Microsoft Mediaroom got its cable network baptism in China, the company informed, courtesy of the Guangzhou Digital Media Group. According to the software giant, the group will be the first to offer digital TV services through the Microsoft Mediaroom IPTV platform in the country. Moreover, with the new services of the Guangzhou Digital Media Group, the Redmond company also marks a first, namely the first time when Mediaroom is available over a cable network worldwide. This will be possible via Zhujiang Digital connected TV service.

“This is an exciting moment for consumers in China and a significant milestone for Microsoft and the IPTV industry, as Guangzhou Digital Media Group becomes the first deployment of the award-winning Mediaroom platform over a cable network,” Enrique Rodriguez, corporate vice president of the Connected TV Business Group at Microsoft, explained. “It also heralds the arrival of the latest in connected TV and the first Mediaroom-based service in China, enabling residents in the Guangzhou region to enjoy TV on their terms and watch the shows they want on their schedule.”

The first Chinese Mediaroom-enabled TV service will deliver TV watchers with not only the standard features that have become synonymous with Microsoft’s IPTV platform, such as high-definition content, Digital Video Recorder, Video on Demand, Remote Record DVR, Multiview, and Media Sharing, but also with Anytime TV. Microsoft introduced Mediaroom Anytime TV at the 2009 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2009) in Las Vegas, the past week.

The new service was launched on January 12, 2009, with the CEO of Guangzhou Digital Media Group, Yang Yuhua, promising that all the company's 2.5 million subscribers will be transitioned to Mediaroom in no more than five years. “With the launch of Zhujiang Digital Interactive TV service, the Guangzhou Digital Media Group is delivering a personalized and connected alternative to existing TV services,” Yahua said. “Powered by the Microsoft Mediaroom platform, the new service will allow residents in Guangzhou to enjoy their TV when they want it, without missing a thing, as well as rich interactivity.”