Click Here for first page of interview

Click Here for review of SET-TOP.COM remote control

(....interview continued)  

RUEL: You probably don't want me to mention this, but this sounds like JumpCity but with the branding....

[You get the JumpCity "What's On The Web" magazine with Sony's WebTV products and the Sony remote has a plain number keypad for punching in JumpCity website numbers. But the JumpCity number system doesn't let you change TV channels and the number keypad is NOT set up like an alphanumeric keypad like on a telephone or on a SET-TOP.COM remote control.]

JAMISON: Don't even say JumpCity. You don't need a magazine to look up our patent-pending TV HyperCodes.

TOM: And we have a great remote control..

JAMISON: We don't think there is any comparison. You need a magazine to look up THEIR number codes. You don't need a magazine for what we offer. If people want to enter arbitrary numbers to get to content, then we should dissolve the Internic, throw out all online program guides, and let people enter IP addresses and cable channel numbers directly to get to where they want to go. Our TV HyperCode system is revolutionary because it's all about entering WORDS that people can relate to. And like with the telephone keypad, we accommodate the technology by assigning groups of letters to number keys on a simple-to-use, easy-to-hold remote control instead of having a key for each letter which is what you have on a full-size PC-like confusing keyboard.

RUEL: The number keypad on the remote looks like what you have on a telephone. But the telephone keypad has no letters on the 1 key, the alphabet begins on the 2 key, and no key corresponds with the letter Z. On the remote, the alphabet begins on the 1 key and the whole alphabet is accomodated on the remote's keypad from A to Z. So the whole alphabet is on the remote for your TV HyperCode system.

JAMISON: Yes. We actually did some analysis to make sure there wasn't a lot of overlapping numbers representing two different words, and also created a conflict resolution system so the user just chooses which word he meant from a list.

TOM: And we feel the TV HyperCode system has empowered the TV viewer as never before. Our system is the only system the takes full advantage of BRANDING by allowing the viewer to change to commonly-known TV channels such as HBO or MTV simply by typing in the word "HBO" or "MTV". These companies spend millions of dollars each year to promote their name and viewers know those brands. So, it's an easy and natural step to simply ask for those channels by name. The SET-TOP.COM remote control gives the TV viewer that easy and natural step.

JAMISON: We are also the only company I know who allow WebTV Plus users to enter channel names into the remote and have them flip directly to that TV channel. And this is all using the internet. We also have online banner ads that do the same thing to take you to a TV channel instead of a website. And we are working on a dictionary system that will allow users to do Web Searches using just the SET-TOP.COM remote control.

RUEL: I would guess you can do the same thing for local television call letters like for a KCBS, WABC, or a KOCE, etc. since most TV stations promote themselves by call letters. This could be quite extensive and you can even include radio stations. Do you foresee your technology being used in a big SET-TOP.COM portal, or being licensed for specific branded TV portals and local city TV portals, or what?

TOM: Both and all of the above. The TV HyperCode system is a natural fit for both applications and we intend to license the technology wherever it can help in navigating channel selection.

JAMISON: But I think at first we will be deploying the TV HyperCode and Made-For-TV Search technology through the SET-TOP.COM Internet TV Portal in order to shake out the technology and make sure it has the right features for our consumers. Internet TV set-top box owners like WebTV users need a safe-haven specifically designed to accommodate their needs to exchange set-top information and access great Made-For-TV content. Once we are satisfied with the technology, we will definitely start licensing it to whoever wants to use it including to broadband networks, set-top manufacturers, TV programmers, and others. Anything we can do to help the set-top consumer is a good thing for us.

RUEL: You've worked on launching digital television when you were previously with General Instrument. What do you bring from that experience to what you are doing now with SET-TOP.COM?

JAMISON: Actually the first lesson goes back to Sony when Apple launched QuickTime and everybody said that nobody would watch those little postage stamp herky-jerky videos. Here we are, less than a decade later, and people don't even look twice at full-screen full-motion video coming from a PC....

RUEL: ... And you have DVDs, and VCDs (Video CDs) in Asia, being a big thing for both computers and video players....

JAMISON: ... I think the General Instrument satellite guys said the same thing about a small outfit called DirecTV. The moral of that story is that this technological change is swift and merciless and overwhelming. Like Andy Grove says, "Only the paranoid survive." We are working to help the cable and satellite industry and TV programmers realize this before it's too late.

TOM: And I think we are getting our point through to them. My tenure at General Instrument allowed me to build very strong relationships with programmers, cable and satellite companies and equipment manufactures. All of this knowledge is extremely useful in developing a product that is easy to use, manufacture, and sell.

JAMISON: I should add that another thing we learned has to do with HDTV and consumer entertainment habits. Given the choice between something that's marginally compelling but looks great, and something they really want to watch but doesn't look that good, consumers will choose the latter. That is the law of consumer choice, and the networks knew it when they proposed using HDTV channel allocations to carry multiple standard definition channels.

RUEL: So, choice before pretty pictures. Variety of content instead of the very best high-definition digital pictures.

JAMISON: Yes. If the BIG GAME is blacked out on cable, people will go through hell to watch the BIG GAME using rabbit ears and foil. This means that above all, consumers value the choice that the internet will give them even if it's not quite up to broadcast TV standards. It also means that extra bandwidth should be devoted towards increasing consumers choices first before giving a better picture.

RUEL: You certainly have a different viewpoint from the computer folks who are getting into interactive television. This is refreshing.

JAMISON: Our vision of Internet TV is of a new broadcast medium much the way terrestrial television evolved to cable which then evolved to satellite networks. It's just a different way of delivering entertainment to your TV. The thing is, at it's basic form, the internet moves information from point A to point B.

RUEL: I'm guessing you could care less about putting fancy computing functions into the television set or into set-top boxes.

JAMISON: Well, it just so happens that web browsers are the first popular internet applications. So people assume if it's connected to the internet, it has to be able to browse existing internet websites like a PC. It goes along with the old adage "If you have a brand new hammer, everything starts looking like a nail."

RUEL: And if a TV is connected to the INTERNET, people often think that you could probably do desktop PC functions on the TV too.

JAMISON: But the TV is not a PC. We see Internet TV as being something totally different, with entertainment content that is totally distinct from the PC world, and built specifically for entertainment and light productivity. Need a recipe? BANG! punch it up on your TV. Need a phone number? BAM! do a quick lookup on your TV. Want to watch the Okinawan Ping-Pong Championships? ZING! Surf over to their website. However, it you want to do your taxes or word processing, go use a PC! The internet is truly a utility like electricity, and is a means to an end not the end itself. Do you plug in your blender to access the electrical system, or to make a margarita?

RUEL: So, you would tell people don't use a TV for PC functions such as word processing....

TOM: Yes, we believe that people use their television mainly for entertainment purposes. People have already developed a strong-use pattern focused around the remote control. What we have done and will continue to do is to enhance the functionality of the system for the user, making it an easier and more enjoyable viewing experience. After all, this is TELEVISION we're talking about.

RUEL: Let's get back to that remote control. Before I forget, and this is what my readers will definitely want to know: How much are the remote controls going to sell for and where can WebTV users get the remotes?

JAMISON: Yeah, enough blather. (smile) Let's get to the good stuff. The SET-TOP.COM remote control will be available beginning in mid-October for $29.95 from the SET-TOP.COM website located at http://www.set-top.com ... So, please visit and get one for yourself and for your friends. We will have a limited quantity. So order early as it will make a terrific Christmas stocking stuffer for any WebTV'er. It will initially be available to WebTV Plus users and Sony WebTV Classic users. We'll announce a Philips-Maganvox Classic version a little later.

TOM: Yes, the remote will be available soon and will have a MSRP of $29.95. Interested parties are encouraged to check our web site at SET-TOP.COM for additional information. We will also be making it available to other retailers and distributors later in the year. Interested retailers should email us at info@set-top.com.

Happy TV Watching!
Ruel