Companies Adopt Two-Way CableCARD Standard

Sony and the leading U.S. cable operators have adopted a CableCARD that permits two-way communication between customers and service providers.

Sony and six major U.S. cable operators—Comcast, Time Warner, Cox, Charter, Cablevision, and Bright House—has signed on to an agreement to use CableLabs’ Java-based Tru2way technology to enable two-way communication on CableCARD-based services. The agreement will, in theory, make two-way communications possible between cable operators and CableCARD users, enabling services like interactive program guides, on-demand services, games, and even Internet-based features like Web browsing and email.

"This marketplace agreement is good news for consumers," said Sony Electronics’ senior VP Edgar Tu, in a statement. "A national plug-and-play digital cable standard for interactive TV receivers, recorders, and other products that is transferable and viable wherever you live is ideal for today’s mobile society."

In theory, consumers would just need to purchase or lease a CableCARD from their cable operator, and they would be able to insert that card into any compatible device—like a DVR or a television set—in order to access cable services; customers would no longer be required to buy or lease specific supported set-top box products from cable providers. Although CableCARD technology has been around for more than a decade, they have failed to gain traction with consumers and are frequent sources of frustration and complaints: because of the lack of two-way communications, current CableCARD users can’t access program guides and other interactive features, making the technology kind of a second-class citizen next to the operators’ fully-supported set-top boxes.

Under the new agreement, Sony and the six cable operators have agreed to roll out the Tru2Way technology within a particular timeframe—although many of the specific terms of the memorandum of understanding, including dates—have not been disclosed.

In theory, the availability of two-way capable CableCARD technology could enable consumers to eliminate set-top boxes from their lives and select their video and home entertainment devices from a range of compatible devices that meet their needs, rather than the cable companies’. However, set-top boxes will probably be with consumer for a long time: even when the technology reaches market, it will only work on systems supporting Tru2Way…and we doubt many consumers are going to throw out their current TVs—especially with the DTV transition underway—just to adopt the technology.