After spending billions of dollars and the better part of a decade trying to make inroads in the high-stakes world of television, Microsoft Corp. is changing the channel on its plan to connect TVs to the Internet and push software into consumers' living rooms. The new focus is on delivering interactive digital TV applications (IDTV) that financially troubled cable companies can both afford and easily use to differentiate themselves from satellite companies offering rival digital services, while at the same time supporting Microsoft's long-term strategy of becoming the premier content gateway to the home.
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