all talk and no action

Yesterday I was in London at Life Squared, a technology showcase being held by Microsoft. The event, which runs until February, aims to demonstrate to the press and Microsoft's partners how Microsoft sees its technology being used in business and at home.

We got a demo of how businesses could use Microsoft products to become more efficient, followed by a quick look at a portal technology that allows parents to find out whether their kids have handed their homework in on time (poor kids). Then there was the Xbox 360 and Media Center. But sitting on the right-hand side of the flat panel display in the living room was an intriguing device: an IPTV box. What this unit does is allow anyone with a broadband connection to get the full range of Freeview channels streamed over the internet. The unit we looked at came with an Electronic Programme Guide that looks almost identical to the one used by the Media Center.

BT has partnered with Microsoft to launch such a box some time in 2006, and there may be other partnerships to come; different partners can then choose which channels and services to offer via IPTV.

TV-watching aside, the IPTV system offers a nice social touch: if you're signed into instant messenger, you can see which of your friends are online and what channel they're watching. You can then join them on the channel and chat while you watch or invite them to watch a program with you. Once you're both on the same channel you can also send annoying animations, such as a rocket which flies across their television screen, though I suspect that joke will get old fast.

The system also allows you to set up your own TV channel, where you upload photos and movie files to your provider and then invite friends to subscribe to your channel. Once they've accepted your invite, it shows up in their EPG along with all the standard channels. This could prove popular not just with businesses, or families who want to share wedding movies, but also with video bloggers. If it takes off it will mean that everyone will have their own TV station. Whether that's a good or a bad thing remains to be seen.