Intel, Verizon to Bring PC Games to TV

By Ed Oswald | Published November 2, 2006, 3:48 PM

Verizon and Intel announced a partnership Thursday that would bring the telecommunications company's games on demand service to television via Viiv-enabled PCs. Included with the new application would be PlayLinc, a service aimed at enhancing multiplayer games through chats and the creation of private servers.

The telecommunications company previously acquired a stake in Super Computer International, which created the PlayLinc service. Verizon says moves like this are intended to help the company find new ways to generate revenue, as its traditional landline phone business continues to struggle.

PlayLinc is also meant to show off the features of its fiber-optic Internet service FiOS when it comes to gaming, allowing up to 32 gamers to talk with one another at the same time, in addition to significant reductions in "lag," or the delay between a requested action and its execution in a online game.

"We're creating a graphics-rich, big-screen game-playing experience for the entire family," Verizon new product development director Colson Hillier said. "The games that families now enjoy on their PCs will become larger than life, more fun to play and accessible in virtually every room of the house, through linkages between a family's PC and their TV."

To use the service, an Intel Viiv computer running Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 would be required. Additionally, the service would be optimized for use on the Intel Core 2 Duo processor.

Verizon Games on Demand is available for $9.95 USD per month.

Comments

View comments by with a score of at least

Come play our games in lo-res, and pay us monthly while you're at it.

Cracksmokers.

Score: 0

|

I've seen a demo of Viiv, and I have to say that's it's just amazing. When Intel launched that they were claiming that receivers from DirecTV will be available in 3-4 months. They were quite unrealistic because it took 12 months.
So, what's so special about Viiv? The key aspect of Viiv is the movie/recording studios and TV stations in several countries are backing this technology because of the licensing system they all agreed. On the other hand, MS & AMD have something similar but with no licenses and because of that nobody cares. Do you think Hollywood cares about freebies? Of corse not. A good example of compliance is the success of Apple with iTunes.
The demo I saw with Viiv, is that when your satellite or cable receiver is connected to DSL or Broadband, you can download news and movies from other countries that you would never see in the US. Bollywood and Hollywood are major players. Several Latino stations and movie studios have already agreed to telecast they productions via broadband too.
I think that Viiv technology with cable and satellite operators could revolutionize the way we watch TV. This technology is the only legitimate rival to TiVo, and in time we'll see which one succeeds.

Score: 0

|

A real beta process at work: Mozilla fires up Firefox 3.6 Beta 2

In the clearest sign yet that public input really does help the development process, a flurry of bug detections provoked Mozilla to release Beta 2 of the next Firefox.

Snow Leopard and Windows 7 still can't crack the netbook problem

Apple has killed Atom support in OS X 10.6.2 and Windows 7 Starter Edition is stripped of "basic" functionality.

Microsoft's Top 3 advances in Exchange Server 2010

The latest round of changes launched today will impact how admins deliver services to e-mail recipients, and how much companies will pay along the way.

Firefox turns five: Thanks for giving us a choice

Carmi Levy | Wide Angle Zoom: No longer the phoenix rising from the ashes, Mozilla has carried on more than just Netscape's legacy.

Kindle for PC opens in beta, underwhelms

Amazon has opened the beta of Kindle for PC, a companion to the Kindle, but little else.

European ministers approve watered-down 'neutral net' language

The latest provision in the EU's telecoms regulatory framework would let businesses cancel individuals' Internet access, if they go to court first.

It's the US vs. the EU over Oracle+Sun and the meaning of 'open source'

Now that the EU is a virtual country, the US Justice Dept. is taking a stand in favor of its view -- and against the EC's -- that MySQL will survive under Oracle.

Qualcomm: $1.3 billion Samsung licensing deal unrelated to fair trade violations

Samsung has come to a 15-year licensing deal with Qualcomm over 3G and 4G wireless technology.

Nokia's 'limited number' of recalled chargers exceeds 14 million

Today, the Finnish phone maker has begun a recall of mobile phone chargers that are a shock hazard.

Ubuntu 9.10 upgraders report frustration

For those Wine aficionados out there, beware of the remote possibility that your Linux system could be infected by Windows-seeking malware.

Supreme Court considers patentability of abstract methods today

Can software that executes a formula for a business process qualify for federal patents? An appeals court already said no, and inventors are making their case.