China Television Technology to use Syabas OTT set-top platform

Syabas Signs Memorandum of Understanding with China Television Technology, the New Media Division of CCTV (the Largest Television Network in China); Partnership Will Enable Original, High Definition CTT Programming to Be Streamed Directly Through Next-Generation Popcorn Hour Devices to Consumer HDTVs around the World

FREMONT, Calif. — Syabas, a global provider of over-the-top set-top software and hardware and makers of the award winning Popcorn Hour A-110 and newly released C-200, today announced the company has signed an MOU with China Television Technology, the largest media content and television programming producer in China. Under the MOU, CTT will develop a content channel application and service that builds on Syabas’s open application DAVID Box platform, which was announced at Digital Hollywood in April. The partnership entails CTT setting up a High Definition content application based on Syabas’ proprietary technology. The application is similar to a television network, only instead of broadcasting HD programming over the air, the compressed content is streamed over the Internet and decompressed to HDTVs and home stereos using Popcorn Hour hardware.

“This is a great opportunity for China Television Technology, and we look forward to working closely with Syabas to help bring our original HDTV programming to more viewers around the world,” said Bao Hongliang, vice general manager of China Television Technology.

“In today’s over-the-top set-top box market, content partnerships are key,” said Alex Limberis, chief operating officer of Syabas. “With today’s announced China Television Technology agreement, we will soon be able to offer our customers countless hours of original programming in and outside China. Some of which has never before seen outside of China’s boarders.”

Unlike competing Internet set-top boxes that support a limited number of Internet audio and video file types, the Popcorn Hour product line supports more than 30, including MPEG 1, 2, 4, AVI, H.264, Xvid, MKV, Windows Media and others. Popcorn Hour boxes today stream news and entertainment content from a number video partner sites including YouTube, Vuze, Revision 3, Mediafly, CNET TV, Veoh, Blip.tv, NBC, CBS, CNN and BBC and Internet radio sites, such as Radio box and Live365 Radio.