Tru2Way Interactive Cable Standard Gains Momentum

The new supporters deliver “the critical mass necessary” for tru2way to succeed, McSlarrow told reporters. “Television in all likelihood will never be the same.” He wants to do for interactive TV what cable did for broadband, making it easier for device makers to sell interactive video services gear at CE retailers. There are 665 cable modem models sold by 109 companies, McSlarrow said. “We want to do the same thing for interactive television,” letting cable subscribers use one remote, without a set-top box leased by an operator, for access to a host of services, he said. “I can’t be the only one here who has this reaction, which is that it’s about time.” Panasonic’s tru2way-enabled high definition TV sets will reach retailer shelves in time for the holiday shopping season, he said.

The May 27 MOU, signed first by Sony and six cable operators, may be a model for deals between cable and other industries, McSlarrow said. Tru2way should “serve as a model for resolving complicated technological issues” without “government intervention or micromanagement,” he said. An FCC order requiring a two-way plug and play standard, which CEA sought for its DCR-Plus technology, seems unnecessary thanks to the tru2way deals, McSlarrow said. “Tru2way is going to happen, and DCR-Plus isn’t, so I'm not sure exactly what’s required” of regulators, he said. “DCR-Plus is not what’s going to end up taking the industry by storm.” CEA also prefers industry deals over government mandates, said a spokesman. “As other CE manufacturers continue to study the details of tru2way technology, we look forward to hearing from all of CEA’s member companies regarding their preferred technical solution, which may be tru2way or another solution entirely.”

McSlarrow stumped for interactive device standards for all pay-TV providers, an idea he said he first suggested to satellite and telco TV companies in summer 2007. An “all- provider solution” would let pay-TV companies use various network devices to connect to interactive equipment via “a common interface,” he said. “It is important to note that tru2way technology is not exclusive, but available to other providers of multichannel video service for use on their systems.” AT&T, Dish Network and Verizon representatives didn’t immediately reply to requests for comment. DirecTV has a “long-standing partnership” with the CE industry and will continue to work with it on new technologies, said a company spokesman. “DirecTV has always been at the forefront of technological innovation.”

A copy of the MOU, under wraps until now, will be filed with the FCC the next few weeks, said Jud Cary, CableLabs’ vice president for video technology policy. No additional cable operators have signed on to the deal, which also is being reviewed by additional CE and other companies, he said in an interview. CableLabs will form an advisory board of MOU participants and others, Cary said. Broadcasters and content owners, such as studios, also could join the board, he said. Before setting a date for the board’s first meeting, “we're kind of waiting for a critical mass of signatories first,” Cary added. “I think we're getting there.”

Cable must do a better job serving customers and responding to their complaints, McSlarrow said. “We don’t find the kind of customer feedback that you see reflected in some surveys acceptable” or take “comfort” in seeing that cable’s competitors fare poorly, too, he said. “We know we are not meeting all of our customers’ expectations, and we simply have to keep improving.” An “enormous amount of attention” is being paid to improving service, with thousands of call takers being hired to staff dozens of new call centers, he added. And cable should monitor blogs and other Web sites for comments, he said. “Our industry needs to be far more engaged online, in the blogosphere, listening to our customers.”