Logitech has reported that its Logitech Revue console had more units returned than sold in the company’s latest financial quarter (Q1 2012). Ouch.

As a result, Logitech says it’ll cut the unit’s price from $249.99 to $99. The Revue has already had one price cut; it was $300 when launched late last year and dropped to $250 recently due to slow sales.

In its prepared financial remarks (PDF, shared by GigaOM), Logitech says it’s betting that the $99 price will pump up sales:

Sales of Logitech Revue were slightly negative during the quarter, as returns of the product were higher than the very modest sales. We believe the significantly lower everyday price for Logitech Revue, reduced from $249 to $99, will generate improved sales.

Google has already announced that Google TV will be upgraded this summer to Android 3.1 and will include access to the Android Market, too.

Google TV (the product) may ultimately join the ranks of Google Wave as an ambitious failure. However it’s still a bit premature to call it that.

Regardless the news yesterday that YouTube is planning to spend $100 million or more on new and original content and that it will lease almost 14,000 square feet of new office space in Beverly Hills got me thinking: YouTube is the “real Google TV.”

Eventually (say within three to five years) the majority of US TV screens will connect to the internet. Most Americans will probably not own Google TVs. However they will be able to access Google content through their TV sets. And the primary source of that content could be YouTube, which is seeking to redefine itself as a source of premium entertainment, as well as the familiar “viral videos” and clips.

Although it has struggled to build a library of professional content, the new spending, redesign and “channel strategy” and professional content push seeks to change that. Depending on how committed Google is to professionally produced content, YouTube might ultimately be able to challenge Hulu and Netflix as a distributor of programming and movies.

YouTube could become a major distributor of TV and movies, especially independent films. And in the coming “Connected TV era” Netflix, Hulu and, maybe, YouTube are the new CBS, NBC and ABC — or the new TimeWarner and Comcast, if you prefer.

Related Entries

• YouTube Plans Push Into Original Content: WSJ
• Google TV: Snatching Failure From The Jaws Of Success?
• Life With Google TV: My First Day Review & Impressions
• From Apple To Google TV: A Quick Overview Of Six “Connected TV” Offerings
• A Tour Of How Networks Have Blocked Google TV From Their Web Content
• Networks To Google TV: Talk To The Hand
• Programming Your DVR Made Easy: Google TV, Dish & The Logitech Revue

The new fields include specific data for identifying the show/series title, season and episode numbers, premiere date and more. Google’s blog post explains and shows the correct code in more detail.

Interestingly, that blog post also begins by saying the new fields should be used “if your website is the authoritative source for the video of a particular TV show.” But there’s nothing stopping other sites that post unofficial TV show episodes from also using the code.

Google has been under fire recently from critics who say that it doesn’t do enough to deter piracy in its search results. This was the subject of a recent US congressional hearing, and Google also recently took action to drop piracy-related terms as suggestions. The stories below have more:

• Could The US Demand That Google Boost Hollywood Sites To Fight Online Piracy?
• Google Removes Piracy-Related Terms From Instant Search

Today’s move also seems similar to what Google News did a few months ago when it offered new meta tags to help identify the original sources of online content.

Hulu Works For Samsung TVs

Last week’s Consumer Electronics Show got me thinking about what’s up with Hulu and Google TV. I spent some time with a Samsung Smart TV and found Hulu Plus working great on that platform:

In fact, Samsung told me it has had its Hulu Plus app since the middle of last year. In addition, Hulu’s not blocking Samsung’s built-in web browser, as it does Google’s. Nor are any of the major US TV networks blocking the Samsung browser, a Samsung representative told me.

Hulu Plus Is Coming To Android

Hmm. Hulu Plus is enabled as a widget for a Samsung TV but still hasn’t made it to Google TV? That seemed odd. Then later last week, more news from CES. Hulu itself announced that it would be bringing Hulu Plus to select Android phones in the coming months.

Interesting. Google TV is effectively a big Android phone. It runs on the Android operating system. Would Google TV be considered one of these Android devices?

But Android-Powered Google TV Is Different

Nope. Google told me that Hulu on Android is just for smartphones and then, only for selected ones — not for TV or tablets. As for Hulu, it wouldn’t comment at all beyond this:

We are not making any announcements regarding Google TV at this time. What I can tell you now is that Hulu is currently in discussions with Google to bring Hulu Plus to Google TV.

I specifically asked if the hold-up was technical or business-related and was told “we are not commenting further.”

The Business Hold-Up

I’m pretty sure that the discussions are all about a business relationship, not any technical concerns. At this point, there seems little reason why Hulu Plus wouldn’t have made it to Google TV, much less ANY Android device out there.

Instead, some type of back-room deal clearly hasn’t yet been worked out. Whether that requires Google to pay Hulu, whether Google wants some of the Hulu Plus revenues, whether the networks that own Hulu Plus are just dragging their feet or if there’s some other factor, I don’t know. I’ll try to learn more.

The Hulu Hypocrisy

What I do know is the message below about Hulu “working hard” to bring Hulu Plus to Google TV probably would more accurately be written that Hulu is in business negotiations with Google TV about bringing Hulu Plus to the service.

That screen, by the way, is what I see as a paid subscriber to Hulu Plus. I’m actually able to log-in to Hulu Plus using Google TV’s web browser. There’s no technical reason I can’t watch the shows I’ve paid for. It’s simply that Hulu is blocking its own paid subscribers.

The Network Hypocrisy

Meanwhile, the major US TV networks themselves continue to block Google TV, including NBC Universal, a part owner of Hulu.

Now consider that when I was watching an episode of 30 Rock on NBC via broadcast TV, NBC gave me this message.

“Watch full episodes, at NBC.com,” the promo said, while it also flashed on screen, “free, anytime.”

That seems like false advertising. Full episodes are not online for free at NBC.com, not if you’re using Google TV or a number of other devices. If you want to watch them via Hulu Plus, which as said, NBC partly owns, a Hulu Plus subscription required. And even then, depending on your device, you still might be denied.

Ironically, Samsung has just announced (PDF file, via Android Guys) that it will offer a Google TV box later this year. There’s irony. You might find that your Samsung Google TV box, powering perhaps your Samsung Smart TV, can’t get Hulu Plus or access shows on TV network sites because the networks still fear Google. But turn off the box, and your exact same Samsung Smart TV will be perfectly able to do both things.

Also see Internet-To-TV Players Compared: Roku, Apple TV, Boxee & Google TV, our recent comparision chart of internet-to-TV devices, which also provides more information about Google TV and Hulu Plus.

After the chart, you’ll find further details about the features listed, why they may be important to you, followed by links to our reviews of each product.

Please note that this chart only covers how these players are configured and work in the United States. Unfortunately, we can’t test these for other countries (nor are they sold in many other countries).

Internet-To-TV Player Comparison Chart

Features

Hulu Plus: Hulu offers a huge amount of content from the major US television networks of ABC, Fox and NBC, all of which are investors in the service. Hulu Plus is a fee-based version of Hulu that, for $8 per month, allows access to more episodes that regular Hulu offers. Currently, only Roku has Hulu Plus. Roku + Hulu Plus = Pretty Awesome covers this in more depth. Boxee and Google TV are promising Hulu Plus support in the future. That will especially help those players, since the major networks block them from pulling TV content off their web sites. Also see Why You’re Still Waiting For Hulu Plus On Google TV.

Netflix: While Netflix started as a way to rent DVDs via mail, it has developed into a major provider of movies and TV shows through the internet. For $8 per month, you can stream as much content as you’d like. All the players except Boxee have Netflix support, and Netflix is promised to come to Boxee in the future.

Amazon: Amazon Video On Demand is a pay-per-view service that streams a wide range of television shows and movies through the internet. Some content can also be purchased to own. While iTunes is more widely known and used for movie and TV rentals, as the Wall Street Journal recently reported, Amazon is extremely competitive in price and selection to iTunes. Roku and Google TV provide access to Amazon; Boxee promises this will come. Apple is unlikely to add it, given that Amazon competes directly with its iTunes service.

iTunes: Apple’s music store — iTunes — also sells video and movie content to own or on a pay-per-view basis. Apple TV supports it. The other players probably would, if Apple would allow them to. Apple probably won’t, in order to keep its own streaming media player competitive.

YouTube: Yes, you’ll find the Double Rainbow video and other clips that have gone viral on Google’s YouTube video hosting service. Along with amateur content, there’s also lots of professionally produced material. All the players support YouTube access.

Search Within A Channel: Think of each service above as a “channel” that might be “received” by one of the streaming media players listed on the chart. Want to know what’s “on” in the Netflix channel, the Hulu Plus channel, at iTunes or Amazon? You’ll probably want to search for a movie or TV show by name. All the players let you search within the particular channels above that they support.

Search Across Channels: Looking for a movie or TV show and want to search across all your channels, so you can find if it’s on Netflix or Hulu without having to search within each channel separately? Google TV can do this. Boxee can pretty much do the same — though you’ll have to search across channels for TV content and movie content separately. By the way, the very best way to find out where any TV or movie content might be located on the internet is to use Clicker. It’s a free search engine that specializes in locating where you can stream TV shows and movies to your computer.

Search Broadcast TV: Want to find when a TV show or movie will air on broadcast TV? This is where Google TV shines. It lets you search through broadcast listings. If you’re a DISH subscriber, it can also easily record future shows for you, by working with your DVR.

Keyboard: Since all the players let you search for content, having a keyboard can make that easier. Both Boxee and Google TV come with QWERTY-style remotes where you can type what you’re looking for using a physical device. Roku and Apple TV only provide on-screen keyboards, though these work very well. Apple TV owners who own an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch can also download the Remote app which gives them an on-screen keyboard that allows for faster typing.

Browser: Apple TV only lets you access selected content providers. Roku has a much larger range of providers, but you still cannot access the entire internet. Boxee and Google TV both have a web browser you can use to reach any site you’d like. Unfortunately, if you’re trying to reach some network TV sites, you’ll likely find video is blocked (see A Tour Of How Networks Have Blocked Google TV for examples of this).

Resolution: The cheapest Roku player and Apple TV can only output 720p resolution. The $80 and $100 Roku players, as well as Boxee and Google TV, can do 1080p.

HDMI Out: All the players output via an HDMI connection.

HDMI Cable: Neither the Roku or Apple TV come with an HDMI cable, so you’ll need to buy one. Please don’t spend $30 or more on these. Good cables can be found through Amazon or other places for as little as $6. Boxee and Google TV include an HDMI cable. Google TV is especially nice because your DVR plugs into the Google TV unit, which in turn plugs into your TV. That means you don’t “use up” one of your HDMI sockets.

Component Out: Have an old TV that can’t handle HDMI? Roku is the only manufacturer with a component output, if you purchase the high-end model.

Wifi & Ethernet: All the players have built-in wifi receivers. Alternatively, they all have ethernet ports, if you perfer to plug-in your internet connection.

Media Player: Apple TV, Boxee and Google TV can all play some of your own recorded videos, pictures and music in some way. Apple TV relies on streaming from your computer. You can also use Airplay from your iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad, which works amazingly well. Boxee says it supports a wide-range of formats from any USB device you plug into it. I haven’t tested this yet, but will in the future. Google TV can also play a wide-range of formats. Roku’s high-end player is promising media support by the end of this month.

Cost: The Roku is the cheapest of the players at $60. Stepping up to $80 gets you 1080p output and going to $100 gets you local media playing. Apple TV and Boxee have only one model out, currently. Google TV boxes are sold by Logitech and Sony at different price points — Sony is more expensive, but comes with a Blu-ray player. For even more money, you can buy an actual Sony TV with Google TV built into it. Vizio has also announced that its own Google TV products will come out later this year.

The Internet-To-TV Players

Roku: If you’re wanting to get into an internet-to-TV device, this is a top choice. Roku has a great line-up of major content channels. It’s simple to use, works extremely well and comes at a bargain-basement price. You can learn more at the Roku web site, and see our reviews below:

• Roku: First Day Review & Impressions
• Roku + Hulu Plus = Pretty Awesome

Apple TV: If you’re an Apple person, especially anyone already heavily using iTunes to watch content on your computer or Apple device, Apple TV is a compelling buy. But if you use Hulu a lot, then the Roku might be a better choice. Like the Roku, Apple TV is easy to use and works very well. Learn more at the Apple TV web site and see our review below:

• Apple TV: First Day Review & Impressions

Boxee Box: If you’re already using the Boxee software on your computer and are happy, then perhaps this is the choice for you. Otherwise, Boxee currently lacks the major channels that both Roku and Apple TV provide. For the $200 price, you could buy both a Roku and an Apple TV and still have change left over. Learn more at the Boxee Box web site and see our review below:

• Boxee Box: First Day Review & Impressions

Google TV: If you’re an early adopter with cash to burn, then Google TV might be for you. Otherwise, you may wish to wait until the software improves and the prices likely drop, as more competitors come into the space. However, any DISH subscribers may want to give Google TV serious consideration, because of the tight integration it offers with DISH DVRs. Learn more at the Google TV web site, and see our reviews below:

• Life With Google TV: My First Day Review & Impressions
• Programming Your DVR Made Easy: Google TV, Dish & The Logitech Revue
• Why You’re Still Waiting For Hulu Plus On Google TV

Your Computer

Don’t want to spend anything? Want the ability to access the entire web without network blocking? You can always use your own computer. It’s pretty easy to find adapters that will output from your computer to your TV. Heck, plenty of people consider their computers to be their TVs, these days. For some thoughts on this, see these two articles:

• What the hell is going on with TV?
• Clicker CEO Jim Lanzone, Busting Internet TV Myths

Still, it can be a hassle doing the computer-to-TV thing. Right now, I’ve found the little boxes from Roku and Apple make internet-to-TV a much more enjoyable experience. In time, perhaps the Boxee and Google TV boxes will mature to make having all of the internet on our TVs even easier.

Credit: Logitech

This is consistent with a similar article that appeared in the NY Times last weekend reporting an apparent request by Google to several TV OEM partners to delay launch of their versions of Google TV at next month’s Consumer Electronics Show “so that it can refine the software.”

Logitech has apparently denied that Google made any request to delay production, explaining that software updates can be made “over the air” and don’t require any retooling or retrofitting of the box itself. (Google has issued a denial itself.)

Whether or not Logitech has in fact paused production of the Revue Google is undoubtedly working (even as we speak) to improve the Google TV software and address some of the challenges and complexity issues cited by many reviewers of the product. Overall the Google TV software and the Revue in particular have received mixed notices along the lines of the following: “great concept, not so great execution.”

I’m struck that there’s something of a potential analogy to Google Buzz here.  Buzz was an ambitious project that wasn’t entirely thought through before launch.

There seems to be a similar “prematurity” to the Google TV product and some of its hardware manifestations. Google characteristically releases imperfect products and then improves them over time. Android is probably the most successful example of this approach. But while “iterating” has been a virtue online and in some other situations it may not equally be so in all consumer contexts.

All or most of the perceived software “problems” with Google TV can be corrected — and one would assume they will be. However the muddy reception for Google TV thus far may have damaged its near-term prospects in an increasingly competitive “connected TV” marketplace.

Credit: CNET

Yet the apparently successful rebirth or reboot of Apple TV, after lackluster early versions, argues that Google may get several tries to “get it right.”

Postscript: Logitech provided statements to a couple of media outlets and blogs seeking to refute the perception that Google had asked the company to delay production of the Revue. Here’s the statement:

Suggestions that production of the Logitech Revue companion box might need to be halted to address software issues are unfounded. As those familiar with the product know, it is not necessary for Logitech to make changes to the companion box to accommodate future enhancements to Google TV. Every Logitech Revue will receive free over-the-air updates whenever Google and Logitech release software enhancements.

Related posts:

• Google TV: Snatching Failure From The Jaws Of Success?
• From Apple To Google TV: A Quick Overview Of Six “Connected TV” Offerings
• Clicker CEO Jim Lanzone, Busting Internet TV Myths
• Life With Google TV: My First Day Review & Impressions
• A Tour Of How Networks Have Blocked Google TV From Their Web Content
• Networks To Google TV: Talk To The Hand
• Roku: My First Day Review & Impressions
• Roku + Hulu Plus = Pretty Awesome
• Boxee Box: My First Day Review & Impressions
• Apple TV: My First Day Review & Impressions
• Programming Your DVR Made Easy: Google TV, Dish & The Logitech Revue

Background On Google TV

If you’re not familiar with Google TV, it’s a system that allows you to search for video content across the web and across broadcast television at the same time. Currently, it’s integrated into some Sony televisions, into a standalone Sony Blu-ray player and in a standalone Logitech Revue unit.

Life With Google TV: My First Day Review & Impressions is my previous review that goes into much more depth about Google TV. In that article, I used the Sony Blu-ray player for my testing.

In this review, I’m looking at the Logitech Revue, which sells for $300, though it’s currently discounted to $250 in various places. I purchased my unit through Amazon back in October.

Logitech provided me with a free mini controller to test. Because I attended Google’s Zeitgeist conference earlier this year, Dish provided me with a free Dish installation and three months of service, so I could see the integration in action. I already had satellite television through DirecTV, and that continues to be my main television provider.

Keep in mind that Dish integration isn’t exclusive to the Logitech Revue. The Sony-versions of Google TV also integrate into Dish in the same way.

Finally, this is a review about how Google TV works in the United States. That’s where I’m based. I’m sorry that I’m unable to test this properly for those outside the US.

The Logitech Revue

Before I get into the Dish integration, I wanted to share some thoughts about the Logitech Revue. It’s about the size of a small DVD player and very light. Here’s a picture of the front, with me easily holding it in one hand:

Here’s the back, with an image from the Logitech web site:

As with the Sony Blu-ray player, there’s HDMI pass-through for your DVR. This means you plug the DVR into the HDMI-In port of the Revue, and the HDMI-Out pipes content from either the Revue or your DVR to your TV. That’s nice, as it means you don’t “use up” one of your TV’s HDMI inputs.

The Revue comes with a full-sized keyboard, unlike the Sony units, which have mini controllers with keypads:

Above, you can see the keyboard shown alongside the controller for the Sony-version of Google TV and an Xbox controller, to give you a sense of size.

The keyboard is too large, in my view. While it’s light, it’s not something you’re going to hold in one hand and channel surf with. This is where I had high hopes for the mini controller that’s sold separately:

On the plus side, as you can see above, the controller is about the same size as the Sony TV controller. It’s easy to hold in one hand. It has a lighted keyboard, unlike the Sony!

On the downside, it has a flip-cover that looks cool but is a pain to keep opening — and no, you can’t remove it. It uses a proprietary rechargeable battery, which means you need to either leave the charger plugged in all the time, drawing down electricity, or you have to keep plugging it in when you need to fill up.

The worst thing is that certain commands only work if you hold down special function keys — and I could never figure out the logic about what exactly did what. There seemed to be three different ways to hit Enter/OK, depending on what I was doing. And as with the Sony controller, using the back button versus going back via the touchpad would do different things.

In short, I found the controller maddening. That could be down to the controller. It could be down to Google TV. All I know is that if I had paid the $130 or so that the controller sells for, I’d have been very disappointed.

The Revue can also be controlled from your Android phone using Logitech’s Harmony application. I loaded up the app, and after viewing the screens of tiny buttons, I gave up on it. I want to watch TV, not reprogram my phone to do things that a $10 generic remote could do.

Since my testing, Google released its own Google TV remote app last week (search for it in the Android Market to get it). I haven’t tried the app yet, but it looks promising. Here’s a video from Google about it:

Sony Versus Logitech

If you’re debating between the Sony and the Logitech, my advice is:

• Price check! Last month, the Sony Blu-ray player was reduced to $300, matching the Logitech’s list price. Today, I see it back up to its $400 list price, but I expect specials will come back.
• Do you have a DVD/Blu-ray player? If not, the Sony offers something extra that the Logitech lacks, especially nice insurance while Google TV product itself continues to fully mature.
• Prefer a full-sized keyboard? Do the Logitech.
• Need backlighting? Get a Logitech and invest in the Logitech controller or play with the Android (and soon iPhone) remote apps.

The Logitech also offers a video calling Logitech TV Cam add-on. I didn’t try this. That might be another tipping point, for some people.

Overall, be sure that whatever you buy comes with a great return policy. You simply won’t know which of these works best for you, until you try them — and $300 to $400 is a lot to gamble.

Google TV, Meet Dish Network

For those unfamiliar, Dish Network is one of the two major satellite TV providers serving the US (DirecTV being the other). Google TV has special integration to control a Dish box. Here, you can see the setup menu finding it:

Recording Shows The “Old Way”

Now, consider how you’d find a TV show or movie using Dish without Google TV. You might want to get a drink and settle in for this next part. There are a lot of steps.

First, you bring up the main menu:

Next, you head to the search menu:

Then, using the arrows on your Dish remote control, you move over to select that “Keyword” button. This brings up a new screen where — again using the arrows on your remote — you can enter words using an on-screen keyboard:

Now you’re presented with results. Can you tell which of those are for broadcasts of new episodes of The Office on NBC? I paged through to additional days, and that didn’t leap out at me.

Select a show (I went with one of the TBS options to test things out), and you can set your recording:

Programming The Google TV Way

Now let’s do the same thing but this time using Google TV as an interface into Dish. I push the search button on the Logitech Revue’s remote, then use the keyboard to type “The Office,” which causes results to appear right on the screen:

I can easily see that one of the listings is marked “Series,” meaning it provides information about the entire television series.

(Notice the NBC.com listing immediately above the “Series” listing, where NBC promises “Episodes Online for Free” — that is, unless you’re using Google TV. Or an iPad. Or a variety of other verboten devices).

Selecting the series option brings me to a nice page that shows episodes for the current series, with icons to tell me if they’re on TV, on the web for free or available through paid options:

Since I want to record shows on my Dish box, I select one of the episodes that’s flagged as being on broadcast TV:

Google TV tells me that it will be on NBC and exactly when it will air. Clicking on that listing brings up the record prompt:

Hit OK, and I’m done. Google TV talks to the Dish box and establishes the recording.

It Just Works

Keep in mind, this is all done via the internet — or at least, through your home network. Google TV is talking directly with the Dish box through a network connection. It all happens seamlessly, unlike what happens if I try the same thing with my DirecTV box.

Using my Sony Google TV unit that’s hooked up to my DirecTV installation, I did the same search above to try and record The Office. I got to the same “Series” listing. However, because Google TV (either the Son or the Logitech versions) can’t talk directly to my DirecTV box, I got this message:

The screen basically says to search for the show myself, using DirecTV’s own guide. If I push the TV Guide button that’s offered, nothing special happens. I’m not sent to the right place within DirecTV nor to the DirecTV search interface. I just get dumped into the TV guide for the current time:

From talking with Google, my understanding is that DirecTV or other cable providers could have this type of seamless interface for their boxes, if they wanted. Indeed, I can program my DirecTV box from the web. The Google TV box can do the same thing, as long as the makers want this to happen.

Maybe that will come in the future from other TV providers. I hope so. But it’s here now with Dish, and it’s pretty nice.

Finding Older & Recorded Episodes

I wanted to highlight a couple other sweet things about the integration. For one, it’s pretty easy to track down shows on TV from before the current season. That screen I showed for The Office above? As I noted, you can easily toggle to find episodes from previous seasons that are airing on TV. After doing that, you can then record them. Here’s an episode from last year’s season of The Office being displayed:

You also have the ability to record new episodes versus repeats:

Another nice feature is that Google TV searches not just across the web and broadcast listings but also through TV shows and movies recorded on your Dish DVR.

Below, you can see that I’ve done a search for 30 Rock. The red arrow points a “DVD Recordings” listing:

If I select that, I’m shown all recordings of 30 Rock that are on my Dish DVR. I can then select any of them and begin watching:

Dish Subscriber? Maybe Go For It. Not? Perhaps Wait

Right now, Google TV seems to be going on a bit of hiatus for retooling. The software was recently upgraded to offer a few new features, including a much welcome ability to move the Dual View screen. But Google has apparently asked new hardware makers to delay their launches until the software is further improved.

Meanwhile, the major US television networks continue to block the system from accessing their online content, and the promised Hulu Plus support that would largely resolve that issue hasn’t yet appeared.

So why would anyone buy a Google TV right now? Unless you love being an early adopter, and have cash to spend, it doesn’t make much sense. I expect both the Sony and Logitech units are likely to drop in price. If you don’t need one now, you might save later.

Similarly, when Google TV products from other manufacturers appear, you’re going to have more choices plus further competition that may also mean lower prices.

Of course, Google has promised that any Google TV device will be constantly updated with the latest software. So, if you do decide to adopt early, and you’re happy with the hardware configuration you’ve purchased, then better times should be coming.

For Dish Network subscribers, I’d say it’s another story. Google TV seems to offer features that make the Dish viewing experience much better. Visiting the Dish site today, I also saw that Dish is doing a special deal on the Logitech Revue, offering it for $180 — $70 less than the $250 price you can find it for currently. At that price, for Dish users, it’s a much more attractive product.

Tell Me More!

For more about Google TV and some related products, see our past coverage below:

• Life With Google TV: First Day Review & Impressions
• Boxee Box: First Day Review & Impressions
• Apple TV: First Day Review & Impressions
• Roku: First Day Review & Impressions
• Roku + Hulu Plus = Pretty Awesome
• Internet-To-TV Players Compared: Roku, Apple TV, Boxee & Google TV

Also see our Internet-To-TV page for further stories that will come.

A representative example of Google TV’s generally mixed reviews is the NY Times’ writer David Pogue’s article: Google TV, Usability Not Included. Here at Search Engine Land, Danny Sullivan has also written extensively about his Google TV experiences. I have a Sony Google TV too, though one can access the service in multiple ways.

In my experience, setup was relatively easy but the UX is considerably more complex than it might be. The “game controller” remote is a metaphor for some of that complexity.

Sales figures for Google TV products haven’t been disclosed; however Sony said that they were “in line with expectations,” according to published reports. Sony also put a positive spin on Google TV’s future prospects, in the wake of Google TV’s CES pullout.

Google makes no money directly off the service; it’s very much like Android in that respect — and the strategy appears to be very similar: build usage with multiple OEMs and numerous devices.

By contrast, Apple said it has now sold a million units of the “new” $99 version of Apple TV. Roku is also reporting sales of a million units.

Google has very ambitious plans around “TV,” broadly, and the Google TV product is a cornerstone of that strategy. The company wants to deliver targeted search, display and video ads eventually through the service although it hasn’t commented publicly on that plan. Meanwhile, elsewhere in TV land “addressable ads” are ramping up from a number of cable and satellite TV providers. According to a recent story in the Wall Street Journal:

In the DirecTV setup, an advertiser would specify the kinds of homes it is interested in. DirecTV will tap third-party data providers to find households in its subscriber base that fit that profile. That data could include information such as income and gender to whether a household recently purchased an advertiser’s products or had a baby . . . The data will be loaded onto the household’s DirecTV box and when it is time to run the ads, the box “votes” for the most appropriate commercial for that household from a spectrum of ads preloaded onto the box’s digital video recorder.

Apart from the Google TV software Google is reportedly preparing to challenge Neflix and Hulu with an expanded video streaming service next year. Such a service won’t depend on the success of Google TV itself; the company will likely mimic the multi-platform approach of Netflix and Hulu. And to that end Google recently bought Widevine, which provides video optimization and digital rights management across platforms.

But while Google TV doesn’t need to succeed for Google’s video and TV Ads strategies to succeed it would make life easier.

Right now people will pay a premium for Google TV devices. Google and its partners have not effectively made the case for those premiums or the service as a whole (especially given the mixed reviews). The noise is also getting louder amid a growing array of consumer on-demand/web TV choices: Apple TV and Roku, as mentioned, as well as Wii, Xbox, Yahoo, Boxee and several others.

It’s also not clear that there’s demand for the “full internet” on TV when most people already have multiple sources of internet access: PCs, smartphones and, increasingly, tablets (iPads).

Before Google TV can hope to succeed two things need to happen. There need to be price reductions on the hardware and the software and UX need to be simplified considerably. It’s still early and Google has time to “get it right” but public missteps have cost Google time and credibility in the segment.

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Previously, ABC, CBS and NBC blocked Google TV and so did Fox many of those channels returned to Google TV soon after.

Viacom, which has a long history with battling Google over YouTube, has surprisingly not blocked Google TV until now.

Now, if you try to access any of the Viacom channels, you will see a message that reads:

Sorry, this content is unavailable for your device.

For more stories on this news, please see Techmeme.

The ads should begin showing in “early 2011″ and be seen by about “35 million households, or almost one-third of all US cable and satellite homes.” To learn more about Google TV Ads, see google.com/adwords/tvads.

Mark Piesanen, Director of Strategic Partnerships for Google TV Ads said, “Like Google, Verizon cares deeply about the evolution and future of TV advertising. Together we’re thrilled to establish this partnership to offer great inventory and access to your audience via the Google TV Ads platform.”