Mozilla Develops Chromecast-Like Streaming Stick Powered by Firefox

Mozilla is reportedly developing its own version of a Chromecast-like streaming stick that works on Firefox OS.

The project has not yet been publicly revealed, but speculations started when Christian Heilmann, a web evangelist for Mozilla, tweeted a picture of the device's prototype with a caption "A fully open TV casting prototype device running #FirefoxOS. Open boot loader and all."

If the project pushes through, it will be Mozilla's take on Google's Chromecast. The main difference between the two is that Mozilla's device will also capable of running apps supported by Chromecast such as Google Play Music, YouTube and Plex.

Earlier this year, Google released its Google Cast SDK, which officials stated would help them bring better casting capabilities to thousands of apps. But Cast encountered some difficulties, including the incompatibility with some content types and the device's limitations to Android, iOS, and web apps only.

Mozilla's device was designed to address the difficulties faced by Google Cast. Developers of the device added support for both Fire and Window phone apps. The device would also work with desktop apps and maybe even make their own casting-enabled device, GigaOm reported.

According to Mashable, once the device is ready for market release, it might carry the name "Netcast," and would compete not only with Google's Chromecast, but also with Amazon's Fire TV, and Apple.

Mozilla did not deny or confirm whether the product was indeed Netcast, but gave a short statement to GigaOM.

"Firefox OS is an open platform freely available for any company to build on top of without restriction. This means companies can experiment with different form factors that run Firefox OS," officials from the company stated.

UPDATE: Mashable received confirmation from a Mozilla spokesperson denying its connection to the device prototype: "this is not a Mozilla device or project."