UK firm IP Vision, provider of the FetchTV SmartBox, has signed a retail agreement with The Carphone Warehouse making the FetchTV service available in the latter's flagship wireless stores.

FetchTV allows UK consumers to watch DTT broadcast content, with time-shifting options, as well as giving access to video-on-demand services and catch-up TV content over any broadband connection, with no charges or subscription fees.  Users are able to watch BBC iPlayer catch-up content directly on the TV as well as selected video from Channel 4, Sky Sports News, Discovery Channel and CNN.  IP Vision recently announced an agreement to bring the Sky Player service (BSkyB's online offering of its popular live channels plus on-demand titles) to FetchTV in early 2010.

“This deal means that our FetchTV SmartBox is now available at another retail outlet in the UK,"said Eddie Abrams, CEO Of IP Vision.  "Carphone Warehouse’s Digital Lifestyle stores are a great fit for FetchTV.  The box is at the cutting edge of entertainment and its TV viewing capabilities coupled with all of its other functionality fits directly into the Digital Lifestyle’s store proposition."

The FetchTV SmartBox features twin Freeview tuners and a 160 GB hard drive for recording content, as well as a USB port that allows recorded programmes to be exported onto USB stick.  The unit can also act as a media centre, allowing users to view their own pictures and video on their TV.  The FetchTV SmartBox will retail for GB£ 199 (US$ 332.70) in The Carphone Warehouse outlets later this month.

This is IP Vision's second high street retail agreement, following a deal with John Lewis last July.