On April 26^th, 2006 Sling Media publicly introduced SlingPlayer Mobile for Pocket PCs, software that dramatically changed how Slingbox owners can access their home television services on the go. Only a few short days ago, Sling Media broadened the scope of SlingPlayer Mobile by creating a new version designed for Windows based Smartphones. However, all this mobile goodness is currently for US Slingers only, leaving Slingbox owners in Europe, Canada, and other countries around the world clutching a computer or notebook instead of a Treo or Pocket PC. The biggest question on everyone’s mind is, “Why?”

It’s that question that confuses international Slingbox owners. Users in the UK and Canada can’t purchase and use SlingPlayer Mobile software, regardless of the fact that many have already downloaded and used the 30-day trial version with success. There’s obviously no significant technical problems that would explain the lack of availability, so what’s the hang up?

This is one area where Sling Media has been particularly quiet. I figured it was time to do a little digging, and get a “from the horses mouth” look at the current state of SlingPlayer Mobile. I got a hold of Brian Jaquet, the Director of Public Relations for Sling Media. For as quiet as they’ve been on the subject, I found Brian open and willing to discuss the current situation, and it turns out there are several reasons behind the lack of international availability.

One Size Doesn’t Always Fit All

First and foremost, taking a product international poses many new and unique challenges to how that product is introduced to the market. One strategy in one nation doesn’t necessarily work in another. “In the United States, introducing the [Slingbox] to the retail channel seemed to make the most sense,” says Brian. “After researching the UK market, we decided to follow a similar approach, and it too has been successful. But, if you look at what we’ve recently done with launches in other countries, you’ll see that we haven’t always executed in the same way.”

So far, Sling Media has made the Slingbox available in several countries around the world, all with varying strategies and implementations. For example, Sling Media just made their product available in Scandinavia through a popular satellite television provider called Viasat, marketed under the name “Viasat Everywhere.” As the largest free-TV and pay-TV operator in Scandinavia and the Baltics, this partnership seems to make the most sense for bringing the Slingbox experience to the region. “We’re always looking to find the best way to introduce our products,” Brian noted. “Even more importantly, we’re looking for the right customers and partners that allow us to be successful. Sometimes that means selling products through well-established international partners that have the type of customers we’re looking for.”

It turns out that SlingPlayer Mobile is no different than any of their other products. “We don’t want to just throw it out there and make it stick,” he said. “We want to make sure we’re using the best partners.”

The Wireless Infrastructure

Another aspect to releasing the SlingPlayer Mobile to the international masses is the dramatic difference in the state of cellular services across the globe. While true that SlingPlayer Mobile is a broadband agnostic application, meaning that it’s not solely reliant on 3G cellular networks, it is certainly the most compelling reason to use it. It’s because of this that SlingPlayer Mobile’s best chance for success is tied to the cellular offerings in any given market.

In the United States, for example, nearly all wireless providers offer a variety of network data packages and services, and many offer unlimited data usage for a reasonable flat monthly fee. In other markets, the cost for no limit data packages is above and beyond what consumers are willing to pay for on-demand video services, or it’s not available at all. “All you can eat data doesn’t even exist in Canada yet,” says Brian. “Streaming a show 150k per second consumes about 70MB per hour. That’s more data than most people use in a month.”

It’s for these reasons that Sling is not necessarily popular among wireless providers. Using a Slingbox over a mobile network is very bandwidth intensive, and wireless providers are concerned that folks using a Slingbox could eat up all the available data bandwidth, leaving all their other data users with the leftovers. Plus, many providers are bent on providing their own mobile video solutions, and will likely do everything they can to protect and capitalize on their efforts. That doesn’t mean all providers have agendas of their own, and I’d be willing to bet Sling will look to partner up with those who’ll embrace them.

Luckily, times are changing fast. Sling Media is hopeful that as second tier wireless providers start adding on more data-capable handsets and beef up their service offerings, competition among the various providers will start to lower prices while increasing services for their users. “Windows Mobile handsets are starting to become very popular, and each day make their way to international customers,” says Brian. Of course, when reminded that not all smartphones are based on the Windows Mobile Operating System, he replied with a chuckle, “Yes, we’re well aware of that. Other things are coming, too.” Unfortunately, he was rather tight lipped about what “other things” Sling had in store for us.

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