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You have to go out of your way these days to find a TV maker that isn't already cramming proprietary web apps into their displays and devices, but Google has changed the game a bit with today's announcement of their new 10-foot experience, Google TV. Essentially, it's a platform, based on their Android technology, that is designed to integrate your current TV and DVR set-up with a full-on web experience, including Android apps and a full-featured Web browser. Not surprisingly, there's a great emphasis on search. In this case, it's the ability to search for content and pull it from any available source, including Web services like Amazon Unbox or Netflix Watch Now. But, if your search turns up results on live TV, or even recorded on your DVR, it makes those available too, right through the Google TV Dashboard.

According to Google, we will start seeing Google TV-equipped hardware hitting stores (they go out of their way to mention Best Buy) in the fall of this year. Sony and Logitech are already on-board as partners, with Sony building the tech into HDTVs and BD players and Logitech creating a set-top box that will connect to your DVR via HDMI. There is also a partnership with Dish Network in place for launch, which means that pretty much anyone with an HDMI-equipped TV will be able to partake at launch.
The demonstration that Google gave today showed off some impressive features, not the least of which involves the Android apps. It will be compatible with all web apps that don't require phone-specific hardware (Pandora, etc) and they're also releasing a specific SDK so developers can begin making apps specifically designed for the bigger-screen experience, starting in 2011.

Obviously, there is still much to be seen before anyone can make any kind of judgment (Will Hulu be on-board?), but this could be an exciting development, if only because it will cut down on the amount of proprietary and temperamental "widgets" being served up by manufacturers. If you have features you really like on one TV, you'll be able to access the same features on your next TV because they came from the Android App Store rather than right from the factory. 

If you want the official statement from Google, you can check out their blog post. The video above also does a pretty good job explaining just how this whole thing should work. As soon as we get our hands on one, we'll let you know what we think.