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Sony's LocationFree is the marketing name for a group of products and technologies for timeshifting and placeshifting streaming video. The LocationFree Player is an Internet-based multifunctional device used to stream live television broadcasts (including digital cable and satellite), DVDs and DVR content over a home network or the Internet. It is in essence a remote video streaming server product (similar to the Slingbox). It was first announced by Sony in Q1 2004 and launched early in Q4 2004 alongside a co-branded wireless tablet TV. The last LocationFree product was the LF-V30 released in 2007.
The LocationFree base station connects to a home network via a wired Ethernet cable, or for newer models, via a wireless connection. Up to three attached video sources can stream content through the network to local content provision devices or across the internet to remote devices. A remote user can connect to the internet at a wireless hotspot or any other internet connection anywhere in the world and receive streamed content. Content may only be streamed to one computer at a time. In addition, the original LocationFree Player software contained a license for only one client computer. Additional (paid) licenses were required to connect to the base station for up to a total of four clients.
On November 29, 2007 Sony modified its LocationFree Player policy to provide free access to the latest LocationFree Player LFA-PC30 software for Windows XP/Vista. In addition, the software no longer requires a unique serial number in order to pair it with a LocationFree base station.[1] In December, 2007 Sony Dropped the $30 license fee for the LocationFree client. However, the software still requires registration to Sony's servers after 30 days.