When the rumors came across last week of Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu coming to CES, I thought ‘Why?’. What could they be introducing that could be worthy of a booth at CES? Well all across the internet today Canonical has introduced their new Ubuntu TV product. Ubuntu TV, based on the new Unity interface is what Canonical wants TV makers and content providers to consider for integration in their TV’s.
They also promise apps for Android, iOS and Ubuntu itself for interfacing with your Ubuntu TV.
While it really looks nice, I am not so sure how this will go for them. First, companies who make TVs like Samsung and Sony all seem to have chosen their direction already. What makes a company want to pick Ubuntu TV over Google TV or some other platform? I can’t see a compelling enough reason to go with Ubuntu. The geek in me likes it, but I don’t think that Joe Sixpack will care much. I might have felt different if they came out with a set top box or actual hardware … but just another platform for TV makers to choose from? I don’t think so.