Want to be able to download movies and television programs from the Internet, then watch them on your TV without any hassle? With the addition of TiVo services to Intel's forthcoming Viiv platform, you might be able to do just that.

Plans call for a home-entertainment setup that will allow you not only to record, pause, and rewind live television programs on your computer, but also transfer the recorded shows from your Viiv PC to your TiVo set-top box.

"This is about Intel Viiv technology-based PCs not only connecting to the TV, but also delivering the latest movies at home, creating 'music DJs,' playing games, and showcasing home photos and videos," said Kevin Corbett, vice president and general manager in the Intel Digital Home Group. "It's a one-stop-shop for entertainment."

Rhymes with 'Five'

Scheduled for release during the first quarter of 2006, Viiv, which rhymes with "five," is Intel's attempt to shift perception of the PC as a tool that needs frequent upgrades to a cutting-edge component of an entertainment system.

To achieve that goal, the chipmaker has hooked up with more than 40 collaborators ranging from gaming, movie, music, and photo-editing companies to traditional television giants. The goal is to have a broad scope of content and services available for the Viiv platform at the time of launch.

Operated by remote control, Viiv-enabled PCs will offer functions that most consumers associate more with a TV than a computer.

"When it comes to digital entertainment in the living room and beyond, consumers deserve the ease of use they've come to expect from TiVo," Tom Rogers, TiVo chief executive officer, said in a statement. "We're thrilled to be working on this important initiative with Intel."

Musical Chairs

According to Yankee Group analyst Nitin Gupta, the ultimate objective of the Viiv initiative is to turn the PC into an entertainment platform. Intel and TiVo are merely the latest entrants in this race in which cable companies, game-console makers, computer manufacturers, software developers, and television stalwarts are vying for prime positions.

The problem with the PC-as-entertainment plan, said Gupta, is that most people do not want to watch a movie trapped in front of their PC. They want to watch movies, videos, and other content on a TV. Intel's partnership with TiVo is a solution to this problem, he said, and it will benefit everyone.

"The TiVo box connected to the home network can provide a conduit for content on computers to be viewed on the television," he said. "That's a good thing for everyone because it will make users more likely to purchase content online, it boosts revenue for online content sites such as Movielink and Cinemanow, it establishes the PC as a media platform, and for TiVo it expands the functionality the company has as well."

For Intel, the partnership with TiVo represents something of a departure, as well as a potential coup.

"For the first time, Intel has convinced a consumer electronics company with an extremely innovative television product to join in Intel's digital-entertainment vision," said Ted Schadler, principal analyst at Forrester Research. "It's also the first non-Windows device to go Viiv. The stage is now set for other consumer-electronics devices -- media players, set-top boxes, and DVD recorders -- to join the Viiv bandwagon."

Viiv systems will vary in design and size from one no bigger than a small stereo component to the more-traditional PC-tower size.