ICTV, which offers a hardware platform for the delivery and distribution of interactive television programming, introduced a content delivery network solution pushing Web-driven programming and elements, live video and VOD to television sets.
The service leverages IPTV’s HeadendWare to deliver Web programming as MPEG video to any digital set-top box. The AVDN runs within the existing Web and VOD infrastructures, acquiring programming from standard Web servers, mixing it with live and VOD elements and delivering it from the headend as MPEG video. It integrates with and extends existing set-top based interactive approaches.
ICTV said that by using its ActiveVideo Distribution Network, network operators and programmers can complement existing channels by allowing viewers to take active control of what they see and when they see it. As an example, through simple clicks on their remote controls, television viewers can select an ActiveVideo channel from the standard program guide and enter a broadband experience that integrates video, navigational elements, channel branding, banner advertisements, and links to different video segments.
The ActiveVideo Distribution Network is a usage-based content distribution service that does not require capital investment by programmers or operators. AVDN delivers Web-driven programming and both live and VOD streams at TV quality. ActiveVideo programming is delivered using VOD infrastructure through any VOD-capable set-top and navigated with standard remotes.
“While there has been much recent discussion of viewers migrating to ‘over-the-top’ video on personal computers, the fact remains that the television experience over a managed network is without equal,” said Jeff Miller, president and CEO of ICTV.
http://www.ictv.com
