Skifta

Last updated
Skifta
Developer(s) Qualcomm Atheros
Initial release 2009 (2009)
Website www.skifta.com

Skifta was a media shifting service developed by Qualcomm Atheros. It enabled Android and Apple (IOS) smartphone and tablet users to access their music, pictures, and videos from their phone, from cloud media services or remotely from another location via a smart mobile device. The user could then stream media to connected consumer electronics anywhere that supports DLNA and UPnP standards over WiFi or 3G networks.

Qualcomm Atheros is a developer of semiconductors for network communications, particularly wireless chipsets. Founded under the name T-Span Systems in 1998 by experts in signal processing and VLSI design from Stanford University, the University of California, Berkeley and private industry. The company was renamed Atheros Communications in 2000 and it completed an initial public offering in February 2004 trading on NASDAQ under the symbol ATHR.

Android (operating system) Free and open-source operating system for mobile devices, developed by Google

Android is a mobile operating system developed by Google. It is based on a modified version of the Linux kernel and other open source software, and is designed primarily for touchscreen mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. In addition, Google has further developed Android TV for televisions, Android Auto for cars, and Wear OS for wrist watches, each with a specialized user interface. Variants of Android are also used on game consoles, digital cameras, PCs and other electronics.

Cloud computing form of Internet-based computing that provides shared computer processing resources and data to computers and other devices on demand

Cloud computing makes computer system resources, especially storage and computing power, available on demand without direct active management by the user. The term is generally used to describe data centers available to many users over the Internet. Large clouds, predominant today, often have functions distributed over multiple locations from central servers. If the connection to the user is relatively close, it may be designated an Edge server.

Contents

Skifta announced by email on May 30, 2014, to all their users that they would close the service on July 1, 2014.[ citation needed ]

Overview

Skifta was available via a single client PC or Mac that could then be accessed by any DLNA and UPnP client from the home or remotely on mobile platforms running Android 2.2 and above. [1] Users can control and stream their digital media within their home using the Skifta service. [2] Downloading the Skifta mobile application enables users to access their digital media (music, photos, and videos) from their Android smartphone. [3] If a Skifta user is not at home but near a DLNA certified TV, stereo, game console, Blu-ray player, camera or Windows 7 PC, they have the ability to remotely stream their media to those devices through their Android smartphone. [4] The Skifta app is currently available at the Android Market, having launched the beta version of the service in January 2010 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. [5] In early 2011, the Skifta app for Android became the first DLNA Certified(R) third-party application. [6] Skifta 1.0 officially launched in October 2011. [7]

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Macintosh Family of personal computers designed, manufactured, and sold by Apple Inc.

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At the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show, Qualcomm announced the Skifta Media Shifting Platform for entertainment-driven consumer electronics. [8] The platform will provide device manufacturers with development kits and embedded software to include in stereos, wireless speakers, TVs, set-top boxes, wireless routers and NAS drives. The first component of the platform will be the Skifta Wireless Audio Adapter. [9] The technology has since been rebranded Qualcomm Allplay

Skifta previously partnered with Netgear to distribute Skifta on the Netgear ReadyNAS Ultra line of storage drives. [10] The Netgear boxes support Skifta as an add-on, allowing people to remotely access their media libraries on the storage drive from anywhere. [11]

Netgear Inc. is a multinational computer networking company based in San Jose, California, with offices in about 25 other countries. It produces networking hardware for consumers, businesses, and service providers. The company operates in three business segments: retail, commercial, and as a service provider.

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References

  1. ↑ Slashgear “Skifta promises easy DLNA media-shifting”, “Slashgear.com”, accessed November 19, 2009.
  2. ↑ Skifta “What is Skifta?”, “Skifta.com” accessed December 20, 2010.
  3. ↑ Skifta “What is Skifta?”, “Skifta.com” accessed December 20, 2010.
  4. ↑ Skifta “What is Skifta?”, “Skifta.com” accessed December 20, 2010.
  5. ↑ Van Buskirk, Eliot. “Skifta for Android Streams from Cloud to DLNA Screens”, “Evolver.fm”, December 21, 2010, accessed December 22, 2010.
  6. ↑ Engadget “Skifta Android app nabs DLNA certification: tablets and smartphones now streaming STBs and more”, “Engadget.com”, accessed February 3, 2011.
  7. ↑ Pocket-lint "Skifta Android streaming app launches with 3G functionality" “Pocket-lint.com”, accessed April 15, 2012.
  8. ↑ The Verge "Skifta Media Shifting Platform wants to do what DLNA can't" “TheVerge.com”, accessed April 15, 2012.
  9. ↑ SlashGear "Qualcomm Skifta Media Shifting Platform to take on Sonos" “Slashgear.com”, accessed April 15, 2012.
  10. ↑ Skifta “Skifta and NETGEAR Make Shifting Simple” Archived 2010-07-25 at the Wayback Machine ., “Skifta Exchange”, July 19, 2010, accessed December 29, 2010.
  11. ↑ Fried, Ina “Netgear aims to make home storage hip”, “CNET News”, July 8, 2010, accessed December 29, 2010.
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