Kyte Blog

Nick Germany Adopts Kyte as Online Video Platform For Children’s Show, ‘Das Haus Anubis’

2009-10-23T14:06:00-08:00

Nick Germany, a kids-oriented television channel based in Germany and owned by MTV Networks, has adopted Kyte as its online video platform for the children’s TV series, Das Haus Anubis.

Each episode of the mystery-oriented series is available for viewing on the Das Haus Anubis official website after it airs on Nick Germany.

As part of a cross-platform campaign, Nick Germany also makes the weekly episodes available on SchuelerVZ, a popular social networking site aimed at German-speaking high school students, or ages 12-18.

SchuelerVZ is a subsidiary of StudiVZ, a social networking platform based in Berlin with more than 15 million users.

Nick Germany formed an advertising partnership with SchuelerVZ, which began airing the weekly episodes powered by Kyte on the Das Haus Anubis page in late September.

In addition to the inclusion of weekly episodes, the SchuelerVZ page features exclusive previews of the series, behind-the-scenes content with the actors and interactive games involving various characters from the show.

Kyte Powering Mobile Video, Apps for VH1 Hip Hop Honors Show

2009-10-13T13:00:00-08:00

Cable Television network VH1 is using Kyte’s mobile application frameworks to create BlackBerry and iPhone/iPod Touch apps for the 2009 Hip Hop Honors show premiering Tuesday, October 13, 2009.

Celebrating the 25th anniversary of hip hop label Def Jam Records, the sixth annual Hip Hop Honors show – taped at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in Brooklyn, New York – features dozens of Def Jam hip hop artists, as well as label founders Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin, and is hosted by actor Tracy Morgan (30 Rock, Saturday Night Live).

The two Kyte-powered apps feature a wide range of professional video content, including highlights from the 2009 event – as well as clips from previous years – behind-the-scenes interviews with artists appearing on the show; music videos from many of the featured Def Jam artists, including the Beastie Boys, LL Cool J and Slick Rick; the RSS module featuring the Hip Hop Honors blog; comments and ratings; Twitter feeds in real-time from artists featured at the event via the Twitter module; and a custom module featuring the VH1 Mobile web page.

VH1’s Hip Hop Honors application for the BlackBerry marks the first campaign rolled out by a Kyte customer on the recently-launched BlackBerry apps framework. VH1 is also the first Kyte customer to launch apps and distribute Kyte content on multiple mobile platforms. VH1 is doing cross platform promotion for their mobile apps with on-air bugs, mobile web and online promotion driving users to download both the iPhone and BlackBerry apps before, during and after the event.

Users can download the Hip Hop Honors mobile applications directly from the VH1 Hip Hop Honors site, BlackBerry App World or the iPhone App Store.

Kyte and the Social Web – A Perfect Match

2009-10-12T11:00:00-08:00

If the Social Web isn’t at the top of your radar screen, it should be.

As social web destinations like Facebook, Twitter and a slew of others explode in popularity, it’s more important than ever to ensure you maintain a presence. The social web is increasingly becoming a key element of the web, as more and more people engage and interact with their friends both online and mobile.

Crazy, right? But not at all surprising when you consider how many people interact on the social web today. The numbers are staggering: Facebook has more than 300 million active users all over the world who share more than 2 billion pieces of content (web links, news stories, blog posts, notes, etc.) shared each week. About 15 percent of Facebook users (or 11 million) in the U.S. regularly access its mobile web version.

Meanwhile, Twitter’s numbers are also rising quickly, attracting 44.5 million people worldwide in June according to comScore, with 20 million visitors coming from the U.S. alone. And Twitter illustrates the power of mobile and social media working together. More than 3 million users in the U.S. regularly access the service via the mobile web, according to Nielsen.

In the U.S., more than four in five adults online use social media at least once a month, according to a Forrester Research report. Young people view the social web as part of their daily lives, yet the most rapid growth has occurred among consumers 35 and older.

So, why is this important?

It’s clear – the social web is where the users are. It's where people gather and communicate. Reaching a digital audience today requires tapping into the real-time stream of information and media that is central to the social experience of services like Facebook and Twitter.

How does Kyte fit in?

Kyte has the tools to help you to tap into the social web, enabling users to interact and engage both directly and indirectly with your content and interact with each other through a variety of tools. When you post your content to Facebook or Twitter, there are more ways for your friends to find your content and pass it on.

SOCIAL SHARING

Here are some important ways Kyte helps your content to proliferate via the social web:

Get & Share
Kyte’s Get & Share functionality is an easy way for users to share links with friends to social web destinations like their Twitter, Facebook and MySpace accounts. With one click, viewers can select the website of their choice and instantly share links on their account. Viewers can also easily embed on websites or blogs with one click, and generate SEO-friendly links.

Twitter Integration
Kyte’s Twitter integration enables users to link their Twitter account to their Kyte account, instantly sending a tweet to their followers whenever a new show is produced. The tweet, sent automatically to their account, includes a direct link to the show, driving traffic back to your primary website.

ENGAGEMENT

Here are some ways Kyte helps you engage with your audience:

Live Streaming and Interactive User Engagement
Audiences are increasingly turning to the web to watch important live events, like the presidential inauguration, awards shows, sporting events and more.

With the advent of the social web, users are increasingly wanting to engage and interact with content in real-time while it happens. This is why integration with live streamed events is so crucial. The nature of the web has evolved, with direct user interactivity a required and central component to any compelling digital experience.

This is where Kyte comes in. Kyte's live streaming features easily integrate with the social web. Features, including simple one-click recording via webcam or mobile phone, and professional, high definition live streaming online via Kyte LivePro, seamlessly integrate with social web widgets for Twitter and Facebook. These widgets, such as the Twitter widget and Facebook's new embeddable Live Stream Box, enables users to comment in real-time while watching the live stream on Kyte. Kyte also offers real-time chat, in which viewers of shows can interact with each other in real-time using audio, video and text chat.

A recent example of Kyte's integration capabilities was in September, when TV Guide integrated the social web into live streaming coverage of the Emmy Awards, on their website www.tvguide.com. TV Guide live streamed 2.5 hours of high definition professional video coverage of the red carpet using Kyte LivePro. They integrated the Kyte Player into their website to broadcast the event and added the Facebook Live Stream Box next to the player. With this integration, fans were able to interact with each other and share their thoughts on red carpet coverage and fashion at the Emmy's in real-time while watching the live streaming coverage online.

Twitter Module
An easy way to increase audience engagement is by adding the new Twitter in-player module to your Kyte Player, augmenting visibility of specific Twitter feeds and search options like @replies and hashtags. The Twitter Module can be accessed via a custom link in the player header or through one of the flexible player tabs.

The social web clearly needs to be a vital part of any digital strategy. As user interactivity continues to rise, both online and via mobile, it's never been more important to think about how your users can engage directly and feel like they're as much a part of the action as what's going on in your content. With Kyte's many social sharing and engagement features leading the charge in user interactivity, you're assured your audience has the tools and information they need to spread their voice and your content across the web.

Kyte at MIPCOM Conference 2009

2009-10-05T18:06:00-08:00

Join the Kyte team at the MIPCOM Conference, which kicked off today in Cannes, France. MIPCOM is one of the world's largest entertainment and trade events in the entertainment industry, where international and digital media gather in one place.

If you are attending the conference, please feel free to stop by our stand G.3.16B in the I-Zone on Level 3.

We’ll be there all week showcasing our latest features including:

Kyte Live Pro – High definition, professional-grade live streaming functionality for the Kyte Platform.

BlackBerry Apps Framework – A turnkey solution enabling companies to quickly and cost-effectively deliver the full Kyte experience as branded BlackBerry applications.

You can also check out Maks Giordano, Kyte’s Managing Director of Germany, at “Join the Apps Fest! Screenings of the Best, Most Creative & Original Mobile Apps” Thursday, October 8, from 12:15 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. in Auditorium A, Level 3. The session will focus on some of the most innovative smart-phone mobile apps and how they can be used to build brand loyalty, distribute video content, entertain users and build a business.

MIPCOM is held October 5-9, 2009.

Swiss Police Force Uses Kyte Platform to Educate Citizens via 8ig.tv Website

2009-09-29T11:00:00-08:00

In Switzerland, the Zurich City Police recently launched a new website aimed at educating citizens about prevention of various crimes, including the integration of the Kyte Platform on the website with a channel featuring regularly scheduled shows.

The new website and channel, 8ig.tv – which is loosely translated to mean “Attention TV” in English -- was created as a means to reach out to Zurich citizens and provide useful information regarding topics such as violence, burglary, fraud, vandalism, weapons, theft, and more.

A Kyte chromeless player was integrated on the front page of the 8ig.tv site, and Kyte’s Get & Share functionality is featured, enabling viewers to share shows on social web destinations like Twitter, Facebook and MySpace and embed the channel on personal websites.

The website also features online games, cartoons, quizzes and other family-friendly entertainment in a quest to educate Swiss citizens.

TV Guide Uses Kyte LivePro to Broadcast Live Red Carpet Coverage at Emmy Awards

2009-09-21T11:00:00-08:00

Cable television network TV Guide used Kyte LivePro to broadcast live streaming coverage of the red carpet on its website before the 61st Emmy® Awards Sunday, September 20, at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles.

The live stream red carpet coverage, advertised as a “Live Fashion Cam,” was broadcast continuously from 2:30 p.m. until 5 p.m. PDT on TVGuide.com.

In a quest to create direct interactivity between the audience and the 2.5 hour live stream broadcast, TV Guide also integrated Facebook’s new embeddable Live Stream Box, located next to the Kyte Player. Viewers were able to engage with each other and comment in real-time on the celebrity fashions on display while watching.

TV Guide is the first Kyte customer to use Kyte LivePro, high definition professional-grade live streaming functionality for the Kyte Platform. Kyte LivePro is an add-on component to the Kyte Platform and is especially suited for special events such as live award shows like the Emmy Awards, as well as concerts, press conferences, sporting events and more.

To learn more about the exciting benefits of Kyte LivePro, click here.

Texas Company Justin Boots Uses Kyte Platform, iPhone App to Increase Visibility

2009-09-17T11:00:00-08:00

Beloved Texas company Justin Boots, which recently launched Bent Rail, a new and edgy, fashion-forward sub-brand designed to engage music lovers, has adopted Kyte as the online & mobile video platform to promote the brand to consumers on its website and through mobile phones.

Using the Kyte Mobile Producer application and a mobile phone, Justin Boots representatives are producing live and behind-the-scenes video from up-and-coming country music artists like the Randy Rogers Band, Wade Bowen, and the Casey Donahew Band as they tour across the US.

To bring the content to consumers, Justin Boots integrated a branded Kyte Player on their website and enabled features such as chat, comments, ratings, and share functionality, encouraging consumers to further engage with their brand. They have also created flexible player tabs to direct consumers to their Twitter, Facebook and MySpace pages from within the Player.

Consumers can also access content on the go through mobile web and the iPhone. With the iPhone, Justin Boots created a “Bent Rail” iPhone application that enables consumers to access video content and engagement features including chat and share. The company also included add-on modules like Events, to keep consumers up-to-date on the Bent Rail music tour, and Twitter. Consumers can also browse through the boots catalog and find a retailer near them directly from the iPhone application.

Through Kyte’s built-in ad manager, Justin Boots is serving house ads to further promote the brand to consumers both online and on the mobile phone.

Kyte LivePro Adds HD Professional Live Streaming to Kyte Platform

2009-09-15T11:00:00-08:00

Kyte is proud to announce the launch of Kyte LivePro: high definition, professional-grade live streaming functionality for the Kyte Platform.

Kyte LivePro, used in conjunction with Adobe® Flash® Media Live Encoder, is an add-on component to the Kyte Platform that enables platform publishers to deliver high definition, live streaming video from multiple sources, including digital video cameras and professional mixing consoles.

Special events such as live concerts, press conferences, sporting event and more are perfect for this professional broadcast solution. Kyte LivePro, combined with the use of Adobe® Flash® Media Live Encoder, ensures secure live encoding with standard HD compression encoding and localized digital video archiving.

As with all Kyte produced video content, live streams are automatically broadcast directly to the Kyte player and archived for online and mobile on-demand viewing.

Kyte's engagement features further enhance the live broadcast experience with social web sharing tools that give viewers the ability to share with others via Twitter, Facebook and other web destinations, and chat functionality enabling real-time viewer interactivity.

Kyte’s extensive monetization capabilities can also be used with Kyte LivePro, allowing publishers to integrate in-stream advertising directly into a live broadcast.

With Kyte LivePro, platform publishers now have the power and flexibility to reach audiences with live streaming HD video, while leveraging the cross-platform distribution, engagement and monetization features of the Kyte Platform.

To learn more about Kyte LivePro, click here.

Kyte Adds BlackBerry Apps Framework to Platform

2009-09-02T18:57:00-08:00

Kyte is pleased to announce the launch of the BlackBerry Apps Framework, a turnkey solution enabling companies to quickly and cost-effectively deliver the full Kyte experience as branded BlackBerry applications.

The BlackBerry Apps Framework gives companies the ability to engage audiences and monetize on this exploding mobile platform. According to Gartner, a leading information technology research company, BlackBerry (RIM) is number two in smartphone sales worldwide and has a market share of 19.9%.

Much like our iPhone Apps Framework launched earlier this year, BlackBerry Apps Framework can be fully customized to offer video and pictures, multimedia chat, share functionality, comments and ratings. In addition, the apps can be configured to include any number of add-on modules including Twitter, Events and RSS. The look and feel of the app can also be customized including splash images, background images, font and accent colors.

Kyte Platform publishers can monetize their apps through m-commerce, advertising and sponsorships. They can also offer their apps for a one-time download fee in BlackBerry App World.

With the addition of BlackBerry apps to the Kyte Platform, companies can now take advantage of even more options for content distribution in the growing mobile space.

Check out our website to learn more. To get started contact us now.

ESPN Uses Kyte Platform to Broadcast Authentic Footage from Bassmaster Elite Series

2009-08-20T16:03:00-08:00

The Kyte technology was one of the star attractions at the recent Bassmaster Elite Series finale, featuring on-air talent from the ESPN Outdoors using the Kyte Mobile Producer application to produce live streaming and recorded content from the event.

The Bassmaster Elite Ramada Champion’s Choice tournament, held August 13-16, 2009, on Oneida Lake in upstate New York near Syracuse, is an annual event featuring the best professional bass fishermen in the country competing for the top prize of $100,000.

BASS Elite Series host Keith Alan and ESPN Outdoors TV host Mark Zona produced more than 90 video clips during the four-day competition, featuring behind-the-scenes footage of participants fishing directly from their boats, weighing in, interviews with contenders, and more, using the Kyte Mobile Producer application with a mobile phone. The 90+ shows drew more than 260,000 views from fans in just a week.

The Kyte Player was integrated directly onto the Bassmaster website, hosted by ESPN, featuring customized player branding, including the Bassmaster logo player header, and blue Play and Get & Share buttons. Through Kyte's Get & Share functionality, ESPN enabled viewers to share links with friends on the Social Web via their Twitter, Facebook and MySpace accounts.

ESPN Outdoors plans to use the Kyte technology extensively during the inaugural Bassmaster Elite Series postseason. Coverage of the Bassmaster Elite Ramada Champions Choice tournament will be televised August 22 on ESPN.