Digital Technology for Digital Living.
July 28, 2004
The ICE Age Comes To Australia.
CNet and Slashdot, with an old article from June at Sydney Morning Herald, are reporting that Australia is about to get its very first Tivo like service known as Ice, Intelligent Content Engine. Although the products depend on raising $AU6 million in capital, the article suggests we’ll see them in November. It sounds compelling, but it will only be available in Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong, and only for free to air digital TV. The rest of the country would have to wait up to another 18 months.
According to their website there would be three different hardware options, each with varying degrees of functionality. Screenpeace, their set top box will provide digital widescreen TV, an IceGuide which is an onscreen TV guide, IceHush for reducing the volume during commercials, IceAd for blanking the screen during commercials, a censoring mode to stop unsuitable programs and it can automatically change channels when adverts start. More compelling though is Quoll, a personal video recorder with a hard disk so you can record shows, time shift and automatically remove adverts. QuollDVD is a product still further down the line that will incorporate a DVD-R drive. The service will also attract a weekly fee of $AU2 or $AU3.
The most amazing part of the concept, and unlike Tivo, is the network it uses. Ordinarily Tivo-like services dial in to a server that provides updates and program guides. With ICE the network is wireless via a private digital radio network.
Time will tell us if it is just vapourware, or a true product.
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