Rallying around Media Center technologies, industry giants form an alliance to develop and support best practices in the channel.

(Via CE Pro) September 3, 2008 -- CEDIA EXPO -- Booth 469B -- The Media Center Integrator Alliance (MCIA) announces its entrance into the custom install channel to drive adoption and raise awareness of the Media Center ecosystem. Comprised of some of the industry's top companies, MCIA was founded to provide both integrators and manufacturers with best practices and training for technologies using Media Center.

Through the MCIA, the industry for the first time will enjoy a central point of contact and interaction for all things Media Center. The founding members of MCIA now comprise the Board of Directors and include Gabe Gravning of AMD, Fred Bargetzi of Crestron, Ameer Karim of HP, Greg Schlechter of Intel, Seale Moorer of Life|ware, Kevin Collins of Microsoft Corporation, and Brian Paper of Niveus Media.

"Based on the shared idea that the capabilities of the manufacturers and integrators that currently support or wish to support Media Center technologies are greater when combined, MCIA hopes to pool resources and ideas with the common goal of working together to nurture, develop and expand the Media Center ecosystem," stated Kevin Collins, Chairman of the Board and President of MCIA.

MCIA members will share best practices, establish standards, and develop education and certification tools that will further the Media Center cause. In the process, MCIA will serve as a central gathering point for the Media Center movement and hopes to attract the interest, acceptance and participation of many more companies. Participating companies will have the opportunity to contribute to a unified industry-based voice within the Media Center ecosystem, while simultaneously benefiting from the best practices, education tools and certification programs established in through the alliance.

With the increased development of Media Center technologies in the custom installation channel, MCIA hopes to use the contributions of all members to facilitate Media Center's continued growth and progress. The Media Center ecosystem is comprised of powerful, flexible, reliable hardware and software from a large number of manufacturers that span a wide variety of consumer electronics categories. These progressive manufacturers in the CE industry utilize the latest technologies from both the computer and CE industries, such as powerful, energy-efficient GPUs and CPUs, digital tuners, high-speed networking and the latest in A/V technology, to create a range of products that reside in the Media Center ecosystem. These products include media servers, extender devices, mobile internet devices, high-definition digital content, security devices, PCs, thermostats and lighting control. By assembling the right Media Center products and applications, integrators can fully serve the entertainment and automation needs of any residential or commercial installation.

Working together, MCIA members will create tools to help integrators successfully design and quickly install robust systems using components and technology within the Media Center ecosystem while profiting from its use in custom solutions.

For information on how to become a member of MCIA and learn about the different membership levels, visit the website at http://www.mediacenterintegrator.com.