Out of Sight, Out of Microsoft

IPTV is on the way. at&t rolled out IPTV in San Antonio this past December. Nothing unusual there. Just another test of new technology.

But wait.

For an article about at&t, you sure do read a lot about Microsoft. Don't you?

It sounds like Microsoft will be charged with handling all of the server software for at&t IPTV.

This fact isn't really new, as you can read in this transcript of Ed Graczyk's conference call with investors in September 2004. at&t (when it was still SBC) discussed IPTV with Microsoft back in June 2004. You can also read all the press about Microsoft TV on their website. Nothing new, but relatively quiet.

Microsoft TV's focus was recently confirmed by the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) when it published these nine patent apps on February 16, 2006:

• Delivering a geographic-specific comprehensive program guide (Pub. App. #20060037060)
  
• Rendering graphics/image data using dynamically generated video streams (20060037054)
  
• Dynamically generating video streams for user interfaces based on device capabilities (20060037053)
  
• Dynamically generating video streams for slideshow presentations (20060037052)
  
• Dynamically generating video streams for user interfaces (20060037051)
  
• Cycling of recording states for program selections during video recording conflict resolution (20060037048)
  
• Video recording conflict management and user interface (20060037047)
  
• Aligning video data to create a comprehensive program guide (20060037046)
  
• Pausing television programming in response to selection of hypertext link (20060037044)

These patent apps cover most of the features for how you'll navigate, select, view and record images and video on whatever device you might use to receive IPTV.