Business & Technology | Web fails to access a screen in our lives: TVs | Seattle Times Newspaper

A snapshot from the convergence zone

Analysts and industry executives say TV manufacturers have other reasons for asserting that consumers do not want to use the Internet from their couch. For one thing, profit margins in the TV industry are as tight as can be. So adding the cost of surfing technology — which could be $100 — is one potential roadblock.

Then there is the reality of opening a television up to the Internet and, potentially, the viruses and hiccups that can creep in from outside. Consumers have become accustomed to the occasional "blue screen of death" on a PC, but imagine that happening during prime time or the Super Bowl.

"People have very little tolerance for viruses and crashes on TVs," said Eric Kim, senior vice president for the Digital Home Group at Intel. "If someone's TV ever crashes, they will pack it up and bring it back to the store."

See the full article for more details; on a related note, in today’s NYT: Don’t Count Out Cable Online

Business & Technology | Web fails to access a screen in our lives: TVs | Seattle Times Newspaper