Comcast's Skype TV Offer Inches Nearer

Today's cable roundup has that special Consumer Electronics Show (CES) flavor.

Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK)'s Skype Ltd. -powered videoconferencing platform for set-tops and hi-def TVs, dubbed Skype on TV, has reached the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) , taking it a step nearer deployment, notes Wireless Goodness. Technicolor (Euronext Paris: TCH; NYSE: TCH) is making the Skype adapter, which Comcast unveiled last June at The Cable Show. Comcast has yet to release a launch date or pricing for the service. (See Comcast Skypes to the TV, Comcast's Self-Serve Skype Scheme and Technicolor to Make Comcast's Skype TV Box.)

Some new upgrades to Dish Network LLC (Nasdaq: DISH)'s iPad app will enable its Blockbuster @Home and premium movie package subscribers to stream thousands of movies and TV shows on demand on the popular tablet. Dish subs will still need the Sling Adapter or Dish's "SlingLoaded" ViP922 box to stream live TV to iPads in or out of the home. (See Dish Bundles Up Blockbuster and TelcoTV 2010: Dish Ready to Serve 'Sling Adapter' .)

Pace plc has appointed Tim O'Loughlin to be president of its Pace Americas business unit, succeeding Mike Pulli, who was recently named CEO of the U.K.-based set-top maker. O'Loughlin, who joined Pace in 2001, previously served as Pace's SVP of sales and customer support. (See Pace Names Americas President and Pulli Succeeds Gaydon as Pace CEO.)

Time Warner Cable Inc. (NYSE: TWC) has tapped Icontrol Networks Inc. to power its new IntelligentHome security and home management system, which features an in-home touch screen and remote access via a secure website and a free mobile application. The MSO launched IntelligentHome last year in Upstate New York and in Los Angeles, a spokesman says.

SeaChange International Inc. (Nasdaq: SEAC) has unveiled Nucleus, a hybrid gateway software platform designed to help cable operators transition from QAM to IP video. Nucleus, which is being demonstrated at this week's CES, blends tru2way from the legacy QAM world with the IP-based and multi-screen-enabling environment of HTML5. SeaChange notes that Nucleus supports its HTML5-based Nitro multi-screen interface and connects to its new Adrenalin video backoffice system.

ActiveVideo will use CES to demonstrate a voice-controlled TV navigation app that links its HTML5-based CloudTV H5 application platform to devices that support Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL)'s Siri personal assistant app. In this approach, voice commands are sent via the cellular network to CloudTV servers, which, in turn, relay them to the set-top box or connected device as an adaptive bit rate video stream.

— Jeff Baumgartner, Site Editor, Light Reading Cable