news and events

The triple play is so 2006. Cable has a new trifecta

CED Magazine
May 16, 2007

VOD, iTV and advanced advertising were three of the most-discussed topics at The Cable Show. Here is a brief look at some of the exhibitors and their offerings related to these topics.

  • Aptiv Digital showed its Passport Echo interface, designed specifically for HD/DVR STBs; the Passport DCT, an interactive navigation suite; its Video Mosaic, which enables viewers to watch multiple scaled video streams; PassTime Games, which viewers can play while watching TV; and iSubscribe, which allows viewers to purchase service offerings with their remote.
  • Art Streams offers a screensaver for TV screens of all sizes, and for mobile phones, with the artwork of Jeffrey Paul . The dynamic images change about every eight seconds, and it's a lot more interesting than a black screen. And a lot prettier.
  • Aquarius Broadcasting Corp., an adult VOD network that launched last April, is now available in 9.5 million homes. Enough said.
  • BigBand Networks Inc. showcased its addressable advertising, IPTV over DOCSIS and enhanced TV apps. And the company integrated its switched broadcast solution with TV Guide's iGuide.
  • BroadView Software displayed its on-demand service, which offers on-demand scheduling, multi-platform content delivery, analytics, navigation trees, multiple system support , complex program metadata and CableLabs on-demand metadata.
  • Gemstar-TV Guide International Inc. showed off its My TV Guide service. The personalized guidance tools span the linear TV, Internet and mobile platforms.
  • Griffin Media Research marketed its Griffin: On-Demand study, which is devoted entirely to documenting the value of the on-demand audience.
  • Hillcrest Labs previewed its new interface-with visual icons instead of text for viewers to sort through TV programming, movies, downloaded pictures, etc. A doughnut-shaped remote controls a cursor that you can move to the different icons on the screen, and then click on them. Definitely one of the most innovative products I saw at the show.
  • ICTV unveiled its ActiveVideo product. ActiveVideo Channels can link to an interactive Web experience, and the ActiveVideo P:Mosaic offers personalized navigation and simultaneous views of multiple channels. Great example of a Web media experience on the TV.
  • Imagine Communications marketed its quality on-demand (QOD) product suite, which it said enables the delivery of 50 percent more VOD, switched digital video (SDV) and digital broadcast streams per QAM channel.
  • SeaChange International unveiled its Axiom Core 4.0 on-demand management software (which now supports third-party servers from Cisco Systems Inc. , Concurrent and Motorola Inc. ) and its 100-percent-flash-based MediaServer Flash Streamer. The company demonstrated products at the show with a Cisco content delivery system (CDS) server.
  • Tandberg Television displayed a live T-commerce app ported to meet CableLabs' open standards for enhanced TV (ETV) and its OpenStream SDV solution.
  • Zodiac Interactive showed its new zidgets, which I call "Google Maps on the TV," but it's actually powered by Yahoo . You can search for local restaurants, check the weather and order a pizza while still watching TV.

Traci Patterson, Web/News Editor - CED, Editor - xOD Capsule