Vizio adds IPTV connectivity to its HDTV line

Continuing the move toward integrating the Internet with televisions, Vizio has announced Connected HDTV, a technology platform that it said will be integrated into its displays shipping this fall.

The technology, which has both wired and wireless connections built in, will use a customized remote control that will give viewers access to Internet content without interrupting the TV program they are viewing.

The company did not say how much this would add to the cost of one of its televisions.

Vizio is also partnering with a wide variety of technology and content vendors. On the technology side, the company said the feature will incorporate the Yahoo Widget Engine, which supports a class of Internet services called "TV Widgets" such as weather, news, finance, and sports.The platform will also include support for Adobe Flash Lite, which will help developers deliver applications, content, and video over the Web to the television.

Content partners include Accedo Broadband for gaming; Amazon Video on Demand; Blockbuster OnDemand; Flickr for photo and video sharing; Netflix; and Pandora and Rhapsody for music.

Vizio's offering helps solve two issues that have dogged Internet-based television content providers, said Nathan Safran, an analyst with Forrester Research. "First, you're not laying out money for a set-top box," he said. Second, the wide number of providers gives users much more content than single-vendor offerings, he said.

What remains to be seen is whether it will be priced out of the reach of the average consumer, Safran said. "What I suspect will happen is that it will be priced at a premium over a standard TV, and over time, that will start to close."

The main distinction that Paul Gagnon, director of North America TV market research at DisplaySearch, saw between the Vizio offering and that of several other television manufacturers at the show was the customized remote -- and whether that was a good thing or not, he wasn't sure. "I haven't played with it."

The company also announced seven new models of HDTV, ranging from 32 to 47 inches, and making use of sound technology from SRS Labs.