Interlink Electronics Partners With PowerTV To Develop Remote Controls For Interactive TV Services

10-Apr-00

Interlink Electronics, Inc. (NASDAQ: LINK), a leading developer of intuitive interface solutions, announced that it is partnering with PowerTV, a leader in the development of interactive TV software, to bring Interlinkís IntuiTouchô interactive remote control solutions to the PowerTV OSô operating system and to the myriad of interactive television (iTVô) applications that it supports. ""We are pleased to welcome Interlink Electronics to our PowerPartnerô program,"" said Steve Necessary, CEO, PowerTV, Inc. ""Interlinkís IntuiTouch remote controls, with their pad-to-screen (PTS Mappingô) mapped input pad, keyboard-less text entry and wireless audio capability, will help speed market acceptance of true interactive TV services."" ""The paradigm in the living room is shifting from appliances to applications,"" said E. Michael Thoben, Chairman, CEO and President, Interlink Electronics. ""It is no longer enough for remote controls to simply control entertainment appliances. To be truly useful, they must help drive the development of new applications and services. The PowerTV OS operating system provides an ideal environment for our IntuiTouch remote control solutions; not only to enhance existing PowerTV set-top software, but to help spur development of entirely new iTV applications."" About IntuiTouch Remote Controls Perhaps the easiest way to operate on-screen TV controls such as Electronic Program Guides (EPGs) is simply to reach out and touch them. Interlink Electronicsí patent-pending PTS Mapping technology allows subscribers do just that from the comfort of their couch. Just touch the remote control input pad in the same relative location as the control appearing on the TV screen. Repetitive arrow keying and traditional computer ""mouse pointing"" are eliminated. A Simple Input Pad, Or 25-50 Tiny ButtonsChannel selection, volume level and media transport controls such as ""Pause"" and ""Play"" typically require a multitude of buttons on traditional home remote controls. IntuiTouch remotes replace these with a single finger input pad. Simply swipe your fingertip right or left across the pad to control VCR or DVD transports, or up or down to advance channels. Changing channels is as simple as writing the channel number directly on the pad with your fingertip. The finger-activated input pad replaces as many as 25 control buttons - eliminating the ""button-clutter"" common to home remote controls.Text Entry Without A Keyboard Interactive TV services such as e-mail, Internet browsing and e-shopping require light duty text entry. Unfortunately, wireless keyboards add unacceptable complexity, clutter and cost to the home iTV model. IntuiTouch remote controls support text entry by either writing the characters with your fingertip directly on the input pad, or by selecting them via an on-screen keyboard. RemoteLinkô Enables Telephony Emerging voice input applications such as e-mail voice clips and telephony require a home remote control capable of audio capture and transmission. Interlink Electronicsí IntuiTouch remotes pair an integrated microphone with a patented RemoteLink optical communications link. RemoteLink delivers a multi-channel data bandwidth wide enough to send and receive FM quality audio - paving the way for integration of telephony into interactive television services.About Interlink ElectronicsInterlink Electronics, Inc. is a world leader in the development of intuitive interface solutions and technologies. Innovative products include interactive remote controls for business communications and home entertainment markets, electronic signature solutions for network and Internet e-commerce, and integrated computer pointing devices. OEM partners include SONY, Microsoft, SHARP, Toshiba, NEC and Mitsubishi. The company maintains offices in Camarillo, California and Tokyo, Japan, and is available online at http://www.interlinkelectronics.com. About PowerTV PowerTV, Inc. (www.powertv.com) is a leading developer of systems software solutions, applications and services for digital interactive cable television. PowerTV is located in Cupertino, California and can be accessed over the Internet at http://www.powertv.com. 

Read More:
http://www.interlinkelectronics.com
http://www.powertv.com