(Nikkei BP Group)
(No.1 High-Tech News Site in Japanese)
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| Microsoft Says UPnP and HAVi Can Coexist
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February 18, 1999 (TOKYO) -- Microsoft Corp. indicated during a Tokyo
seminar that UPnP and HAVi, two concepts being applied to link home
appliances, could coexist.
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Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) is a concept for connecting personal computers,
network peripherals and household electrical appliances. Microsoft said
the UPnP can co-exist with Home audio-video interoperability (HAVi),
a concept promoted by home electric appliances manufacturers.
There are other concepts for connecting home appliances. For instance,
Sun Microsystems, Inc. is pressing ahead with Jini. HAVi is also being
promoted by eight home electrical products manufacturers including Sony
Corp., Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., Toshiba Corp., Sharp
Corp. and Hitachi Ltd.
Carl Stork, general manager of PC Platform Strategy and Evangelism at
Microsoft, said coexistence of UPnP and HAVi is possible. However, he
indicated a rivalry toward Jini, saying, "Who among software developers
will be happy to be bound by JavaVM as well as Java?"
Stork said that UPnP is, in principle, specifications, and thus users
were not necessarily obliged to pay a license fee to Microsoft.
Details of the specifications are yet to be defined, however, they will
be unveiled and distributed along with sample codes in a demonstration
at the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference - WinHEC 99 to be held
from April 7.
Release of the beta version of the development kit for Windows 98/2000/CE
is scheduled in late 1999. Products corresponding to the UPnP specifications
are expected to emerge in 2000.
As of Jan. 7 when the announcement was made, 28 major IT makers expressed
their support for UPnP. Japanese corporations such as Toshiba, NEC Corp.,
Fujitsu Ltd., Sharp and Hitachi are among them.
Not on the list are IBM Corp., Apple Computer Inc., Sony, Matsushita
Electric Industrial, Canon Inc. and Seiko Epson Corp.
Stork said, "Many companies could not send back a reply to us despite
our efforts of getting support, partly because of the short notice,
and year-end and new year holidays stood in our way. But I have held
some meetings with various Japanese makers on this occasion. It is not
likely that they are going to make a negative decision."
This UPnP has similarities to the Microsoft At Work concept launched
by Microsoft in 1991. The concept was to build a network with office
automation equipment such as a copier and a facsimile on which a Microsoft
operating system was to be mounted. Many supporters were attracted by
that concept, even though it failed.
"This time, it's different because we are not selling an operating system,"
Stork said. "Our target is households, though I think UPnP also fits
into the business world."
Related stories:
� Japanese, European Firms to License Home Network
Specification
� Matsushita, Sun to Develop Java for Consumer
Products
� Standards for Home Appliance Network to be Set
in 1999
(Nikkei
Software)
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