A video distribution industry source familiar with Intel's (News - Alert) plans has informed TechCrunch that the company is ready to unveil a sneak peek at its rumored cable TV set-top box at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next week.

The rumor of Intel's television service began to gain traction in March 2012 when a report published by The Wall Street Journal indicated that the chip maker was working on a Web-based video service to compete with cable and satellite television providers. A follow-up report in June suggested that Intel's plans were to incorporate viewer tracking in the each set-top box, allowing demographically-suited advertisements to be shown to consumers.

According to the source, Intel will begin to slowly roll out a set-top box with DVR capabilities, much like the first generation of Google TV and Boxee (News - Alert) Box. Intel’s partnership with Google stumbled out of the gate after the Google TV hardware was met with such a lackluster response. 

Google stated that they would switch to ARM (News - Alert) processors in future updates to its Google TV product line, while Intel claimed they would start producing their own set-top boxes and “do it right this time.”

With a city-by-city deployment, Intel would be allowed more flexibility in working out agreements with content providers, avoiding the usual problems with license negotiations.

The report indicates Intel's plan to provide a 30- day window that would allow users to view any program that has aired in the past month on channels that they are already subscribed to.

It is also suggested that the company may allow for à la carte pricing, or at least less bulky packages, allowing potential customers to subscribe to only those television channels they wish to receive.

Intel will hold its official CES (News - Alert) press conference on January 7, 2013, at which time more details about Intel Cable TV service may be revealed.

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