Niveus is rolling out a new user interface for Media Center that shows artwork and metadata for combined media sources such as recorded TV, downloaded and HD content

The details from CE Pro:

03.14.2008 — Niveus Media is rolling out a new user interface, Movie Gallery, that shows artwork and metadata for all the movies on a server—whether they are recorded from TV, downloaded from the Internet or even ripped from Blu-ray, HD DVD and DVDs.

The UI is a pet project of CEO Tim Cutting, who wanted to go beyond the often-used ”My Movies” plugin for Media Center and differentiate the company’s offerings from other Media Center manufacturers.

And yes, the display does indeed include ripped movies from DVD, HD DVD and Blu-ray discs. “We have dealers who are ripping movies,” says Cutting, because their customers are asking for it.

Niveus isn’t installing any decryption software into their units, so they’re confident that aggregating all movie information, including ripped movies, isn’t an issue.

“We’re making no hesitations in what we are talking about to our customers,” says Niveus’s Scott Varner. “We’re confident that what we’re doing is fine.”

Ripped Blu-ray and DVD films will work on the main server, but not on extenders—they will simply disappear from the interface. Movie Gallery also includes a recommendation engine, which at this point suggests films from the same genre to the user.

The UI has a Kaleidescape look-and-feel, and Cutting isn’t afraid to to make the comparison. “Art inspires art,” he says.

Dealers will be able to beta test Movie Gallery within “two weeks,” and Niveus expects a two-week beta period before it is officially released.