Dec 19, 2008

No DirecTV service integration for Windows 7

Early releases of Windows 7 pre-beta drivers for this tuner prompted everybody to believe that a solution to integrate DirecTV service into Windows Media Center would be available for Windows 7. Unfortunately, the company has announced that they have terminated the project. Here’s the official announcement from DirecTV Chief Technology Officer Romulo Pontual:
DIRECTV has suspended the development of the HDPC-20 tuner project that was designed to integrate DIRECTV service into Windows Media Center after assessing the impact of missing the August 2008 release of Windows Media Center update and considering timing of the next release.
Both DIRECTV and Microsoft understand the desirability of offering consumers an all encompassing DIRECTV programming solution via Windows-based PCs. We are continuing to explore ways to integrate DIRECTV service with Windows-based PCs in the future.
The HDPC-20 tuner that appears on the driver list of a pre-Beta build of Windows 7 is an artifact that was listed prior to the decision to suspend the tuner project. As our plans progress toward a Windows Media Center-compatible product, we will make an announcement at the appropriate time.
Given the reaction in the blogosphere and Microsoft’s plans to improve the Media Center experience, it seems like DirecTV has made a huge mistake. (story Link)

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