According to the Dallas Morning News, Blockbuster, the beleaguered video rental chain, is planning to use Microsoft's Live Mesh platform to deliver streaming video to desktops and mobile devices. The article is weak on specifics, but Blockbuster seems to be planning to use Live Mesh specifically to allow users to start watching a movie on one TV and then to continue the movie on another TV or mobile device later on. Bockbuster's CIO Keith Morrow also mentioned a parental notification system that would alert parents if a child tried to watch a movie during homework time.
It is not quite clear why Blockbuster chose Live Mesh to provide this functionality instead of developing its own software (indeed, the author of the article doesn't seem to be quite sure what Live Mesh is in the first place). Based on the available information, it would seem that Blockbuster is mostly interested in the synchronization features that make up the core of the current Live Mesh experience. It is also not clear if Blockbuster plans to utilize other aspects of Microsoft's Azure platform.
Judging from the tentative language used by Keith Morrow, it is hard to pinpoint when (or even if) Blockbuster will release any consumer products based on Live Mesh. However, Live Mesh is clearly on the radar of a lot of corporate IT departments and hopefully we will see some 'real' products very soon.
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Sounds kind of like a cheap fix for Blockbuster. They couldn't do anything like Netflix? Not a fan of a window in a window.
Posted by: Rob | December 1, 2008 11:23 AM
I am inclined to believe that Microsoft is bank rolling this effort. Blockbuster needs all the help they can get.
Posted by: scott | December 1, 2008 12:37 PM
At BLOCKBUSTER, diversity means valuing differences. It's a corporate value that must be continually developed, embraced and incorporated into the way we do business.
Posted by: Beefed-up developer guide | December 2, 2008 5:10 AM