For years, we’ve heard about how Microsoft Windows Embedded would be in consumer video devices like televisions, DVRs, and set-top boxes. Yet with a notable lack of Windows and Windows Media devices in the U.S., we tend to forget that Windows and Windows Embedded is alive and well in entertainment devices around the world.
At CES this year, we’ve been talking with Microsoft and other vendors, finding that Windows is being used for more devices than most people might know. Earlier this week, Reycom spoke with us about the Media Center set top box they’ve introduced in Europe, running Windows Embedded Standard.
Several companies in China also rely on Windows or Windows Embedded as their preferred platform for developing video devices for China, as well as countries in Europe and South America. These aren’t Media Center devices, but they’re still Windows at the core.
For example, TCL Corporation, builds some smart televisions on Android. But for mid- to higher-end TVs, they rely on Microsoft’s platform. These products offer IPTV support, interactive games, and touchscreen capability.
Elsewhere in China, Beijing Joysee Technology supplies many of China’s cable operators with set top boxes built on Microsoft’s platform. With hundreds of operators in the country, Joysee needs a solution that offers a robust ecosystem and allows them to quickly tailor boxes for different MSOs. Some of these boxes even pull dual-duty as both set top box and HTPC, allowing customers to boot into either mode. Joysee is now working to expand into Germany and Brazil.
Now with Ceton joining the fray with new Media Center set top boxes and extenders and Reycom releasing in North American markets later this month, one thing is certain: Windows and Windows Embedded drive a growing collection of televisions and set top boxes across the globe.
[…] Microsoft Powers TVs and Set Top Boxes Around the World […]