Other news: Sony praises Linux, Mitsubishi supports Blu-Ray

http://neasia.nikkeibp.com/wcs/leaf?CID=onair/asabt/news/249603

Sony Gets Good Feedback on Linux from Engineers
May 30, 2003 (TOKYO) -- "Software assets can be shared more easily than was expected, and the kernel can be adapted and improved speedily. The response to our embedded Linux from engineers working on the ground has been mostly very encouraging," said Mario Tokoro, corporate executive vice president and Electronics co-CTO.

Mario Tokoro, corporate executive VP and Electronics co-CTO
Tokoro made a keynote speech at "LinuxWorld Expo/Tokyo 2003," which was held at the Tokyo Big Site expo center during May 21-23, 2003.

According to Tokoro, Sony's embedded Linux software is already at a stage where manufacturers of home servers and PDAs are praising it for its ease of use. Sony is using Linux as the operating system in its HDD recorder "CSV-E77," saying that most of the technical problems relating to embedding it in electronics devices have been overcome. It can now handle real-time processing, requires less power, and takes less time to boot up.

Tokoro pointed out two main issues in using embedded Linux to control digital home appliances. The first is an issue of patents and intellectual property. Namely, the chances are high that the manufacturer would be held legally responsible if a third party were to sue for patent infringement even if the Linux source code was provided to the maker by a software vendor on the GNU General Public License (GPL) basis. This is because in principle no guarantees are provided when supplying GPL-based source code.

The second issue lies in relationships with the development community for Linux kernels and libraries. In order to equip embedded Linux with the functions that are necessary for consumer products, the wider development community will have to help. Sony says it wants to contribute positively to that community by sharing in the GPL spirit and making publicly available any software it develops in-house.

There is a reason why Sony is promoting embedded Linux. Tokoro explained that by 2006 the market for digital home appliances will grow to an annual one trillion yen industry, and in order to stay ahead of the competition the firm wants as many software engineers as possible to be able to develop application software. To that end, adopting Linux as the OS for home appliances will mean that anyone will be able to use it to write applications.

Sony, which at the end of 2002 announced a joint development tie up with Matsushita Electric Industrial Co, Ltd, involving Linux for digital home appliances, is calling for the formation of a Linux industry forum that will also involve other consumer electronics manufacturers.

http://neasia.nikkeibp.com/wcs/leaf?CID=onair/asabt/news/249596

Mitsubishi Electric Joins Blu-Ray Disc Camp
May 30, 2003 (TOKYO) -- Mitsubishi Electric Corp announced on May 28 that the company has joined the Blu-ray Disc Founders (BDF), adopting the Blu-ray Disc specifications in development of next-generation, large-capacity optical disc technology.

The participation in the Blu-ray camp will solidify Mitsubishi's direction in product development, Mitsubishi said.

Mitsubishi will be the 10th member of the founders group, which was founded in May 2002. The existing nine members are Hitachi Ltd, LG Electronics Inc, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co, Ltd, Pioneer Corp, Royal Philips Electronics, Samsung Electronics Co, Ltd, Sharp Corp, Sony Corp and Thomson of France.

Mitsubishi plans to introduce a Blu-ray recorder sometime in 2005, adding it would see market demand closely.

In April, Sony already launched its Blu-ray recorder BDZ-S77 for consumer, the first commercial product of its kind.

Other major electronics players Toshiba Corp and NEC Corp are promoting a different format provisionally called Advanced Optical Disk. Toshiba has no immediate action upon Mitsubishi's move, but only said it will continue to support AOD.

So...digital appliances running Linux...perhaps PSX and PSP? Open platform for developers? Interesting.
 
Back
Top