SnapStream Media Center Goes Beyond TV
In what could be seen as a direct challenge to Microsoft's Windows XP Media Center Edition, software company SnapStream released Beyond Media Wednesday to the public.
Beyond Media will operate much like Media Center, with an on-screen menu that allows the user's music, photos, videos, and DVDs to be accessed in a simple manner. Users will be able to use a PC remote, such as SnapStream's Firefly, to navigate the program. Also available is SnapStream Spotlight, the company's video-on-demand feature.
"Together with our award-winning Beyond TV PVR software and our Firefly PC Remote, SnapStream now offers the best solution on the market for end-users and OEMs building entertainment PCs," said SnapStream President and CEO Rakesh Agrawal.
Beyond Media completes the company's suite of products for the home entertainment market. In October, SnapStream unveiled version 3.5 of its personal video recording software Beyond TV that records television shows without the subscription fees required by set-top devices such as TiVo. SnapStream expanded Beyond TV's network and mobile capabilities to include streaming to other PCs and downloading to Microsoft's Portable Media Center devices.
Beyond Media will be available through SnapStream's online store at a price of $49.99 USD. However, BetaNews has learned that the company also intends to make the package available at the same price through retail stores in the first half of 2005.