ACCESS releases NetFront Browser BE v2.8

Latest release of ACCESS NetFront™ Browser BE puts TV and Automotive Entertainment Centre Stage

OBERHAUSEN — ACCESS Europe GmbH announces the release of NetFront™ Browser BE v2.8 that supports the company’s goal of providing the automotive, entertainment, and media markets with the most secure and advanced commercial embedded browser. This major new release, based on an up-to-date Chromium Core (80), brings pre-integrated entertainment services to cars, TVs, and consumer electronics devices.

“The key focus of this update is to enable the rapid and secure launch of entertainment services across as many devices as possible. ACCESS is uniquely placed to do this due to our experience of implementing browsers worldwide in over 1.5 billion consumer electronics devices,” says Dr. Neale Foster, CEO at ACCESS Europe.

“We have added security features and critical entertainment functionality to NetFront Browser BE to enable automotive and media companies to widen their customer base for entertainment services, including premium audio and video across all connected devices. The browser provides seamless access to a leading independent App Store and integration with most Smart TV and in-car entertainment operating systems, to reduce the time-to-market of exciting new media services,” concluded Foster.

By leveraging the Chromium 80 core, ACCESS ensures its customers can benefit from the latest browser security features missing in other smart TV and automotive browsers that are typically based on older releases. This release also ensures maximum compatibility with today’s must-have OTT services, thus reducing maintenance costs and time-to-market. Coupling this embedded solution with the market-leading NetRange App Store enables vendors to quickly and efficiently launch smart TVs worldwide and new in-car entertainment services with confidence.

ACCESS’ long-standing experience with worldwide standards, such as HbbTV, Hybridcast and BML makes it the ideal partner for OEMs targeting regional markets. Enhanced functionality, such as in-home and in-car media sharing allows OEMs to extend their digital relationship to other consumer devices via apps on Android and iOS smartphones and tablets.

Key NetFront Browser BE Core release SDK 2.8.0 features include:

• Built on Chromium 80, providing support for the latest security patches and content compatibility, offering up-to-date support for HTML5, CSS, JavaScript
• Secure, multi-process architecture enabling sandboxing and OS level protection to provide maximum defence against malicious or poorly written applications
• Options for HbbTV, Freeview Play, Hybridcast and YouTube to give worldwide standards coverage.
• Proven DRM integration, supporting Widevine and PlayReady, including TEE
• Support for Android, Linux and embedded OS, such as QNX
• High-performance graphics support, including Android tunnel mode for 4K/8K advanced TVs and STBs
• Open media player APIs enabling integration with advanced media players from SoC vendors or industry-standard players
• Pre-integration with the NetRange App Store for Smart TV, OTT and Automotive
• Optional UPnP based media sharing capabilities for in-car and in-home to extend OEM’s consumer brand relationship