SEATTLE — WinHEC 2006 — May 23, 2006 — Buffalo Inc., a global leader in the design, development, and manufacturing of wired and wireless networking, storage, multimedia, and memory solutions, and Mediabolic, a leading developer of entertainment networking software, today announced that they have teamed up to develop an innovative connected entertainment device designed to work with the Microsoft Windows Vista operating system. The two companies have jointly implemented “Windows Rally Technologies” on an upcoming version of the Buffalo LinkTheater Network Media Player, which will enable consumers to unlock and stream digital media from their Windows Vista PCs to other rooms in the house. The new technology implementation will define a new class of digital home products that will be easy to configure and manage, delivering the best experience for consumers.
Windows Rally Technologies are a set of networking technologies designed to make the configuration of wireless networks secure and effortless for consumers. Additionally, Windows Rally Technologies enable link-layer topology discovery to automatically detect devices on the network, determine how they are interconnected, provide quality of service for in-home audio/video streaming, and represent the network in graphic form. The ability to visualize home networks is designed to help users identify connectivity issues that need corrective action.
“Windows Rally Technologies for network-connected devices ensure the best user experience with Windows Vista,” said Scott Manchester, Microsoft’s program director for Windows Rally. “Microsoft is making significant investments in networking and device connectivity for consumers while enabling a wave of technologically innovative devices. Buffalo and Mediabolic have done a great job in being the first to implement Windows Rally Technologies into an elegant digital entertainment solution. Consumers will have an easy way to add connected entertainment devices to their home networks so they can browse and enjoy their music, photo, and video collections stored on their Vista PCs using their TVs and stereos anywhere in the home.”
With Windows Rally Technologies, consumers can quickly and easily set up a secure wireless home network and add new devices at any time using Windows Connect Now. Windows Vista automatically discovers Wi-Fi access points — like a Buffalo AirStation wireless router — which consumers can manage remotely after entering a short PIN. For instance, when the Buffalo LinkTheater Network Media Player is added to the network, the consumer simply enters another PIN on the Windows Vista PC to activate the device. At this point, the LinkTheater is fully configured and ready to use.
“Buffalo’s corporate-wide focus on the digital home market underscores our commitment of delivering innovative entertainment devices that are incredibly easy to use right out of the box,” said Morikazu Sano, senior vice president of global marketing at Buffalo. “Our products give our customers the power to choose when, where and how they can enjoy their content. We are pleased to be working closely with Mediabolic and Microsoft on the Windows Rally Technologies effort, which is an important initiative to broaden the acceptance of home networking products by making certain they are easy to configure on a Windows Vista home network.”
Mediabolic’s standards-based software enables connected entertainment devices to work together seamlessly, regardless of manufacturer or device type. “Mediabolic strongly supports the Windows Rally Technologies initiative as a way to integrate user-friendly networking protocols into Microsoft’s next-generation operating system,” said Daniel Putterman, president and CEO of Mediabolic. “Our OEM customers like Buffalo know that they can count on us to deliver software that has been rigorously tested to be fully interoperable with standards like DLNA and Windows Rally Technologies, so that they’ll ultimately see fewer product returns and fewer support calls. Consumers that buy digital home products like the Buffalo LinkTheater will benefit from having a fun digital entertainment solution that’s secure, reliable, and easy to configure.”