Link Your House

NEW YORK -- Owners of the Xbox 360 will soon be able to watch a broad breadth of TV shows and other content through their gaming consoles -- though most of that won't be free.

Microsoft Corp. said Wednesday that it's partnering with Comcast, HBO, Bravo, Verizon's FiOS service and others to bring on-demand and live television content to the Xbox.

This doesn't exactly replace the set-top boxes currently used to access TV programming. But M2 Research analyst Billy Pidgeon says it's likely a good option for families who want to able to access TV content in different rooms of the house. With the Xbox, they won't need a second set-top box.

What they will still need is a subscription to Comcast or other pay-TV services. The Xbox may make it easier to access those HBO shows, but you'll still have to pay for them. In some cases, you'll also need a subscription to the Xbox Live Gold online service, which costs $60 a year.

Besides on-demand shows and movies, some live TV channels will be available. For example, Verizon said it will bring a selection of popular live TV channels to the Xbox. The key word here, Pidgeon points out, is "some." Verizon subscribers will still need a set-top box to access all channels and digital video recording services, he said.

The deal helps Microsoft position the Xbox 360 as more than a gaming console. The Xbox, along with Sony's
href="/Netflix" >Netflix">http://www.siliconvalley.com/topics?Netflix">Netflix (NFLX). Sony has also worked to position the PlayStation 3 as an entertainment hub for games, music and movies.

"We continue to invest and focus on games. It's a key pillar of our offering," said Ross Honey, general manager of content acquisition at Microsoft. The latest TV offerings, he added, "bring another pillar" to the Xbox experience.

Microsoft has sold 55 million Xbox 360 consoles worldwide since they were introduced in 2005. There are 35 million Xbox Live members. The company said the new entertainment content will be available this holiday season in more than 20 countries, but did not give an exact timing.

Link Your House integrates the Xbox 360 into many projects-for more information please visit
http://www.linkyourhouse.com/contact-us

Microsoft first announced that a live TV service would be coming to the Xbox at E3 in June, but the company didn’t offer up many details. Of the information it did share about the service, it sounded a lot like a direct partnership between cable TV providers. Microsoft said the live TV service, which is expected to be available this fall, would have access to local channels, sports and more.

The market for set-top boxes has definitely grown in the past few years. Popular boxes like Roku, Boxee, Apple TV and various Google TV enabled devices are currently dominating the market. Yet, none of those options come close to the kind of value that an Xbox offers its customers.

Making the Xbox a viable set-top box would be an excellent move for Microsoft. Not only does the console itself compare in price to other options ($149- $199 for an Xbox verses $60-$199 for others), but it also brings the company’s other services into clear view in a way that wasn’t possible before.

CELEBRITY BAKER BUDDY VALASTRO INSTALLS ELAN® g! CONTROL SYSTEM IN NEW 35,000 SQUARE FOOT COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION CENTER

CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, August 8, 2011 – America’s favorite baker, celebrity chef, and television star Buddy Valastro is taking his world famous brand to the next level with the opening of Carlo’s Bakery Lackawanna, a new, custom designed state-of-the-art 35,000 square foot bakery production center in Jersey City, New Jersey. The facility is certain to be an employee’s dream, offering Buddy’s staff of professionals brand new appliances and equipment, and giving them full control of their environment through an ELAN® g! Control System installed by 360 Media Innovations.

With up to 100 employees at a time designing, baking, and building custom confections from $2 cupcakes and cookies to $20,000 life-sized designer cakes, there are sure to be different personalities and tastes. That’s why the facility utilizes the ELAN g! Control System to control 65 speakers distributed across 11 audio zones, allowing employees to choose what music plays in their area from two Sirius satellite radio receivers, two AM/FM radio receivers and four iPod docks.

“I work hard, but I also love what I do,” Valastro said today. “And I want our entire working family to enjoy their work, too. Giving them a cool way to listen to whatever type of music they like will help to build camaraderie and make the workplace a much more comfortable environment. I love that I’ll be able to address the entire staff at once through the audio system and the emergency safety alerts.”

That’s right, when the boss needs to make an announcement he can use ELAN’s COMM2 phone system to page specific zones or the whole building, automatically muting the current audio source and giving him a quick way to address his team. The ELAN g! system is also integrated with the fire alarm and sprinkler system, so if a fire is detected the system will send an audio alert through all 65 speakers to warn and inform the employees. To access the ELAN g! controls there are eight ELAN TS7 7-inch touch screens located throughout the building, an ELAN TS10 10-inch touch screen in Valastro’s office, two ELAN HR2 remotes, with up to 22 more HR2s planned for controlling the 24 flat screen HDTVs, and of course he will be able to control it all from his iPhone and iPad, from anywhere in the world.

One of the major benefits of the ELAN g! system is that as soon as he wants to, Valastro can have 360 Media Innovations incorporate additional subsystems to be controlled by g!

“Soon we will integrate the 24 flat screen TVs located throughout the building and as we get used to the new space and evaluate our needs, we may add control for the lights, heating, air conditioning, security system and surveillance cameras,” said Valastro.

According to Chima Gale, President of 360 Media Innovations, the ELAN g! Control System was the best choice for Carlo’s Bakery Lackawanna. “Because the ELAN g! graphical user interface is so easy to use, it’s perfect for this type of commercial installation where a lot of people will be using the touch screens to adjust system settings. It will be simple to integrate additional subsystems in the future, and the already installed paging and safety features add so much value to the audio system that it would have been a waste to use any other product,” he said.

In addition to the bakery floor there is a receptionist area, a conference room, a client consultation room, an office for Valastro and two classrooms where he, his decorators and other guest bakers will offer paid baking classes to the public. Carlo’s Bakery Lackawanna has been shown on “The Cake Boss” several times and will become a regular shoot location for future seasons.

Available starting at under $2,000 for a single-room, four sub-system control solution, the ELAN g! Series Control System can be expanded quickly and cost-effectively to enable whole-home control of every room appliance. ELAN g! provides users with the most uniform and intuitive icon-based control from their favorite devices, including TVs, touch screens, touchpads, PCs, iPhones, and iPads. The standardized interface works across platforms, so that the trendy g!Mobile app users love on the iPhone appears and works similarly on ELAN touch screens, valets and handheld remotes as well as users' televisions and mobile devices. And the system's IP backbone makes it just as easy to control the system from across the room - or across the globe.

About ELAN Home Systems: Since 1990 ELAN® Home Systems has been an industry leading manufacturer of innovative, award-winning Multi-Room audio/video systems. ELAN systems were the first to integrate audio, video, phones and third-party products to create a seamless, easy-to-use "whole-house" solution. ELAN systems and products are distributed through a comprehensive channel of select Dealers and Distributors throughout the United States, Canada and more than 58 countries worldwide. ELAN Home Systems is part of The AVC Group. To learn more, visit www.elanhomesystems.com.

About The AVC Group, LLC:
Headquartered in Carlsbad, California, The AVC Group, LLC (www.theavcgroup.com) is a portfolio of pre-eminent manufacturers and marketers of state-of-the-art consumer and commercial audio, video, and control system solutions. The AVC Group is comprised of the following industry leading brands: NILES® Audio (www.nilesaudio.com), ELAN® Home Systems (www.elanhomesystems.com), Xantech® (www.xantech.com), ATON® (www.atonhome.com), and Sunfire® (www.sunfire.com). The AVC Group, LLC is a subsidiary of Nortek, Inc.'s (www.nortek-inc.com) Home Technology Group.

About Buddy Valastro:

Buddy is an accomplished master baker, cake decorator, best selling author and star of three hit TLC reality shows, including Cake Boss, which gives a glimpse into Buddy’s personal and professional life at the family business, Carlo’s Bake Shop (www.carlosbakery.com), in Hoboken, New Jersey. His second book, Baking with the Cake Boss: 100 of Buddy’s Best Recipes & Decorating Secrets launches November 1st, followed by a cross-country, multi-city live show (www.buddyontour.com). In July 2011, Buddy moved the majority of his production to Lackawanna Center. Buddy will also implement a new cross country shipping system from this new location.

About Link Your House:

Link Your House Since 2001 is a National Award Winning Home Electronics System Design and Installation Company (www.linkyourhouse.com) in Atlanta, GA.  We are one of the oldest Homelogic/Elan g! Dealers in the Atlanta area with numerous installs of their award winning g! Systems.  Please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for more information on the Elan g! line of Home Control products.

CARLSBAD, Calif., May 9, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- America's favorite cake maker, Buddy Valastro of Carlo's Bakery, can control and automate every aspect of his new 7,000 square foot New Jersey dream home, right from his iPhone or iPad with the ELAN g! Home Control System he just installed.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110509/NY97465 )

When Valastro moved in 2010, he didn't know much about home automation. He had a new music distribution system installed, but that was it.  Two days after closing on the house, he was introduced to Chima Gale, owner of 360 Media Innovations, who showed him how the ELAN g! IP-based Home Control System could make his life, and his home, simpler to manage.  After a short demo at the set of Valastro's television show, Gale had him hooked. Now, they have just completed a $100,000 ELAN g! installation that lets Valastro control every aspect of his home from around the globe.

"In today's world, if you don't embrace new technology, you get left behind," Valastro said.  "I use state-of-the-art appliances in my kitchens, but had never spent much time thinking about other parts of the house.  So I said to myself, 'I want a space-age house. I want to turn off all the lights with one button before I go to bed, and I want music playing when I walk into the kitchen in the morning.'  The best thing about this system is it took no time at all to learn to use it.  My family knows how to use an iPad and an iPhone, so the software feels just like any other app we use on a daily basis. Having all the systems – the heating, lighting, music, and alarms – adjust themselves throughout the day has made everyday life simpler for me and my family."

And the system doesn't just turn lights and music on and off.  Valastro's house is fully integrated, so he now has total mobile control over the home's 68 light switches, four-zone HVAC system, security and surveillance system with 24 cameras, whole-house audio system with 42 ELAN Elios speakers in 17 discrete zones including the master bathroom and three-car garage, and he can even control the pool equipment. 

The system is so extensive, you can hardly turn a corner in the house without seeing a touch screen control panel.  There are 12 TS7 touch screens that double as digital picture frames, two TS2 touch pads, 4 On-Screen Displays (OSD) on TVs throughout the house, three new iPod touches and two new iPads in addition to the six iPads the family already owned.  As if that were not enough, there is a vanishing-mirror TV above the sink in the master bathroom.

"Nobody can deny that the adoption of home control is growing by leaps and bounds, and the home is quickly becoming an extension of our digital lives," said Gale.  "The ability to help someone go from a simple dedicated music distribution system to a full-fledged home control system, accessible from anywhere in the world, is what makes today so exciting for the industry.  The fact is that everyone wants home control.  With the ELAN g! Home Control System, everyone can have it."

In fact, Valastro's appreciation for the ELAN g! Control System will soon extend beyond the home, as he and Gale later this year integrate the g! System throughout Valastro's brand-new 35,000 square foot command center, a high volume bakery production facility in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Look for a profile of Buddy and his new high tech dream home in the September 2011 issue of Electronic House magazine.

Available starting at $1860 for a single-room, four function control solution, the ELAN g! Series Home Control System can be expanded quickly and cost-effectively to enable whole home control of every room appliance.  ELAN g! provides users with the most uniform and intuitive icon-based control from their favorite devices, including TVs, touchscreens, touchpads, PCs , iPhones, and iPads. The standardized interface works across platforms, so that the trendy g!Mobile app users love on the iPhone appears and works similarly on ELAN touchscreens, valets and handheld remotes as well as users' televisions and mobile devices. And the system's IP backbone makes it just as easy to control the system from across the room - or across the globe.

For more information on the new Elan G Home Control Solutions please contact us http://www.linkyourhouse.com/contact-us.html
or call us at 770-209-0086 option 1 for sales.