SAN FRANCISCO -- Sling Media, Inc. announced Tuesday its Slingbox -- a set-top box that allows users to watch recorded programs or live TV from an Internet-connected computer anywhere in the world -- will be available to Mac users beginning in the second quarter.

The company said it will release its SlingPlayer software (see screen image below) for the Mac in Q2, making it compatible with all existing Slingboxes. The software client is currently in alpha, the company said. The product is currently available for Windows PCs and is available in the U.S., retailing for US$249.99.

Sling Media will release a PAL-standard Slingbox in the Spring of 2006, and thereis no word yet on SECAM support. Sling Media will also launch nationwide distribution in the Canadian market sometime in the first half of this year.

Slingbox (see image below) is a set-top box that connects to a TV, satellite box or PVR and streams -- or islingsi -- the signal to another machine in real-time. This machine might be a computer in a home, or could be a Web-connected laptop located anywhere in the world, in which case Slingbox streams the data via the Internet.

The Slingbox, with Mac software, will be available for Mac users to use in Q2 of this year.

Users can control the video that appears on your screen as if they were watching it from home using one of many different virtual remote controls on screen. The SlingPlayer has thousands of remote-control codes built in. Sitting in an office or in a WiFi-enabled restaurant thousands of miles away, a user can watch a live sporting event, for instance, change the channel, fast forward or rewind programs on a TiVo or other PVR device, even adjust picture contrast.

There are no subscription fees for the Slingbox or its software. Users can install the SlingPlayer software on multiple devices, but only one device can access the Slingbox at a time.

The SlingPlayer software will let Mac users control a TV signal from anywhere in the world.

“Having grown up a Mac fan here in Northern California, I am personally very excited to be demonstrating the capabilities of the Slingbox on the Macintosh operating system,” said Blake Krikorian, co-founder and CEO of Sling Media, in a prepared statement. “From the time we announced the Slingbox, over a year ago, Mac customers have asked us when we’d deliver a Mac version of the SlingPlayer software. We are happy to say it is well on its way.”

Sling Media did not release minimum configuration requirements for the device, but it is expected users will need Mac OS X 10.0 and higher.

Slingbox is sold through major electronics retailers in the U.S., as well as online retailers.