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There may be a digital network in your audio future. To help you run it, 17 consumer electronics and computer companies, including Fujitsu, Gateway, HP, Intel, IBM, Kenwood, Panasonic, Microsoft, NEC, Nokia, Philips, Samsung, Sharp, Sony, and Thomson recently announced the formation of the Digital Home Working Group (DHWG).

The DHWG, which was initially sparked by discussions between Sony and Intel, describes itself as a non-profit organization dedicated to simplifying the sharing of digital content—such as digital music, photos, and video—among networked consumer electronics, mobile devices, and PCs. The group's statement says its members share a "common goal of establishing a platform of interoperability based on open industry standards and will deliver technical design guidelines that companies can use to develop digital home products that share content through wired or wireless networks in the home."

Recent months have seen several companies announce audio networking products aimed at distributing digital files around a home from a central music server. In addition to the audio components, the DHWG says it will try to integrate PCs, TVs, set-top boxes, printers, mobile phones, PDAs, DVD players, digital projectors, and other devices into a common network.

The group cites the increase in broadband adoption and related device sales as driving the need for open networking standards. "Consumers today are acquiring, viewing, managing, and sharing an increasing amount of digital media on devices in the CE, mobile, and PC domains," says the DHWG. "As such, consumers want to easily enjoy this content, regardless of the source, across different devices and locations in the home." The group contends that a number of conflicting standards and media formats exist today, making the digital home complex to set up and manage.

The DHWG intends to deliver guidelines resulting in the first compliant products within the next 12 months. The group says its design guidelines will utilize well-known and established networking standards such as Internet Protocol (IP), UPnP, and Wi-Fi. Over time, the DHWG says, it expects the guidelines will evolve to incorporate emerging or subsequent versions of existing standards.

The group claims that format interoperability will be achieved by requiring formats to meet specific criteria. The format must be an open standard that has been formally ratified by an internationally recognized standards organization, and any intellectual property must be licensed under "reasonable, non-discriminatory" terms.

Based on these guidelines, the DHWG says, a set of programs including certification, compliance logos, marketing, and promotion, will be considered by the group and made available to its members. The group says it will also develop marketing and promotional programs to communicate the benefits of the digital home to consumers and the industry alike.

Panasonic's Yoshiaki Kushiki notes, "Despite many technical advances, consumers still must cope with the disconnect between their entertainment electronics and home PCs. We believe that this initiative to establish guidelines for interoperability based on industry standards will be a big step towards securing the benefits of the coming age of ubiquitous networking." Sony's Keiji Kimura adds, "With the rapid advances in broadband networking technology, it is of paramount importance that consumer electronics products be able to connect with each other as well as with personal computers and deliver the rich experience and benefits of a digital home. The DHWG is the means by which industry leaders will be able to focus their resources and talents to aggressively pursue this exciting objective."