Google Begins The Move Into Digital TV Services

It looks like TV everywhere is becoming a reality much faster than anyone thought possible. Google just introduced software that will merge television and Internet, making "TV Everywhere" very real by this fall, just in time for holiday shopping. Google TV has partnered with Sony and Intel to manufacture set-top boxes that will include keyboards, as well as remote controls. The Google TV software will allow users to search for their favorite TV programs on both the web and on regular TV listings, meaning that you could watch replays of shows on hulu.com or viral videos on youtube.com as well as watching traditional sitcoms on ABC, NBC, CBS, or Fox.

Many attempts have been made to make this interaction possible, but have failed to deliver the content in a way that users can easily access. Specialty devices which only allow access to specific programming, like Roku's ability to access Netflix's instant viewing have been very popular, but do not offer the functionality of Google's new TV software.

One of the biggest hurdles that had to be overcome was a way to enter URLs and searches into the Google TV system in a convenient and easy to use format. New hardware, including wireless controllers with keyboards needed to be created for this purpose. Though many manufacturers are pushing the new TVs that have the Google TV software pre-installed, as well as including the wireless control devices, there will also be equipment available that will allow existing TVs to work with Google TV.

Some other interesting features of the new Google TV platform come from the fact that it's based on Google's Android phone software and makes linking the two (Google TV and Android phone) incredibly easy. One really cool element is that the voice recognition software used on the Android phone would also allow you to search for TV shows by speaking the name.

Currently, Sony and Dish Network are the only big names willing to support Google TV. The big names in cable TV, like Time Warner Cable, are waiting to see the impact of services like Google TV. You can bet that Time Warner Cable and others will add Internet enabled features to the current digital cable bundles offered that include cable tv, high speed Internet, and digital phone service. Other major players in the cable TV and satellite TV industries were not at the unveiling and have made no statements about how they view Google TV's possible impact on the pay TV industry.