Quickplay and Comigo Partner to Deliver Enhanced Social and Interactive Viewing Experience for Next-Generation TV Services
Integrated Solution Enables Operators to Increase Viewer Engagement and Fuel New Revenue Opportunities
Toronto (08 Jan 2015)
Quickplay, the global expert in powering premium video to any device, and Comigo, a provider of a cutting-edge TV platform that enables unique TV viewing experiences on any device, today announced an integrated solution that allows pay-TV operators to deliver personalized viewing with advanced social capabilities and interactive apps for Live and Video-on-Demand (VOD) services. Using the new solution, operators can provide an engaging viewing experience to their customers on the TV screen and on companion devices, leading to new revenue opportunities for Pay TV operators.
Comigo's TV platform is facilitated by a flexible cloud-based solution that enables operators to fully manage and control the TV experience on any screen, improving their ability to provide personalized content recommendations, social engagement, and interactivity related to the viewed content. Quickplay's managed video platform provides the backend service, delivering secure streaming of nearly 700 live channels and hundreds of thousands of hours of encoded VOD content. Quickplay handles all of the adaptive streaming and content management, including DRM solutions like Microsoft® PlayReady®, user entitlements, dynamic advertising insertion, banner ad support, multi-language support, and featured content from over 200 premium content providers.
Social TV is increasingly becoming fundamental to the next-generation viewing experience. According to a recent Nielsen report of connected device owners, nearly half of smartphone owners (46 percent) and tablet owners (43 percent) said they use their devices as second screens while watching TV every day. More than half of smartphone and tablet owners visited a social networking site while watching TV, and at least one-fifth spent time reading social media discussions about the program they were viewing. This represents a huge opportunity for Pay-TV operators to take advantage of emerging business models, particularly around social and interactive viewing experiences.
"Highly personal, interactive experiences will play a crucial part in next-generation TV," said Wayne Purboo, CEO of Quickplay. "Over the last several years, consumers have come to expect access to TV on any device, but now they want more. They're not just watching TV, they're interacting with it. And that is a huge opportunity for service providers. Our partnership with Comigo further establishes our commitment to deliver market-leading social and interactive experiences to our customers."
"We are excited to partner with Quickplay to deliver an end-to-end TV platform, with a full managed service option," said Dov Moran, Founder and CEO of Comigo. "Quickplay has extensive experience with leading operators worldwide and excels at delivering a high-quality TV service."
Over the coming months, both companies will engage in various projects as part of Quickplay's growing Partner Program and will further align product roadmaps to continue delivering leading TV viewing experiences.
Quickplay and Comigo can be seen together at International CES, Las Vegas, January 6-9, 2015.
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About Quickplay
Backed by a decade of experience, Quickplay is the global expert in powering TV over any device, allowing premium video service providers to focus on growing their business. Quickplay's proven services leverage an open platform, cloud economics, and best-of-breed partners so providers can move faster, operate leaner, and offer the best TV experience anywhere. With facilities and experts in Toronto, San Diego, Singapore, Chennai, and Frankfurt, Quickplay enables 500 million people around the globe to fast forward to a next generation of TV with over 700 live channels, 4,000 live events each year, and 2 million securely managed premium content assets. Quickplay has successfully launched multiscreen video services for the likes of Verizon, AT&T, Rogers, Bell, and TELUS.
About Comigo (www.comigo.com)
Widely deployed worldwide, Comigo's TV platform allows pay-TV operators to offer a personalized, social and interactive TV experience on any device. Comigo platform is designed to increase viewer engagement and stimulate new revenue opportunities.
The heart of the Comigo platform is a back-end solution, fully controlled by the operator, which facilitates the whole viewing experience. As a complementary part of Comigo platform, Comigo provides Client-based solutions: an Android™-based STB and Client Apps for Android- and iOS-based smartphones and tablets.