Industry trio boost multiscreen streaming of live video
October 25, 2011
Three leading technology companies have created a solution that allows pay-TV service providers quickly and cost-effectively to deploy a complete multiscreen ‘TV Everywhere’ service, including streaming live video.
Teaming up for the solution are itaas, a system integrator and provider of an interactive client app for viewing content; RGB Networks, a provider of scalable multiscreen IP video delivery solutions, and Verimatrix, a specialist in securing and enhancing revenue for multiscreen digital TV services.
The companies note that with over 120 million Internet connected mobile devices deployed, demand for TV Everywhere is growing. Service providers of all sizes face the challenge of offering a multiscreen service quickly or risk losing viewers to fast-moving competitors. Together, these three technology leaders provide a way to deploy a reliable solution for video streaming that dramatically reduces the time, effort and cost to launch multiscreen services.
“Building an adaptive bitrate IP video infrastructure can be a daunting task for even the largest, most technically proficient service provider,” said Jim Elayan, vice president, business development and marketing for itaas. “As an extension of our iLaunch program, we will leverage RGB Networks and Verimatrix products with our experience in system integration and network deployment to provide a ‘best-of-breed’ solution.”
itaas serves as the ‘prime contractor’ contributing its team of network architects, product integration know-how and extensive product testing capabilities as well as a client side solution for viewing content on a mobile device. At the outset of a project, itaas’s network architects will assess a service provider’s existing video delivery infrastructure and then work with RGB Networks and Verimatrix as well as content delivery network providers to design and implement a TV Everywhere solution that leverages the existing infrastructure and keeps costs and complexity to a minimum. The customer can leverage the itaas mobile application to view content or integrate it with an existing mobile solution.
In this integrated offering, RGB Networks provides its carrier-class Video Multiprocessing Gateway (VMG), a highly scalable transcoding platform delivering superior operational savings and benefits – as well as protocol adaptation with its TransAct Packager, which works in coordination with DRM and encryption from Verimatrix. RGB’s Packager supports the three main adaptive streaming formats – HTTP Live Streaming (HLS), HTTP Dynamic Streaming (HDS), and Smooth Streaming.
“The combination of RGB’s unique, field-proven multiscreen transcoding and packaging solution with standout products and services from itaas and Verimatrix is exactly what service providers need to meet the challenges of today’s IP video environment,” said Nabil Kanaan, senior director, strategic alliance for RGB Networks. “Deployments of this integrated ecosystem will eliminate headaches and bring substantial efficiency benefits to operators.”
“The maturity of multiscreen partner ecosystems makes TV Everywhere more than just an interesting option for digital TV operators. It becomes a bona fide revenue-generation opportunity,” said Steve Oetegenn, chief sales and marketing officer at Verimatrix. “To secure multiscreen video services, we’ve leveraged our heritage in IP-centric, software-based security to make OTT video a seamless experience when paired with traditional TV.”
The companies’ solution is currently being demonstrated at the TelcoTV expo in New Orleans, and will also be on display at the SCTE Cable-Tec Expo in Atlanta in mid-November.