Peter Griffin: Gambling capital becomes gadget city

Las Vegas is an ideal place to indulge in debauched excess and that's exactly what the technology industry did last week at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES).

Sadly I wasn't one of the 150,000 people there. But news reports ooze the hype and buzz, the likes of which we haven't seen since the giddy dotcom days.

Companies wheeled out movie stars like Tom Hanks and Robin Williams, had lavish parties and threw more gadgetry at people than ever before.

The hi-tech orgy revealed what the industry is doubling its bets on this year: high-definition movies, players and TV screens, video game consoles, computers for the living room, mobile gadgets and, most significantly, the internet.

Yes, 2006 is shaping up to be the internet's year in the sun, when those business plans that were ditched in 2001 are dusted off.

The big players in online content, Google, Yahoo and Microsoft, dominated CES, jostling for superiority in the emerging multimedia download market.

Google boss Eric Schmidt kicked off a seemingly hastily-put-together service, the Google Videostore (http://video.google.com/videostore - link below) which will eventually feature a warehouse of video content available for download to be played in a Google media player on your computer or on gadgets like the video iPod or Sony PSP.

Google struck a deal with US TV network CBS to offer shows like CSI and Survivor for US$1.99 ($2.85) an episode. In doing so it goes up against Apple and its iTunes.com video downloads.

Determined not to be left out of the online content loop, Microsoft's Bill Gates kicked off a partnership with music channel MTV called Urge. Microsoft will make MTV's pop videos and programmes available for download through Windows Media Player for a fee.

He also pushed the Windows Live project, which will add a host of online-enabled features to Vista, the next version of Windows due late in the year.

The services include mapping program Windows Live Local; new webmail service Windows Live Mail; a revamped Messenger client; and Windows OneCare Live, an online security and back-up service.

Many of these types of services already exist on the web, but Microsoft's ability to draw them neatly into the Vista fold may give it the edge.

Internet provider Yahoo played its hand in the form of a service that enables Yahoo subscribers to access its portal and search engine, and their email and photos, from a TV screen or mobile phone.

Hardware companies clambered to secure their place in the content download food chain as well. Chipmaker Intel unveiled Viiv, a new technology based on Intel's new Core Duo processors.

Viiv is made specifically for multimedia computing - designed to make media downloads smoother and faster. Intel has even stitched up its own content deals with companies to ensure Viiv becomes an industry standard.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY