A television display device, comprising: communication circuitry (206,208) configured to receive a plurality of information streams from at least one remote entity via wired or wireless communication, the plurality of information streams including a first information stream and a second information stream, said first information stream containing a first type of multimedia information and comprising first displayable content and said second information stream containing a second type of multimedia information that is different from the first type and comprising second displayable content; a display configured to display at least the first and second displayable content; and a stream manager configured to: authenticate a user of said television display device; identify user preferences associated with the authenticated user of said television display device comprising user preferences for the display of content on said display; allocate, in accordance with said user preferences, a first window within the display for the display of the first displayable content and a second window within the display for the display of the second displayable content; concurrently display the first displayable content and the second displayable content within the first and second windows, respectively; monitor the first information stream to detect a quality issue, an interruption, or a request for action by the user, in said first information stream; in response to detection of a quality issue or interruption in said first information stream, altering the display of said first displayable content based on said user preferences to deemphasize said first window relative to said second window; and in response to detection of a request for action in said first information stream, altering the display of said first displayable content based on said user preferences to emphasize said first window relative to said second window. communication circuitry (206,208) configured to receive a plurality of information streams from at least one remote entity via wired or wireless communication, the plurality of information streams including a first information stream and a second information stream, said first information stream containing a first type of multimedia information and comprising first displayable content and said second information stream containing a second type of multimedia information that is different from the first type and comprising second displayable content; a display configured to display at least the first and second displayable content; and a stream manager configured to: authenticate a user of said television display device; identify user preferences associated with the authenticated user of said television display device comprising user preferences for the display of content on said display; allocate, in accordance with said user preferences, a first window within the display for the display of the first displayable content and a second window within the display for the display of the second displayable content; concurrently display the first displayable content and the second displayable content within the first and second windows, respectively; monitor the first information stream to detect a quality issue, an interruption, or a request for action by the user, in said first information stream; authenticate a user of said television display device; identify user preferences associated with the authenticated user of said television display device comprising user preferences for the display of content on said display; allocate, in accordance with said user preferences, a first window within the display for the display of the first displayable content and a second window within the display for the display of the second displayable content; concurrently display the first displayable content and the second displayable content within the first and second windows, respectively; monitor the first information stream to detect a quality issue, an interruption, or a request for action by the user, in said first information stream; in response to detection of a quality issue or interruption in said first information stream, altering the display of said first displayable content based on said user preferences to deemphasize said first window relative to said second window; and in response to detection of a request for action in said first information stream, altering the display of said first displayable content based on said user preferences to emphasize said first window relative to said second window.