Not only this ad makes a stand in front of Sony and other big TV brands out there telling them “We have just advertised an Internet TV in front of 100 million viewers, you better get something out there soon or we’ll crush you”, but it also should tick you as a software developer. Now you’ll be able write software for the living room.
“VIZIO’s platform also includes support for the Adobe(R) Flash(R) Platform for the Digital Home, an optimized implementation of Flash technology that enables developers and content providers to deliver HD video, rich applications and other Web content to Internet-connected televisions, set-top boxes, Blu-ray players and other devices in the digital home.”
VIZIO Internet Apps (VIA(TM)) — Connecting to the Future of Television
(Good luck on killing Flash Steve Jobs)
Internet TVs will be huge if/when they support (open) standard technologies for media delivery used in today’s web and mobile devices, e.g. HTML5/JavaScript, Flash, Android SDK. It seems Vizio has gone the Flash route.
Thanks to @gliendo I understand that there’s still room for live tv content (sports, news and some events that are delivered in HD via Cable/Satellite networks), however for the rest of the stuff that I consume the most: TV Shows, Movies, Concerts, Documentaries… all of that I see it when I have the time, I just can’t be in front of the TV when they want me to. If I want to see a show, I don’t need to wait a week to see the next episode and be there like if it was a date, my time is way to valuable for that, I’ll do it when I can, how I can, and the internet has allowed me so far to be free of cable TV for over 2 years now, but that’s me, the majority of people watches TV in the living room, and a TV like this will also free them from cable channels when they figure the possibilities.
Ads on Cable and we still have to pay for it?
If a TV like this has support for Netflix, Hulu, YouTube or other existing online Video delivery services where I can get my favorite movies on demand (in the case of netflix for a flat fee and I can stream all I want from their catalog) why the hell would I need to watch TV on cable channels and with so many ads? you almost feel stupid for paying the cable company after they make you watch so many ads, in the internet world usually if you pay for something you never expect an ad, with such a high CPM on TV ads, why the hell do we pay for cable????
Cable TV Channels are so dead for me, a TV like this gives me hope that they will eventually die for millions of people once they realize this, the more internet tvs that are out there, the sooner it’ll happen.
This kind of blurring of lines certainly helps, but I think the true death of cable as we know it is the day someone offers a way for consumers to pick their channels à la carte. Could be TVs as internet widget hubs, could be TV over IP, etc.