Tru2way plug-and-play digital cable support still AWOL

October 20th, 2009

At the Consumer Electronics Show in January 2008, Comcast and Panasonic showed off a pair of “tru2way” devices that were harbingers of a brave new world, one in which two-way services over digital cable would be plug-and play. TVs and DVRs would soon get Java-based middleware that could download and execute cable apps, including program guides, video-on-demand, caller ID, even e-mail. In May 2008, six other major cable companies signed on, as did Sony. The CableLabs research consortium estimated that 90 million US homes would have access to tru2way by the end of 2008.

But in late 2009, tru2way remains a niche product.