Akamai Powers Ecast Network

Akamai Technologies, a leading provider of rich media, dynamic transactions and enterprise applications online, has announced that it is enabling Ecast, which operates a large broadband touchscreen media network in the US, to effortlessly distribute premium content via its network of broadband touchscreens in more than 10,000 bars and nightclubs across the country.
Akamai is helping to speed delivery of Ecast's vast catalogue of digital music and rich media advertising. An important benefit of the Akamai backbone is the ability to push media content reliably across varying peak usage times. Ecast's need to service different audiences - including consumers, advertisers, jukebox operators as well as its own network operations staff, each with different needs and usage patterns - has made it an imperative to utilise Akamai's services.
Dave Schmidt, Vice President of products at Ecast, said: "Akamai represents another one of Ecast's competitive advantages. Our ability to quickly and accurately distribute new releases of software, music catalogues and promotional content, including full screen video, to all of our 10,000 locations at once is a huge benefit to our customers and partners."
A recent usage spike occurred on December 21, 2007 when Ecast saw the highest single-day usage and network activity in its history. Occuring at a normally busy time of year, the spike also fell on a Friday, which is typically the busiest day of the week. One-day consumer music plays exceeded daily averages by 36 per cent. With other providers, Ecast would have exceeded its bandwidth ceiling and incurred thousands of dollars in overage charges - and, even worse, would have simply failed to meet consumer demand. But with Akamai in place, Ecast was able to effortlessly handle this spike in usage without taking a hit to the chequebook or in any way impacting the consumer experience.
Brad Rinklin, Vice President of Marketing at Akamai, said: "Younger audiences' media consumption habits are rapidly changing, placing increased pressure on advertisers and the music industry to reach audiences in more engaging and compelling ways. The ability to provide a more immersive and interactive experience allows Ecast to be continuously drive revenue, engage a captive audience and create a dynamic environment for music enthusiasts.
"Prior to implementing Akamai's solution, we employed a time-and labor-intensive process to manage peak bandwidth. It often took five to eight hours to release such large content bundles. Now, with Akamai, we just 'let it fly' and don't worry about peak demand."
Further information is available at: www.ecastnetwork.com and www.akamai.com.
(KMcA)