Sony has reached a preliminary agreement with Viacom to carry the media company’s cable channels on its planned Internet-based TV service, a person familiar with the matter said, a significant boost for the Japanese company as it races to secure content rights against technology firms vying to offer similar services. Sony plans to stream traditional cable channels as well as on-demand content over the Internet, posing new competition for cable, satellite and phone companies which have long sold subscription TV services. Several other companies including Intel and Google also are planning Internet-based TV services and have been on the hunt for programming rights. A Sony deal with Viacom, owner of MTV, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central, would be the first major content deal for one of the new entrants to become public.
