CableCARD certification rules out home-built Windows MCE boxes, possibly other DIY solutions

Those planning on upgrading their media Center PC to take advantage of Vista's …

If CES has left you salivating over Vista's upcoming support for CableCARD, pay attention, because important details are emerging—and they could well affect your purchasing decision. For those not in the know, CableCARD is a PCMCIA type II card that handles the decryption of digital cable signals. Vista will support the technology (including two-way CableCARD v2.0 devices when they become available), which means you can at last use your PC as a high definition digital video recorder. Unfortunately, a few obstacles stand between you and the nirvana that is 1080i.

First of all, you will need some new equipment, including Vista and a new monitor. Vista will only display high definition content in its full resolution on a monitor that supports link encryption such as HDCP. If you've been following this issue, this doesn't come as news. But what might surprise you is that upgrading your current rig with a copy of Vista and a brand-spanking-new monitor won't actually do the trick.

CableLabs, the research and development consortium funded by the cable industry, requires that all devices which use a CableCARD be certified. Although Vista as a platform is licensed, this apparently won't be good enough for CableLabs, which wants to vet the actual computers involved. Blogger Thomas Hawk had dinner with Microsoft bigwig Jim Allchin recently, and he asked Allchin about the certification issue and what effect it would have on consumers. The answer?

"Although as a platform Vista has been approved by CableLabs at this point, an important step that will still be necessary for the PC/CableCARD reality is CableLab's approval for finshed individual OEM PCs as well. Although Vista has been approved, OEMs will in fact still need to get their individual machines certified by CableLabs as well. Central to this certification according to Jim is the idea of a 'protective path.'

Getting something approved through CableLabs is no easy task and this will very much favor the larger OEMs who have the funds, resources and clout to get this done. Jim said to expect to see the CableLabs approved PCs out from the big guys first but reiterated his commitment to smaller OEMs in fighting for them to also get their machines CableLabs approved as well. Jim said that Microsoft would fight clawing and scratching for these smaller OEMs."

So, not only will you not be able to upgrade your current machine to take advantage of CableCARD's benefits, you won't be able to by a new machine from a local or boutique builder and have it work, unless the builder gets the actual system certified. And building it yourself is definitely, absolutely out.

This will certainly be a blow for MythTV and other DVR projects aimed at the DIY crowd, since there won't be any more "doing it yourself." Sure, you can continue to use freeware DVR software with over-the-air signals, and possibly with unencrypted digital cable, but every PC capable of recording from HBO will already come with Vista's own DVR software installed. How many people will install and use a second product on Windows, or build Linux boxes that can only record a few channels?

And if you're planning to record from that Firewire connection on your cable box, remember that the FCC has ruled (PDF) that cable companies cannot offer the traditional, "integrated" set-top box to customers after July 2007. Set-top box functions are increaingly being rolled into the TV itself, and you can forget about your television set offering an unencrypted Firewire link. While CableCARD was designed to promote a more competitive market, it also has given the cable industry more clout. Anyone who wants access to HD digital cable has to play by their rules to get a license, which means that they can require a "protected path" system in TVs, PCs, and DVRs.

Turning your box into a high definition DVR now means that you need both a new monitor and a new, brand-name PC—an expensive proposition when you consider that most cable companies lease such boxes for US$10 or US$15 a month.

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