Will software kill the IPTV set-top box?

According to a recent report from Light Reading, Verimatrix is building a PC application that will enable IPTV customers to watch all of their TV channels from any broadband-connected PC in the home. The software application is code-named "Secure PC Player" and will, reportedly, help carriers convince content makers that their content can be just as safe on the PC as in a set-top box. One feature of Verimatrix's offering is a watermark method that leaves a digital fingerprint one each content stream entering the PC, so if the content shows up elsewhere the service provider could trace it back to an individual user.

For more on Verimatrix's reported STB killer:
- see this article from Light Reading