[antoko]

Granted I'm on HN so I'm probably not an "average consumer" in this regard. However new computers have HDMI outs and new TVs have HDMI ins. What exactly is the technical problem with getting internet content on a TV? It is absolutely no different than plugging in an Xbox or other console, and actually simpler than setting up a TiVo or a cable box!

NOTE: I don't actually know how common HDMI outs are on store bought PCs (since I build my own) but surely it is becoming standard?

[georgemcbay]

Hooking a PC with HDMI-out to a TV isn't that hard, but now what do you do? How do you control it remotely, are you going to get up and walk over to the PC hooked up to the TV every time you want to change the "channel"? And what exactly are the "channels"? A web browser open to YouTube?

Before anyone answers these rhetorical questions -- I know full well that things like USB-irda devices, XBMC with plugins to automatically torrent your favorite shows or more-likely-used-legally options like Windows Media Center exist, but there is actually quite a lot of software complexity that you are handwaving over here and you'd be surprised how close to technobabble gibberish this currently existing stuff sounds to an "average consumer".

Internet as the primary means to deliver tv content is absolutely inevitable and if I were a shareholder of a cable company and the CEO of that company was completely oblivious to the move to this future, I would be concerned. OTOH we are still at least a few years off from this being a really viable option for the masses. The current solutions all have pretty serious gaps. This is a big part of the reason the idea of a true Apple iTV is continually churned on the rumor mill. For whatever you think about Apple (I'm not a huge fan), one would expect them to deliver a true end-to-end solution, which hasn't really been done yet.

[antoko]

Apparently I wasn't fully appreciating what "internet content" is. I was assuming this referred to content that is already accessible through a browser - so yes my daughter wants to show us all something funny she saw on YouTube - we put it up on our TV rather than hunch around a monitor. I was also assuming the discussion was about only accessing that content, not completely replacing the current cable TV model. I agree it is inevitable but we aren't actually there yet. I'm not a big consumer of TV content but I had thought services like netflix and hulu were already taking huge steps in this arena. One (two) of the only shows I do take any interest has been available online for a long time already - Comedy Central's Daily Show and Colbert Report.

I think this situation is going to resolve itself when the generation shifts - I don't think the next generation will ever subscribe to cable the way their parents have, and the perceived tech barrier will be less with the next generation.

[MatthewPhillips]

XBoxes primary display is the television, that is not the case for PCs. PCs require an additional software layer that consumers don't know about and don't "just work" the way a set-top box does.