Interactive television (iTV)—an evolutionary merging of digital TV and the Internet—is set to take the world by storm! For consumers, iTV technology offers powerful new ways to interact with content providers and merchants. These include enjoying video on demand; participating in online shopping, banking, and gambling; and taking advantage of bonus multimedia features and controls added to news, sports, entertainment, and educational programming.

Organizations assembling the technologies and agents needed to deliver the content, though, find that providing iTV service is a monumental, multifaceted task. The sheer complexity also means that those proficient in one area of the service are often unfamiliar with the workings of other areas. iTV professionals seeking a better understanding of how it works and how it all fits together will find that iTV Handbook: Technologies and Standards, by topic authority Edward M. Schwalb, provides a welcome introduction to all the key issues, technology solutions, and standards surrounding the service. This book covers:

* Issues concerning the most links in the iTV "food chain"—content authors, producers, distributors, broadcasters, cable system operators, receiver manufacturers, and viewers
* Details of the hardware, software, technologies, protocols, and standards that define iTV
* Graphics, audio, video, and asset-management formats used in iTV, as well as security considerations, the broadcast file system, and more

iTV Handbook: Technologies and Standards provides a thorough overview of the iTV service and shows how everything fits together—it's the ideal introductory reference for technical managers, technical sales people, engineers, executives, content authors, and consumers interested in iTV technologies.