Cambridge, UK-based IPTV set-top box company, Amino Communications, says that it will integrate the open-source Firefox browser (which is currently estimated to have close to a 13% share of the PC Internet browser market) into its set-tops, in what it describes as a move to remove user interface license fees from IPTV deployments. The browser will be ported to Amino's software stack and, Amino says, adapted to provide consumers with a clear television interface, "wholly different from the Web-user experience of the current software." After the browser has been customized and optimized for IPTV viewing, it will be made available to Amino customers in the third quarter.
Firefox was developed by the Mozilla Foundation, a non-profit organization: engineers, partner companies and other Internet users from around the world assist in the browser's ongoing development by providing feedback and reporting and fixing bugs. "While Amino continues to support the leading IPTV user interface software from other suppliers, the Firefox browser will offer our customers a means of providing essential IPTV navigation at zero cost," Amino CTO, Paul Fellows, said in a prepared statement. "The company's approach to IPTV design and engineering mirrors the use of the Linux operating system and our commitment to open source software in general." Last month, Amino announced that it had signed a partnership agreement with browser company, Opera Software (see [itvt] Issue 6.58 Part 2), that calls for it to offer the Opera Browser as an option in its AmiNET110 set-top boxes, and to work with Opera to integrate the latter's browser technology into its next-generation products. As a result of that deal, Amino has already ported Opera's browser technology onto its Intact IPTV software stack.
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