The cable industry has demonstrated the ability to share premium content among DLNA devices, including HTML5-based clients.

With its typical one-month lag, the industry finally reported that result from an interop conducted at CableLabs in which Comcast, Cox Communications and Time Warner Cable tested the ability to run tru2way apps – specifically their program guides – in an open-standard environment with devices from multiple suppliers.

The interop also demonstrated the utility of a new software tool developed by CableLabs. The CableLabs tru2way Reference Implementation (RI) was created for manufacturers to use to quickly implement tru2way technology in their devices, according to CableLabs. The goal is to make it easy for customer premises equipment (CPE) manufacturers to support cable operators by giving those manufacturers a robust, interoperable software platform for developing program guides and other tru2way applications.

Cable companies have long prospered using standards common amongst themselves, such as DOCSIS and PacketCable. In recent years, the cable industry has been moving toward the adoption of more standards in common use in the electronics industry at large.

Cable is already working with devices that leverage the well-established DLNA standard. HTML5, still under development, looks like another standard common to the electronics industry in general that cable might want to ride further into the IT mainstream. The new CableLabs tru2way RI could be a key enabler for that.

The tru2way RI was developed by CableLabs with support from the open-source community on java.net and integrated into tru2way devices by manufacturers. It was used during the interop as both a client device and a tru2way host device in the multi-vendor interoperability scenarios.

Device manufacturers that participated in the interop at CableLabs included Humax, Samsung Electronics, Sony Computer Entertainment America and Sony Electronics.

Comcast, TWC and Cox provided program guides that integrated tru2way technology with multi-room DVR capability. Comcast and Cox also provided HTML5-based program guides that supported playback of linear content.

DLNA technology component suppliers included Access Systems, Groupo Communications, Myriad Group and PacketVideo. Tru2way host device manufacturers were represented by Cisco. Silicondust provided an OpenCable unidirectional receiver device.

Interoperability scenarios included DLNA premium features (i.e., streaming DVR content, server-side trick modes, DTCP-IP link protection, etc.), as well as streaming of linear content to HTML5 browser-based client services, CableLabs said.

“During the interoperability event, Comcast demonstrated our HTML5 RUI running in an HTML5-based browser and streaming linear content to early implementations of HTML5-based clients. We also demonstrated our multi-room DVR capability using RI-based set-top boxes and multiple vendors’ DLNA-based IP devices,” stated Steve Reynolds, senior vice president of premises technology at Comcast.

“The CableLabs home networking events continue to provide value in advancing interoperability between the growing list of tru2way host devices and DLNA-based home networking devices,” said Mike Hayashi, executive vice president of architecture, development and engineering at Time Warner Cable.

“A prototype of Cox’s HTML5-based Trio guide ran in a Web kit-based browser and streamed linear content from a tru2way-based set-top box acting as a server,” said John Civiletto, executive director of technology architecture at Cox Communications.

The tru2way Home Networking Specifications include the DLNA Interoperability Guidelines. Set-top box manufacturers implement tru2way host devices based on these specifications. CableLabs issued the latest version of the home networking extension specification, along with associated test suites and the tru2way reference implementation software, as part of the Bundle 1.2.2 release in February 2012.

Article source: http://www.cedmagazine.com/news/2012/06/cable-tests-html5-new-cablelabs-tru2way-tool

Facebook is opening its App Store to users in the United States on Friday, then the rest of the world in the next few weeks.

Thursday brought reports that Facebook planned to hold an app-themed press event this evening in San Francisco to launch its long-awaited HTML5-based App Store. However Facebook confirmed with TechCrunch that it won’t launch the store for another couple of weeks. The company also confirmed that it has been testing App Center with a small percentage of users since it was introduced to developers last month.

But there are reports that it’s already live for many users using an iOS device — individuals who may unknowingly be enlisted in Facebook’s trial run. Facebook stated that the store is already driving plenty of traffic, and could further assist developers trying to gain some traction. In May alone, Facebook sent more than 160 million visitors to mobile apps — only 60 million were driven back in late February.

App Store will reportedly look and perform like Apple’s iTunes App Store, only end-users won’t be required to download an actual app. Instead, users will connect their Facebook profile to HTML5-based games and websites — aka apps — that want them to sign up as a Facebook user. Essentially App Store will not only be a competitor to Apple and Google, but a social layer that also runs across their platforms.

But there also seems to be an underlying motive behind the App Store. Offering links to HTML5 sites in the App Store and the News Feeds prevents users from searching for the sites via Google’s search engine. That way, if users haven’t already added Travelocity, Seamless, Pinterest, Ticketmaster, Etsy, or any other Facebook connected Web site to their list of Facebook apps, they’ll simply find it listed in Facebook’s App Center, cutting Google out of the loop entirely.

Currently Facebook offers an Apps Games section which leads to apps like Farmville, Cityville, Flixter, The Huffington Post and a few others. This will be replaced by the App Store and feature a more store-like appearance, sporting featured apps along the top, and listing other under Recommended, Social Picks, Top Apps and other categories.

Clicking through to an app will pull up a dedicated page offering a description, user rating and a list of Facebook friends that are actually using the app. This is what will put a hurting on Apple and Google: not only will the apps not need local installation, but they’ll essentially be advertized by friends. Who needs an editor or anonymous user to leave a review when old school mates, family members and co-workers — people you personally know and trust — are willing to offer their opinion.

Facebook and Google have seemingly been in a rivalry ever since Facebook refused to offer user data to the search engine giant. Previously Google allowed Facebook users to import their Gmail contacts, but decided to pull the plug once it was determined that the data sharing between Google and Facebook would only be a one-way street.

Since then, Facebook has teamed up with Microsoft’s Bing to offer search results within Facebook itself. There’s talk that Facebook is cranking out an even bigger, deeper search engine in conjunction with Bing so that users don’t have to jump off the social website and search for webpages and items through Google. The upcoming App Store is probably part of that larger scheme.

UPDATE: Facebook programmer Bruce Rogers said on Thursday night that the App Store is officially rolling out to Android and iOS users in the United States on Friday, June 9. The rest of the world will see the new storefront in the next few weeks.

Article source: http://www.tomsguide.com/us/Facebook-App-Store-HTML5-Google-Apple,news-15479.html