Peter Near's Blog

When it comes to Media Center in Canada, Microsoft just doesn't seem to get it. 

While I can't seem to locate much in the way of statistics on the subject, I would suggest based on community participation that Canadians have adopted Media Center in comparatively significant numbers despite being practically ignored as a customer group since the product's initial launch.  Let's look at the track record:

February 2002 - Media Center launches in the US, Canada, and Korea supporting standard-definition antenna and cable.

October 2005 - Media Center 2005 UR2 launches and introduces high-definition ATSC for the USA and Korea (but not Canada).

July 2005 - Users in Canada hack MCE 2005 to allow ATSC reception in Canada

January 2007 - Vista Media Center launches, with most of the Online Spotlight content disabled in Canada.  I publish a new hack to get ATSC working in Canada.

March 2007 - Media Center users in Canada report en masse that misapplied copy protection flags render the MCE PVR useless in many Canadian markets.  This remains unfixed.

September 2008 - TV Pack for Media Center launches with significant new TV features and international TV format coverage, except Canada.  TV Pack breaks previous hacks that allow HDTV to work in Canada, and plugs the hole that made them possible.

Now I don't believe that anyone has malicious intent here, it's just that Media Center is lacking in focus with respect to Canada.  Rather than compare the attention that the US has gotten in Media Center to Canada, I think a more appropriate case study would be Korea.  Why, one might ask, is Microsoft doing so much for South Korea and not for Canada?

Let's set the stage with some comparative stats:

The message here is that they're pretty similar as far as markets go.  Both medium-sized countries with medium-sized economies and medium-sized incomes after deductions.  They both use transmission standards that are shared with the US, most notably ATSC.  Where Canada is a closer match, one might assume, is that we're practically right next door to the Microsoft campus and we speak the same language.

I'll pause before continuing this post to state that I don't know the answer to my earlier question - I do not know why Microsoft seems to ignore the Canadian Media Center market.  But I can take a few guesses based on my experience as director of product management for a large software company and a little bit of knowledge of how Microsoft operates.

1. There is no Media Center champion within the Microsoft Canada subsidiary.  MS Canada has alot of great people in it, and from personal interactions I know that many of them are really excited about Media Center.  However when it comes to big issues where someone really needs to have ownership, I have come up empty in my attempts to engage the local subsidiary.  I have always assumed that Korea has someone who is pushing for their market, putting together business cases for features to get done, and acting as a focal point for the MCE team back in Redmond
2. Canadian projects fall into that product management "dead zone" that exists between things that are really easy to get done and things that are really complex and get a team of dedicated resources.  I know, I've been there and every software company has a massive list of things that you really should get to but never do because they live in this dead zone.  For example, with ATSC support you can't just "make it work" but you also can't put together the same level of business plan and excitement that something like "integrate with DirecTV" would allow.  It just goes on the pile until someone (see point #1) makes it a priority.
3. Partners drive much of the priority, and most of the partners that operate in Canada are actually managed as North American partners.  So if you're sitting down with HP to figure out what the North American market needs, you spend most of your time talking about the United States and simply drop anything that doesn't fit with Canada.  That is a very different discussion from the one you would have with a partner who is targeting Europe or targeting Asia, where diversity is assumed to be part of the plan.
4. I'd bet that nobody has ever, or at least in a long while, put together a plan that demonstrates value created by MCE and its ability to sell more seats of Windows in this market.

Of the points above, I believe that local subsidiary ownership is the most likely culprit and one of the first things that would need to get fixed if MCE is to have any hope of turning around in Canada.  However that point is moot unless you truly believe that Media Center adds value and helps to drive Canadian revenue.  I submit the following uniquely Canadian traits that I believe do make this a legitimate market for Media Center.

1. The competition US-style competition amongst cable and satellite providers to continuously deliver better devices into the living room simply doesn't happen here.  We have a few massive companies with a virtual monopoly, and none of them are spending time on creating a truly decent end user experience.  They ship garbage, and the Canadian market eats it up.  There is no DirecTivo up here, there is no amazing end to end set top box experience, and there is very little investment into doing much beyond the bare minimum.  This is the reason I bought into Media Center six years ago, and it is a hook that Microsoft could use to really gain market share.
2. The regulatory environment is ripe for innovation.  The CRTC (Canadian equivalent of the FCC) has a new chairman who has been spending the last year changing the culture of that organization to be "less regulation is best for the country".  Now is the time to do something grand, to push forward new distribution models, and to challenge the existing order.
3. Following up on that point, there is very little happening up here in the way of digital distribution.  There is a huge opportunity to do well with something like Xbox Live Marketplace for movie rentals because there is a gaping hole there in the market.  Anyone who is spending effort on this area is languishing in a North American strategy where they launch what is a pretty decent service in the USA but don't bother to go after distribution rights in Canada leaving them with nothing but public domain content when accessed from the Great White North.  If you can get MCE and XBox into Canadian homes truly working as the center of the universe, you could own this market.

It wouldn't be a rant from me without some honest suggestions of how to fix the problem.  It would appear that I am big on bullet lists in this post, so let's continue the trend with my five-point plan to revive Media Center in Canada.

1. Decide if MCE is important to the Canadian market.  I assume that the answer is yes, but the degree of that yes as measured by local investment is what is really needed here.
2. Announce that ATSC will be supported in Canada with Windows 7, and announce it now. Given recent history, the assumption of most Canadian enthusiasts would be (or already is) that Microsoft has abandoned this market and if you want them to stick around they need to be given hope.  Without an affirmation that Microsoft loves Canada, they will find alternatives. 
3. Invest in technology that allows the local Windows team to develop a revenue plan worthy of investment.  My top priority would be to invest in Media Center machines that are aware of each other.  They can share content over the network, share tuners over the network, and share the guide over the network.  Partner with a company that can crank out small almost extender-like PCs that will form a matrix of digital media in the home.  Immediately your market opportunity moves from "up-sell the existing home PC to the latest version of Windows" to "sell multiple copies of Windows into a single home".
4. Tag someone with ownership of Media Center penetration in Canada, divide their time between internal advocacy and external evangelism, and put a revenue number on their head.
5. Target at least one online project that will be delivered with Canada in mind to show partners how to leverage the gaps in this market using Media Center and XBox as the base.

Do that, and I'll stick around to see where this all leads. 

I love Media Center as an application, I admire Microsoft as a company, and I respect everyone on the MCE team and the energetic people I've met at Microsoft Canada.  I want to see Media Center succeed in my home market, but my faith is very much being tested.  It may be too late.

How about the rest of you Canadians, will you stick with MCE for just a bit longer if Microsoft shows you some commitment?