once a month, Kirkland mobile video startup 1Cast today said it's lined up more business content providers.

Joining the video news distribution service are the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg. They're joining Reuters, AP, CNBC and others.

Last month the Craig McCaw-backed venture announced a version for the Android platform, in addition to the iPhone version that debuted in December.

Perhaps next month they'll announce a Windows Mobile version.

It's time for an update on some of the digital TV stories I've covered the past few months.

They're all still in flux, but here's the latest:

Monday's column on how VCRs will be neutered by digital TV conversion in June drew some good suggestions from readers.

Several suggested trying a particular digital converter box -- the Dish Network DTVPal -- that seems to work better than others with VCRs because it has built-in timer.

After researching the subject herself, Pam Carter of Tukwila scoured the Southcenter area and finally found the DTVPal at Sears.

Carter said, "We can set it to change channels to tape more than one show. However, we need to be present to push the TV/VCR button on the VCR; I haven't been able to figure that one out yet. I think a lot of people will holler very loudly when they find they can't tape one channel while watching another."

William Gibbons wrote to recommend another device made by Dish, a $250 converter box with a digital video recorder built in. It's not eligible for the $40 government coupons, though.

"I've been using mine for two weeks in Tigard, Oregon, and couldn't be more pleased," he wrote. "All Portland area digital channels/subchannels were picked up on the initial scan with signal strengths in the 90s using a rabbit ear antenna. Scheduling, recording and playback of HD & SD on this gem is pure pleasure."

Another follow up: When I wrote the article last week, KCPQ hadn't decided whether to delay its switch to digital broadcasting until the new deadline of June 12. It's now decided to wait, meaning that all the major stations in the Puget Sound region will continue broadcasting analog until then. They'll also continue simultaneous digital broadcasts.

Here are a few photos from my adventures with a $49 digital TV converter box, which I wrote about in today's column on the Feb. 17 switch to digital broadcast TV.

The photos show the different antennas, some of the screens displays and the free channel guide that comes with digital over-the-air tv.

It wasn't a very technical test. I basically hooked the box up to an analog TV in the basement of my house, which is on a hill blocking the broadcast towers, in a low spot with terrible over-the-air reception.

Then I tried the setup on a newer digital TV on the main floor of my house, and again on an analog TV here at the newspaper office -- midway between the towers on Queen Anne and Capitol Hill.

Here's the back of the box, an Apex DT502. The white cable leads out to an antenna, the black cable connects to the coax jack on the TV. (One minor gripe with the Apex box is that the supplied cables are chintzy and hard to unscrew because the fittings don't rotate very well, but most people won't connect and disconnect them repeatedly.)

The converter box automatically scans for available channels and displays the quality of reception:

Of the various configurations, the best was using a multidirectional antenna elevated above the TV at work. That received all the local channels without requiring adjustments, once I found the right spot:

With the antenna lower, it found nearly all the channels except KSTW, and KCTS was fritzy. Here's the multidirectional antenna sitting on the box, with KCTS breaking up:

It's funny, the rabbit ears did well with KCTS here, but maybe I had happened on just the right direction:

In the basement, I could pick up about half the channels and it didn't make much difference whether I used the $9 antenna or the $30 multidirectional model. In the living room, the $30 multidirectional model was slightly better. I could get most of the channels, but I had to adjust the antenna to get different sets of channels.

Here's a sample of the on-screen display that you'll get with over-the-air digital:

In the sort of worst-case reception area where I live, the best cheapskate TV option would probably be a mix of Comcast's $15 a month basic service plus as many digital over-the-air channels as possible.

I haven't tried putting a digital antenna on the roof or using one of the more expensive amplified interior antennas, but that may be next.

A store clerk who sells a lot of digital boxes and antennas told me the amplified models are particularly good on the Eastside, because they amplify signals reflecting off hills. The amplified model on the shelf was $50 vs. the $30 model I tried. My thinking at the time was that if you start spending more than $100 for a digital converter box and antenna, you might start thinking about getting a new digital TV instead, although it may still need an additional antenna.

The bottom line is that there are lots of variables in whether you'll get all the free digital channels. In particular, your location and the type of antenna will affect the quality of the broadcasts.

You'll have to decide how much you want to spend on an antenna and converter box. Make sure that you can return the antenna or digital box in case you need to try a different model or it ends up not working.

There is some upfront cost and hassle here -- more than the $40 government coupon offsets, if you can still get one.

But if you only want the basic channels and you can make your TV work with over-the-air digital broadcasts, it's still going to be far less expensive than the monthly fees for cable or satellite service.

Seattle non-profit groups today announced they'll operate five drop-in "assistance centers" to help people sort through the switch to digital broadcasting on Feb. 17.

All five are located in community centers in the south end of Seattle. Here's the list and hours of the centers:

Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, 4408 Delridge Way SW
(M-F, business hours)
High Point Community Center, 6920 34th Ave SW
(M-F, 5pm-9pm)
Jefferson Community Center, 3801 Beacon Ave S
(M-F, 5pm-9pm)
Rainier Community Center, 4600 38th Ave S
(M-F, 5pm-9pm)
Van Asselt Community Center, 2820 S. Myrtle St
(M-F, 5pm-9pm)
Yesler Community Center, 917 E. Yesler Way
(M-F, 5pm-9pm)

The effort is being organized by Reclaim the Media, Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, Youth Media Institute, Leadership Academy with Para Los Ninos and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund. The latter group is organizing similar programs in Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis, Portland, San Antonio and San Francisco.

Reclaim the Media is also going to run an advice hotline starting Feb. 1, at 206-508-1277, and Para Los Ninos is offering a Spanish-language DTV hotline at 206-988-3760.

They're also looking for volunteers who would like to participate in the program. For more details, check reclaimthemedia.org.

(If they would like to reclaim the media, I hear that some New York company has a newspaper for sale down on Elliott Way ...)