Tying in elements that are powering multiscreen offerings from broadcasters and programmers such as NBCUniversal and Fox, Anvato has launched a “turn-key” TV Everywhere platform that is tailored for cable operators and other types of multichannel video programming distributors [MVPDs].
Called Anvato Watch, the platform aims to simplify and streamline typically complex systems that deliver authenticated video services to an array of devices, including PCs, smartphones, tablets and gaming consoles.
Anvato already powers TVE and online video offerings for customers such as NBCU, Fox Sports, Univision, Hearst Digital Media, Lin Media, Gray Television, and Journal Broadcast Group, and is now extending its product set and best practices to the MVPD world, Matt Smith, Anvato’s chief evangelist said.
Anvato has yet to announce any MVPD agreements, but the company will focus on tier 2/3 MSOs (Anvato was pitching its new platform at last week’s The Independent Show in Kansas City), but also believes it can win business among tier 1s, and will also seek out wins with content providers that are developing pure over-the-top, direct-to-consumer services.
Elements of Anvato’s platform include content ingest (using a hybrid system that encodes locally using off-the-shelf hardware or in the cloud), player kits to deliver TVE services to multiple devices, and integrated ad insertion (working with systems from companies such as FreeWheel or Google’s DoubleClick) and data analytics systems. Smith said Anvato has already completed integrations with authentication systems from Adobe and Akamai or can work with the operator’s own database, if that’s how they prefer to handle authentication.
Anvato, he said, is agnostic in terms of support of private or commercial content delivery networks (CDNs).
Anvato’s turn-key approach is emerging as MVPDs and programmers look to simplify their TVE and online video architectures.
The technology integration wave has been active on the vendor front. thePlatform, the Comcast-owned online video publishing company, struck a strategic alliance and sales relationship last week with Verizon Digital Media Services (VDMS), the cloud video subsidiary Verizon Communications. thePlatform also has forged a similar integration and sales pact with Adobe.
