Sony Ericsson is promising to turn its P990 smartphone into a worldwide TV receiver. More accurately, the company is planning to make available player software that will let owners of the P990 use it to receive TV broadcasts put out over the internet from their own Sony LocationFree Base Station at home.

Sony's LocationFree Base Station (£229) is a more expensive rival to the Slingbox around-the-house video-distribution system and, like it, also lets you stream your own media over the internet - so you can view it on a PC away from home, too.

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