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Sony Enters The Online Pay-TV Fray With Viacom Deal: Report

Sony Just Made A Big Splash In Online TV: Report
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A man walks near the Sony Corp. logo on a display of the company's products in Tokyo, Japan, on Tuesday, April 10, 2012. Sony Corp., Japan's largest electronics exporter, forecast its worst annual loss since at least 1990 and said it will take a charge in the fourth quarter for taxes. Photographer:Tomohiro Ohsumi/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Sony has reached a preliminary agreement with Viacom to carry the company's channels on an upcoming Internet-based TV service from Sony, a person familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal.

Sony is the latest tech company to attempt to circumvent the traditional model of TV subscription services. In February, Intel confirmed it would be making an Internet-connected set-top box for movies and TV shows, for release later this year. Google apparently has similar plans, as the Wall Street Journal reported in July that the company is planning to launch an online streaming service that closely resembles cable TV.

Companies looking to create an alternative to the longstanding cable TV model face difficulties in securing deals that are reasonably priced or unrestrictive. With more people already cutting the cord on cable, or at least considering it, cable executives may stay more loyal to the model that bundles popular and unpopular channels in rigid packages at higher costs.

But unlike Google or Intel, Sony -- along with Apple, which reportedly reached a content deal with Time Warner in July -- has some reported traction in securing deals with major media companies and content providers. Some of the channels owned by Viacom include MTV, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central.

The Wall Street Journal's source indicated that Sony's service would be launching later this year. The expectation is that Sony's new venture would be available on the PlayStation 4 (scheduled for a holiday season release), as well as Sony tablets, smartphones and Bravia high-definition TVs .

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Before You Go

The Best TVs Of CES
Samsung And LG's Curved TVs(01 of07)
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Warning: Curves ahead!Samsung and LG both unveiled their first curved televisions, or televisions whose displays featured curved glass. What's the point? Well, aside from looking cool, the curve supposedly prevents the "fade" that humans perceive at the edges of flat screens, since the outer portions of the TV are further away from the viewer than the center. (credit:Samsung)
Samsung's 85-Inch 4K 'Floating' Television(02 of07)
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Float on? That seemed to be Samsung's mantra as it introduced its 85-inch "floating TV" at the Consumer Electronics Show. That "float" comes from how it's mounted -- the 85-inch television can be tilted or even flipped around on the stand, like a giant luminescent blackboard. (credit:Engadget)
Sharp 8K TV Prototype(03 of07)
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Sharp has brought its 85-inch 8K TV to the Consumer Electronics Show. 8K, by the way, is about 16 times the resolution of normal HD. (credit:Engadget)
Panasonic's 56-inch 4K OLED TV(04 of07)
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Panasonic's lovely 56-inch OLED display debuted Tuesday on the CES floor. The colors are saturated, the blacks deep and it's still in prototype mode, so no one has any idea when this pretty baby is hitting consumer electronics stores. (credit:AP)
Sony 56-Inch 4K OLED TV Prototype(05 of07)
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Sony also debuted a 56-inch 4K OLED TV at CES -- again, a prototype that we won't be seeing on the market for a while. (credit:HuffPost)
Toshiba's 84-inch 4K TV(06 of07)
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Toshiba's already got one 4K TV on the market: the Toshiba 55ZL2. But at CES 2013, they've debuted another: the 84-inch version of the new L9300 series. The big TV comes packed with features: Wifi, noise reduction, a 240 Hz refresh rate. (credit:YouTube: WhichWebsite)
LG's Ultra HD TVs: 55-inch, 65-inch, and 84-inch(07 of07)
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Are three size choices too many? It just gets worse. This TV, like many "smart TVs," has an app store with approximately 1,400 apps in it -- plus 3D options, Wi-Fi connectivity and something called a "Magic Remote." (credit:LG)
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