ARRIS has signed an exclusive agreement to become the sole source of Sling Media’s placeshifting technologies for cable and telco providers.
It follows the recent agreement between the two companies that witnessed the launch of the ARRIS MS4000, bringing multiscreen, placeshifting capabilities to the ARRIS Whole Home Solution with MOXI.
The Sling software makes it possible for viewers to view their home broadcast content anywhere in the world with a broadband connection. Mark DePietro Vice President, Business Development ARRIS denied this was circumventing existing rights deals. “When you look across the globe there are different agreements, so we provide a set of to allow the operator to transcode within their comfort levels.”
DePietro said that while ARRIS could have ultimately developed its own solution, Sling Media already had real world experience.
A spokesman for Sling Media confirmed to Broadband TV News that retail Slingbox products would continue to be produced by Sling Media/EchoStar as is the Hopper with Sling, which is sold to US satellite platform Dish.
ARRIS is planning a phased rollout of the Sling Media technology to global service providers, with the launch of the MS4000 in early 2014, followed by video gateway offerings and technology licensing for multivendor devices.
