TVover.net

Australia's Telstra Selects Netgem as a Supplier for T-Box Project

TVover.net — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:52:09 GMT

Telstra Corporation selects Netgem to supply set top box device and software for the T-Box service. Telstra is introducing a set top box called T-Box. T-Box for the first time brings Telstra’s content from its BigPond brand along with Australian terrestrial free-to-air high definition and standard definition television channels seamlessly together on a home television.

Capable of downloading movies from Telstra's BigPond Movies store and viewing Telstra's streaming Internet content, BigPond TV, T-Box customers will also have access to the terrestrial free-to-air digital television channels within their region.

Telstra is initially conducting a customer experience trial of T-Box with a few hundred of its customers in the Australian city of Melbourne before launching the product nationally.

BNS Completes First Phase of Max Media IPTV Deployment in Taiwan

TVover.net — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:46:57 GMT

BNS has successfully completed phase one of Max Media Co. Limited's community-based IPTV service deployment in Taiwan. Over 1,500 homes have been connected in the first phase of the service roll out which is on track to be launched to a further 3,000+ buildings within the next five years, representing 10% of Taiwan's population.

But also the rewind TV function we a providing through our nPVR feature has become a really popular as it means that our subscribers won't miss their favourite shows or can rewind to the start if they tune in late.

Community IPTV features a number of innovations and firsts for the Taiwan television market. It is the first true HD IPTV service to residential complexes, commercial buildings and hotels in Taiwan and is also the first service to offer network-based PVR (Personal Video Recorder) features.

The service's network-based PVR, or nPVR, service automatically records real-time television content and enables subscribers to rewind it or view it at a later stage, but without having another piece of equipment cluttering their homes.

Under the contract signed with Max Media Co Limited in September 2009, BNS is supplying complete IPTV turnkey solutions for Community IPTV, including network, equipment, software, content, and system integration, maintenance and support services in 3,000+ residential complexes including high-end estates, commercial buildings, service apartments and hotels in Taiwan.

The service, which will be operated by Max Media, consists of 45 TV channels, including exclusive Chinese channels not seen on cable TV, true HDTV channels and VOD content, TV shopping and TV advertising services to homes, offices and hotel rooms.

Endavo Media Showcases 3-Screen Content Delivery

TVover.net — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:28:46 GMT

Endavo Media showcases its 3-Screen content delivery solution this week at the Online Video Platform Summit, a featured event at Streaming Media West. With this latest enhancement, producers, broadcasters and telcos using the Endavo Platform will be able to deliver their live and on-demand video to PC, mobile and television screens—all through a single hosted solution.

The Endavo Media Internet TV Platform provides powerful ways to deliver live and online programming by including social media features, such as sharing of content, commenting, chatting, and much more, to connect with and grow the audience. This 3-Screen Platform also allows content producers to manage and distribute content, and multiple ways to monetize online video in order to generate new revenue.

For those attending the conference, Endavo Media is located at Booth TT5 in the Exhibit Hall.

The Online Video Summit runs Nov. 18–Nov. 19 at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, Calif.

KIT digital Launches Partners Program

TVover.net — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:58:47 GMT

KIT digital has launched "KIT Partners," the most integrated and geographically diverse sales and implementation network in the IP video platform industry. The program initially includes 22 re-sale, business referral and implementation partners around the globe, bringing to nearly 50 the number of countries where KIT digital is active. KIT Partners complements the company's 14 offices globally, staffed by 290 employees who speak more than 18 different languages.

KIT Partners represent global leaders in digital content development, deployment and delivery. In addition to the previously announced global partnerships with Akamai and blinkx, KIT Partners include the following companies, with respective geographic areas of focus:

The Americas: Astreya, GoTV, Internap, LatinStock, MRC, Omnitech, Ply Media, and RM 160;
Europe, the Middle East and Africa: Can Communicate, Complete TV, DigiSoft, Digotel, MGt, Tech Access, Vivocom, VoloVita, and WRN;
Asia-Pacific: Spotzer, TigerSpike, and WebAlive.

KIT Partners will be able to offer the KIT VX end-to-end software platform with preferred pricing and support, while KIT digital will benefit from KIT Partners' complementary technologies in certain cases, with local sales, implementation and services resources in other cases. In addition, KIT Partners will have input into the KIT VX product development roadmap through periodic KIT Partners Summits, and enjoy dedicated sales and corporate marketing support from the KIT digital marketing team. Customers of KIT Partners who implement a KIT digital solution will automatically receive extra customer service and support credits and be able to avail themselves of certain joint marketing initiatives.

The launch of the KIT Partners program follows KIT digital's recent expansion of its leadership in IP video management for the enterprise with the acquisitions of Nunet, a global leader in video management for mobile devices, and The FeedRoom, a pioneer in online video management and live video streaming for corporate communications.

AT&T Launches Two New TV Apps 'Offers On Demand' and 'Caller ID on TV'

TVover.net — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:42:28 GMT

AT&T announces the launch of two new TV apps for AT&T U-verse customers: Offers On Demand, an app that lets you redeem a coupon code on-screen for discounts on movie rentals; and Caller ID on TV, an app that lets you view your U-verse Voice Caller ID and voicemail notifications on your U-verse TV screen.

With the addition of these apps, U-verse TV has made 20 TV apps available to customers at no extra charge since its initial launch, with 12 of those apps added this year alone.

Offers On Demand lets U-verse TV customers easily redeem coupons from their TV for discounted movie rentals. After entering the coupon code on channel 199, you can instantly redeem the coupon to select and watch a movie. The app will also save a list of your available coupons and their expiration dates if you want to return and watch the movie later.

U-verse TV customers can find Offers On Demand coupon codes on channel 200, at http://uconnect.att.com and in the monthly U-guide magazine. U-verse TV and AT&T wireless customers can also opt in for Offers On Demand coupon codes via U-verse Mobile Alerts by texting "On Demand" to 9696. Offers On Demand is now available to all U-verse TV customers at no extra charge and the first coupon code will be available on Nov. 23.

Caller ID on TV lets customers view their U-verse Voice Caller ID and voicemail notifications on their U-verse TV screen. Without interrupting your program, a small message will appear on your TV screen for six seconds when a new call comes in or when you receive a voicemail message.

The app is now available to all U-verse TV and Voice customers in Austin at no extra charge, and will be rolling out on a market-by-market basis to all U-verse markets. Customers already enjoy apps that integrate their U-verse TV and U-verse Voice services, including the ability to view a log of recent incoming calls on your TV screen with Call History and the ability to initiate a call from your TV with Click to Call.

ESPN FULL COURT Multiview is now available for all U-verse TV ESPN FULL COURT package subscribers. The app lets basketball fans view four channels of ESPN college basketball coverage at one time on channels 4500 and 621. U-verse TV customers can order the ESPN FULL COURT package for an Early Bird Special of $105 online at http://uverse.att.com through Nov. 28.

These upgrades are just the latest examples of AT&T U-verse apps that are included in every package and bring more value to customers. In 2009 alone, AT&T has launched 12 TV apps, including:

U-verse TV Multiview, an app that lets you watch up to four channels at once on your TV screen.
Mobile Remote Access app for iPhone, an app that allows you to schedule and manage DVR recordings and easily search U-verse TV program listings from your iPhone.
Media Share, an app that lets you stream your personal photos and music files located on your home computers to any connected TV in the home.
TV Awards and New Shows, an app that helps you follow this fall season's award shows and series premieres.
Weather On Demand, an app that gives you instant access to check the current weather conditions and detailed forecasts in any U.S. city.
Yahoo! Sports Fantasy Football, an app to help you manage your fantasy teams from your U-verse TV screen through the AT&T U-bar. AT&T U-bar allows you to get easy access to personalized sports, weather, stock and traffic information on your TV screen, without interrupting your current program.
College Basketball from Yahoo! Sports, which gives basketball fans the ability to view tournament brackets, their personalized completed bracket, game summaries and box scores, and more through the AT&T U-bar.
Film Awards Interactive, which provides biographies, previews and full-length movies for award-nominated films and stars.
2009 Masters, which featured an up-to-date leaderboard, player scorecards, stats and bios, news updates, tournament photos, video archives and more from the 2009 Masters Tournament.
On Demand Top Picks, an app that provides rental recommendations based on their past rentals and lists the top ten titles U-verse TV customers are renting. The app is available to customers in Los Angeles, Cleveland, Hartford, St. Louis, Atlanta, Sacramento, San Antonio and Austin, and AT&T plans to roll out this app to all U-verse TV markets next year.

U-verse TV customers also enjoy several additional TV benefits, including the ability to manage and watch your recorded programs from a single DVR on any U-verse connected TV in the house with Total Home DVR; an extensive HD channel lineup with access to more than 110 HD channels; the ability to program DVR recordings from your Web-connected mobile phone or PC; personalized, on-screen weather, sports, traffic and stock information via AT&T U-bar; the ability to stream your personal photos and music files from your PC to your U-verse TV with Media Share; and more.

AT&T U-verse TV is the only 100 percent IPTV service offered by a national service provider, making AT&T U-verse one of the most dynamic and feature-rich services available today. AT&T U-verse TV ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction in the South and West Regions Two Years in a Row," according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2008 and 2009 Residential Television Service Provider Satisfaction Studies.

Univision Becomes a Premier Spanish-Language Content Partner with YouTube

TVover.net — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:13:48 GMT

Univision is partnering with YouTube to make short-length and long-form Univision videos available on the YouTube.com website. Univision, TeleFutura and Galavision television programs will be featured and promoted throughout the YouTube.com website. Content will be updated to include relevant offerings as well as an extensive archive of library programs. In addition to top Univision shows, users will have access to Univision.com videos across key content categories, as well as unique footage from Univision celebrity interviews and special events such as next year's "Premio Lo Nuestro a la Musica Latina" (Lo Nuestro Latin Music Awards). Univision will also be using YouTube's leading Content ID technology to more effectively track user engagement and monetize Univision content uploaded by YouTube users.

This partnership solidifies Univision Interactive Media's leadership position as it provides premier advertisers with unique sponsorship opportunities, including new inventory for display ads. This further establishes Univision Interactive Media as the ideal vehicle for advertisers to connect with U.S. Hispanics anytime, anywhere.

Motorola Signs Agreement to Acquire BitBand

TVover.net — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 19:24:50 GMT

Motorola has signed a definitive agreement to acquire BitBand, a leading provider of content management and delivery systems, specializing in video on demand for IPTV. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The acquisition, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to close in Q4 2009. BitBand will be integrated into Motorola's Home & Networks Mobility business.

Based in Netanya, Israel, BitBand has more than 60 commercial IPTV deployments worldwide, including TELE2 (Holland), Fastweb (Italy), and Swyazinvest (Russia). The acquisition of BitBand will complement Motorola's existing on demand product line which includes the Adaptive Media Management framework for content management and high-performance streaming servers for centralized and edge-based on demand networks. BitBand brings products tailored for IP video and expertise in IPTV solutions, as well as solutions for Content Delivery Networks and Over-the-Top video services. With the addition of BitBand's products, Motorola can offer comprehensive on demand solutions for customers worldwide, addressing a wide range of deployment scales, access networks, video formats and business models.

EEBC 2009: Summing Up

TVover.net — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 18:25:53 GMT

October 23, 2009, the third and the last day of the 7th Eastern Europe exhibition and conference ЕЕВС 2009 Telecom&Broadcasting, was distinguished by the following events:

The International conference “High-Tech Marketing” on the topic: “Marketing New Products and Services in Telecommunication”;
The International scientific-practical conference "Advanced TV Broadcasting Technologies. High-Definition Television and Digital Cinema”;
The closing of the exhibition and the ceremony of awarding the participants for the most interesting new items presented and for successful booth designs.

The business program of the third day started with the International Conference “High-Tech Marketing” organized by IKS-Consulting. The event was opened by Vladimir Zverev, a member of the National Communication Regulation Commission, who gave a talk on: “The steps taken by the NCRC to simplify stakeholders’ access to the telecommunications market”. In the presentation, Mr. Zverev presented his vision of an ideal regulation process and the necessary steps to simplify the procedure of accessing the telecommunications market.

According to him, the ideal market condition is self-regulation, with all the functions of the existing body being performed by market processes. The discussion was continued by Oleg Prozhivalsky, MTS Ukraine Corporate Management and Control Director. The speaker voiced the hope for effective performance of the regulatory function by the government, and stressed that the NCRC representative had quite objectively emphasized the existing problems, both political and legislative. A lot of minutest details of the marketing policy in the IT and telecom industry were discussed by the representatives of the Ukrainian High Technologies, Mobile Media Group, iKS Consulting, COMSTAR Regions, Telecom Italia Sparkle, TELE2 Russia, Ericsson, Vidimax, Inc., and the TELAS Association.

The audience was interested in the International conference “Advanced TV Broadcasting Technologies. High-Definition Television and Digital Cinema”. The event was opened by Markus Fritz, CEO of SES ASTRA SA, who gave a talk on the topic: “Making HD Happen”. His presentation was devoted to the development of HD broadcasting in Europe and the Europeans’ readiness to receive HD content. Thus, from 2005 to June 2009, 100 million HD Ready TV sets were sold in Europe. By 2013, 74% of European viewers will have HD Ready TV sets, which is more than 50 million HD households. Satellite HD content delivery platforms rank first (followed by cable TV, digital terrestrial and IPTV). The speaker also gave best examples of implemented projects and guidelines for HD development in Ukraine.

A presentation on the topic: “The Business of Digital Cinema” was given by John Graham, General Secretary of the European Digital Cinema Forum (EDCF). In the presentation, the expert provided a review of the development of digital cinema in the world and Europe with a focus on the business models applied for financing projects in this area. The speaker also examined the reasons for the slow process of transition to digital technology, as well as the impact of 3D on the current production and distribution of movies.

The creation of a digital terrestrial television platform and the need of its development to provide such services as HD, Mobile TV and 3D was considered by the First Vice President of TDF Global Media, Chairman of the DigiTAG digital dividend and the future of digital terrestrial television working group, Bernard Pauchon, in the presentation: “Terrestrial Television from Analogue SD to Digital HD. The Unique Platform to Provide Universal Coverage to All Television Households”. The representative spoke about DTT HD services provided in Europe, and the opportunities to complement them with standard definition digital TV at the initial stage of development of digital terrestrial television. Among other issues under consideration were those of the use of MPEG 4 and DVB-T2 standards for full HD services with an aim at 3D TV, the aspects of the impact of the regulatory framework on the development of HD. Finally, some recommendations were given for the successful introduction of HD services in Ukraine.

Very interesting, according to the audience, was the seminar on the topic: “Understanding HDTV Technology”, by Peter Wilson, International Consultant in High Definition Television and Digital Cinema (HDDC). The main issues of the seminar were: brief history and the notion of HDTV, the history of the moving image, compression technology for HDTV, spatial or temporal coding, codecs, etc.

The questions of technological progress and international standardization of digital broadcasting technologies were not set aside. They were covered by the representatives of the UNIIRT and Odessa National Academy of Communications named after A.S. Popov.

A traditional booth competition was held at the exhibition, and this year the role of the selection committee was not performed by experts, but by all visitors of EEBC 2009.

According to the “public” opinion, the best company in the Big Booth nomination was IP COM, a telecommunications equipment manufacturer and supplier to the Ukrainian market. The company manufactures vandal-proof office telecommunication cabinets and boxes and is the official dealer of Yuzhkabel and Odeskabel plants. The winners in the Medium Booth and Small Booth nominations were Teleodyn (M1, M2) and Gamma — the first Ukrainian channel to broadcast in the DVB-T format.

Memorable prizes were also awarded to representatives of companies that presented new products and solutions in telecommunications and broadcasting at EEBC. Among them were such companies as COGENT, Intercom, ASTRO, Mortelekom Service, DEPS, FORO tel, GEFEST and VAGO Ukraine.

At the conclusion of EEBC 2009, a post-exhibition press conference was held, providing statistic information on the event. The speakers at the conference were Inna Burgela, Director of EEBC 2009, Vlada Rublevskaya, the Project Manager, Olga Averina, Program Director, Onno Zonneveld, SES SIRIUS AB Vice President of Market Development in Eastern and Central Europe / Representative Office in Kyiv, Mykola Oliyarnyk, an analyst at the iKS-Consulting agency, and Valery Perkar, President of Euroindex.

According to Vlada Rublevskaya, EEBC 2009 Project Manager, this year the exhibition occupied 3,500 sq m, the total number of participants was 159 from 28 countries (Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Norway, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Switzerland, France, Italy, Spain, Luxembourg, Germany, Israel, Canada, the USA, India, Pakistan, South Korea). The number of companies exhibiting with booths was 86. The number of unique visitors totaled 3,650.

The topics of the solutions exhibited were distributed as follows: equipment for satellite and cable television (37%), telecommunications equipment (30%), equipment for content production and broadcasting (11%), TV channels and production studios (22%). It was also noted that satellite segment was much more active this year, and the sector of telecommunication equipment was presented more widely compared to last year.

So, the outstanding event of the telecommunications market has come to its logical completion. Next year, the Eighth Eastern Europe exhibition EEBC 2010 Telecom & Broadcasting will traditionally gather a community of telecommunication and broadcasting market professionals from 20 through 22 October.

Espial Announces Four New Telco Customers for Espial MediaBase VOD Platform

TVover.net — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:26:28 GMT

Espial announces that - through it's reseller agreement with Power & Telephone Supply - it has installed Espial MediaBase at four new US customer locations. LeRu Telephone, Granby Telephone, Seneca Telephone and McDonald County Telephone are each using the Espial MediaBase VOD platform to provide on demand TV services to their subscribers.

Sigma Designs Completes Acquisition of CopperGate Communications

TVover.net — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:17:07 GMT

Sigma Designs announces the completion of its acquisition of CopperGate Communications. Under the terms of the acquisition agreement, which was previously announced on October 13, 2009, Sigma has acquired all of the outstanding share capital of CopperGate for a cash payment of approximately $116 million and the issuance to CopperGate shareholders of an aggregate of approximately 3.9 million shares of Sigma common stock. Under the terms of the acquisition agreement, Sigma also assumed outstanding unvested options held by CopperGate employees and agreed to make an additional cash payment of up to $5 million to specified CopperGate employees upon attainment of specified milestones.

IDC Showcasing New IPTV Products at TelcoTV

TVover.net — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:13:37 GMT

IDC will be showcasing its SFX ProIPTV at the TelcoTV conference taking place at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida from November 10 to 12. IDC will be showcasing their new RoHS compliant SFX ProIPTV satellite receivers that will be supporting EchoStar's live video demonstrations at TelcoTV in booth 925. With room for up to 14 dual carrier hot-swappable receiver blades per chassis, the SFX ProIPTV is ideal for telecom companies and multi-dwelling units, (MDU's), where space and power consumption are at a premium - the 6RU configuration reduces cost and energy related operating expenses while also providing a 75% reduction in space utilization. The unique design of the ProIPTV allows users to purchase the modules and configuration that are best suited for their needs while providing them with a system that can grow as the demands on the network increase.

TVGuide.com Launches Online ''DVR''

TVover.net — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:07:59 GMT

TVGuide.com launched “DVR” functionality allowing users to select their favorite TV shows, organize them in one location, and watch them online at their convenience. “My TVGuide.com DVR” also provides notifications that users have new episodes of their favorite shows to watch.

“My TVGuide.com DVR” personalizes TVGuide.com’s popular Online Video Guide, which launched in November 2007 and makes over 700,000 videos available to users, including full episodes of television shows, music videos, movies and web-only video content.

“TVGuide.com’s latest innovation makes it easy for fans to watch what they want, when they want it,” said Paul Greenberg, Executive Vice President and General Manager of TVGuide.com. “’My TVGuide.com DVR’ is an exciting development in the digital evolution of the TV Guide brand.”

“My TVGuide.com DVR” is the latest enhancement designed to connect TVGuide.com users with the television and entertainment content they desire. In conjunction with recently launched social integrations such as Facebook Connect, an iGoogle social gadget and a customizable iPhone application, TVGuide.com is making online entertainment a more personable and simplified experience for fans.

Consumer Viewing of Movies and TV Shows Online Doubles in 2009

TVover.net — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:58:52 GMT

The number of U.S. broadband households watching premium online content, including movies and TV shows via the Internet, doubled in the last year, according to Broadband, Communications, and Entertainment Bundles, a new study from Parks Associates. Currently over 25 million U.S. broadband households regularly watch full-length TV shows online, while over 20 million watch movies online.

The international research firm reports that the growing popularity of online portals such as Hulu.com shows rapid growth in the number of viewers who use the Internet to watch long-tail and premium content. This shift highlights the opportunity for service providers to extend their current pay-TV and video-on-demand services to include online and mobile video features. In fact, providers will have to embrace online video services, including the ability to deliver content across multiple platforms, if they are to remain competitive and attract new subscribers.

The next step, according to Dasari, is for content owners and distributors to come to a consensus on business models so they can monetize consumer interest in online media.

Emery Telcom Launches IPTV with Latens

TVover.net — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:53:13 GMT

Emery Telcom has launched IPTV services in Utah powered by Latens ECO middleware and pre-integrated conditional access system. Emery Telcom is one of Utah's leading providers of telecommunication services. Based in Orangeville, Utah, Emery Telcom was formed as a cooperative in 1950 and has since earned industry-wide recognition for its excellence. Adding IPTV to its high quality service line up, Emery’s ‘ETV Interactive’ service provides almost 200 channels of SD and HD programming and DVR services.

Latens ECO is an industry leading middleware platform, featuring pre-integrated conditional access software, that brings true multimedia networking to the home. Enabling telcos to deliver dynamic video control features that help them increase subscribers and reduce churn, ECO broadens the scope for operators enabling a truly interactive IPTV service capable of supporting a variety of capabilities like DVR, Remote DVR and OTT TV.

At Emery Telcom, Latens ECO has been integrated and deployed with ADB set-top boxes and Avail TVN headend for a truly state-of-the-art IPTV service.

Entone and Sonic Deliver Digital Entertainment Services to Telco Operators

TVover.net — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:48:26 GMT

Sonic Solutions and Entone are partnering to provide telecommunications operators a comprehensive entertainment solution that combines live broadcast TV and DVR capabilities with instant access to OTT entertainment powered by Roxio CinemaNow.

Entone's focus is to enable access to rich media, including live television and recorded content, throughout the home without requiring new wiring or set-tops at each TV. With Entone's new hybrid TV service platform, the availability of recorded content includes both programs stored on a whole-home DVR or on cloud-based services such as Roxio CinemaNow.

Roxio CinemaNow services are able to deliver a massive selection of premium video entertainment for rental or purchase. CinemaNow's cloud-based media services power devices from multiple manufacturers, forming a connected ecosystem that consumers can use to seamlessly choose, move and view video entertainment. The CinemaNow ecosystem currently includes PCs, connected TVs, set top DVRs, Blu-ray Disc and mobile media players from leading manufacturers.

Roxio CinemaNow powered premium services will be available to Entone's telco customers via an IPTV service model or via Entone's new SelecTV(TM) service that will be released later this year.

Avail-TVN Announces 100th IPTV Customer

TVover.net — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:41:12 GMT

Avail-TVN announced its 100th IPTV customer. Integra Telecom joins service providers across North America, including 38 former IP-Prime affiliates, in partnering with Avail-TVN to deliver linear IPTV services to their subscribers. Integra's digital television services will initially be limited to its incumbent local exchange carrier business, which services over 14,000 primarily residential customers in select areas of the suburban Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area. Avail-TVN will work with its integration partner, Dascom, to plan and execute Integra's video services launch, scheduled for the first quarter of 2010.

"Avail-TVN and Dascom are making it easy for us to bring digital video services to market quickly," said Dave Kunde, senior vice president and general manager at Integra Telecom. "Their integrated approach and future-looking service roadmap were key factors for us in our search for partners who could help us provide this key revenue-generating service."

As part of a company focus on IPTV deployments, Avail-TVN transitioned more than 75 percent of the former SES Americom IP-Prime customer base to the Avail-TVN platform over the last year. Integra Telecom joins these former IP-Prime customers, and other innovative telecom providers who are working with Avail-TVN to drive IPTV deployments across North America.

"2009 has been an exciting year for the IPTV market, which is reaching critical mass in terms of real deployments," said Ramu Potarazu, CEO of Avail-TVN. "Consumer appetite for TV everywhere, at anytime, is driving service provider need for sophisticated digital media solutions that take care of the heavy lifting, allowing carriers to do what they do best -- service the customer. We're pleased to be adding Integra Telecom to our list of IPTV affiliates and look forward to taking them live in early 2010."

Potarazu discussed the role of IPTV in the future of digital media services during a keynote address at TelcoTV this morning, entitled, "The Future of Digital Media Services: Don't let it pass you by."

Avail-TVN provides programming from more than 200 content owners to over 250 cable, satellite, FTTH and telecom service providers and is the only company today to deliver a complete suite of video services for the IPTV market that includes MPEG-4 linear IPTV and Video On Demand (VOD). The Avail-TVN solution includes a full line-up of live television programming with hundreds of channels, combined with thousands of hours VOD content including movies from every major studio, cable and broadcast networks, premium cable networks and adult content.

Avail-TVN partners with best-in-class members of the IPTV ecosystem including equipment providers, resellers, and content owners in order to deliver value to its customers. The company's partners include sales channel partners, resellers, and systems integrators such as Dascom, Cisco, BBT, CSI Digital, Evolution Broadband, Falcon IP/Complete, Fidelity Communications, Motorola, and Nortel; and business consulting groups, such as Jason Anderson Consulting. The company works with its ecosystem partners to develop customized solutions, ensuring minimal infrastructure changes and reasonable fees to support both existing and future affiliates.

Tele2 Netherlands Selects Espial's IPTV Middleware

TVover.net — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:36:39 GMT

Tele2 Netherlands has selected Espial's IPTV middleware for its IPTV service. Tele2 Netherlands will use the Evo TV Service Platform to launch its next generation television platform. With this platform Tele2 provides advanced services including linear TV, Video-on-demand, High Definition, PVR and interactive services.

Tele2 Netherlands has emerged as one of the largest telecommunications operators in the Netherlands since they began business 12 years ago. They started their business with fixed telephony services and over time have become a multi-play provider with the addition of mobile services, Internet services and television services. As the first operator to offer IPTV services in the Netherlands, they have gained deep knowledge and experience in pay TV services.

Espial's IPTV middleware is purpose-built to serve millions of subscribers with a minimal capital investment, a highly responsive user experience and a powerful service creation environment. With sub-second response times for Electronic Program Guide, Video-On-Demand, Time-shift TV and other interactive applications, the Evo TV Service Platform delivers a near-instant user response. This level of performance is expected by today's Internet generation. For operational ease, it is designed to fit into IPTV and cable back-office architectures. Cable and telco operators can quickly build and rapidly roll out services such as personalized user interface advertising, Time-Shift TV services and Multiple Dwelling Unit (or Campus) services.

Sony to Deliver ''Cloudy with a chance of Meatballs'' to Networked Bravia HDTVs and Blu-ray Players

TVover.net — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:47:25 GMT

Sony announces that owners of Sony networked BRAVIA HDTVs and Blu-ray Disc players will be able to enjoy an exclusive in-home opportunity to rent the Sony Pictures animated hit, “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs,” four weeks before it is available at retail.

Starting today, customers who purchase a networked BRAVIA HDTV or Blu-ray Disc player and register the device between Nov. 9, 2009 and Jan. 4, 2010, will receive a free 24-hour rental of the movie in high definition (a value of $24.95).

From Dec. 8, 2009 through Jan. 4, 2010, the movie will be offered for rent at a cost of $24.95 on all current networked BRAVIA HDTVs, including the W5100, Z5100, XBR9 and XBR10 series as well as the company’s new BDP-N460 Network Blu-ray Disc player.

Customers who already own networked BRAVIA HDTVs or have earlier BRAVIA models equipped with the BRAVIA Internet Video Link can rent the movie during this exclusive time period. Televisions and Blu-ray Disc players must be connected to the internet to receive the movie.

The initiative will be supported by a special broadcast advertisement featuring “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” animated characters Sam (Anna Ferris) and Flint (Bill Hader). The ad will beginning Nov. 9, 2009.

Harmonic Powers Broadcast and On-Demand IPTV Service in Curaçao

TVover.net — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:41:35 GMT

Harmonic announces that Santa Barbara Utilities has selected Harmonic’s industry-leading digital video solutions for a new broadcast and on-demand IPTV service at the Santa Barbara Plantation Resort Community in Curaçao, the most populous island in the Netherlands Antilles. The end-to-end IPTV deployment includes Harmonic’s Ion AVC HD encoders, ProStream 1000 stream processing platform, StreamLiner video servers, Armada intelligent asset management and NMX Digital Service Manager.

Standard definition video sources are received from satellite and multiplexed using Harmonic’s versatile ProStream 1000 stream processor for the IP encapsulation. The Ion AVC encoders are used to compress and deliver the HD channels for the broadcast service. On-demand assets are stored and delivered using Harmonic’s StreamLiner video servers and Armada asset management system, which dynamically distributes content across the network based on popularity. The entire video service is monitored and controlled via NMX.

Calix to Demonstrate Advanced IPTV Applications for the Microsoft Mediaroom Platform

TVover.net — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:24:06 GMT

Calix will demonstrate new interactive IPTV applications enabled by Microsoft Mediaroom at TelcoTV in Orlando (November 10-12, Orange County Convention Center, booth #501).

The Calix TelcoTV demonstration will include security monitoring and caller ID applications created by Microsoft Certified Integration Partner 180Squared using the Mediaroom application development platform, Mediaroom Presentation Framework. This demonstration will provide a clear vision of the differentiated user experience that Microsoft Mediaroom can provide. It will also highlight the deployment flexibility that the Calix Unified Access Infrastructure can deliver across any media type or protocol.

Calix customers are now widely deploying the Microsoft Mediaroom IPTV platform across North America, providing a clearly differentiated home entertainment experience for subscribers. Microsoft Mediaroom includes differentiated features like instant channel change and multiview capabilities that allow consumers to see multiple channels and programs on one screen.

Calix will also demonstrate an advanced home entertainment experience enabled by Microsoft Mediaroom for Xbox 360 and Cisco set-top box consoles, across its Unified Access Infrastructure. This powerful home entertainment experience features content access and control across the home network, including broadcast, on-demand, recorded, and streamed content, as well as gaming, music, and digital photography assets. It will also be the first public demonstration of the Calix E7 Ethernet Service Access Platform.

Calix has worked closely with Microsoft to implement the full extent of current and emerging Mediaroom features and map them to the realities of communications service provider deployments. The Calix C7 and E7 platforms have been specifically optimized to support many of the unique features enabled by Mediaroom:

1. For service providers transitioning from legacy middleware environments to Microsoft Mediaroom, the Calix Unified Access Infrastructure can support dual middleware environments and has the capacity to handle the duplication of extensive channel line-ups.

2. Calix supports video service quality management functionality, which seamlessly manages the subscriber experience in situations where the breadth of Microsoft Mediaroom functionality may exceed the total bandwidth available in bandwidth-constrained deployments.

3. Network address translation (NAT) support across the Calix Unified Access Infrastructure enables a home gateway model, allowing Microsoft Mediaroom to deliver robust media sharing functionality throughout the subscriber home environment.

4. Comprehensive support for advanced Microsoft Mediaroom services and features across the Calix Unified Access Infrastructure, including virtually any wireline protocol (ADSL2+ and VDSL2, including bonding, GPON, and Active Ethernet) and any physical media (copper or fiber).

Butler-Bremer Communications Launches Cable IPTV Service with Harmonic and Falcon IP/Complete Solutions

TVover.net — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:19:36 GMT

Harmonic and Falcon IP/Complete announce that Butler-Bremer Communications has selected the IP/Complete “bird to box” video solution and Harmonic’s Direct-2 Edge solution for Butler-Bremer’s new cable IPTV service. The new Harmonic/Falcon cable IPTV solution enables Butler-Bremer to offer a comprehensive and high quality service lineup to all of its customers. Butler-Bremer also operates an IPTV service over its existing telephone network infrastructure and a fiber-to-the-home network.

The Falcon IP/Complete IPTV delivery system encompasses content aggregation from satellites and routers, integration with middleware, and delivery over copper, fiber, and coax to the set top box. The Falcon solution will allow Butler-Bremer to deliver video service to a newly acquired exchange of Shell Rock, using FTTH and Copper networks. In addition, the system enables video service delivery to their cable TV exchanges over the coaxial plant—all from one total system.

Harmonic's D2E cable IPTV solution, incorporating the industry-leading NSG 9000 universal edgeQAM and D2E management software, enables cable operators to leverage their existing DOCSIS and digital video investments to deliver broadband video to multiple screens, including traditional TV and the PC. D2E addresses the significant challenges associated with delivering DOCSIS-based video content over traditional CMTS-based architectures, and provides a substantial infrastructure cost savings.

Harmonic will showcase its telco video delivery solutions at TelcoTV booth #539 in Orlando, Florida, November 10-12.

BH Telecom Selects Envivio IPTV Headend Solution for New IPTV Service

TVover.net — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:12:38 GMT

BH Telecom has begun the rollout of its new “Moja TV” IPTV service using a complete IPTV headend from Envivio. Built by systems integrator and middleware vendor Smart Com, the deployment enables BH Telecom to offer a full suite of live and on-demand channels complete with electronic program guide, PVR and other interactive features to its more than 2 million subscribers.

The Envivio IPTV headend includes the 4Caster C4 high quality, three screens encoder/transcoder paired with 4Stream IP Gateways and comprehensive monitoring and redundancy protection from the 4Manager management system. It provides an efficient, all-digital, IP-based signal flow that can directly ingest channels from any source and deliver the highest quality video at low bit rates that enable the service to optimize its reach and channel count.

Smart Com provided complete integration services for the BH Telecom installation, including BeeSmart middleware to enable converged multimedia services such as electronic program guides, video on demand, web browsing and mail.

4Caster C4 from Envivio combines the performance of the latest generation Intel multi-core processors with advanced video compression codecs developed by Envivio. A flexible software architecture allows Envivio to make continual quality enhancements and feature additions. The high availability IPTV platform delivers 99.999% uptime and unshakeable performance with fully redundant signal routing and power management. Fault tolerance throughout the headend is increased by redundant components administered via the Envivio 4Manager headend management system which provides automatic 1+1 or N+1 redundancy protection and high level service supervision. The 4Caster C4 encoder/transcoder can be extended to support distribution to mobile and broadband devices.

Espial Switches On IPTV Services for Sogetel

TVover.net — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:00:22 GMT

Espial announces that Sogetel is preparing to deliver IP-based television and video on-demand services using Evo TV Service Platform and Espial MediaBase. In its initial launch to 1,000 customers, Sogetel will provide standard- and high-definition TV services including Video on Demand and Time-Shift TV.

The group Sogetel currently maintains 32,000 access lines in five different rural areas of Quebec. In the last four years, it has grown its landline network by acquiring five independent telephone companies. Rapid scaling, single head-end support, and time-shift TV services are some of the compelling advantages of Espial MediaBase. These advantages of Espial MediaBase are also appreciated by millions of VOD subscribers worldwide.

IneoQuest Expands Family of Microsoft Mediaroom Deployment Test Solutions

TVover.net — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:11:35 GMT

IneoQuest has expanded its product line for optimizing Microsoft Mediaroom operations. iDMS Telco now leverages the data collected on IQDialogue IPTV Mediaroom Installer to give operations managers a consolidated collection of historical deployment data. Using IneoQuest's technology, providers can implement uniform procedures to ensure high quality installation, maximize overall support for technicians and efficiently engineer their network for improved performance.

Telecommunications providers are currently using IneoQuest's IQDialogue IPTV Mediaroom Installer to test the performance of Microsoft Mediaroom residential deployments and assure that the setup and configuration of television, video-on-demand and multi-room DVR services operate properly. Now, iDMS Telco allows for a centralized collection of all data and measurements gathered in the field, including deployment location and time, pass/fail results, fault identification, channel change timing and packet loss, with specific identifiers for each IQDialogue IPTV Mediaroom Installer probe.

Using the data, iDMS Telco enables telecommunications providers to hone operations management for improved deployment service, expense reduction and staff support. With iDMS Telco, providers can review deployments for adoption of uniform processes and cross-reference job details in case of follow up and additional service. At the same time, providers can survey the type of jobs or regions where deployments took the most time, enabling them to identify network challenges or provide training to streamline deployments.

In addition to operations management, iDMS Telco provides a snapshot of performance over time, giving providers trending analysis in order to resolve issues proactively and plan for future upgrades. For example, iDMS Telco details top deployment failures and issues, number of hours per deployment and individual identification of test probes. Since large repositories of historical data can be stored, providers can solve systematic issues to lessen the overall impact on subscribers.

With its centralized version control feature, iDMS Telco also notifies network technicians to the latest updates to software and allows for an automated download of updates to each probe during the synchronization process, ensuring all technicians are outfitted with the most recent software version for standardized service.

As a result of its partnership with Microsoft, IneoQuest is able to offer a family of products for Microsoft Mediaroom deployment support. In addition to iDMS Telco and IQDialogue IPTV Mediaroom Installer, IneoQuest also offers the IQDialogue IPTV Mediaroom Advanced for high-tier analysis and testing, monitoring and troubleshooting capabilities.

TelcoTV Panel Reveals Critical Elements to Deliver High Quality Internet Video

TVover.net — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:02:35 GMT

Zeugma Systems, along with industry experts from IDC, Roku, and Skitter.TV, will participate in a panel entitled “Delivering on the Quality Promise: Internet Video on Your 50-inch HDTV (And Loving It)” at TelcoTV in Orlando. The infinite expansion of internet video has left consumers expecting an internet video viewing experience that is indistinguishable from locally attached DVD players. With advances in video storefronts, content delivery, network technology, and digital media players, this quality hurdle is being rapidly surmounted.

Matt Davis—Program Director, Consumer Multiplay Services, IDC

“As attested to by the success of the TelcoTV conference, telcos everywhere have been driving to include video as a core element of their multiplay offerings. Thus far most of these efforts have been focused on IPTV, a route fraught with cost and complexity. Now telcos can, possibly for the first time, contemplate relying on much simpler and less expensive over-the-top video as a component of their entertainment offerings.”

Bob Saunders—President, Skitter.TV

“The most successful entertainment service offerings will be those that combine linear TV with internet TV with user-generated content in a sit-back viewing experience on the TV as well as the computer and mobile devices. To provide such an offering with the quality of service consumers expect, telcos must focus on three aspects of service delivery: the quality of the video stream, the reliability of content delivery, and a set-top box that is easy to install and use.”

Kevin Walsh—vice president of marketing, Zeugma Systems

“Arguably, the last hurdle to widespread replacement of linear video with purely over-the-top video is quality. And while virtually all OTT video ecosystem players have made tremendous strides toward improving video quality, the broadband network remains to be addressed. Telcos are in the unique and advantageous position to address this final piece of the OTT video puzzle by generating new services geared toward enhancing the video experience.”

Jim Funk—Vice President of Business Development, Roku

“One of the most challenging aspects of delivering high-quality, long-form video content to consumer high-definition televisions is reliable and inexpensive in-home content conversion. With a wide variety of sources and formats, it becomes even more difficult to present the user with a cohesive and easy to understand interface. Telcos anticipating offering enhanced OTT video services need to pay especially close attention to the consumer end of the value chain.”

This full hour session, part of TelcoTV’s New Media track, will explore the ecosystem supporting the delivery of long-form (television episodes and feature-length movies) video over the internet directly to subscriber televisions. Moderated by IDC analyst Matt Davis, the panel participants will discuss both the challenges and recent technical advances which have occurred in this ecosystem. The result is a video experience much better suited for today’s consumer than older, rigid, linear video approaches employed by cable and satellite operators.

Panel Details:

Title

Delivering on the Quality Promise: Internet Video on Your 50-inch HDTV (And Loving It)

Track

New Media: Managing a Brave New World

Speakers

Matt Davis, Director, Consumer and SMB Multiplay Services, IDC; Kevin Walsh, vice president of marketing at Zeugma Systems; Jim Funk, vice president of business development at Roku; and Robert Saunders, founder and president at Skitter.TV

Date / time

Tuesday, November 10, 2009, 1:00pm — 2:00pm EST

Location

Orange County Convention Center, north concourse, level two, room N220 (A)

EchoStar's ViP-TV Coming to Wyoming-Based IPTV Provider TCT WEST

TVover.net — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 22:56:54 GMT

EchoStar announces an agreement to deliver its ViP-TV video transport service to TCT WEST in Wyoming. TCT will receive transport of up to 42 IP-encapsulated high definition TV channels to its IP headend. The announcement was made in advance of this week's TelcoTV Conference and Expo in Orlando, Fla.

TCT is a telecommunications service provider supplying traditional and digital telephone, high-speed Internet and television services to several communities in Northwestern Wyoming as well as high-speed Internet and digital telephone services to several communities in Southeastern Montana. TCT sought a platform that would enable it to offer competitive video services using its existing IP network.

EchoStar's ViP-TV transport service can offer a suite of services, including a secure, MPEG-4 encoded IP stream of approximately 300 popular, broadcast-quality TV and music channels from a satellite located at 85 degrees W.L. ViP-TV can also provide satellite-delivered local TV channel aggregation in a telco's designated market area in both high definition and standard definition (where available).

Farmers Telephone Selects Motorola for IPTV Deployment

TVover.net — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:54:47 GMT

Motorola is accelerating the delivery of personalized media experiences for Farmers Telephone by supporting the delivery of IPTV services with Microsoft Mediaroom. Motorola will provide Farmers with its VIP1200 Series of IP set-tops and Microsoft’s Mediaroom video services platform, as well as systems integration professional services support.

As the world leader in advanced IP video solutions, Motorola is enabling Farmers to deliver exciting new revenue-generating IP-based TV and entertainment experiences, as well as greater control over capital and operating expenditures. As a result, Farmers customers will be able to enjoy enhanced picture quality and rich new features, including instant digital channel changes, picture-in-picture capabilities, whole home DVR with remote client scheduling, media sharing for pictures, and music on their TVs.

The implementation at Farmers will draw on Motorola’s extensive experience in deploying IPTV solutions from the digital headend to customer premises equipment, including Motorola’s VIP Series set-tops. This latest deployment at Farmers Telephone will additionally leverage Motorola’s already deployed MPEG-4 SD and HD encoders along with Motorola’s integrated receiver/ decoders.

Motorola’s IPTV Ecosystem Integration and Support Services enable seamless integration with existing network infrastructure and fast rollout of new, high-quality service offerings. The IPTV Ecosystem’s benefits include:

Streamlined operations -- A single point of contact and accountability for solution design, deployment and integration across partners and platforms.
Lower costs -- Eliminating the need for dedicated resources reduces costs on deployment and integration for service providers.
Quality assurance -- Optimizing operations and ensuring service quality can ultimately increase customer loyalty.

Verimatrix at IPTV World Forum Middle East & Africa 2009

TVover.net — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:50:35 GMT

WHO: Verimatrix enhances the value and security of pay-TV networks with advanced technologies designed to address the content protection challenges of today, and those of tomorrow. The Verimatrix 3-Dimensional Content Security approach provides a framework to enhance operator competitiveness and the consumer experience in the new world of pay-TV.

WHAT: Conference Track:

Steve Oetegenn, chief sales and marketing officer, will be contributing to a panel session discussing how IPTV operators can gain a competitive edge with launching time-shifted and catch-up services.

The panel, which includes partners from Harmonic and ADB, will address:

Exploiting the USPs of IPTV: time-shift and catch-up as “killer applications”
Enriching the user experience with a compelling catch-up service
Assessing service possibilities for PVR and full NPVR, beyond just “start-over” TV

WHEN: Sunday 15 Nov., 2009 at 4:10 p.m.

Product Focus:

VCAS 3 – Verimatrix’s next-generation Video Content Authority System platform broadens the domain of traditional conditional access. The core value proposition for VCAS 3 shifts beyond content protection alone towards the broader perspective of revenue security. The initial release of VCAS 3 supports emerging video delivery formats and new consumption models through a single content authority architecture.

Multi-device Adaptive Rate Streaming – As an important extension to the revenue envelope of pay-TV deployments, Verimatrix will be promoting its ability to secure adaptive rate streaming services to the PC, iPhone and other devices. In its latest whitepaper, “Adaptive Rate Streaming: Pay-TV at an Inflection Point,” the company highlights advances with this emerging technology are likely to alter the current framework of managed network vs. OTT delivery.

WHEN: During exhibition hours; 15 – 16 Nov., 2009

WHERE: IPTV World Middle East & Africa, Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Dubai, Booth #2

Continued Network and Service Optimization The Key to Continued IPTV Growth

TVover.net — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:43:20 GMT

Improving multiplay content delivery by optimizing IPTV networks, provisioning and remote management are crucial strategic objective work areas for the Broadband Forum as it moves into 2010, according to Forum Marketing Director Laurie Gonzalez, who is addressing the TelcoTV conference in Orlando, Florida, on Thursday.

The Forum, whose mission is to develop the full potential broadband, completed a union with the IP/MPLS Forum earlier this year and now has a membership of more than 200 of the world’s leading service providers, equipment manufacturers, chip vendors and other key organizations. Much of its specifications work over the past few years has centered around improving speed options and Quality of Service for IPTV delivery, and earlier this year it announced the approval of its latest IPTV-related Technical Report, TR-127. This new specification created - for the first time – the opportunity for network operators and independent test labs to carry out a system level test across four key IPTV network elements; the DSLAM, the CPE modem, the Central Office Splitter and the CPE Splitter. Testing splitters as part of a complete system will prevent disturbance of the video signal by a telephone signal on the same line-an important development that provides stability like never before.

Ms Gonzalez will show the audience how IPTV has continued its steady impressive growth despite the economic downturn, with North America now home to nearly 20 percent of all IPTV subscribers. The last 12 months has been particularly significant, with IPTV growth for the region, including Central and South America, hitting 86 percent.

She will also outline the Broadband Forum strategic objectives beyond IPTV. They include:

Facilitating broadband network coverage through shared architecture, responsive management and common interconnection standards
Defining common CPE specifications for all online device types for better provisioning, maintenance and end user experience
Empowering global energy reduction measures by developing standard broadband energy efficiency tests and establishing CO and CPE systems requirements specs
Ensuring IPv4 to IPv6 migration success
Stimulating MPLS use in Mobile Backhaul, Carrier Ethernet and other solutions
Fostering VDSL2 and PON interoperability
Developing certification to advance interoperability in several areas

She will explain the wider scope of the Broadband Forum and also talk about the BroadbandSuite – the Forum’s Release Plan – which is divided into three major domains of broadband; management, the network and the user. She will outline the benefits the Broadband Forum has already delivered in all three areas so far, with its Broadband 3.0 release and reveal some of the latest improvements soon to be launched with the next release – BroadbandSuite 3.1.

Come and see Laurie Gonzalez's presentation at TelcoTV, November 12 at 12:30

EEBC 2009: Day Two

TVover.net — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:17:52 GMT

The event that aroused the greatest interest among the EEBC 2009 audience was the International scientific-practical conference "Technologies of Satellite Communication and Broadcasting". The conference was opened by Onno Zonneveld, SES SIRIUS AB Eastern and Central Europe Market Development Vice President, who gave a talk on the topic: "The Growth of Opportunities in the Ukrainian Market". He spoke about the capabilities of the new satellite ASTRA at 31.5оE, emphasizing the provision of new services in the Ukrainian market, such as HDTV.

Another interesting presentation was "Digital Satellite Distribution Network of the National Satellite Communication System Dataware" given by Ivan Gorbach, Satellite Distribution Network Chief Designer (Ukrkosmos State Enterprise). The report analyzed the relationship between the projects of creating the National satellite communication system and creating a nationwide digital broadcasting telecommunication network during Ukraine's transition to digital TV and radio broadcasting.

Development prospects of the EUTELSAT 2009–2011 satellite constellation were described by Nikolay Orlov, CIS Regional Director of Eutelsat Communications, one of the three major satellite operators in the world. The speaker said that in November 2009 the company was preparing to launch W7 satellite, which will provide new broadcasting opportunities for the CIS countries.

The National satellite communication system, with its problems and their solutions, was described by Anatoly Melnik, Head of the Satellite Communication Systems Department, UNIIRT State Enterprise. He gave special emphasis to identifying the project’s bottlenecks, the problems of implementation, developing recommendations to address problematic issues, as well as the need of additional research to build the NSCS. Mr. Melnik also presented a report on the topic: "New Opportunities and Prospects of Using the DVB-S2 Standard". The expert highlighted the following key functions of the DVB-S2 signal format: provision of standard and high quality TV broadcasting services, provision of interactive services including Internet access, program exchange, news gathering, program distribution, data transmission and distribution.

The topic "Development Prospects of Satellite Broadcasting in Ukraine" was covered in the presentation by Ihor Kurus, a member of the National Television and Radio Broadcasting Council of Ukraine. Among the problems that arose in the course of implementation of digital broadcasting, the speaker pointed out ensuring frequency resources for the process of digital television implementation, as well as the lack of programs for multiplex MX-4 television channels.

Oleg Skuybida, a representative of the National Space Agency of Ukraine, gave a talk on the topic: "The National Satellite Communication System". According to the speaker, within the project it is planned to produce and launch a satellite which will provide radio broadcasting and fixed satellite services and ensure satellite television broadcasting, including high definition television, access to information networks, multimedia services, and the operation of corporate departmental VSAT networks. The presentation "Allocation of Frequency-Orbit Resource for Satellite Communications and Broadcasting Development" was given by Dmitry Makoveyenko, Lead Engineer at the RF department, the UNIIRT State Enterprise. The expert considered the allocation of frequency-orbit resource at the international level. The topic "Oil and Gas Communications & Social Responsibility: Merging community interests and profitability" was covered in the presentation by Martin Jarrold, the Global VSAT Forum International Development Program Chief, who had been appointed the Head of the Global VSAT Forum (GVF) International Development Program in June 2001.

Cable television business players joined their efforts to address the market problems in the open All-Ukrainian Forum of Cable TV Operators. The richness of the event was ensured by a wide range of sessions, and its relevance — by the upcoming transition to digital television. The speakers marked out some positive changes in the regulatory framework of governmental regulation of program service providers’ activity in 2008–2009, aimed at mitigating the economic crisis, Ukraine's integration into the European community in the field of television. Through the joint efforts of the Freedom of Expression and Information Committee of Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, individual members of the National Television and Radio Broadcasting Council of Ukraine, and market participants, the procedure of licensing program service providers had been partially simplified, transparent rules for calculating the license fee from January 1, 2010 had been established, and the European Convention on Transfrontier Television.had been ratified. Ukraine had made a European choice in the distribution of TV programs.

As part of the "ROMSAT Day at EEBC 2009", a scientific-technical conference "Multi-Service Network and Technology Convergence" was held. In their reports, ROMSAT specialists told about the main trends in the digital TV market, the prospects of WEBTV and 3D mobile TV introduction, the evolution of Ethernet equipment, and ways to optimize access networks.

Among other speakers at the conference were representatives of ROMSAT partners, particularly CommScope, Optronik, Corning, Aurora Networks, Espial, A2B Electronics, WISI, Promax. They presented the latest groundworks of their companies in the field of fiber-optic technology of core access networks, cable television, IPTV technology, terrestrial digital broadcasting and mobile TV systems, control equipment for HDTV content.

A number of reports analyzed the real possibility of building multi-service networks based on Ethernet technology. The session participants noted the universality of such solutions and the possibility of using them as a basis for implementation of services to provide audiovisual content. The problem here was quality online transmission of video streams.

A notable event of the second day of EEBC 2009 was the Roundtable "Legislative Regulation of the Problems of the ICT Industry Development at the Present Stage" organized by the Ukrainian Internet Association. The event was attended by major players of the information and communication technology market, representatives of governmental organizations, professional associations, public organizations and the media. In particular: member of the Advisory Council on Informatization at Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Alexander Baranov, the Ukrainian Internet Association Deputy Chairman of the Board Alexander Olshansky, the UIA Chairman of the Board Tatyana Popova, the UIA Member of the Board and Executive Director Vladimir Kukovsky, Kravchenko Viktoria, representative of the USPP Science and Technology Committee Alexander Shatalov, Head of Mutual Settlement Department Lubov Tkachenko, and others.

The Roundtable participants discussed the problems and obstacles of implementing the digital signature in Ukraine. They also touched upon the issues of the formation of tariffs for the access to cable communication channeling, and other equally important issues in this area. They talked about the need of making changes in the law of Ukraine "On Telecommunications" in relation to domain regulation, which most fully reflect the provisions of the .UA Domain Development Concept, but at the same time require certain clarifications and additions.

The speakers at the event presented their views on the improvement of the industry legislation. Alexander Baranov, member of the Advisory Council on Informatization at Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, observed: "A huge number of regulations in the field of informatization suggest the need of systematization and even codification. Moreover, some of them slow down the processes, and some contradict each other". Aleksandr Shatalov, member of the USPP Science and Technology Committee, told about the problems of the digital signature that had been long ago developed in Ukraine. He also stressed that digital signature cannot be realized in the digital workflow vacuum. Tatyana Popova, the UIA Chairman of the Board, considered several bills that, in her view, seriously undermine the development of the information society.

Report: OTT Video Forecast to Drive Growth in Video Encoding

TVover.net — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 19:37:10 GMT

The new IMS Research report The World Market for Professional Video Encoding – 2009 Edition reveals that the industry will experience an estimated 19% annual increase in worldwide shipments during 2010, representing an 11% annual increase in revenues over 2009. This includes all broadcast encoders serving the ingest, transcode, distribution and contribution (fixed & mobile) markets. At the end of 2008, cable comprised the majority of distribution shipments followed by IPTV. This trend is expected to continue through 2014, although the CAGR for satellite is forecast to be stronger than any other platform. On the contribution side, revenues are forecast to grow by 17% through 2014 on shipment growth of 18%.

Shane Walker, research manager and author of the study, states, “Due to a general slowing in the pace of technological advancement within the industry, we expect the replacement rate for both MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 AVC (SD & HD) encoders for contribution and distribution to drop throughout the forecast. While MPEG-2 channels will continue to be upgraded to MPEG-4 AVC and JPEG 2000, they will still account for 25% of the distribution and contribution market at the end of 2014”. Walker continues “a likely area of opportunity will be encoding for web video, with data from some interviewees putting annual growth in this relatively small segment between 60% and 70%”. Two other areas IMS Research is watching include software-based encoders and camera-based encoders, both of which are expected to begin affecting the market between 2010 and 2011. Scenarios are presented in the report which demonstrate that the combined influence of these encoders could lower overall annual revenues for the industry by 9% over the next four to five years. This is due to the fact that, while software-based encoders require a maintenance agreement, they do not require equipment switch-out for upgrades. The impact from all of this on consumers will be a significant jump in new channels, including VOD, over the next two years on a worldwide basis.

This study provides detailed forecasts for the ingest, transcode, distribution and contribution encoding markets split by seven geographic regions. In addition, the market is further split by MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC and JPEG 2000 standards as well as broadcast platform type for distribution.

Brightcove Cited as an Online Video Platform Leader by Forrester Research

TVover.net — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:33:35 GMT

Brightcove was recognized as a leader by Forrester Research in its report, The Forrester Wave: U.S. Online Video Platforms, Q4 2009, which was published today. Brightcove was among the select companies that Forrester invited to participate in its Wave report, and the company received top scores across all of the major evaluation categories.

According to the report, "Brightcove's offering is the most comprehensive video platform in this Forrester Wave evaluation; it consistently scores high marks with few, if any, gaps. The company's customer base, video scale, and internal resources are unrivaled in the market today. Brightcove's significant resources and road map position the company to stay ahead in the video platform race."

"Brightcove is honored to be recognized by Forrester as a leading online video platform," said Jeremy Allaire, Brightcove chairman and chief executive officer. "This is an exciting time for the online video industry, as video is becoming as pervasive as text on the Web and nearly every professional website is looking to publish video. We see an enormous global opportunity to establish Brightcove as the dominant platform for professional video publishing on the Web, and we believe this recognition from Forrester further validates our leadership position in the market."

Forrester evaluated the strengths and weaknesses of six U.S. online video platform vendors against 37 criteria in three major categories - current offering, strategy and market presence. Platforms were evaluated against several features, including media management, user-generated video, player capabilities, publishing capabilities, distribution capabilities, monetization capabilities, reporting capabilities, internationalization, integration, scalability, and service offerings. Strategy was measured against the vendor's ability to envision the future needs of the marketplace, the road map required to meet these needs, partner relationships and executive team experience. Customer base and financial strength were measured to determine market presence.

Report: IPTV Market Leaders Report 2009 Edition 2

TVover.net — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:29:03 GMT

Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "IPTV Market Leaders Report 2009 Edition 2" report to their offering. This IPTV Market Leader Repor identifies which IPTV systems and software companies are leading each of the six IPTV market segments: Access, Video Headend, Video-on-Demand Server Software, Middleware, Set-top Box, and Content Protection/Digital Rights Management. Over 100 vendors are identified and tracked for this report. The MLR includes a breakdown of Asian, European, North American, and Rest of the World regions, as well as overall global leaders. Market positions are measured by tracking actual numbers of active IPTV subscribers that are using (or being supported by) each company's products. Subscriber numbers are gathered and broken down by IPTV sector and regional segment, resulting in rankings.

At the core of the data is the number of IPTV subscribers for each Service Provider. A combination of primary and secondary research methods are used to gather data for this report, including official company press releases and briefings with IPTV Operators and vendors. In-depth primary research is conducted by surveying IPTV vendors and verifying their customers and deployments around the world. Additionally, subscriber counts are verified by triangulating data from multiple vendors, using a top-down and bottom-up approach. Although many IPTV vendors are verified as possible on any given IPTV deployment, there are still a small number of IPTV vendors that have not been identified. Once data about each Provider's subscriber numbers is gathered, it is allocated to its vendors in each product category. The data gathered is then separated into rankings for five of the IPTV product categories, within the four regions and globally.

The one exception is the Video Headend category, where market positions are based on the reported number of IPTV (Broadcast) channels provided (rather than subscribers) using each company's products. Since a Video Headend may support two thousand or two million subscribers, the number of channels is a much better measure of a company's market position.

Overall, since these rankings are based on actual live IPTV subscribers, they provide a good measure of each vendor's current market position and ranking, as well as their future growth prospects.

Growth Prospects

In addition, the growth prospects for each company is rated based on the number of large IPTV service deployments the company is participating in. Included are tables that count each vendor's significant deployments, both globally and within each region. A significant deployment is one that has been announced and is expected to be one of the world's top 25 systems by number of IPTV subscribers forecasted for 2013.

Akamai and iStreamPlanet to Power Live and on-Demand Video for NBC’s Coverage of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games

TVover.net — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:13:54 GMT

Akamai and iStreamPlanet announce they have been selected to work with Microsoft to provide an integrated, end-to-end solution to deliver live and on-demand video online for NBC during the network’s coverage of the Vancouver Olympic Winter Games, February 12-28. The solution will leverage Microsoft IIS Smooth Streaming to deliver an uninterrupted, high-quality streaming experience to online audiences via Microsoft Silverlight-based media players.

iStreamPlanet will be providing turnkey satellite downlink encoding and production services to the Smooth Streaming for Silverlight format and the video will be delivered to online audiences over the Akamai HD Network. iStreamPlanet will be encoding 23 video feeds including nine venue feeds, four broadcast feeds, one Olympic News Channel, six Beauty Cams, two Victory Ceremonies and one Press Conference. All 23 feeds are originating from Vancouver, British Columbia and transported to iStreamPlanet’s Las Vegas Webcast Operations Center over OC12 via IP multicast.

The NBC Olympics online Silverlight player will leverage Akamai HD for Microsoft Silverlight and the Akamai HD Network, Akamai’s next generation video delivery offering, to deliver both live and on demand streaming to broadcast-sized audiences with a personalized and interactive online experience and quality designed to match and complements the TV experience. A key feature of Akamai HD for Microsoft Silverlight is adaptive bitrate streaming based on IIS Smooth Streaming, which is architected to enable uninterrupted video playback at HD bitrates that seamlessly adjust to fluctuations in available bandwidth to provide the best quality possible for each user.

iStreamPlanet is collaborating with Akamai on the content ingestion and publishing points management architecture to make sure all created content is delivered in the highest possible quality.

The Akamai HD Network offers adaptive bitrate streaming capabilities across playback formats that are specifically optimized to work with Akamai's HD EdgePlatform for the fastest and most consistent video bitrate switching – designed to enable an instant and uninterrupted viewing experience for consumers even at the highest bitrates. Leveraging Akamai's entire HTTP footprint, video over Akamai's HD Network is delivered from servers closer to audiences around the world. As a result, Akamai can more tightly control the amount of time the player needs to buffer before switching streams. The shorter the buffer, the faster the stream can adapt and respond to changing end-user conditions.

To streamline the content acquisition, encoding and live streams provisioning process including failover scenarios, iStreamPlanet has developed a workflow automation service that enables NBC to start and stop acquiring the desired multicast stream, route that stream to the available encoder, provision all publishing points required to run the live event, pass created encoding profile information including server ingest information to the designated encoder, start encoding and notify NBC’s scheduling system when the encoding process has started and stopped as well as return live event start times so play-by-play data can be synched with the video and audio.

Inlet Technologies to Enable NBC Universal’s Live Online Video Streams During The Vancouver Winter Games

TVover.net — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:07:43 GMT

Inlet Technologies has been selected to provide Microsoft Internet Information Services Live Smooth Streaming online video for NBC Universal during the media company’s coverage of the XXI Olympic Winter Games from Vancouver, February 12-28. The announcement was made today by Perkins Miller, senior vice president, digital media, NBC Olympics; Scott Guthrie, corporate vice president of the .NET Developer Platform at Microsoft Corp.; and John Bishop, senior vice president of strategy and business development, Inlet Technologies.

Inlet’s Spinnaker family of encoding solutions is uniquely suited for live sports as it provides broadcast-quality streams over the Internet to multiple screens and devices. With its built-in support for adaptive streaming protocols, including IIS Live Smooth Streaming, Spinnaker generates high-quality streams that enhance online viewing of live sports action. For NBC’s coverage of the Vancouver Winter Olympics, Spinnaker will provide HD streams in real time at resolutions up to 720p. Spinnaker also will enable Olympic Winter Games fans on NBCOlympics.com to easily switch between multiple events.

Today’s online video experience has become much more interactive and personal, with the Internet no longer seen as a smaller screen television, but rather as a unique platform that can provide a richer experience. Spinnaker’s support of technologies such as DVR-like capabilities, instant replay, and IIS Smooth Streaming has been instrumental in boosting the quality of experience for end users. With Spinnaker, URLs or captions, such as scores and statistics, can also be inserted directly into the live stream.