Vimond And Vizrt Team Up To Offer Online And Mobile Platform

Vimmond Media Solutions, which provides a comprehensive environment for managing and delivering multiformat over-the-top (OTT) media services, announced at NAB that it is teaming up with Vizrt, a leading provider of digital media software for the TV and online publishing industries, to offer an end-to-end solution that allows broadcasters, distributors and media companies to create and offer their own online video services that monetise content with full broadcast quality.
At the heart of the combined solution is the Vimmond video player, which supports simultaneous streaming to different devices and opens up for payment and access to content directly through a television set. The same player logic and functionality works across multiple platforms, allowing consumers to enjoy the video experience over PCs, TVs, mobile phones, tablets, IPTV boxes, media centre consoles, connected TVs, game consoles, and IP-enabled set-top boxes. The platform can also be extended to other formats through its open API.
Helge Høibraaten, CEO of Vimond Media Solutions, said: "Our combined solution with Vizrt will allow broadcasters, distributors and media companies to monetise their content while providing superior, engaging and attractive end-user experiences based on live and on-demand video services. And because our player has been developed and intensively tested in real production for many years, broadcasters will now have a flexible, proven and stable system with which to create their own online video services."
Francois Laborie, Chief Commercial Offier at Vizrt, said: "With Vimmond on board, Vizrt offers one workflow for video streaming and all supporting functionalities, such as subscriptions, advertising, geo-blocking, digital rights management and analytics. The complete live and on-demand package comes in one framework, securing smooth delivery on every viable platform or device needing a specific video format or content enhancement."
The Vimmond control servers and the Viz Media Engine transcoders are central to the online video solution that takes advantage of the Microsoft Smooth Streaming adaptive streaming technology to provide a high-quality viewing experience that scales massively on content distribution networks. Broadcasters can build their own Hulu-like websites and offer a range of business models, including subscription, pay-per-view, and ad-supported services.
The production workflow is tightly integrated, keeping costs low and efficiency high. Vimmond already integrates with the existing Vizrt workflow, from storage and transcoding in the Viz Media Engine to online publishing via Esenic Content Studio. All live streams are logged and archived to a dedicated Media Asset Management (MAM) server to build highlights, teasers, or editorially enhanced content later on. Vizrt offers the entire spectrum of Web TV players from in-page standalone players to advanced Web TV players with live sports statistics and subscription management to live TV with electronic programme guides (EPGs).
The solution also includes advanced magnetisation and administration logic. The solution can be made available on-premises, hosted as a SaaS or as a hybrid hosted/on-premises model. Although Vimmond Media Solutions is a new company launched in Q1 of 2011, the technology embodied in the Vimmond Video Platform has been developed and proven in production over more than ten years at TV 2 in Norway and at other Scandinavian broadcasters. Now available for the first time to broadcasters, telcos, and media organisations, the Vimmond Video Platform provides an intuitive and mature environment for production staff to manage the distribution of online video content, a powerful set of tools for managers to create commercially successful services, and a stable, high-quality experience for viewers.
(KMcA)