IBM Corp has cosied up to Santa Clara-based ICTV Inc, the new company doing iAPX-86-based set-top boxes and video servers for Cox Communications Inc’s Cox Cable, and won a wide-ranging deal that includes IBM acquiring an equity interest in ICTV, joint development and worldwide marketing, and IBM manufacturing of ICTV interactive video hardware. The alliance extends ICTV’s ambitions, and with IBM’s help, the company now wants to provide video-on-demand and interactive services technology and systems to cable operators and telecommunications providers. IBM is already in on the trial with Cox Cable to bring interactive television services into homes in Omaha, Nebraska. Cox is also an equity investor in ICTV. Services to be tested in Omaha include movies-on-demand, music videos-on-demand, games-on-demand, interactive shopping and education informational services. In the trial, IBM is providing network communications equipment, including software and video servers – its products include 3172 interconnect controllers, RS/6000 workstations and NetView for AIX network management software. ICTV will provide the interactive television hardware and software infrastructure for the transmission station that enables the programming to be delivered into the home.
