Report says an "Android TV" next plan for Google

Google is planning to launch — or perhaps re-launch — its ambitions to take over the living room with a new set-top box, according to reports.

According to the The Verge, Google’s new set top box, Android TV, is already in the works — with major video app providers building the platform. According to the documents obtained by the news site, Google reportedly notes that Android TV will be “an entertainment interface, not a computing platform.”

Less than a week after Amazon revealed its Fire TV, the marketplace for streaming has gotten crowded — with Apple TV, Roku and Google’s own $35 Chromecast. The set top box will mark the third time the search engine company has tried to bring its own streaming device into the living room. Google TV, which was launched in October 2010, was a smart TV platform that integrated the Android operating system and the Google Chrome web browser — overlayed on top of Internet-enabled televisions.

Google TV was not widely adopted by consumers and earlier reports by Gigaom suggest that Google is not creating a new set top box. Rather, it appears to be preparing to rebrand Google TV as Android TV — as an attempt to give the struggling television interface a boost.

“Google TV is moving forward in a major way,” Chrome and Android chief Sundar Pichai told CNET in 2013.

However, the new report by The Verge apparently disputes the rebranding and says that the new set top box will be different than Google TV. The documents, according to The Verge, tell of an interface that will consist of a set of scrolling cards that represent movies, shows, apps and games — similar to other set top boxes. To pick the one they want, users can scrolled through with a four-way directional pad on a remote control.

Documents say that Google is stripping away unneeded features, such as telephony, cameras, touchscreen support and near-field communication, with the focus on simplicity for now, according to the report. Unlike the other streaming devices already out on the market, Android TV will proactively recommend things to you, as well as resume content a user began to watch on a phone or tablet.

Google says it does not comment on rumors or speculation.

Article source: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/report-says-an-android-tv-next-plan-for-google/

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