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FEATURESBack to Contents28oped HD camera can operate at distancesup to 150 yards from the cameratruck’s antenna.The IBC conference suites werepacked, in some cases to overflow. Oneterrific session included Blake Krikorian,co-founder and CEO of Sling Media,who presented their Slingbox. He tolddelegates to IBC’s ‘Content that MovesWell’ session that Sling’s objective wassimply allowing viewers to have contentto their TV programming wherever theywere in the world. “People love TV,” hesaid. “And we are more and morelooking at screens away from our livingrooms. Mobiles, projectors, PCs andlaptops, PDAs. We know that peoplewant TV on all these devices whereverthey are. We know that about 35% ofSlingbox viewing is in the office. In factdestroying office productivity is anotherone of our goals!”More seriously, Krikorian arguedthat Slingbox’s existing 350,000 buyersare not under threat from Hollywood’sstudio lawyers. “We’re only doing whatcable did in the early years in the US,which was to move signals from a cityout into the countryside. We’re just avirtual cable company. Importantly,unlike the internet, we are just a one-tooneproduct, not one to many.” SlingMedia has licensed its product toScandinavian satellite DTH operatorViaSat, and to a South American cableMSO. SMLondon-based Chris Forrester, a well-known broadcastingjournalist is the Editor for Europe, Middle East and Africa forSATMAGAZINE. He reports on all aspects of the industrywith special emphasis on content, the business of televisionand emerging technologies. He has a unique knowledge ofthe Middle East broadcasting scene, having interviewed atlength the operational heads of each of the main channels and pay-TVplatforms. He can be reached at chrisforrester@compuserve.comOctober 2006SATMAGAZINE.COM