BlackBerry-controlled TiVo is on its way

A partnership between TiVo and BlackBerry maker Research in Motion (RIM) was announced today, promising a future synergy between the popular smartphone and DVR products.

Unfortunately, we are not yet seeing the ability to stream TiVo to BlackBerry handsets, like Sling Media promised earlier this year. Instead, TiVo subscribers will first be given access to their program guide and scheduling functionality on their BlackBerry.

The future of this partnership, however, seems to be headed toward eventually streaming TiVo to BlackBerry. Today's announcement from the two companies mentions future collaboration that "will focus on software applications that further simplify mobile access to video content."

TiVo has had the ability to transfer DVR content to laptops and media center devices for nearly four years with TiVoToGo, which provides a level of mobility to TiVo subscribers. If the company moves quickly on this technology, it may actually be able to beat SlingPlayer Mobile to the punch, as the software still lacks support for non-Windows Mobile, Palm, and Symbian devices.

AT&T and RIM have not put an exact date on when the 3G Blackberry Bold is to be released in the United States, but TiVo's announcement today is timed quite closely with what many expect to be the device's launch: next Monday.