Is Sling Media leapfrogging the wireless entertainment industry?

I liked this story in the Hollywood Reporter today. Why? Read on ....

Sling Media and MTV Networks went head-to-head Tuesday at the 3GSM World Congress in a debate about how mobile is changing television ... For many at the GSM's Mobile Entertainment Summit session ... the Slingbox's ability to stream a television set onto a computer, mobile phone or palm pilot seemed to leapfrog the laborious efforts of the telecom industry to secure mobile TV in an effective, cost-efficient and quality manner for the end user.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/international/news/


Interesting eh? MTV is very credible in this regard, having worked hard across various geographies and for several years now to extend their business to mobile devices. The MTV VP argued that unique products (generally short-form, and of an on-demand nature) are required to satisfy users on the go.

On the other hand, there's certainly appeal to the argument that all consumers really want is to be able to access the video content they have bought and paid for on their TVs on other devices (such as laptops, Palmtops and of course mobile phones). I liked this article because it put its finger on the crux of a real issue. Makes me wish I'd been in that room in Barcelona earlier this week!

But seriously, where do I come down on this? More on the side of Sling ... but with one big caveat. Who pays the mobile data charges? For end users today their model could entail hefty monthly fees for downloaded or streamed content. In Canada today it's necessary to play ball with the mobile carriers, and this inherently means mobile-specific product offerings for consumers.