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au BOX!
TechRadar has a really interesting convergence story, which is emanating from Japan!
KDDI (the number two carrier in Japan) have delivered a set-top box (called the ‘au BOX’) which will cost ¥315 (£1.60) a month, and offer subs who use the KDDI network (and handsets) the ability to load content to the device via the TV!
The box displays on the TV with a web-browsing like environment, and will grab anything download from au’s ‘various media services‘ for transfer to the handset. The box is based on Linux, and given it has a DVD drive can also rip movies/music to a handset format (so it has some on-board transcoding too – cool!). Apparently the handset has to be connected by USB, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see a wireless radio added at launch, or just after.
It’s not only the content that is converged, but also the billing – users are charged for the content they consume to their mobile bill, giving them just one payment to concern themselves with.
If you want to check out the ‘au BOX’ in more detail, then you can go here – I’m suggesting a good grasp of Japanese if you want to get the most out of the site though 
[Via: TechRadar]
About The Author
Ben Robinson
Ben is a 10+ year veteran of the Mobile industry – starting his career when SMS was a still a relatively new concept for most people (!), he has now consulted on everything from bleeding-edge Mobile content, to the next-gen accessories you might view it on. As a result he has a broad and deep knowledge in numerous areas of Mobile – from network operators to device vendors, to infrastructure and middleware vendors (not to mention content delivery) – and has worked for companies in all of these areas! He is based in the UK, a hotbed of activity for mobile, and recently became a father for the second time – as oppose to in his younger years when he was happy spend time tweaking all manner of mobile devices to 'nth' degree, he now looks for services and hardware that provide the most efficient, compact, and reliable improvements to his already manic life! It’s his opinion that Mobile solutions should be there to help to make your life better – if a particular solution (be it service or device) isn’t doing this, he believes you need to ask the very important question of why you continue to use it... His focus at IntoMobile is mainly on Mobile content, services, and infrastructure, particularly as regards the UK market – and with the occasional look at devices. Additionally, using his extensive experience in the industry, he will provide commentary on the industry at large, with regular (and hopefully thought-provoking) articles.
