HP Drops DEC Media Center PC Line

HP is pulling out of the Digital Entertainment Center (DEC) business. The company that pioneered the living-room form factor for Media Center Edition (MCE) PCs has decided to drop the line.

The company instead will focus its energy on MediaSmart, the new brand of TVs with digital media adapters built in -- not Microsoft Media Center Extenders that link Media Centers with remote TVs, but HP's own solution for distributing photos, music, video and other content (including Web-based) to the TV.

http://www.cepro.com/asset/7566.jpg (http://www.cepro.com/news/editorial/18066.html)

HP channel development manager Doug Robert, who was the main driver of DEC in the custom electronics channel, says, "This not a statement about Media Center PCs. It doesn't mean Media Center isn't going to be successful. It's just that we're discontinuing development."

He adds, "Even at big companies, there are resource constraints."

For more on HP's decision to drop its DEC line, including a look at the company's history with the products, check out
http://www.cepro.com/news/editorial/18066.html