Announced earlier today on the official Boxee company blog, Sling Media has developed and launched a SlingPlayer application for the Boxee Box. Ideal for people that are still paying for cable or satellite content, the SlingPlayer app allows users to stream content from a cable box in the home assuming that the user also owns either the Sling Solo or Pro-HD set-top box. The Sling Solo set-top device retails for $179.99 and streams a standard definition signal to users that access the SlingPlayer app on mobile devices. The Slingbox PRO-HD is a bit more expensive at a MSRP of $299.99, but streams a 1080i high definition signal and can connect up to three sources. It also comes with a built-in Clear QAM cable tuner and a ATSC antenna tuner.
While the Boxee Box isn’t exactly a mobile device, a user could use the Boxee Box at any location around the world and stream content from compatible hardware at another location. This scenario would be ideal for people that are away from home for an extended amount of time. This also opens the door to families sharing a cable subscription. For instance, a college student could tune into the cable package at the parent’s home and avoid having to spend money on another cable subscription. However, the probability of someone owning both a Boxee Box and Sling Media set-top box is likely low. Rather than using the term “cord cutting”, Boxee defines the trend of streaming a cable package to another location as “cord shaving”. The SlingPlayer app isn’t compatible with the PC or Mac version of Boxee though.
Less than a week ago, Boxee announced a $49 Live TV dongle that allows owners of the Boxee Box to view network television without having to purchase a cable subscription. The USB stick connects to an existing antenna and imports all HD television content into the Boxee interface. Users can navigate through show information via the Boxee software interface.
