Slingmedia launches TV IPR beater

BY MISTAKE, Sling Media appears to have launched a new broadcast TV compatible device which could easily blows holes in copyright protection regimes put in place by the likes of Sky and the BBC.

The idea with the new device, known as the Slingcatcher, is that it can take advantage of various network connections including Wi-fi and fixed line broadband to display virtually any type of video data on an average TV set.

Unlike Sling Media's previous offering – the Slingbox - this product comes with a physical remote control. That makes it relatively easy for the average consumer to control the Slingcatcher.

The box also features a couple of USB slots – so you can turn a HDTV or SDTV into a digital photoframe and slideshow your digital photos.

It can also playback any video you've recorded onto the USB sticks. This is where things got a little sticky for Slingmedia Europe's Stuart Collingwood at the launch.

He was forced to admit that it would be feasible to capture the output of a TV programme being streamed by the Slingcatcher (such as the BBC's Iplayer) onto a TV.

That way you could get around the main snag with the BBC's catchup TV service where downloaded videos only last for seven days after the BBC's broadcast date.

If you combine a Slingcatcher with a Slingbox, it would also be feasible to stream a Sky Sports channel to a remote TV.

Collingwood points out that the terms of the Slingbox's licence prevent streaming for commercial purposes but that shouldn't stop some unscrupulous (and broke) pub landlords from doing so.

It should also be noted that the Slingcatcher doubles as a standard presentation projector – so you can send any video image from a PC's screen to an ordinary TV set.

The Slingcatcher has loads of capabilities which turn it into a 'must-have' gadget. Sling Media hasn't revealed the price but it should be somewhere between £100 and £300.

UK commercial availability date was not given either but it will be soon.

Incidentally, Sling Media recently released a version of its mobile client so you can watch output from the Slingbox on UIQ mobile phones from Motorola and Sony Ericsson. µ