ActiveVideo chats up Apple's Siri for voice-controlled TV navigation

Add cloud TV pioneer ActiveVideo to the ranks of companies rolling out voice-controlled navigation for televisions in 2012. The company, which is using Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL)'s Siri voice technology in concert with its popular CloudTV platform, is demonstrating the technology at CES in Las Vegas this week.

ActiveVideo's play uses its CloudTV H5 application platform in tandem with devices that support the Siri personal assistant application, like the iPhone 4S. Voice commands are transmitted through the cellular network to CloudTV servers, which respond to the input by delivering specific video and applications as a personalized, adaptive video stream to the set-top box or connected device.  The time required for the entire transaction is consistent with that of standard remote controls.

Viewers could, for example, request that the platform "show all of the Harry Potter movies," or "show all of the movies with Brad Pitt."

ActiveVideo's cloud-based processing enables voice-activated content selection, search and discovery on any digital set-top box--even legacy STBs. 

"Voice-controlled navigation through any digital set-top box is one of those experiences that only CloudTV can enable," said Jeff Miller, president and CEO of ActiveVideo Networks.  "And, while voice control itself is innovative, what's most important is how the interoperability of cloud-based processing can dramatically transform the way viewers control and engage with their televisions and can lead to a new generation of television services that is limited only by our imaginations."

ActiveVideo, which is in an ongoing patent battle with Verizon (NYSE: VZ), said its CloudTV is deployed on some 10 million screens in the United States and abroad. Its biggest customer to date is Cablevision (NYSE: CVC).

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