Google TV software in May
May 3, 2010
Google is planning to introduce Android-based television software to developers at an event in May, according to US reports.
The technology is attracting interest from partners that include Sony, Intel and Logitech International, which are expected to offer products that support the software.
Google is planning on sharing some details about the technology with more than 3,000 developers expected to attend its Google I/O conference in San Francisco May 19 and 20. The decision to address developers suggests the search giant may be hoping to kick-start a race to build applications for its TV platform, much in the same way that Apple and others have courted developers for smartphones.
The app-store approach has already begun to gain traction among some players in the TV market, too, aided by the advent of connected TVs.
But before developers invest in TV apps from Google, they’ll want to see significant adoption of the software among hardware makers. Intel, the dominant player in chips for PCs, has been trying for years to play a bigger role in set-top boxes, with its efforts focusing lately around a chip called Atom that is used in low-end laptop PCs.
Reports say Sony has agreed to use a version of Atom in forthcoming products that include TVs and a set-top box. One of them said that while many of the company’s product roadmaps will include Google software based on Android, Sony is not betting exclusively on the technology.