Monsoon Multimedia

Last updated

Monsoon Multimedia, Inc.
Company type Private
IndustryVideo Streaming and Placeshifting
Founded2004
Headquarters Noida, India (world headquarters)
San Mateo, California, United States (division)
Tomsk, Russia (division) [1] [2]
ProductsVulkano
HAVA line
Website http://www.monsoonmultimedia.com

Monsoon Multimedia was a company that manufactured, developed and sold video streaming and place-shifting devices that allowed consumers to view and control live television on PCs connected to a local (home) network or remotely from a broadband-connected PC or mobile phone. [3] It was one of 5 major transformations (1st VGA in 1984, 16 bit audio and mixed signal ASICs in 1992, 1st commercially available CD Rom drive less than $100 in 1992, MPEG-2 adapters in 1996 and high compression software for mobile phones in 2001) initiated by Prabhat Jain, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur with 5 undergraduate and post graduate engineering degrees from Cal Berkeley and Univ of Vienna, Austria. On the even of Cisco acquiring Monsoon in 2017, EchoStar, the new parent of Sling sued Monsoon for patent infringement (of the Japanese patents), having obtained confidential information about the date of the acquisition by Cisco from a Monsoon employee under murky circumstances. Monsoon settled the lawsuit by agreeing not to sell its products in the USA simply because it did not have the legal funds to fight mighty Echostar's legal maneuvers. EchoStar thus successfully removed its only competitor from the market place. This meant Monsoon's death knell.

Contents

The devices enabled streaming and recording of video content from video sources including live TV, DVD players, video game consoles, and TiVo to multiple PCs wirelessly. Multiple users could connect to the HAVA from any Internet connection simultaneously with channel-changing capabilities and full operation of the video source. The devices allowed a PC to operate as a personal video recorder with pause, fast forward and rewind functions. The HAVA device also worked as a TV tuner for Windows Media Center-enabled PCs without being directly connected to a video source. [4]

In 2018 the Monsoon Website was suddenly closed with no placeholder left to advise of closure, and the company's central server (which coordinated all remote access to Hava and Vulkano devices), ceased to respond at the company IP address coded in the device firmware and remote viewing software.

As of late 2018, Downloads of iPad and iPhone software for remote viewing are no longer available on Apple's iTunes App Store.

As of early 2019 it is not known if there are any active projects to restore functionality of these devices remotely, since the company's server closed. However, they continue to function on a local network.

History

Monsoon Multimedia was created in 2004 by the founders of Dazzle and Emuzed. [5] HAVA's main engineering and development operations are based in Tomsk, Russia, and New Delhi, India. In 1996, the founder of Monsoon Multimedia, Prabhat Jain, founded Dazzle, where he developed the PC hardware and software products to compress video based on MPEG standards. In 2000, he founded Emuzed, where Prabhat Jain created a TiVo-type product for the PC based on Microsoft's Media Center Edition PC operating system.

In November 2008, Prabhat Jain announced the appointment of consumer technology industry veteran William Loesch as CEO of the company. Loesch brought 30 years of experience in the computer software and hardware industries, primarily in the consumer digital video sector. Loesch is not currently listed on the company website as an active member of the team (11/2/2011).

GPL and Patent lawsuits

What was claimed to be the first US lawsuit over a GPL violation concerned use of BusyBox in an embedded device. The lawsuit, [6] case 07-CV-8205 in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York was filed on 20 September 2007 by the Software Freedom Law Center (SFLC) on behalf of the Busybox developers against Monsoon Multimedia Inc., after BusyBox code was discovered in a firmware upgrade and attempts to contact the company had apparently failed. The case was settled with release of the Monsoon version of the source and payment of an undisclosed amount of money to Andersen and Landley. [7]

In January 2013 Sling Media filed suit alleging infringement of five patents, against both Belkin International and Monsoon Multimedia in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. [8] The Belkin part of the suit was settled in May 2013, [9] and in December 2013 the United States International Trade Commission found that Monsoon was indeed violating the patents. The commission issued cease-and-desist orders and banned the importation of Monsoon Multimedia products into the United States. [10]

Devices

Monsoon Multimedia's line of place-shifting devices enabled multiple networked PCs within the home to simultaneously view live TV or DVR content. The number of PCs and mobile device that could connect to a single Monsoon device were limited only by the bandwidth of the network or broadband connection. Only one remote client at a time could view a place-shifted program, but the remote device could be watching while multiple home PCs watched the same program. [11]

Vulkano

Released in August 2010, the Vulkano added an electronic program guide to its PC software, as well as support for YouTube video streaming on TV with an included remote control, as well as future support for Netflix and other streaming video services. Future Google TV web-browsing support was planned for 2011. [12] There was also a Vulkano model that included a 500 GB external hard drive for DVR recordings, which could be accessed from mobile devices. The Vulkano did not support Windows Media Center integration as the previous HAVA models did, but included UPnP technology for photo, music, and video streaming from PCs and mobile devices. In November 2010, Monsoon added a Vulkano Platinum model, which did not include any storage drive, program guide, or recording capabilities.

Vulkano Flow

Announced at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show, the Vulkano Flow was a mobile accessory. When connected to any set-top box the Vulkano Flow could stream TV content to mobile devices inside or outside of the home. It was to be available for $99.

Vulkano Blast

Also announced at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show, the Vulkano Blast integrated DVR, web video, placeshifting, Universal Plug and Play streaming UPnP, Mobile Video Recording and 160 GB internal storage. Its approximate price was $200.

HAVA Gold

Controlled digital cable, satellite, or DVR TV programming on any PC or mobile device.

HAVA Platinum HD

Controlled high-definition digital cable, satellite or DVR TV programming on any PC or mobile phone. Turned a PC into personal video recorder (PVR) by recording TV shows to the hard disk or watch TV from Microsoft’s Media Center in any room within a home.

The HAVA Platinum HD also included component inputs and had the ability to transmit a HD program in widescreen aspect ratio, though not in full HD resolution. The HAVA Platinum took a 720p or 1080i signal and converted it to standard-definition resolution before streaming it over a network or over the Internet. This device also added PC software that stored streamed content, enabling the PC or laptop to pause, rewind and fast-forward streamed content. The stored program could also be burned to DVD.

HAVA Wireless HD

Controlled HD digital cable, satellite, or DVR programs wirelessly on any WiFi-enabled PC or mobile phone. It could stream wirelessly, DVD-quality video direct from the TV source to multiple Media Center PCs simultaneously. It could also pause, rewind, fast forward, and record live TV programs on a PC.

HAVA Titanium HD WiFi

Controlled HD digital cable, satellite, or DVR programs wirelessly on any WiFi enabled PC or mobile phone. It could stream wirelessly, DVD quality video direct from the TV source to multiple Windows Vista or Media Center PCs simultaneously.

The HAVA Titanium HD added Wi-Fi to make a wireless connection to a Wi-Fi-equipped broadband router or modem, and it featured two USB ports. One was for plugging in an external USB HDD drive that could then be used as a DVR. The other USB port was for the included Wi-Fi 802.11g adapter, which sat in a cradle and was connected to a 3-foot USB cable so the adapter could be located in a spot with good reception.

Software interface

The HAVA devices came with a HAVA Player software interface that was downloaded onto the user's PC or mobile phone. This interface enabled the user to send remote control commands from their PC to their TV source. [13] This was done through the included wide range of virtual remote control designs. [14] The Vulkano device included an electronic program guide (EPG) enabled software player.

As of late 2018, software downloads were no longer available from Monsoon's defunct website.

Mobile players

Vulkano players

With the release of the Vulkano in August 2010, Monsoon introduced free Vulkano players for the iPad and iPhone, which only support WiFi, and not yet 3G connections. Monsoon also released an Android and BlackBerry player, and planned a future release for Symbian.

As of late 2018, iPad and iPhone player software was no longer available for download on Apple's iTunes App Store.

HAVA players

Monsoon Multimedia announced support for Windows Mobile in May 2007 enabling users to connect to the HAVA and view video content from video sources such as live TV from a smartphone, pocket PC or PDA. [15]

In April 2008, Monsoon Media announced HAVA Player support for the Nokia N800, N810 and N810 WiMax Internet Tablets [16] enabling users to connect to a HAVA device to view and control video content from video sources such as live TV from a Nokia Internet Tablet.

In May 2008, Monsoon Multimedia announced the HAVA Player for S60, HAVA support for Symbian S60 3rd edition mobile phones. [17] The HAVA Player for S60 enabled users to connect to a HAVA device to view and control their home TV from S60 mobile phones.

In September 2009, the HAVA Player was released to the Apple iPhone and the iPod Touch. The app is free, but is not 3G-enabled.

Closure of Monsoon Website and Servers

In 2018 the company disappeared; because by design all the players were using the company's central server to locate devices for remote viewing, when the server went down, all Hava and Vulkano devices have become useless.[ citation needed ] This was primarily due to the Company running out of funds because of the US District Court's order to not sell any of its products.

The company failure left all device owners disappointed with no alternative solution: relief could have been provided if a direct connection had been made possible between viewing software to user device, based on IP address without requiring access to a central server like Slingbox player option.

Alternative players and hacking

A 3rd party player was developed for Linux and Windows. Development was stopped in late 2009. [18]

There was an attempt to hack the Hava devices to make them work with the new Vulkano player. The password for the root user was found (QwertyU1) so an access over telnet is possible. [19]

See also

Related Research Articles

A digital video recorder (DVR) is an electronic device that records video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card, SSD or other local or networked mass storage device. The term includes set-top boxes (STB) with direct to disk recording, portable media players and TV gateways with recording capability, and digital camcorders. Personal computers are often connected to video capture devices and used as DVRs; in such cases the application software used to record video is an integral part of the DVR. Many DVRs are classified as consumer electronic devices; such devices may alternatively be referred to as personal video recorders (PVRs), particularly in Canada. Similar small devices with built-in displays and SSD support may be used for professional film or video production, as these recorders often do not have the limitations that built-in recorders in cameras have, offering wider codec support, the removal of recording time limitations and higher bitrates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kodi (software)</span> Free software media player

Kodi is a free and open-source media player and technology convergence software application developed by the Kodi Foundation, a non-profit technology consortium. Kodi is available for multiple operating systems and hardware platforms, with a software 10-foot user interface for use with televisions and remote controls. It allows users to play and view most streaming media, such as videos, music, podcasts, and videos from the Internet, as well as all common digital media files from local and network storage media, or TV gateway viewer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Home theater PC</span> PC meant to be used in a home theater setting

A home theater PC (HTPC) or media center computer is a convergent device that combines some or all the capabilities of a personal computer with a software application that focuses on video, photo, audio playback, and sometimes video recording functionality. Since the mid-2000s, other types of consumer electronics, including game consoles and dedicated media devices, have crossed over to manage video and music content. The term "media center" also refers to specialized application software designed to run on standard personal computers.

Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) is a set of interoperability standards for sharing home digital media among multimedia devices. It allows users to share or stream stored media files to various certified devices on the same network like PCs, smartphones, TV sets, game consoles, stereo systems, and NASs. DLNA incorporates several existing public standards, including Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) for media management and device discovery and control, wired and wireless networking standards, and widely used digital media formats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moxi (DVR)</span>

Moxi was a line of high-definition digital video recorders produced by Moxi Digital Digeo and Arris International. Moxi was originally released only to cable operators, but in December 2008 it was released as a retail product. Moxi was removed from the market in November 2011. The former retail product, the Moxi HD DVR, provided a high-definition user interface with support for either two or three CableCARD TV tuners. Arris also offered a companion appliance, the Moxi Mate, which could stream live or recorded TV from a Moxi HD DVR.

Sony's LocationFree is the marketing name for a group of products and technologies for timeshifting and placeshifting streaming video. The LocationFree Player is an Internet-based multifunctional device used to stream live television broadcasts, DVDs and DVR content over a home network or the Internet. It is in essence a remote video streaming server product. It was first announced by Sony in Q1 2004 and launched early in Q4 2004 alongside a co-branded wireless tablet TV. The last LocationFree product was the LF-V30 released in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slingbox</span> Discontinued streaming media device

The Slingbox was a TV streaming media device made by Sling Media that encoded local video for transmission over the Internet to a remote device. It allowed users to remotely view and control their cable, satellite, or digital video recorder (DVR) system at home from a remote Internet-connected personal computer, smartphone, or tablet as if they were at home.

TiVo digital video recorders encompass a number of digital video recorder (DVR) models that TiVo Corporation designed. Features may vary, but a common feature is that all of the units listed here require TiVo service and use its operating system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AMD Live!</span> 2005 Advanced Micro Devices initiative

AMD Live! is the name of AMD's initiative in 2005 aimed at gathering the support of professional musicians and other media producers behind its hardware products. The primary focus of this initiative was the Opteron server- and workstation-class central processing units (CPUs).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zune</span> Microsofts former digital media brand

Zune was a brand of digital media products and services that was marketed by Microsoft from November 2006 until it was discontinued in June 2012. Zune consisted of a line of portable media players, a music subscription service known as Zune Music Pass plus Zune Marketplace for music, TV and movies, streaming services for the Xbox 360 game console, and the Zune software media player for Windows PCs which also acted as desktop sync software for Windows Phone.

Orb was a freeware streaming software that enabled users to remotely access all their personal digital media files including pictures, music, videos and television. It could be used from any Internet-enabled device, including laptops, pocket PC, smartphones, PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii video game consoles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">EyeTV</span>

EyeTV is a European brand of TV tuners that allow users to watch TV on various devices including computers and smartphones. The brand was introduced in 2002 by Elgato Systems and was sold to Geniatech in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sling Media</span>

Sling Media Inc. is an American technology company that develops placeshifting and Smart TV solutions for consumers, multiple-system operators and set top box manufacturers. The company is based in Foster City, California, and was a subsidiary of Echostar. Their initial product, the Slingbox, debuted on the US market on July 1, 2005. The EchoStar business unit was part of a corporate assets exchange with Dish Network at the beginning of 2017 and now operates as Dish Technologies Corporation under Dish Network.

LinuxMCE is a free and open source software platform with a 10-foot user interface designed to allow a computer to act as a home theater PC (HTPC) for the living-room TV, personal video recorder, and home automation system. It allows control of everything in the home, from lighting and climate to surveillance cameras and home security. It also includes a full-featured VoIP-compatible phone system with support for video conferencing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HDHomeRun</span> TV tuner product family by SiliconDust

HDHomeRun is a network-attached digital television tuner box, produced by the company SiliconDust USA, Inc.

PlayOn is a streaming media brand and software suite that enables users to view and record videos from numerous online content providers. The suite consists of two main products: PlayOn Cloud and PlayOn Desktop. PlayOn Cloud is an online service for recording digital video streams, accessible via native iOS or Android mobile device applications. PlayOn Desktop is Windows-based software that acts as a streaming dashboard and hub on the PC. The available streaming websites are organized as channels in both products. Users browse through or search the video content found in those channels in order to record the videos for later viewing. PlayOn Desktop allows watching the videos real-time on the PC, or casting the videos to a TV via a streaming device or gaming console.

Wireless Home Digital Interface (WHDI) is a consumer electronic specification for a wireless HDTV connectivity throughout the home.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WiDi</span>

Wireless Display (WiDi) is technology developed by Intel that enables users to stream music, movies, photos, videos and apps without cables from a compatible computer to a compatible HDTV or through the use of an adapter with other HDTVs or computer monitors. Intel WiDi supports HD 1080p video quality, 5.1 surround sound, and low latency for interacting with applications sent to the TV from a PC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hopper (DVR)</span>

Hopper is a line of digital video recording (DVR) set-top boxes offered by the U.S. direct-broadcast satellite television provider Dish Network. First introduced at Consumer Electronics Show in January 2012, the Hopper was released in March 2012 as a component of the provider's whole-home DVR system, which networks the main Hopper unit with smaller "Joey" set-top boxes to form a client-server architecture.

Microsoft mobile services are a set of proprietary mobile services created specifically for mobile devices, they are typically offered through mobile applications and mobile browser for Windows Phone platforms, BREW, and Java. Microsoft's mobile services are typically connected with a Microsoft account and often come preinstalled on Microsoft's own mobile operating systems while they are offered via various means for other platforms. Microsoft started to develop for mobile computing platforms with the launch of Windows CE in 1996 and later added Microsoft's Pocket Office suite to their Handheld PC line of PDAs in April 2000. From December 2014 to June 2015, Microsoft made a number of corporate acquisitions, buying several of the top applications listed in Google Play and the App Store including Acompli, Sunrise Calendar, Datazen, Wunderlist, Echo Notification Lockscreen, and MileIQ.

References

  1. ↑ "Welcome to Monsoon". Archived from the original on 20 December 2008. Retrieved 23 December 2008.
  2. ↑ "Monsoon Multimedia Announces HAVA Development Initiatives for Microsoft's Windows". Reuters. 10 January 2008. Archived from the original on 7 March 2008.
  3. ↑ "Monsoon Multimedia launches new HAVA video streamers". Archived from the original on 23 October 2008. Retrieved 1 May 2008.
  4. ↑ Cassavoy, Liane (1 December 2006). "First Look Battle of the Placeshifting Devices". PCWorld. techhive.com. Retrieved 13 December 2018.
  5. ↑ Hava Faces off with Slingbox [ permanent dead link ]
  6. ↑ On Behalf of BusyBox Developers Andersen and Landley, SFLC Files First Ever U.S. GPL Violation Lawsuit (Software Freedom Law Center 20 September 2007)
  7. ↑ Settlement reached in Busybox-Monsoon GPL case Archived 24 September 2008 at the Wayback Machine (Bruce Byfield, Linux.com, 30 October 2007)
  8. ↑ Newton, Casey (8 January 2013). "Sling Media sues Belkin, Monsoon for patent infringement". Cnet. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  9. ↑ Donahue, Bill (21 May 2013). "Belkin Settles Out Of Slingbox ITC Patent Probe". Law360 . LexisNexis. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  10. ↑ Lawson, Alex (6 December 2013). "Video Streaming Cos. Hit With Import Bans In Slingbox Row". Law360 . LexisNexis. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  11. ↑ Monsoon Announces HAVA Titanium HD
  12. ↑ Vulkano – World's First Universal and Affordable Video Platform for Smartphones, PC/Macs, iPads and TVs
  13. ↑ TabletBlog Premiere - Stream your home Satellite/Cable/DVR to your tablet with HAVA
  14. ↑ Monsoon Multimedia Announces HAVA Development Initiatives for Microsoft's Windows Rally Platform
  15. ↑ "Windows Mobile Devices Get HAVA Support".
  16. ↑ HAVA player hits Nokia's internet tablets
  17. ↑ HAVA Mobile Player comes to S60 handsets
  18. ↑ "Vulkano Hava Fun". SourceForge. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  19. ↑ "Hacking Hava".
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.