Sony Canada announced Monday that it is bringing Google TV to Canada with its Sony Internet Player.

“Through the introduction of the Sony Internet Player with Google TV, we are expanding the reach and connectivity of the powerful Android platform which includes Sony’s smartphones, tablet and renowned audio and video products. Google TV enhances the viewer experience by allowing consumers to easily find what they want to watch, listen to or play using familiar search engine technology,” said Hideki Ito, Sony Canada senior marketing director, home network products, in a statement.

The Sony Internet Player, which was introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, acts as a “buddy box” to bring Google TV to a user’s TV, via a separate set-top box that plugs into a television, as with Apple TV.

Google TV uses the Honeycomb Android interface to deliver web access, apps and Google products – like YouTube – to televisions.

The interface comes with a Chrome browser and access to the Google Play store, through which users can access free and paid apps optimized for TV.

Google TV launched in 2010 in the U.S., and according to a release from Sony Canada, Sony is the first manufacturer to launch a product with a Google TV platform in Canada.

Sony’s internet player will be available starting in August, and the company also plans to launch a Blu-ray disc player with Google TV later this year.

Both the internet player and blu-ray player will come with a remote control featuring a backlit QWERTY keyboard, touch pad and motion sensor for games.