While it’s not quite the launch many of us are anticipating, the Popbox folks are releasing their Popapp SDK for developers today. In addition to transforming existing Adobe Flash applications into Popbox-specific experiences,
The popbox SDK hooks into the popbox UI to handle remote commands, execute widgets, and load application-specific data. Developers will be able to create popapps that play videos, music, and photos, read and write content metadata, and access files on mounted drives and UPnP servers from the home network or media from the cloud.
I assume a number of developers will check it out. But many will also likely hold back, waiting to see how the platform does before investing resources. Related, we’ve got ourselves a (new, somewhat vague) launch time frame of second quarter. However, I’ve confirmed we’re still on target for a very competitive $129.
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In the old days we called it software. Then plug-ins. Now, it’s all about the “app.”
Hmm, seems eerily similar to Boxee…
But not only will there be a Boxee box, I can also run “Boxee” on a PC.
Yep, there’s about to be a bazillion boxes like Roku, WD’s, etc, plus all the Blu-ray players and TVs with app markets like Sony and Vizio.
The Popbox and Boxee box both generated a lot of buzz a few months ago. However, considering the dearth of follow up information – and delayed launch date in the case of Popbox – I think it’s possible both will be DOA whenever they do arrive. The OTT video distribution market is expanding rapidly and every day these two devices are not on the market, their chances for success diminish.