The actual CES show starts Thursday, but Ballmer has the Wednesday night keynote. While we might expect to see the firm to speak more about Windows Phone, Kinect, and tablets, Microsoft has something planned for the living room, too:
Microsoft's going to make a splash in this market with a stripped-down version of Windows tailored for set-top boxes and connected TVs. The software is a version of its embedded device software, overlaid with the Windows Media Center interface, with media streaming and remote-control capabilities. [...]Microsoft's tried to enter the living room before, but hasn't been successful. Meanwhile, Apple won't be at CES, but its Apple TV has been a success, and Google has told some of its vendors to hold off on Google TV announcements at CES until software modifications have been made (Vizio is one of the exceptions).
The boxes are expected to cost around $200 and go on sale later this year. They'll pose a serious challenge to the new Apple and Google TV devices, largely because the Windows boxes have a polished and familiar TV-program guide that makes it easy to blend and navigate both online and broadcast content.
