News Release from: Cabot Communications
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial Team on 11 September 2006
Auntie explores digital television recording
Cabot Communications is working with the BBC in a technical collaboration exploring advanced digital television recorder functionality using MHEG technology.
Note: Readers of the Editor’s free email newsletter will have read this news when it was announced. . It’s free!
Cabot Communications is working in partnership with the BBC in a technical collaboration exploring advanced digital television recorder (DTR) functionality using MHEG technology. The outcome of this partnership will potentially traverse push video on demand (PushVoD) applications and various other enhanced MHEG applications such as narrative video based games. Rahul Chakkara, Controller BBCi, commented 'It is clear that audience needs are changing'.
'They want to watch, listen and use our content when and how they choose'.
'The BBC is working in partnership with Cabot Communications to explore ways in which DTR technology can be used to meet these emerging audience needs'.
A number of technical developments have already arisen as a result of the collaboration.
The partnership has leveraged several advantages through the control of DTR functionality via MHEG APIs including: the ability for MHEG applications to make bookings for content acquisition from the broadcast stream; download of data in a broadcast carousel onto the hard-disk drive (HDD); the ability for MHEG applications to access acquired media assets on the HDD including recorded programmes, text, images and AV clips; and the ability to launch MHEG applications resident on the HDD.
These features create many creative opportunities for content providers to both extend existing interactive services and offer completely new ones.
'The technology provides MHEG authors the building blocks to create more dynamic applications not only based on text and graphics but also AV clips', commented Giri Valliappan, Technical Marketing Manager at Cabot Communications.
'Push mechanisms allowing content to be 'pre-loaded' onto DTR boxes open up several application scenarios such as PushVoD, resident promotional trailers and larger MHEG applications'.
'In addition, the ability to store and launch MHEG applications on the HDD will enable application providers to deploy a wider range of applications whilst reducing usage of broadcast bandwidth'.
The BBC will be conducting a closed technical trial to test some of the technologies and navigation models around Push-VoD to DTR devices.
• Cabot Communications: contact details and other news
• Other news in Design and Development Software
• Email this news to a colleague
•
• RSS news feed for Cabot Communications
• RSS news feed for Design and Development Software
• Electronicstalk Home Page
Copyright © 2000-2006 Pro-Talk Ltd, UK. Based on news supplied by Cabot Communications
Click on the advertisement to visit the advertiser's web site now