brightcove
Latest
Brightcove's concept for an Apple TV
Brightcove CEO Jeremy Allaire is excited about the Apple TV and its future. The head of the video publishing powerhouse recently presented the idea of an apps-driven platform that relies on AirPlay to share content between the Apple TV and other Apple hardware. iOS devices, Allaire says, will become "the next-generation TV set-top box" and will bring "hundreds of thousands and soon millions of rich interactive applications and experiences onto your TV set." To bring this new way to interact with the TV one step closer to reality, Brightcove has introduced the App Cloud Dual-Screen Solution for Apple TV. The technology will let iOS users use AirPlay to stream a show to their HDTV, while simultaneously interacting with information about the show. You could, for example, watch an episode of History's Mountain Men and read trivia about the adventurers in the show at the same time. The solution includes a software development kit that'll let developers easily create dual-screen AirPlay-enabled apps. You can watch a demonstration of the technology in the video below. [Via AllThingsD] Show full PR text Brightcove Unveils App Cloud Dual-Screen Solution for Apple TV June 26, 2012 / Brightcove Press Release Media publishers empowered to easily develop rich iPad and iPhone content apps that simultaneously control full-screen content experiences on HDTV BOSTON, June 26, 2012 - Brightcove (NASDAQ: BCOV), a leading global provider of cloud content services, today unveiled the App Cloud Dual-Screen Solution for Apple TV. The new solution enables media publishers to develop rich content apps for the iPhone and iPad that simultaneously control content, data and information presented on an HDTV while displaying synchronized content on the iPad or iPhone. The unique dual-screen solution leverages Apple's AirPlay technology, which allows viewers to use applications that simultaneously present content, interactive options and data on both the touch device and an Apple TV. With Brightcove's new App Cloud Dual Screen Solution for Apple TV, media publishers can capitalize on the growing consumer trend of using mobile devices while watching TV. A national survey of more than 2,000 Web-enabled smartphone users conducted by Razorfish and Yahoo! found that "80 percent of respondents are mobile multitasking while watching TV."[1] Brightcove customers can now leverage this trend by offering their audiences a variety of enhanced viewing experiences, including the ability to stream programs to an HDTV while enjoying relevant content on the app such as actor bios, past-season recaps, trivia, photos, and more. "The App Cloud Dual-Screen Solution for Apple TV opens the door to a new kind of content experience for the connected consumer that blends the rich contextual information that fans crave with HD television viewing," said Jeremy Allaire, Brightcove chairman and chief executive officer. "App Cloud is transforming the iPad and iPhone app experience by marrying rich contextual content for mobile devices with online video viewing on the living room television." Availability Brightcove's new Dual-Screen App Solution will be included in the new App Cloud software development kit (SDK) and available to the open source community, enabling content owners of all kinds to accelerate time-to-market for building engaging dual-screen experiences with Apple TV and AirPlay. The availability of the dual-screen solution coincides with Brightcove's introduction of App Cloud Core, a free developer edition, also announced today at the Brightcove PLAY 2012 global customer conference. App Cloud Core enables developers to build an unlimited number of mobile applications using HTML5 and JavaScript. [See separate release] To learn more about the Brightcove App Cloud content app platform, visit http://www.brightcove.com/content-app-platform. Watch Live at Brightcove PLAY Brightcove will be live streaming the introduction of the Dual-Screen App Solution and other new App Cloud features during the Brightcove PLAY 2012 global customer conference keynote session today from 9:00 - 10:30 am ET. Tune in live at play.brightcove.com. About Brightcove Brightcove Inc. (NASDAQ: BCOV), a leading global provider of cloud content services, provides a family of products used to publish and distribute the world's professional digital media. The company's products include Brightcove Video Cloud, the market-leading online video platform, and Brightcove App Cloud, a pioneering content app platform. More than 4,200 customers in over 50 countries rely on Video Cloud to build and operate media experiences across PCs, smartphones, tablets and connected TVs. For more information, visit http://www.brightcove.com.
Brightcove announces support for HTML5 video
Brightcove, a Cambridge, MA-based company that specializes in online video provisioning for media companies and content providers (like TUAW and Engadget, for instance), has announced they will officially be supporting HTML5 video for their clients. Unlike Flash, HTML5 video (when encoded using the H.264 standard) will play on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. Brightcove's new HTML5 video platform will automatically detect what device the user is running and dynamically switch between Flash and HTML5 players to suit the device's capabilities. For existing Brightcove content providers, all they need to do (assuming their clips are already in H.264 format) is change the embedding code in their webpages to immediately access the HTML5-savvy version. Brightcove automatically encodes each submission in seven different formats & bitrates for optimal client delivery. Mike Rose spoke with Brightcove's CEO Jeremy Allaire last week, and in the conversation Allaire pointed out "the problem space for most publishers of video is not just about getting content to play back... the expectations for publishers of video have grown to include a lot of different things." The pieces to the video experience (beyond simply pushing pixels to the screen) include player UI, branding, analytics & monetization/ad strategies, to name a few. HTML5 doesn't yet have all the components of the toolkit to enable those features. "Ultimately what's necessary is that the industry needs to have this whole stack... of what people expect in the overall user experience of video, to be accessible and available in the HTML5 world," Allaire said. That full-featured playback option is what Brightcove Experience for HTML5 is trying to address. According to Allaire, right now there is "a pretty big gap, a lot of infrastructure that needs to be put in place" before all those capabilities are online, but "ultimately the objective is to provide the exact same quality, interactivity and built-in features [as Flash]... for any HTML5-capable device. Publishers want a single workflow to upload their content... that will work seamlessly for all their users." The initial version of the Brightcove tools for HTML5 will provide a basic playback template, but updates later in 2010 will add player template cutomization, advertising tools and analytics. HTML5 support will also work on Android phones.
iPad roundup: New York Times and others get HTML5 video, iPad app store demo, and more
The momentum towards HTML5 and away from (or at least in parallel with) Flash seems to be accelerating with today's launch of the free Brightcove Experience framework for HTML5 -- a "way to publish, distribute, and monetize web video for the iPad and other Apple devices" according to the Brightcove press release. While Brightcove might not be a household name, some of its 1,000 customers, including Time Inc. and The New York Times (a Brightcove investor), certainly are -- both of whom are already using the new HTML5 solution in preparation for the iPad's April 3rd US launch. A real coup for the Flash-hating Steve Jobs if you start factoring in the rumored Flash-free NPR and Wall Street Journal iPad sites as well as that little HTML5 iPad test CBS was testing out in the open last week. Also rumored for launch is an iBookstore filled with 30,000 free e-Books courtesy of the Gutenberg Project. See the screengrab evidence after the break in addition to a purported video walkthrough of the iPad store. The video previews several new "HD" formatted iPad apps that we've already seen as well as a few new ones like Twitterific. Sorry, still no Hulu HD. The mouse pointer in the video, however, makes it clear that this is running on desktop somewhere, not on an iPad. Still, it definitely looks the part.
VUDU offers up Brightcove ad-supported streaming video, Sony Music is the first to jump in
VUDU keeps adding to its offerings bit by bit, first Pandora, now Brightcove video is available, popping up in the VUDU Labs section. The first content up is from Sony Music's MyPlay Video Network, as Brightcove notches its first set-top box partner. You'll have to take a look to see what artists are available, but it's hard to argue with more free music to go with those HD & HDX purchases and rentals.
Select subscribers getting TiVoCast web-based programming
Following last month's deal with web video publisher Brightcove, TiVo has announced another round of partnerships that will bring various on-demand video clips to broadband-equipped Series 2 owners, with a new service called TiVoCast. The company has been making moves in this direction for some time now, but this is the first time we're being offered content that we'd actually bother watching, including NBA and WNBA highlights, New York Times-produced video (featuring David Pogue's often-humorous reviews), advice from CNET, and a dose of hip hop culture from H2O, along with male- and female-targeted programming from Heavy.com and iVillage, respectively. The new content -- accessible from the "Showcases" screen when it begins appearing next month -- will not be available to everyone, however, as USA Today is reporting that neither DirecTV subscribers nor Comcast customers will have access to any of these value-added TiVoCast downloads.
TiVo partners with Brightcove to offer Internet video
In an attempt to differentiate its product from the flood of DVRs and HTPCs on the the market today, TiVo has just announced a partnership with video publisher Brightcove to provide their broadband-capable customers with on-demand content. TiVo owners with Series 2 boxes will have access to "an as-yet-undisclosed set of Web-based programs" from the Cambridge, MA startup when the new service goes live this June, and although the initial round of programming will be free, the two companies plan on allowing content providers to charge for their material in the future. This move would seem to strengthen TiVo's position in the marketplace -- which may already see a boost in the near future if the rumored deal with Cox Communications materializes -- as their core business of providing hardware and guide services is quickly being being usurped by cheaper, and some might say better, alternatives.[Thanks, Dave Z]
