Kyte Blog

German Soccer Website Uses Kyte to Broadcast Exclusive Video Diary For Tournament

2009-11-16T11:00:00-08:00

German website Ran.de, the online arm of the popular television program devoted to covering European soccer and the annual UEFA Champions League soccer competition, is using the Kyte Platform to showcase exclusive, behind-the-scenes footage at the games on their website.

Ran on-air personality Andrea Kaiser records a video diary that includes short shows of her experiences at the games, interviews with players and coaches, and footage of her various travels from one game to the next throughout Europe.

All of her shows are shot with a Nokia N95 mobile phone using the Kyte Mobile Producer Application and usually uploaded just minutes after shooting them. The video diary is featured prominently on the Ran.de main homepage.

A Kyte chromeless player is integrated on the site to showcase video content and the Kyte Show Browser badge enables viewers to conveniently pick whichever show they want in the archive simply by clicking on the image related to each show.

Kaiser plans to continue to narrate the video diary throughout the Champions League competition.

Kyte at Streaming Media West and Online Video Platform Summit November 17-19

2009-11-13T13:00:00-08:00

Please join Kyte at Streaming Media West and the Online Video Platform Summit at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center, November 17-19, 2009.

The Kyte team will be demonstrating the platform and showcasing our latest features, like Kyte LivePro, and Kyte Mobile App Frameworks.

If you’re attending Streaming Media West or the OVP Summit, please stop by our booth, #427 in the exhibit hall, and say hello!

You can also catch Daniel Graf, Kyte CEO & co-founder, as he presents the Kyte Platform at the Online Video Platform Showcase Wednesday, November 18 from 11:45 a.m. to 12 noon.

Hope to see you there!

Kyte Extends Mobile App Frameworks to Android and Nokia, Now Available for 4 Major Mobile Platforms

2009-11-11T13:15:00-08:00

The Kyte Mobile App Frameworks will soon be available for four major mobile platforms.

The Kyte Mobile App Frameworks for Android and Nokia mobile platforms, scheduled for release in Q1 of 2010, will soon join Kyte mobile video support for the iPhone and BlackBerry mobile platforms – both released earlier this year.

The Kyte Mobile App Frameworks offer companies the ability to build cost effective, native apps for each platform and bring the full Kyte experience to mobile phones.

All of the core Kyte features are offered, including video and pictures, real-time chat, comments and ratings, share functionality, RSS reader, activity notifications, Twitter feed, modules for downloads and events – as well as custom modules.

Customers who have already taken advantage of Kyte Mobile App Frameworks include Universal Music Group, which used the iPhone App Framework to launch apps for artists such as Lady Gaga, Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em, and The Pussycat Dolls; and VH1, the first Kyte customer to debut both BlackBerry and iPhone apps for the 2009 Hip Hop Honors show.

For more information on Kyte Mobile App Frameworks and to get started, contact us here.

Brazilian Music Festival Uses Kyte to Power Content For Website, Mobile Web

2009-11-09T21:15:00-08:00

The annual Planeta Terra music festival, held in Sao Paolo, Brazil, Saturday, November 7, used Kyte to power authentic and user-generated content for the festival section of the Terra website, and the mobile web.

Planeta Terra used the Kyte Platform SDK to create the special Planeta Terra interactive website. The Kyte Player was integrated into the website, enabling people to watch and share content in real-time. The Kyte Show Browser was integrated into the website as well, allowing viewers to conveniently select the shows they want to watch.

Planeta Terra personnel uploaded images and video direct from the event throughout the day using the Nokia N97 and Kyte Mobile Producer application and the website. Fans at the event were able to upload images and video both via email and on the site itself.

Fans of the popular music festival were able to engage interactively in real-time through the integrated Twitter widget and Facebook's Live Stream Box, located next to the Kyte Video Player.

The annual Planeta Terra festival, held this year in Playcenter Park in Sao Paolo, featured scores of top tier music artists, including Iggy and the Stooges, Sonic Youth, Primal Scream, Patrick Wolf, Maximo Park, and the Ting Tings.

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.