Intel is preparing a big push into televised media, and the chipmaker is apparently opening offices in the major media centers in the United States, Los Angeles and New York. Reuters reported on the new office openings on Friday, saying that they are indeed related to Intel’s forthcoming Internet-connected set-top box. Industry observers expect that Intel’s device will see release some time later this year.
The new offices demonstrate Intel’s commitment to attaining a position of influence in the television industry, which observers deem ripe for disruption by the assorted technology companies. In February of this year, Intel confirmed its intention to release a set-top box and online television service. The team building the platform is composed of personnel hired away from Apple, Netflix, and Google.
Intel’s offering is said to be centered around a set-top box and cable content packages. The company is still negotiating to secure content deals with assorted media companies, but the company hopes to deliver smaller media bundles than are currently available to cable customers.
Intel’s set-top device is said to have an integrated camera, allowing for gesture controls to navigate between content offerings. Additionally, the device may monitor the objects in a room in order to better target advertising to a device user.
For Intel, the television service marks an attempt to expand beyond the firm’s traditional role as a processor maker. The company has largely weathered the ongoing shift in consumer PC preferences, but it has yet to make a real dent in the mobile device market that sparked that shift.
