Yahoo, Intel To Meld TV With Web

August 21, 2008 11:12 a.m. EST

Sunnyvale, CA (AHN) - Internet company Yahoo and chipmaking giant Intel Wednesday unveiled a joint effort to bring PC widget to the television screen. The service, called the Widget Channel, will offer TV viewers a series of widgets for weather, eBay activity, or YouTube videos along the bottom of the television screen.

The project,using Yahoo software and Intel microchips, has already gained the backing of media and hardware companies. Comcast, Disney, Toshiba and Motorola are among the system's early backers.

Unlike previous attempts to meld PC interactivity with television content, the Yahoo-Intel plan confines the information to a strip along the left side of TV screens.

Comcast reportedly will start testing the system within the first six months of 2009 with the cable giant expecting other cable providers to follow. Intel said retailers will start selling set-top boxes next year enabling TV viewers to use current hardware and Internet connections to use the system - even if not supported by their TV service provider.

Already, Sony and Microsoft are selling products allowing consumers to play online games using TV sets. Analysts say such offerings will make for a difficult competitive landscape when Yahoo and Intel launch the Widget Channel in 2009.