4HomeMedia to Demonstrate Ground-Breaking Software-Services Platform for CE Device Manufacturers at 2007 CES

Internet Connectivity in CE Devices Transformed into an Opportunity for New Features and Revenue-Generating Services

2007 International CES
LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--For Consumer Electronic (CE) device manufacturers, the inclusion of networking functions into their next generation of products presents several challenges: a requirement to offer a cohesive and comprehensive integration of these new network-enabled products with other products in their portfolio; a requirement to offer standards-based interoperability with products from other vendors; a new set of business models to contend with which often include support for new web-delivered services and content; and a recognized need to provide a seamless and unified user-interface across all the connected devices in the vendor’s product line. For CE device manufacturers who endeavor to address these types of challenges, and who may be looking for an alternative to costly PC-based home architectures for delivering web services and a great user-experience, 4HomeMedia will be demonstrating their new broadband-enabled services delivery and software platform for the digital home in several venues at the 2007 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES).

4HomeMedia’s groundbreaking software, ControlPoint™, offers CE firms the ability to make their new products the hub of the digital home and the nucleus of a new broadband Internet services paradigm. ControlPoint is based on a light-weight, distributed architecture that has been implemented using standard Web technologies for easy portability to a variety of consumer products -- from televisions to networked DVD players to media adapters or to any browser-connected CE device. The system provides full support for both Ethernet and IEEE 1394 home networks, delivering seamless interoperability with the key industry-standards for consumer entertainment networks. Through the ControlPoint software platform, CE vendors will be able to offer best-in-class user-interfaces and ease-of-use, build new customized software-service solutions using standardized building blocks, present new subscription services without the need for a PC, and improve customer support capabilities for their channel partners utilizing ControlPoint’s robust remote management and diagnostic capabilities.

4HomeMedia, in its pursuit of creating solutions for partners based on open industry standards, is a member of both the Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) and the High-Definition Audio-Video Network Alliance (HANA), a cross-industry collaboration to address the end-to-end needs of connected, high-definition entertainment products and services. 4HomeMedia believes it is the first company in the market to offer a unified user-interface bridging both DLNA-compliant and HANA-compliant devices and capabilities, eliminating a potential area of technology confusion and market resistance for consumers, and future-proofing a CE manufacturers’ new product rollouts against the continual evolution of new standards and features. Additionally, 4HomeMedia’s ControlPoint solution enables HDTV and related equipment manufacturers to embed a simple, standards-based gateway for delivering a wide range of free and fee-based services directly to the consumer, provides a means to easily add future software-enabled features, and offers the world’s first network-level user-interface -- one transcending protocols and device types -- for the digital home.

"HANA's goal is to create standards-based solutions to facilitate commercial deployment of connected products and services that will enhance the consumer entertainment experience," said Dr. Heemin Kwon, HANA Chairman and Samsung Executive Vice President. "We are pleased that 4HomeMedia is joining us in this effort and welcome their contribution.”

4HomeMedia will be demonstrating its ControlPoint solution at CES beginning on January 8th. Public demonstrations will be given every day during CES at the Las Vegas Hilton, suite HL1130 in the Central Tower, from 3 pm until 7 pm.

About 4HomeMedia, Inc.

With one of the most experienced teams in the industry and years of R&D behind its award-winning technology, 4HomeMedia provides the digital home solution that is changing the equation for deploying a new generation of broadband services throughout the world. 4HomeMedia’s ControlPoint™ is an embedded platform that allows consumer electronics manufacturers, service providers, home automation integrators, and retailers to rapidly create and deploy compelling, easy-to-use applications and services for the digital home. At the heart of this patent-pending solution is a set of easy-to-use, familiar, network-level user-interface engines that transcend individual devices and provide a comprehensive means of controlling all networked devices and systems within the home. The ControlPoint embedded software, when used in combination with the 4HomeMedia.Net services portal, provides a cross-platform user-interface and broadband services system designed for easy portability to a range of consumer devices. A single copy of the networked ControlPoint software installed anywhere on the home network provides whole home coverage -- from anywhere and at anytime.

4HomeMedia, Inc. is based in Sunnyvale, CA, with sales offices in Charlotte, NC and Knoxville, TN. For more information on 4HomeMedia and its award-winning ControlPoint solution, please visit http://www.4HomeMedia.com.