Uncertainty is about the only thing that is certain when it comes to the media server product category. In a market fraught with question marks, including a lawsuit over making digital copies of one’s own purchased DVDs, “managed copy” plans for Blu-ray discs, and even consumer confusion over what a media server actually is, it’s not always easy to identify the best solution for a given project.

Nonetheless, post-CEDIA EXPO is as good a time as any to take a look at the current state of the media server market, as well as what many of these manufacturers have planned for 2010.

With Crestron’s ADMS Intermedia Delivery System users can also access their own personal DVD/Blu-ray collection, streaming Internet media and iTunes library, Windows media files, and home videos on one platform.

KALEIDESCAPE
While it may seem that Kaleidescape’s sole focus is fending off the DVD Copy Control Association, CEO Michael Malcolm says that the lawsuit has not affected the company’s product plans. Earlier this year it introduced the Mini System, the first Kaleidescape product integrating a complete multizone Kaleidescape System into a single component, and the first to include a remote control.

Malcolm thinks that until the media server concept is better understood by the end-user, however, it’s going to be a tough sell to anyone but early adopters. He also finds the lack of support from the movie studios to be an obvious obstacle but thinks that the studios stand to benefit from these products.

“They should be thinking about how they could deliver discs more efficiently and sell people dozens or hundreds of movies versus one at a time,” he said. “Customers devote shelf space and organize. They eventually run out of energy and stop buying. That gets automated if you use a movie server.”

As far as future plans, the company is making a major investment in Blu-ray and is also keeping a close eye on managed copy for Blu-ray. Malcolm said that the wording in the agreement for managed copy and how it will actually be implemented will be critical to its success.

FUSION RESEARCH
The latest solution from Fusion Research is its Studio Movie Server, an entry-level DVD movie archive that stores between 225 and 250 discs. It features 1080p scaling, expands to multiple zones over Cat-5, and can be set up with the use of a remote. The purchase of an inexpensive storage module increases capacity.

Imerge’s MS1 media server and its accompanying enterprise-grade storage solution, XiVASafe, remain a priority of the company’s product line.

According Fusion Research vice president of sales Ingo Schmoldt, there needs to be some clarification of the different technologies being used to archive movies on media servers. “One important example is that many media servers require that the end users strip all copyright protection from their DVDs prior to being loaded on the sever,” he said. “What is typically not realized is that these solutions also require frequent updates to work properly, requiring the homeowner (or dealer) to download and install patches.”

Schmoldt said Fusion is focusing on Blu-ray storage, support for Sony’s new Blu-ray changer, and better support for the growing television series content and search functions. Other priorities include more green products and greater storage at much lower price points.

NIVEUS MEDIA
Niveus’ new ZONE PRO media offers a 3x speed increase over the original ZONE and greater reliability. Built on the Windows Media Center platform, the Niveus ZONE products feature movie library management software, deliver upscaled DVD and native 1080p Blu-ray movies to any room of the house, and bundle a music and photo library. New for this fall, ZONEs will also support sharing of HD cable content among other ZONEs on the home network.

Niveus vice president of business operations, Brian Paper, said the transition from analog devices to IPbased products has been the greatest hurdle for dealer adoption of media servers. “Niveus dealers need to have a strong understanding of their customers’ network, digital storage, and the integration of a Niveus media server,” he said.

To accommodate this need, Niveus is launching a new “white glove service program,” an optional set-up and monitoring service whereby Niveus will pre-configure the system and deliver a plug-andplay server that can save dealers time on site. The company also plans to monitor the health status of deployed systems.

Paper added that beyond these new fall products and services, Niveus will be looking at Blu-ray managed copy and direct Internet streamed content as the next big things.

REQUEST
ReQuest’s F.Series music and movie server is now providing access to 50,000 free Internet streaming radio stations. Last year the company introduced the IMC, a network client that provides a complete video solution to ReQuest’s iQ and F.Series servers, allowing users to watch DVDs, plus videos downloaded from Hulu, Netflix, Youtube, and others. A new upgrade to V5 includes a terabyte hard drive, a gigabyte of RAM, and other upgrades.

According to Scot Seguine, who runs marketing and graphic design at ReQuest, ease of use and integration among devices is an overall market challenge, as iPhones, netbooks, and other media-ready devices are changing the way people think about and enjoy their music and entertainment collections. As a result, the company is focusing on content integration. “Most recently we added Netflix to our IMC,” he said. “We think that kind of ready-to-play entertainment adds major value to our system.”

Looking ahead, ReQuest will continue its efforts to enhance and improve synchronization and sharing of media. Its next steps include a major upgrade in version 2 of ReQuest’s iTunes integration software, called NetSync for iTunes.

RUSSOUND
Two of Russound’s media server solutions include the SMS3 three-stream Smart Media Server and Collage Home Plug based entertainment and communications product. The SMS3 integrates with the company’s multiroom system keypads and touchscreens, providing full media management and metadata feedback, including album cover art. It also features an on-screen display video output and an IP server for full browser control. The system will hold up to 2,650 hours of compressed music, and the SMS3-250 stores up to 4,140 hours.

Russound’s director of product management, Andy Lewis, explained that while the company’s new Collage Home Plug is not a traditional media server, from the user’s perspective it has the same feature set. “It supports DLNA servers so content on the user’s PC, Apple, or Network Attached Storage will be available, including cover art. Webbased services, such as Rhapsody and Shoutcast are also supported,” he said. “The best part is it’s an easy-to-retrofit product.”

Lewis finds, like many others, that digital rights management continues to be an industry issue. “Efforts like Apple’s relatively new DRMfree program are helping the situation,” he said. “There are new content services everyday so keeping up with which ones to support is a big effort.”

Autonomic launched its new Apple TV module for AMX at CEDIA. This follows the June announcement of the same module developed for Crestron.

MERIDIAN AUDIO
Underscoring its commitment to fine music appreciation, Meridian Audio just enhanced its Sooloos digital music system to Sooloos 2.0. A complete recreation of the core of the system, new features include local and remote streaming, numerous interface enhancements, Meridian integration, and the ability to address hundreds of thousands of files at higher speed. Sooloos 2.0 also streams music remotely, allowing the user to access his/her home collection from anywhere in the world with a web-browser and a high-speed Internet connection.

Many challenges are facing the market for media servers, explained Rob Darling, vice president of strategy and digital media product at Meridian. There is the reality that not all content will be local and much will be streamed. A customer’s digital life will have many devices that must work together, and digital media is constantly changing, requiring systems with scalability and expandability. “Centralizing and unifying a user’s access to media in such a way that simplifies all of this is the goal for Meridian Sooloos,” he said.

Vantage Controls’ Digital Music Manager (DMM) supports four independent audio streams and has a ripping functionality that copies CDs at seven-times sampling.

VANTAGE CONTROLS
According to Vantage product manager Tim O’Loughlin, you can insert a horribly scratched disc into Vantage Controls’ Digital Music Manager (DMM), and when ripped, it sounds brand new. DMM houses all audio sources, formats, and remotes into one system. It supports four independent audio streams and has a ripping functionality that copies CDs at seven-times sampling. The interface displays album cover art and creates and stores playlists.

“There are many servers hitting the market today and/or ways to get your music,” O’Loughlin said. “I believe that most people have not heard the difference between a MP3 and a WAV file of music. If they have a nice sound system, it would make a difference.”

Costs, as usual, are of concern. O’Loughlin said that the cost of hardware and the question as to whether or not it is backed up are issues he sees as on the horizon.

Moving ahead, Vantage expects to add premium services to its DMM and to provide updates in early January. “The great thing is all of the products that have been sold will be able to get these updates for free, if they choose,” he said.

CRESTRON
Crestron is taking a different approach to media servers with the introduction of its new ADMS Intermedia Delivery System. ADMS just won CEDIA’s New Technology Award and also won the CEDIA 2008 Best Future Technology Award. Not technically a media server, the ADMS offers many of the same capabilities and then some. In a nutshell, it provides access to any type of content in any format from a variety of content providers and presents all selections on the HD display in your home theater (or other room).

“ADMS doesn’t just serve content saved on a hard drive,” Crestron’s marketing communications director, Jeff Singer, said. In addition to various on-demand partners, users can also access their own personal DVD/Blu-ray collection, streaming Internet media and iTunes library, Windows media files, and home videos on one platform. All of it is accessible via a Crestron Touchpanel. Blu-ray discs and DVDs are played from the built-in Blu-ray drive or in the 200-disc Blu-ray changer, which is expandable to 1,000 discs. The changer enables intuitive and dynamic browsing of a Blu-ray collection, as well.

“We natively host a variety of the best content providers and provide a single, beautiful graphic experience to collect, display, and play music, movies, streaming video from the web, Internet browser, home movies, and iTunes on the family computer, Blu-ray discs, and more,” Singer explained.

AUTONOMIC CONTROLS
Autonomic launched its new Apple TV module for AMX at CEDIA. This follows the June announcement of the same module developed for Crestron. Universal Remote Control also has contracted with Autonomic to develop a version of the module for its MX-6000, MX-5000, and KP-4000 remote controls. The module enables control of multiple Apple TV media servers, iTunes running on Mac or PC, and AirTunes devices via Ethernet, allowing multi-zone control and media browsing from any touchpanel in the home.

Autonomic co-founder and CEO, Michael de Nigris, said that creating a viable solution for servers that allows legal storage and playback of high-definition video content is “elusive.”

“While manufacturers are discontinuing products or fighting legal battles, solutions like Apple TV and Vudu are gaining traction because they have agreements in place with the movie and TV studios to distribute store content,” he explained.

de Nigris added that controllability remains a challenge for these devices, but Autonomic products are aimed at providing the integration capabilities required to include them in custom installations.

IMERGE
Imerge’s MS1 media server and its accompanying enterprise-grade storage solution, XiVASafe, remain a priority of the company’s product line. A fully modular system, the MS1 incorporates custom- grade hardware and software, specifically designed for the custom residential market. The MS1 together with XiVASafe, creates an advanced management and archiving solution for high-definition music and movies.

“Our horizon constantly expands, and we are committed to providing an unparalleled user experience now and in the short-, medium-, and long-term futures. You can expect full native HD playback from the MS1 system real soon, as well as the custom installation world’s first bespoke music store,” sales and marketing manager, Dan Benjamin, said.

Dubbed the XiVA Music Store, this service allows the end-user to purchase, store, and “interface” with new media. An advanced search and purchase (download) engine provides access to a broad range of content, all licensed for use by Imerge and its content partner, 7digital (www.7digital.com).

Also on the horizon for Imerge are a new full HD mini client to the MS1 and a new dedicated music server, the AS1. The “mini” communicates with the MS1 and XiVASafe over a simple Cat-5 network.

PIONEER
Pioneer does not currently have a media server on the market, but they did showcase a network concept, called “Project ET,” at the CEDIA EXPO 2009, demonstrating managed copy for the first time from Disney’s Bolt Blu-ray Disc.

Similar to Crestron’s solution, Pioneer’s concept encompasses highquality audio and video playback, Internet access, and home theater control capabilities, within a single device. It lets consumers combine their personal music, movies, and photo collections with access to a choice of online content services, social networking applications, and online purchasing sites. Users can use a unified remote control to easily add and remove services based on their entertainment needs and preferences.

“For years Pioneer has developed products with its exclusive Home Media Gallery function that networks DLNA-compliant products within the home theater,” Pioneer’s executive VP for home entertainment business solutions group, Russ Johnston, said. “Now that broadband speeds have increased to a level that lets users access highdefinition quality content from the Internet, we are able to consider a network platform like Project ET, which is based on a unique home theater approach to delivering networked content and services into the living room.”

SUNFIRE
Mostly known for its sophisticated line of speaker solutions, Sunfire also offers the Theater Grand Media System, TGM-100, a server that can be paired up with any of Sunfire’s hard drive options. Upon inserting a DVD or CD, its cover art and detailed information are downloaded via the Internet. At same time, the server begins recording the disc to enterprise-grade TGM-Series hard drives. And a highdefinition user interface provides instant, intuitive access to the user’s media at the push of a button. It offers 1080p video quality, is scalable up to six independent zones, and its built in Web-browser interface enables full control via Macs and PCs.

Sunfire’s director of marketing, Eric Harper, admitted that pending litigation in the courts has some dealers and consumers running away from the category of media servers. “Add to that confusion over language in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) as noted in the recent ruling from a judge in the RealDVD case, and it’s an uphill battle for media server manufacturers,” he said. “Cost of entry, including that for robust storage solutions, is also a hurdle, but that will come down over time. The bigger issue is one of consumer confidence and the immediate need for revisions to the DMCA language.”

According to Harper, the immediate future for Sunfire holds several software updates and feature enhancements that will expand the user experience to new areas.

ESCIENT
As reported in early September, D&M-owned Escient, one of the pioneers in the media server category, announced plans to discontinue its DVD-centric Vision line to focus on a new “roadmap” toward products with HD video capabilities.

Escient is still supporting the Vision install base with software upgrades, such as one that integrates the company’s media server with Sony’s new 400-disc BDP-CX7000ES Blu-ray Disc changer. According to senior VP of sales and marketing, Phil Cohn, that Q4 release will occur around the same time that Cohn’s team reveals its fall plans for a new HD-focused media server solution.

“We’ve been evaluating the road map for a while now, and the timing seemed to be right for us with more and more of the integration of HD and shifting trends of how users are getting their content,” Cohn said. “Vision seemed to be addressing a market that was evolving and moving in a different direction.”

Karen Sussman is a freelance writer in Carmel, Indiana.