 InteractiveTV Today [itvt], the first, best and most widely read news source on interactive and multiplatform television, is pleased to present the third annual TV of Tomorrow Show, March 10th-11th (Tuesday-Wednesday), 2009 in San Francisco, California at the famous Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.
--CEO Verklin Says First Product to Launch within 120 Days --Company Names Arthur Orduna CTO --Has Quietly Launched National VOD Service, "Elections '08" There have been a number of developments over the past few weeks with Canoe Ventures, the US cable industry-backed company that is attempting to build a national unified platform for interactive, addressable and measurable advertising (note: the platform is expected to be built on a variety of open standards, including tru2way/OCAP, ETV/EBIF, SCTE 130 and VOD Metadata Content Specification 2.0):
--Launches Reference Kit, Secures Deal with Kodak
--Cablevision Plans to Launch Service Early Next Year
The American Film Institute (AFI) Digital Content Lab--an organization that, for the past decade, has fostered interactive TV in the US by bringing together content providers and technologists to collaborate on prototype interactive multiplatform services for television and other media--has issued a call for entries for the AFI DigiFest 2008, which will take place in Hollywood, November 6th and 7th, alongside the annual AFI Fest.
Sports broadcaster, ESPN, and Major League Baseball's Advanced Media arm (MLBAM) have signed a digital rights agreement that will expand and extend their current agreement through 2013. The agreement includes rights for ESPN.com, ESPN360.com, ESPN's mobile initiatives (including ESPN Mobile TV), emerging platforms such as interactive TV, video game consoles and portable devices, and syndication of ESPN-licensed content. It also covers all new platforms that ESPN creates or develops relationships with through 2013, and covers digital rights worldwide (except for certain Asian and Pacific Rim markets).
In a July 31st letter to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), US incumbent telco, Verizon, complained that the US cable industry's tru2way standard "is not compatible with other video providers' networks, including Verizon's all-fiber FiOS network" over which it offers its interactive TV-enabled FiOS TV service; and encouraged the FCC to take a "platform-agnostic" approach to fostering the implementation of two-way interactive TV.
--Forms Partnership with SoftAtHome
--Launches Promotional Offering on Bell TV
--Signs Deals with Overture Films, Lifetime Networks
VOD distribution services provider, TVN, has released the results of a national consumer research study which it says it commissioned in order to understand the impact of its barker videos on VOD usage. According to the survey:
- 71% of enabled subscribers have recently used VOD.
- More than half of those users purchased VOD content.
- Nearly 70% of users are very satisfied with VOD.
- Satisfaction is strongest among VOD's heaviest buyers, 18-34 year- olds, and teenaged girls.
- More teens (15-17) than adults are purchasing VOD movies, especially teen girls.
CBS Interactive says that it experienced dramatic increases in traffic on its portfolio of broadband video-enabled Web sites in July (historically a slow month for online growth), the first month following the integration of its operations with CNET Networks. According to figures from comScore Media Metrix cited by CBS Interactive:
- CNET.com posted a 22% increase in unique visitors over July, 2007.
- BNET.com posted a 19% increase in unique visitors over the preceding month.
- CBSSports.com led all major sports sites over the past three months in average minutes per visitor, average pages per visitor, and average visits per visitor.
--Acquires Sydney-Based TV Workflow Specialist, Ruzz TV
--Secures Deals with Japan's SKY Perfect, Comcast Spotlight
--Taps Ex-NDS Executive to Lead its Indian Operations
Illumina Digital, a UK company best known for creating interactive scripted programming using on-demand broadband video, games, and other multimedia elements, has been acquired by UK-based TV production company, All3Media. In the course of its 10-year history, Illumina Digital won four BAFTAs and over 20 other international awards for cross-media projects it produced for such customers as the BBC, Channel 4, BSkyB, Nickelodeon and the Royal National Theatre.
Interactive TV gaming company, Win Gaming Media, has sold the assets of its subsidiary, MIXTV, to Playtech, a company that specializes in developing and licensing software for the online gaming industry. The deal between the companies also sees them signing a license and service agreement for Win Gaming's UK-based subsidiary, Two Way Gaming (note: Win Gaming's partner in Two Way Gaming is UK-based interactive TV formats developer, Two Way Media), under which Playtech has granted Win Gaming a non-exclusive license to use the newly acquired software assets for the sole purpose of providing support and maintenance services to Two Way Gaming.
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The 2nd Annual TVOT NYC Intensive
The second annual TVOT NYC Intensive took place on Monday, December 5th at 730 Third Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. We would like to thank everybody who participated and attended for making the event a success!
Read more about the highlights - video and photos to be posted soon.
To find out about future event sponsorship and exhibition opportunities, contact us at swedlow@itvt.com or 415-824-5806
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