Google Enters Content Partnerships for Google TV
Google Inc. (GOOG) on Monday unveiled several new partnerships with media and Web companies, including NBC Universal Inc. and Amazon Inc. (AMZN), to provide content for Google TV, a service designed to expand the Internet giant’s franchise into the living room.
The company, in a blog post, promised “a new world of apps available for TV,” including NBC’s CNBC Real-Time, an application that will allow Google TV users to track stocks and access news alongside business-news channel CNBC’s live broadcasts. NBC is owned by General Electric Co. (GE).
Google also said Amazon Video on Demand will give Google TV viewers instant access to more than 75,000 movies and TV shows for a fee, and video-streaming service Netflix Inc. (NFLX) also will be available.
Google TV, announced in May but not yet available, includes software that allows people to access the Internet and search for Web videos on their television screens, as well as search live TV listings. It is styled as platform for content companies and other partners to develop TV apps, just as Google’s Android and Apple Inc.’s (AAPL) iPhone have spawned marketplaces for cellphone apps.