Connected TV

Connected TV

Towards a zero CAPEX STB multiscreen world?

Posted on by Robert Guest

In a closed environment such as the home network, an important role of the set-top-box (STBs) is to ensure that content is fully secure. However, the rise of streaming over IP and the increased number of services available to consumers means that a growing number of consumers access content over open networks like the Internet.

While operators would like to stop shipping millions of STBs to reduce costs, ensuring that security is maintained throughout the media sharing process without it is a challenge. Each device has its own Conditional Access (CA) and Digital Rights Management (DRM) systems that are seldom interoperable. In addition, consumers expect to be able to access content from any source on any platform, increasing the level of complexity for operators. In a STB free world, can operators simultaneously ensure a high quality consumer experience and the security levels required by the studios?

Increased access to content needs to go hand in hand with improved security to ensure that third parties can’t watch and stream content illegally, with operators needing to ensure that video is only shared with those that have the correct entitlements. With increased consumer demand for content availability out of home and remote access to services, we strongly believe that video consumption will become hybrid, combining the power of the cloud and local control via the home gateway. This means that STBs, gateways and smart TVs that support both a cloud and a local architecture will play a crucial role as the primary gateway in the home.

Solutions that can support both architectures enable operators to start moving toward zero CAPEX STB strategies, by allowing consumers to access content without requiring additional hardware. By providing a readily available solution to viewers who use their mobile devices, game consoles and laptops as a gateway to access content, operators can extend their reach beyond traditional PayTV. ACCESS has developed solutions based on open standards such as the DLNA® VidiPath™ that provide operators with a path to Zero Capex STB. In addition to facilitating media sharing, ACCESS offers operators the level of control they require to satisfy the studios’ stringent security requirements.

To learn more about ACCESS’ solutions, join us at IBC (11-16 September, Amsterdam RAI) on stand #14.D14. Key on stand demonstrations include:

  • ACCESS Twine™ – the multimedia management solution that enables operators to connect consumers regardless of the devices plugged into the multiscreen service, and to aggregate large amounts of data. IBC demonstrations will allow operators to understand how support for diverse Conditional Access (CA) and Digital Rights Management (DRM) systems alongside flexible UI technologies provides a robust multiscreen security solution. New at IBC are enhanced data mining functionality and remote access to personal content inside the home, in addition to the virtual multiscreen content library functionality originally showcased at CES 2015.
  • NetFront™ Browser family – demos include support for Android tablet and smartphones, major silicon vendor reference platforms and HbbTV 2.0, Freeview Play and YouTube on TV.
  • NetFront™ Living Connect – the DLNA media sharing Technology Component™ has been extended to support the DLNA VidiPath™ guidelines on the latest chipsets, allowing next-generation devices to support secure media sharing in the home.

To request a meeting with ACCESS at IBC please use the following link: http://eu.access-company.com/access-ibc-2015-meeting-request.html

Connected TV

ANGA COM sees next generation broadband and all-IP herald the ‘Internet of Video Things’

Posted on by ACCESS Europe

A few years ago, the whole TV industry would have said that ANGA COM was primarily a cable show. Our trip to Cologne this year however showed more clearly than ever before that it’s now an IP video show – shadowing the cable industry’s accelerating move towards becoming next generation broadband providers for whom video is just one service, although a critically important one.

Over the past few months, there were interesting next generation broadband technology launches from the major players and extended Pan-European initiatives such as Sky GO, or Deutsche Telekom partnering with Netflix in Germany, demonstrating that the TV industry market is moving towards launching additional IP based services such as Over-The-Top (OTT) TV.

Connectivity was at the forefront of the discussions at this year’s ANGA. For example, Alcatel-Lucent and Telecom Italia announcing that they are working on 100GB per second optical networking technology to allow the delivery of “ultra broadband” internet and TV services. The upcoming deployment of 5G without borders also means that European TV operators will be able to launch exciting new services throughout Europe.

This is all great news for ACCESS, as connectivity is central to our DNA since pioneering the mobile web browser for major international operators. We all now use multiple devices to watch content both in and out of home at the same time as sharing personal data on social media; when combined with usage patterns, this provides interesting data driven opportunities that we’re excited to be part of. We’re also advocate for standards such as HbbTV and ANGA made it clear that this pan-European initiative is growing in importance.

ACCESS has always combined connectivity and standards to ensure that we provide solutions that remain relevant in an increasingly fast-paced industry. Our solutions have been shipped in over 1.5 billion connected devices since the early days of NetFront™ Browser, which has been extended to offer a tailored solution for each platform, including next-generation smartphones and tablets. ANGA also saw interest in NetFront™ Living Connect, our DLNA Technology Component™ media-sharing stack that facilitates the secure sharing of multimedia content between devices. Operators were excited to see how the latest addition to our product portfolio, ACCESS Twine™, our multiscreen management solution enables them to elegantly develop multiscreen services that offer a tailored experience on every screen, regardless of the device’s specifications or the CA/DRM system in place.

Seeing how connectivity, all IP and next generation broadband is impacting the TV industry, ANGA COM confirms that multiscreen and TV everywhere are here to stay and expand their influence. We’re already seeing the automotive industry add multimedia solutions to its latest models – many of them powered by ACCESS – and we’re confident that the operators that embrace the trend towards an ‘Internet of Video Things’ will be the ones that succeed.

Connected CarConnected TV

Connecting with the Millennial driver

Posted on by Robert Guest

The two trillion dollar automotive industry is going through a seismic shift. Alongside massive demand from emerging economies, new electric based vehicles and tougher emission regulations; the notion of Big Data and connectivity is starting to dramatically alter the way drivers and passengers interact with carmakers and service providers.

Of the 70 million passenger vehicles sold each year, Millennials accounted for 27% of new car sales in the US last year, up from 18% in 2010, making them the second largest group of new car buyers. This group, which has grown up in a connected world with ubiquitous access to the Internet, is also the most likely to make buying decisions based on connected car functionality.

Millennials and many other car users expect the car to be a hub for information sharing and intelligent application usage. This can range from collaborative satellite navigation system like Waze that allow drivers to easily share their knowledge, such as diverted routes, accidents and traffic jams to interactive entertainment systems and fault diagnostic data, useful for car maintenance and breakdown services.

In a parallel to the Internet, with its free services like Google Maps or Dropbox, many of these Millennial car owners are prepared to gain useful services in exchange for data. A recent global study released by SDL found that 89% of Millennials in the US and roughly 75% in Europe would accept brands tracking personal data provided they’ve built trust with the user. Another study conducted last year by New York based agency MRY found that Millennials value cars and smartphones for similar reasons, including accomplishing daily tasks, keeping connected with friends and family, exploring new places and shopping.

To address this increased consumer demand for personalised information and media services, car manufacturers are developing hybrid infotainment systems based on embedded functionality. These systems support both the driver and passenger device to project a vehicle-optimised version of popular apps from the smartphone to the dashboard and rear-seat screens.

These converging trends provide a great opportunity for OEMs to strengthen their relationships with those Millennials who show a willingness to share personal information to personalise the car experience. In order for OEMs to offer custom experiences to their customers, solutions that provide better driver insight such as ACCESS Twine™ will prove crucial, allowing OEMs to receive information about the driver’s habits, media consumption, devices connected to the infotainment system and combining them with real-time feedback on the car use.

This granular data on the driver and the vehicle will enable manufacturers to improve the in-car services, customise the content catalogue available to the driver and passenger, offer tailored information about the next petrol station or rest area, and even deliver targeted advertising directly to the dashboard.

With the connected car concept still relatively new, developing the skill sets and technologies to offer innovative use cases to a largely untapped market offers early access to a multi-billion dollar market.

Connected CarConnected TV

How the Connected Car is Transforming In-Car Entertainment

Posted on by Robert Guest

This is the first of our Automotive focussed blogs on The Multiscreen Blog. These blogs will discuss current and upcoming trends, as the car becomes another channel for connected entertainment.

In the past, the purchase of a new car could also spell the end of the relationship between the manufacturer and the consumer if the vehicle was not going to be ‘dealer maintained’. However, the advent of connectivity in the car with the Internet of Things (IoT) and Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) developments means that OEMs can now forge a closer bond with consumers.

The connected car era has enabled the vehicle to become a fully evolved ecosystem providing a richer user experience and a host of new product offerings such as advanced diagnostics, enhanced driving safety, voice recognition, automotive apps, regularly updated car firmware and rear seat entertainment. These new features are increasingly becoming integral in the buying process both for high end and midrange cars, and enable OEMs to increase monetization opportunities over the life span of the vehicle.

The consumer desire for increased connectivity can be partly attributed to the connected car’s ability to control cost by proactively addressing performance issues. For example, new services that allow easier identification of wear and tear ensure problems are easily addressed and solved. Receiving performance related insurance could help offer a fairer tariff system based on driver performance rather than age and ultimately ensure lower rates for many road users.

However, data has a bigger role to play in transforming the automotive industry. Data and analytics enable the car to automatically communicate levels of wear and tear, providing drivers with accurate information to share with mechanics without waiting for the compulsory car inspection. Efficiently aggregated and analysed, data can also help the industry to offer tailored advertising and media strategies. For example, a tyre company could advertise for its products directly via the head unit as soon as the car informs the driver that its tyres need changing. OEMs and Tier Ones have already shown their desire to protect this data through agreements on privacy and data security principles that regulate how automakers collect, use and share information.

Connectivity in the car will enable a greater range of services to become available. For example, rear-seat entertainment has moved from an OEM controlled experience to a more personalised one that integrates connected devices such as smartphones, tablets and more. This trend forecasts increased use of Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) in the car and the possible advent of ‘All seat entertainment’. An immediate consequence of Internet access everywhere and increased media consumption on every connected device has led to what is referred to as the ‘multiscreen era’ in the entertainment industry. In the multiscreen world, consumers demand a seamless experience on every device in and out of the home, and now even in their car. This creates additional challenges for OEMs and Tier Ones as they look to safeguard content on billions of different screens across the globe.

We created the first mobile web browser in the 1980s for NTT DoCoMo and we have seen the market evolve to offer more connectivity on every screen, from smartphones to game consoles and smart TVs. For us, it was only a matter of time before entertainment pervaded every aspect of our lives, including our cars.

Yet, to enable consumers to get a seamless experience everywhere, OEMs and Tier 1s need solutions that bring the latest connected entertainment experiences to the vehicle. This is why we have developed a suite of software products for the automotive industry including ACCESS Twine™, a multiscreen management platform that provides this seamless experience on any device. Furthermore, the solution can be deployed by any OEM and Tier 1 without additional developments, and caters for both embedded screen and BYOD offerings. A complete solution for the automotive sector, ACCESS Twine provides OEMs with full control over branding and the in-car experience.

We live in the age of automation in which we can talk to our phones and remotely pilot drones. It’s high time that the car industry implemented solutions that enable vehicles to become smarter in order to play a leading role in the Internet of Things (IoT) revolution that is taking off right now.

Connected TV

How IoT can be turned into a Secure and Personal Multiscreen Consumer Proposition

Posted on by ACCESS Europe

Over a short space of time, web technologies have evolved rapidly in order to create new immersive web experiences such as tailored web browsing, multiscreen TV and the mobile web. For example, the web has matured considerably since the first mobile web browser developed by ACCESS for NTT DoCoMo, and has played an integral role in transforming consumer interaction with devices. With the emergence of Internet-enabled devices including smart TVs, wearables and the connected car, operators looking to deploy multiscreen services have room to create immersive services spanning the entire connected device spectrum, which combine to create the Internet-of-Things (IoT). A recent Gartner report predicts that the number of connected devices will increase by 30% in 2015 to 4.9bn before growing fivefold to 25bn by 2020. Due to the sizeable scope of IoT, this article will focus on the Internet of Connected Entertainment.

From linear TV to multiscreen
A few decades ago, the TV was a dumb screen offering linear programming on a few channels. However, consumer adoption of Internet-enabled handheld devices such as smartphones provided the breeding ground for operators to bring interactivity into the connected home and radically transform the TV experience. The emergence of IoT has facilitated the increase in the number of devices used for ‘at-home’ entertainment. The average British household has six devices or more to watch content, allowing operators to create a fully immersive multiscreen experience both in and out of the home.

However, the increase in Internet-enabled devices has also caused security concerns around content transiting over the open Internet. With more devices connecting to the service, the risk of unauthorised access is on the rise and operators need to integrate robust support for Conditional Access (CA) and Digital Rights Management (DRM) solutions within their multiscreen solutions to offer ‘studio confident’ streaming that earns the studios’ trust.

By deploying solutions that can ‘trans-crypt’ different types of CA and DRM systems on the fly, operators can secure the delivery of any type of content to any screen within the home via the home gateway, reducing the need to invest in cloud infrastructure. Additionally, using the in-home network increases quality of service, while limiting the risk of that content being accessed or streamed illegally over the Internet. Content can also be downloaded in the appropriate format to companion devices such as smartphones and tablets, opening the door to video consumption out of the home, and it’s likely that wearables and the connected car will enable TV Everywhere to truly emerge.

An important part of the explosion in IoT will be down to the connected car, according to recent Gartner research. A new report states that one in five vehicles will have some form of wireless network connection by 2020, accounting for more than a quarter of a billion cars across the globe. Bringing connectivity to the car is the first step for OEMs and integrators to offer video content in the confines of the vehicle, enabling TV services to extend to any environment.

Processing data in multiscreen, multi-device environment
This multiplicity of connected devices inside and outside of the home leads to a host of challenges for operators, including offering a seamless experience on all devices. As consumers now expect a single service spanning the entire connected home, it is imperative for operators to create a familiar UX (User experience) across all supported browsers, operating systems, screen sizes, device types and interaction methods. Integrating solutions that support HTML5 and the Encrypted Media Extensions (EME) and Media Source Extensions (MSE) can help operators to develop this seamless UX including a security framework on all screens automatically.

While providing a seamless experience is a pre-requisite for operators, constant access to web browsing and social media has led to a tremendous increase in the amount of data produced and shared by consumers. This has triggered increased subscriber demand for personalised services that are accessible on every device everywhere. Recent research from BI Intelligence predicts that IoT will contribute to $1.7 trillion in value added to the global economy in 2019, demonstrating considerable opportunities for operators looking to deploy large-scale multiscreen services both in and out of the home.

Operators are increasingly looking for solutions that automatically aggregate and analyse data to help them better understand subscriber behaviour, the types of devices used to watch content and more. They need to be able to offer more targeted services and content, including tailored advertising on multiple platforms and better search and discovery options. It is clear that data and analytics will play an integral role in determining the future of multiscreen and it is those operators who can be entrusted with their subscribers’ personal data and utilize it to tailor services that will benefit from multiscreen connectivity.

The article was by-lined to Dr Neale Foster, COO and VP Global Sales, ACCESS

Dr Neale Foster is COO and VP Global Sales at ACCESS, a global provider of advanced software technologies to the automotive, mobile, Internet of Things (IoT) and digital TV markets. Since 1984, ACCESS has provided advanced software solutions and services for over 1.5 billion mobiles, smartphones and tablets, connected TVs and set-top boxes. ACCESS will be demonstrating its multiscreen product portfolio including ACCESS Twine™, the NetFront™ Browser series and NetFront™ Living Connect at TV Connect at the ExCeL in London on April 28-30 (stand 93)

This article was originally published on www.tvbeurope.com

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