Chunghwa Signs MOU for BNS's Interactive TV Shopping Solution, BNS Touch

Hong Kong-based IPTV technology provider, Broadband Network Systems (note: the company, which is generally referred to as BNS and whose customers include PCCW and Nokia, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Infinio Group), said Tuesday that it has signed an MOU with Taiwanese incumbent telco, Chunghwa Telecom, to jointly develop its BNS Touch interactive TV shopping platform for deployment on the latter's IPTV service, Multimedia on Demand. The companies say that the details of their partnership will be finalized in a formal agreement, under which BNS will supply Chunghwa with its technology and operate the resulting tcommerce service, which will be integrated with the telco's existing IPTV services and shopping catalogs. BNS says that it has already recruited several leading home, TV and print-catalog shopping companies in Taiwan to participate in the new service.

BNS bills BNS Touch (which was profiled in an article published on itvt.com, June 16th) as bringing together IPTV and "invisible" dot-code printing and recognition technologies in order to combine "the browsing convenience of printed information with the information-rich multimedia experience of the online world." The solution is offered in conjunction with a pen-like device, called The Wiz. The latter incorporates a small infrared camera and a sensor that reads codes associated with items in a printed catalog, allowing related information (as well as video and a shopping basket or other payment mechanisms) to be displayed on the TV screen when a consumer uses the device while browsing the catalog. The device thus links "the printed with the online/TV world," BNS says. According to the company, The Wiz, which is available in both wired and wireless versions and which operates in conjunction with a device plugged into the USB port of an IPTV set-top box, works with a backend management system that includes content management, subscriber database integration, a payment gateway and an inventory and logistics interface, allowing the Touch tcommerce system to integrate with existing IPTV services and shopping catalogs. Possible applications for the solution in addition to tcommerce, BNS says, include in-room dining (guests could use The Wiz to order from a dot-code-enabled room service menu), VOD, karaoke, interactive advertising and education.

According to BNS, Taiwan's advanced communication infrastructure and high penetration rate for broadband Internet access have made it a desirable market in which to launch a home shopping solution: online shopping transactions in the country rose 32.3% in 2008, with most online shoppers buying clothes, accessories and beauty and health products, the company says. "Chunghwa is not only Taiwan's dominant carrier, but also one of Asia's leading IPTV operators, as the country is one of the world's most established and active TV shopping markets with an estimated market size of about US$7.4 billion," Infinio CEO, Jeffrey Soong, said in a prepared statement. "We are honored and excited to be working with Chunghwa to bring a novel and effective multimedia experience to their customers. We plan to launch the full service before the end of this year. From this base in Taiwan, we plan to grow the presence of BNS Touch in Asia, the world's fastest growing ecommerce market, which is set to double from 2007 to hit more than US$71 billion by 2012."

In other BNS news: The company said Tuesday that it has deployed its RoomWise HD-enabled IPTV-based in-room entertainment solution at a new hotel that was recently opened by Hong Kong's Empire Hotel Group. According to the company, the solution provides 26 local and international HD and SD channels, VOD, and various walled-garden interactive TV services, including real-time flight information, weather forecasts, room service, casual games, a local map with points of interest, express check-out, TV messaging and more.