Replies to post #106814 on Wave Systems Corp. (fka WAVXQ)

[barge]

Wildman---Which is WHY! the Xbox = TPM! In others words, it becomes an Xbox TPM when MS deems it appropriate to make available the downloads that will convert the Infinion Security Chip embedded inside of Xbox into a TPM! Which is why S. Sprague stated earlier that "binding" the Xbox to a PC TPM would be "very easy".

Anyway, simple common sense, and I mean very, very, very simple common sense dictates that Microsoft would not design an Xbox with hardware security that could not be easily transmuted to be compatible with VISTA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now what does this have to do with your post? You write:
"Barge, according to Dutton's sources, the bulk of all PC's will start shipping with TPM's at some point this year."


Here are four major living room digital entertainment options for 2006 as discussed in the below article. EACH OF THESE OPTIONS WILL IMO HAVE AS A COMMON DENOMINATOR: TRUSTED PLATFORM MODULES THAT ARE BINDED TO THE TCG TRUST INFRASTRUCTURE.

AND in my very, very humble opinion it the convergence of the below TPM enabled options that will LEAD DIRECTLY TO A DEFACTO EMBASSY PLATFORM.

1. "PC HUB: An Intel Viiv personal computer in the living room."

2. "XBOX 360 HUB: A video game box that plays games on either analog TV or high-definition TVs in the living room."

3. "MAC HUB: The Apple iMac"

4. "SET-TOP BOX HUB"


http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/13637009.htm

Digital digs

ADD A DIGITAL ENTERTAINMENT HUB IN YOUR LIVING ROOM
By Dean Takahashi and John Boudreau
Mercury News

After years of promising that consumers would soon get their digital entertainment ``anytime, anywhere,'' electronics companies now are starting to deliver.

Consumers have some real options if they want to set up a complete home system to get Internet, TV, music and video entertainment that's convenient. But they face a lot of choices on how to set this up that can be confusing.

Most home systems will start with a ``hub'' that could be a personal computer, a TV or a video-game console. The hub acts as the center of the entertainment system, connected to the Internet, that feeds TV programming, movies, music, video games and photos as well as e-mail or other digital data to the other machines in your home. The choice of hub can determine which other ``spoke'' machines you might want to complete the system.

Here are four major options:

PC HUB: An Intel Viiv personal computer in the living room.

Consumers could operate the PC with a remote control and maneuver through the PC's menus of Microsoft's Media Center software, which makes screens visible from 10 feet away.

The consumer could scroll through music, pictures, videos, TV channels, Internet radio shows and home movies with the remote.

The Viiv computers are made by dozens of computer makers from Dell and Hewlett-Packard to Alienware. Computer makers are already shipping Viiv computers, but entertainment content will dribble out throughout the year.

• TV programming: Some Viiv computer models come with a TV tuner card built in. For others you might have to buy a TV tuner card. That can get you analog TV channels broadcast over the air, and HDTV channels if the card can handle it. But if you want a wide variety of cable TV programming, you'll also need an additional cable set-top box.

One benefit: In February, NBC Universal will make high-definition video of the 2006 Winter Olympics events available to Viiv computer owners, so consumers can watch the event they want to see when it's convenient.

• Digital video recording: This is built into Viiv computers (so you don't need TiVo). But you won't be able to get all of your cable TV or satellite channels to record, unless you're also paying separately for such service and have a set-top box in your home. Eventually, you will be able to get cable and satellite feeds directly into the Viiv computer, presumably for a fee.

• Movies: You will be able to go online and purchase or rent some movies from a variety of Web sites, including AOL, Starz and ClickStar. ClickStar will release first-run films such as ``Ten Items Or Less'' this summer within a few weeks after theater release.

Recording movies or TV shows onto the hard drive of the PC and saving them to be viewed later is allowed. Those movies can be viewed on a PC monitor or on the TV set that's connected by cables.

If the movie providers protect the film with digital rights management, then consumers can't copy it and move it to another machine unless they obey the restrictions of the content owner. They could move the content to a ``Viiv-verified'' personal media player from Creative Technologies or Dell. Intel will also ``Viiv verify'' other digital TVs, DVD players, set-top boxes and adapters that can allow a movie to be displayed on a different TV in the home.

If the content is unprotected, then the consumer can freely copy it to another computer, disk, personal media player, iPod, laptop computer, or other mobile devices.

Viiv computers come with built-in DVD players, so you can watch your rented or purchased movies.

• Music: Consumers can use any existing free or subscription services that you can use on a PC today to download music to a Viiv computer. They could pay 99 cents a song through Apple's iTunes service, pay a monthly fee to Real Networks for a Rhapsody music service subscription, or get music for free from the ad-supported AOL Music service.

• Video games: Consumers can download games from a variety of Web sites.

• Hub cost: Intel Viiv desktop computer, starting at $900 and up. TV set or monitor also needed.

XBOX 360 HUB: A video game box that plays games on either analog TV or high-definition TVs in the living room.

The Xbox 360 has a built-in hard drive and a DVD player, and consumers can connect devices such as PlayStation Portables and Apple iPods to it. Consumers play games, listen to music, watch DVD movies, and download entertainment onto a 20-gigabyte hard disk drive on the premium model.

• TV programming: Consumers still need a traditional TV or cable TV service to access TV shows. The TV set acts as the display for the Xbox 360.

• Digital video recording: There is no DVR function for the Xbox 360.

• Movies: Consumers can play DVD movies and download movie trailers through the free Xbox Live. There is no movie-downloading or movies on-demand service for the Xbox 360 now.

The Xbox 360 has a Media Center Extender built into it that allows movies, pictures and music stored on another Microsoft Media Center PC to be moved to the Xbox 360 and played in another room of the house.

• Music: Consumers can play music CDs on the Xbox 360 and burn them to the hard disk. Consumers can hook up an iPod and play back MP3 music stored on the Apple music players through the Xbox 360, but they can't play songs purchased from Apple's iTunes service.

• Video games: Consumers can buy $50 or $60 Xbox 360 games or download free game demos or cheaper casual games through the Xbox Live Arcade service.

• Hub cost: The Xbox 360 costs $399 for version with a 20-gigabyte hard disk, or $299 for Xbox 360 Core without the hard disk and other accessories. Xbox Live online service is free, but playing multi-player games on the network costs $50 a year.

MAC HUB: The Apple iMac

So far, the Apple hasn't made a formal push to grab a spot near the couch. But the Cupertino company's iMac desktop computer is already loaded with Front Row software, which allows users to access their music and video with a remote control, and could be part of a future system that is linked to the TV.

In addition, the success of Apple's iPod makes much of the video and audio files a person would have on a living room hub portable. And new accessories, such as Tango, a docking station for the iPod created by XtremeMac, will allow people to use a remote control to play their music and video downloads on their home TVs. Any move by Apple toward a formal living room hub would certainly attempt to cash in on the popularity of the iPod, of which more than 42 million have been sold to date.

Some observers hope Apple, with its ability to create elegant and simple products, will create a device bundled with a digital video recorder that will enable consumers to deliver Internet music and video directly from the Macintosh to the TV.

• TV programming: Apple has been a pioneer in delivering TV programs over the Internet to consumers. Through its iTunes online store, people can purchase downloads of episodes of ABC's hit TV shows such as ``Lost'' and ``Desperate Housewives,'' sports programs from ABC and ESPN and episodes of NBC's ``Saturday Night Live.'' For access to broader TV programming not yet on the Internet, however, consumers would still need a traditional TV set and cable provider.

• Digital video recording: Apple users can download an increasingly large list of television shows from ABC, NBC, ESPN and others. But recording live programming -- like TiVo -- still doesn't exist.

• Movies: Apple's iTunes online store has made downloading audio and video files as mainstream as a trip to a music store used to be. However, it doesn't have a catalog of movies for downloading, which means most people would be forced to insert a DVD and watch a program on the computer screen.

• Music: One word: iTunes. It has revolutionized how people get music. More than 850 million songs have been downloaded to date.

• Video games: Some computer games are available for Apple computers, but generally not on the level of an Xbox or PlayStation.

• Hub cost: The Apple iMac starts at $1,299. XtremeMac's Tango sells for $199. Video downloads from iTunes are $1.99 each; music downloads are 99 cents.

SET-TOP BOX HUB: A set-top box can provide a variety of digital entertainment features in the living room. Made by Scientific Atlanta or Motorola, they typically come labeled with the brand name of a cable provider, such as Comcast. Consumers subscribe to a cable TV service, which provides the set-top for free in exchange for a monthly subscription. The consumer operates the set-top with a remote control and views shows on the TV set.

But Scientific Atlanta's MCP-100 does more than a traditional set-top because it has a built-in hard disk drive, as well as a DVD player and a DVD burner.

• TV programming: The box provides both basic and premium TV channels via a subscription to a cable TV provider such as Comcast.

• Digital video recording: The on-demand movies can't be recorded to the hard disk. But other basic and premium cable programs may be recorded via the built-in digital video recorder.

• Movies: Consumers can use a remote control to order videos on demand from a cable provider and watch the movies on a pay-per-view basis.

This set-top box cannot download movies from the Internet. It can play DVD movies and burn them to the hard disk. It can also record the paid content from the cable channels and record them to a DVD disk so that they can be played in another part of the house or on a laptop.

• Music: The box will play music CDs, but it does not allow them to be burned to the disk. It does not enable music downloading.

• Video games: not widely available.

• Hub cost: Cable TV services charge a monthly subscription for the box and the service, but some providers might also charge a fixed fee for the premium set-top box as well.

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[dig space]

wildman, my chart has TPM shippment growing by 5% a week compounded, although one can adujst that if thew choose. IT has serious saturation volumes happening circa 8/18/06 with approx 1.8M TPM units shipping per week (an annualized of around 90M units or well into the land of the most common configuration).

That is the base that hopefully leads to large adoption of higher valued Wave products.

The choices of many individuals during this window going forward will determine the degree with which these higher value products move.

(or it is predetermined, as is also argued in these parts).

Me, I'm not a fan of arguments based on mindreading for decisions that simply are not going to be made for some time.