Narrowstep Inc., (BULLETIN BOARD: NRWS) the TV on the Internet
Company, has been chosen by Virgin Media to power their online video
offering, comprising a range of factual and entertainment content,
sports and movies. Narrowstep currently powers more than 150 TV-over-IP
channels, including Go Beyond TV for Land Rover, London TV, RomeReports
TV, and ITV Local.
Virgin Media uses Narrowstep's TelvOS(TM) internet TV
technology platform and services to co-ordinate and enable the
management and play-out of their recently-launched internet TV offering
which can be accessed at http://www.virginmedia.com by clicking on one
of five genre-themed on-screen buttons: Gaming, Knowledge, Movies, Sport
and TV. Content includes a mix of entertainment from Virgin Media
Television channels such as LIVINGtv, Bravo, Challenge and Trouble.
Whereas short-form broadband video clips have been around for
years, the ability to deliver television-quality long-format streaming
is a relatively new achievement and an area where Narrowstep is setting
itself apart from other internet TV providers.
David McCourt, CEO and Chairman of Narrowstep, said, "As more
and more consumers are seeking video online, it is important to deliver
top-end content in an efficient and usable manner. Our partnership with
Virgin speaks to Narrowstep's ability to deliver and monetize
high-quality, interactive, long- form content."
Jason Boswell, Acting Head of Commercial Development,
virginmedia.com, said, "We set out to take the best of both worlds
- the linear viewing experience of TV and the interactive two-way
experience of broadband - to play out the video content people want to
watch with browsing and click through opportunities, archive access and
advertising. Narrowstep provided us with the industry-leading technology
platform to do so."
Virgin Media was formed in 2006 through a combination of cable
businesses: ntl:Telewest and Virgin Mobile. The merged business became
the UK's first 'quadplay' media company bringing together
digital TV, broadband internet, mobile phone and fixed-line phone
services.
The new business includes a 50% stake in UKTV, a joint venture set
up between Telewest's Flextech content division - now known as
Virgin Media Television - and the BBC's commercial wing, BBC
Worldwide. Virgin Media Television's wholly-owned channels also
include Bravo and LIVINGtv.
Virgin Media's digital TV service is Virgin TV, the UK's
second largest pay TV service in the UK. Virgin Media's online
portal, www.virginmedia.com, currently attracts between ten and 12
million users each month, making it a top 15 UK website.
Visitors to virginmedia.com see a simple menu of different content
genres and users can also access archived content. Advertising is then
scheduled around this content. The technology allows Virgin to sell and
schedule ads around content, report back into the business and then
onwards to clients the exact number of viewers who saw any ad.
About Narrowstep (TM)
Narrowstep(TM) Inc. (BULLETIN BOARD: NRWS) , the TV on the Internet
company, is a leading global provider of broadband television services.
Narrowstep's proprietary technologies and customer-focused services
enable TV channels to be delivered over the Internet. 100+ companies
worldwide have chosen Narrowstep because it offers the most
television-like and true community building broadband experience. The
company's TelvOS(TM) (Television Operating System(TM)) and nBed(TM)
technologies enables the most comprehensive delivery of video to mobile,
wireless, Internet, broadband, VoIP and entirely new IP-delivered
broadcast services.
For more information, visit http://www.narrowstep.com or call
212/404-1400.
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