Microsoft Confirms Media Center will be Included with Windows 8
It’s quite amazing that anyone believed Microsoft was removing Windows Media Center (WMC) from Windows 8. There has been absolutely no evidence to suggest that it would be yet, apparently due to leaked private Windows 8 builds not including WMC, some Chicken Little-types decided that was their smoking gun.
Steven Sinofsky of Microsoft confirmed in today’s edition of the Building Windows 8 blog that
Media Center will definitely be part of Windows 8. No doubt about it.
He further continued on regarding telemetry data that shows usage. If we take the numbers presented by Sinofsky regarding percentage of Windows 7 users who utilize WMC for more than 10 minutes per session coupled with the knowledge that there were at least 400 million global sales of Windows 7 as of July, we can count on at least 6 million users that fall into that category with TV usage being the most popular activity.
It’s interesting reading, so definitely check out the full post.
While not a central topic of feedback, I received about 50 emails about Media Center. I want to reassure customers that Media Center will definitely be part of Windows 8. No doubt about it. Knowing how strong the support for Media Center is among pre-release testers, we still have work to do to make sure the quality and compatibility with add-ins is what you would expect even in pre-release (as with any release of Windows, compatibility is a major effort and when we work on the underlying video engine, as one example, we have to make sure features that push these areas receive adequate coverage).
In the coming months, many folks will be testing pre-release builds of Windows 8. As everyone knows, two things are always the case early on. First, the software is not done and things will change—features will be added and removed. Second, the different editions or SKUs are not developed or announced until late in the development process (closer to market availability).
I was expecting a little more
I was expecting a little more kimono-opening, but Sinofsky’s comments do suggest that there is more work being done on WMC than many people we were predicting.
Hmmm, that may be reading a
Hmmm, that may be reading a bit too deep into it. What specifically prompts your thought there?
It may be nothing. However,
It may be nothing. However, there are definitely potential issues that come up with the way that WMC currently sits on top Windows and how that might be accessed through the Metro UI, not to mention the duplication of presenting media types in WMC and Metro. I have had a sneaking suspicion for a while now that WMC8 would either be completely unchanged from WMC7, or would get an overhaul to componetize the DVR and TV capabilities into more of a stand-alone app that flows better from the Metro UI. Nothing Sinofsky says in his post points definitively in any direction, but the decision to hold it back from the pre-release does indicate that he is not ready for the world to see what he has planned and Sinofsky is very Jobs-like in that he does not like to show something until it is feature-complete and all but ready to ship.
I agree that both scenarios
I agree that both scenarios are possible. The componentization makes sense and was my first thought when I saw the Windows 8 All Things D reveal.
That was when it struck me as
That was when it struck me as well. WMC is ripe for an HTML5 makeover. MS has already demoed some HTML5 based skins for Windows 7 Embedded. Streamline the functionality to just TV and build it off HTML5, which seems to be the preferred route for Metro anyway, and…shazam! You get the DVR power of WMC in Metro with the Start screen access to all of the media and services that are currently so difficult to integrate into WMC.
He went into pretty deep
He went into pretty deep detail on the lack of significant usage numbers. Unless it’s to setup a “doubling down” strategy I don’t see how that translates into much change b/w W7 and W8.
well, some were predicting
well, some were predicting extinction, so yeah it’s more. But i don’t buy it. I still don’t think much if any resources are being put in WMC and I’d put my money on it looking eerily similar to 7MC with maybe 1 new thing.
I think you’ll be surprised
I think you’ll be surprised by some new items. Not everything enthusiasts want but when do we get what we want with any PVR software?
Um, it was called “Sage TV”
Um, it was called “Sage TV” with the only exception being native CableCard support….
His comments make me think it
His comments make me think it might be limited to fewer SKUs.
Well I see no reason Pro and
Well I see no reason Pro and Enterprise should have Media Center out of box.
I know that that whole Dolby
I know that that whole Dolby licensing issue is not set in stone, but I would be unsurprised if that did not play a role in limiting Media Center to premium SKUs that help offset the licensing costs. As far as I am aware, WMC requires the Dolby licensing for ATSC tuning, but if it is being used as little as the telemetry suggests, it would make sense for Microsoft to pull back on which SKUs it is available with. It would also make sense that WMC would make a fine addition to the Windows App Store rather than built-in to Windows.
I really hope they update it
I really hope they update it and open it up making it easier for the community to improve and customize it. I just don’t see it which at least in my house means it will continue to be used as a supplement to TiVo rather than a replacement.
Things of course could change should we actually one day see embedded boxes where the partners are requesting features be added.
brennok wrote:I really hope
[quote=brennok]
I really hope they update it and open it up making it easier for the community to improve and customize it. I just don’t see it which at least in my house means it will continue to be used as a supplement to TiVo rather than a replacement.
[/quote]
Just curious, aside from shared guide and PC based extenders what does TiVo do better?
At this rate, theres going to
At this rate, theres going to be nothing left to discuss at BUILD
There are plenty of things
There are plenty of things that have not been revealed so I am sure we’ll learn more from BUILD as well.
I don’t think much has to
I don’t think much has to change though. Not much has changed from XP MCE 2004 to 7MC.
I’d love for a major overhaul that has a real API framework but as long as it can utilize core Windows improvements* and some fixes I’ll be happy.
* i.e.
– MF hardware acceleration
– DLNA (included in WES7)
– Native ISO support (in leaked builds)
I’d love to see shared guide, client PC extenders and PlayReady domains implemented but I don’t see that happening and really don’t care much anymore.
Sinofsky already granted your
Sinofsky already granted your Native ISO support wish in an earlier blog entry 🙂
That is why I grouped it as a
That is why I grouped it as a “utilize core Windows improvements*” and not as a wish.
That is some of the best new
That is some of the best new this year ,
I to hope they spend alot of time on it giving it a major overhaul at the same time build in the ability to manipulate every aspect of it
also i hope they add zune in the line up so i dont have to add it again
sorry i would add more but the wife want to go to dinner 🙂
I was reading the sports guy
I was reading the sports guy mailbag (ESPN) and I thought this is useful and I hope Microsoft would incorporate this feature in the new WMC version.
“Q: I was trying to watch Curb off my DVR with a girl I had over. But when I opened the list Jersey Shore and the Challenge showed up as it on the list. She looked down on me for still watching these shows as an adult (which I can not blame her for). Shouldn’t there be a way to hide the real name of the show you are recording and instead have it show up as something else?
— Phil L., Bronx, NY
SG: Dammit! We were only 23 emails away from a Murph/Sully no-hitter. Anyway, I love this idea — the DVR playlist is the TV equivalent of someone seeing you naked or looking through your e-mails. Anytime I’m visiting a single friend, you can count on me waiting until they go to the bathroom, then hopping on their DVR playlist to see if there’s anything in there that I can make fun of. (One time, I hit jackpot: one of those late-night Showtime movies with a title like The Witches of Breastwick. There’s nothing funnier than seeing a friend come out of the bathroom, realize what’s happening, then briefly lose the will to live.) Would you pay an extra $9.99 per year for the ability to manually change every sketchy choice in our DVRs to things like 60 Minutes, NBA Hardwood Classics or “PGA Tournament, Round 2?” Actually, no. I wouldn’t care. But some people would.
While we’re fixing things, I can’t believe Twitter hasn’t added one of the following two wrinkles …
a. Adding a checklist to your follower list so you could follow however many people you want, but “check” the ones you want to actually show up in your feed. This would prevent wounded feelings (if you’re not following a friend who’s secretly bitter that you’re not following them, which means either they tweet too much or their tweets suck) and clogged Twitter feeds (if you have a couple of friends who post 40 to 50 times a day and clog your feed up, only you can’t unfollow them because they’re your friends).
b. Adding a button so you can make your follower list private. Do you realize how many more porn stars, strippers and hoochie mamas would be followed by athletes and rappers if nobody could see whom they were following? (Well, not you, Amar’e Stoudemire, you obviously don’t care. I’m talking about everyone else.) Do you realize how much more DM-inspired casual sex could be going down? You’re cheating the condom industry, child alimony lawyers and sports blogs, Twitter. Get your act together.”
I’m very happy Sinofsky saw
I’m very happy Sinofsky saw fit to put this debate to a rest. This rumor has been going around ever since Windows 7 went RTM. So finally, we can have some actual useful discussion, instead of the negative banter that’s been going around.
It’s crazy to see SageTV as we knew it to be the one that’s effectively dead (can’t buy it anymore), waiting on the catapult to be launched as a part of Google TV.
Something that crossed my mind when I read this part yesterday:
“….only one quarter (25% of 6%) of these people used it for more than 10 minutes per session (individual averages), and in 59% of Media Center sessions (by these 6% of users) we see almost no activity (less than a minute or two of usage).”
Those people were probably using Media Center as their default video player application. I remember seeing a lot of people doing just that starting with Vista.
While I am happy he put the
While I am happy he put the rumors to rest I think the numbers are bullshit. He didn’t quantify “usage”. What are they basing that off of…idle timers, keystrokes, remote, etc. And really…who participates in the Customer Feedback in Media Center to provide that?
Because of
Because of this:
http://www.microsoft.com/products/ceip/en-us/default.mspx
Via the “Microsoft Customer Experience Improvement Program” (wow, what a great name, huh), MS gets anonymized data on use cases for all types of things. It’s been around since Windows XP.
Well even if those numbers
Well even if those numbers are bogus/on the low side, I still have ot think those numbers are great! With over 400M copies sold (im sure most to enterprise/government), if we use the 25% of the 6% figure that means that over 6M people are truly using WMC. The 6M figure is larger than some cable companies!
I want to see what part of
I want to see what part of the six million uses a TV tuner in their setup. That would be some good info for the tuner manufacturers.
“Q: I was trying to