MICROSOFT'S BEYOND PC INITIATIVE.
K.V. Kurmanath
Hyderabad, June 11
In the not-too-distant future, the humble television set could double up as an Internet interface as well. A team of engineers at the Microsoft office in Hyderabad is working on applications that allow users to juggle between TV shows and Web sites on the same screen.
A small set-top box provides the Internet connectivity. A remote control, with the four-side scroll option, akin to the TV remote, will enable users to navigate through the Web sites.
Multiple media
“Whatever we do at Microsoft, we think of the three media – computers, mobile phones and televisions. We always try to figure out what is the PC story, mobile experience and how to offer a similar service on TVs,” Mr Srini Koppolu, Corporate Vice-President and Managing Director of Microsoft India Development Centre (MSIDC), told Business Line.
He pointed out that there were around 1.2 crore personal computers, over 50 crore mobile phones and 10 crore cable connections in the country. “These numbers also reflect a similar situation in the emerging countries,” Mr Koppolu said.
Explaining the rationale behind the move to customise television sets, he said that a majority of the people who own TV sets, may not have considered buying a personal computer. However, they may still wish to enjoy the PC experience. “We have set up a dedicated team called Project Deccan, to bring computing services to TV that could connect users to their real-world scenarios,” he said.
A ‘three-pillar strategy' to reach out to the next billion people, the ‘Thinking beyond PC' initiative is part of Microsoft's plan to study the various factors that inhibit adoption of computing in emerging markets.
The tech major is also looking to make the PC more relevant to consumers in emerging markets. Microsoft's ‘Thinking beyond English' initiative will build tools to develop non-English digital content.
The initial Internet-on-TV offerings will be in the domain of utility services and local content.
“A Microsoft team in Bangalore is working on a translation tool that could enable users to translate material from Wikipedia into local languages. We are deliberating whether we can offer this in a meaningful way on TV,” he said.
Bill payment and ticket bookings for railways and movies are also on the anvil.
