U.S. Cable
Industry Debating
EPG-Middleware
Integration
by Ken
Freed.
.
.
Deal
between Gemstar-TV Guide and Worldgate sparks discussion
about integrating middleware into the electronic program
guide as a threat to open standards.
American
cable operators and technologists are debating a recent
deal to incorporate Worldgate middleware functionality
into the Gemstar-TV Guide electronic, interactive program
guide (EPG or IPG). Rather than resolve problems getting
advanced boxes into U.S. households, argue some, the move
could further delay the rollout of advanced services or
harm the evolution of an open-standards
platform.
"Middleware
functions can be very broadly defined as a set of APIs
[application program interfaces] that you write
applications to run on that platform", explained Don
Dulchinos, VP for advanced platforms and services at
CableLabs, the industry research center. "So, when TV
Guide and Worldgate say they have integrated middleware
into the program guide, the question is if the IPG will
support other applications on those platforms.
"If you assume the
middleware functions in the IPG will allow other
applications to run on that box", he continued, "then you
have an open interface. If not, that means third-party
applications have to go through an approval process with
both Worldgate and TV Guide before those applications are
allowed on the box. Cable operators, therefore, are not
sure if they are happy giving over all control of new
applications to specific vendors. Of course, that's why
we created OCAP [OpenCable Applications Platform,
based on Europe's Multimedia Home Platform, MHP], to
provide that open standard."
"Interactive
program guides are already being integrated with a
limited number of interactive TV [iTV]
applications, primarily VOD and advertising at this
point", said Vincent Dureau, chief technical officer at
middleware vendor OpenTV. "One drawback of this approach
[integrating middleware into the IPG] is that it
makes the process of deploying iTV applications
unnecessarily complex for network operators, because they
need to integrate the IPG with all the other iTV
applications."
"The program guide
is itself an application that resides in the box and is
integrated with other applications", said Chris Bowick,
chief technology officer at cable operator Cox
Communications. "This integration happens at our
discretion and direction. Depending on the vendor of the
IPG switching between programs, the guide has the
potential of controlling application switching, too,
which is sort of what we would want, and might be a good
idea. But maybe it's not such a good idea for the IPG
vendor to become the middleware vendor."
Observed Joseph
VanLoan, Sr. VP for technology at Mediacom
Communications, the midwestern cable system operator,
"The cable industry has given gatekeeper activities to
set-top middleware, plus switching responsibilities
between applications. If we give these middleware
functions to the EPG, it's like the operator of the toll
booth also now operating many of the trucks on the
tollway. A fair concern is that the EPG would manage all
traffic in favor its own vehicles instead of treating all
traffic equally."
.
Blurry
Lines
The issues are
amplified by Haig Krakirian, VP of software engineering
at Pioneer Digital Technologies, which builds set-tops
using the PowerTV operating system and middleware from
Scintific-Atlanta."Today the majority of set-top box
software is a suite of applications offered by various
vendors, the IPG being one of these applications. The
term IPG does not necessarily mean the program guide
alone, but it's a platform that has software running on
it, much like middleware. So the line between the IPG and
middleware is blurry."
The confusion stems
from middleware vendors who do not make applications
providing applications to runs on their middleware, he
said. "Middleware vendors bundle third-party applications
from vendors who have to make sure their applications run
on the same platforms as the middleware bundling them.
The risk is having to eliminate applications from a box
that are not compatible with a given proprietary
middleware."
"Today's middleware
incorporates years of deployment experience to provide a
content-rich user environment where the IPG is one of
many components in the interactive platform", said
Christy Martin, Chief Architect at Canal+ Technologies,
which offers MediaGuide for its MediaHighway iTV system,
one of a scant few IPGs that can run free from the
aggressive enforcement of patent licensing by Gemnstar.
"By assuming middleware functions," said Martin, "IPGs
will be playing catch-up, and so they are unlikely to
provide comparable features, development tools, and
pre-integrated solutions."
"Most IPG's do not
have the architecture to support other applications the
way that 'traditional' middleware solutions do", said Dr.
Gordon Bechtel, chief technical officer at Spyglass
Integration. "Authoring, developing, integrating and
deploying applications on IPG-based middleware is
therefore likely to be clumsy and difficult, so quick and
easy deployment of applications won't be possible."
"If the middleware
and program guide are integrated", said Tony Wasilewski,
Chief Scientist for software systems at
Scientific-Atlanta, "it may use up memory that other
applications need to access. Cable operators want to
control the applications that appear on their set tops.
They want to make sure, therefore, that the APIs on their
boxes are open for all the applications they want to
support. As much segmentation as possible in resident
applications may be a better approach than highly
integrated box solutions because it lets you do more
skillful memory management within your box
footprint."
"It's a different
situation for us with the [S-A] Pegasus platform
than with the old GI or Motorola platform," said Kevin
Leddy, Sr. VP for new product development at AOL Time
Warner Cable, America's second largest cable operator.
"In the case of the Scientific-Atlanta 2000 class boxes
we have deployed, these have no middleware. As we move to
digital boxes capable of supporting middleware, we intend
for these to use the OpenCable applications platform. We
expect our digital applications to port to OCAP starting
the middle of next year. The EPG is one of many
applications that will sit on top of OCAP. Existing or
resident applications will be brought into OCAP
compliance, so separate applications can exist
together."
.
Bottom
Lines
"I haven't seen
guide vendors want to take on the middleware space until
now", said Bruce Bradley, VP for product management at
Concurrent, which is providing the back end for the
Worldgate-TV Guide integration. "A vendor could come
along someday that would develop an EPG like Microsoft
Office that does everything, but if that happens, other
applications either will be part of that EPG or else we
will have to go back to a middleware integration solution
between software layers."
"We've seen
successful IPG and middleware integrations in the UK and
Europe, such as NTL, Telewest and Canal+", observed Chris
Dinallo, chief technologist for Pace Micro Technology
Americas. " Such integrations tend to be proprietary in
nature. Ideally, you want to take advantage of open
standards when you're developing software structures. For
example, XML is a well-defined open standard that's
transaction based, and can fill a very useful role in
set-tops, although that's not the whole
picture.
"If you abstract
out the separate functionality of each layer in set-top
architecture," he added, "when the middleware is separate
from the applications but has a well-defined interface,
it allows for better innovation and faster development
time, as well as reduced implementation
costs."
"In other computer
intensive industries", said Dr. Bechtel, "such as in
personal computing and handheld computing, the fertile
proliferation of creative and compelling applications is
a critical part of what drove those businesses to their
current size and scope. IPG-based middleware does not
allow such proliferation, so it could become the TV
industry's 'ball and chain.'"
"So long as you
have code performing the function of applications control
in a set-top box ", counters Yvette Gordon-Kanouff,
Corporate VP for strategic planning at SeaChange
International, "it doesn't matter if the code enabling
all the applications on that box resides in the operating
system, the middleware or the program guide. The key is
performing the generic function of application switching
quickly and seamlessly."
"It all comes down
to what will be the most cost effective solution for
enabling all the applications to launch that customers
want", she said. "The right answer is to make sure you
build the right platform that gives you the capacity to
launch the right services. If this means integrating
middleware into the EPG, that's great, but if it means
keeping them separate, that's great, too. We sped too
much time worrying about which company should or should
do something and not enough time thinking about what the
applications deployed should be accomplishing for you and
your customers." 
.
