Software (Media Players, Middleware, Browsers, Stacks, …) News

V-Nova raises €33 million in series C round
Jul 26, 2021 – Video and image data compression company, V-Nova, has announced that thanks to Neva First, the alternative investment fund managed by Neva SGR, V-Nova has completed its series C round, raising a total of €33 million.
News categories: V-Nova, Intesa Sanpaolo, Guido Meardi, Mario Costantini, Content Distribution, Digital TV, Media Player, Venture Capital, Worldwide

Freesat 4K STB receives EICS certification with DTG Testing
Jul 22, 2021 – Freesat has become the latest company to have satellite receivers pass the European-wide assurance scheme for TV and Satellite distribution equipment known as the European IRS Certification Scheme (EICS).
News categories: DTG Testing, Freesat, CAI, Digital TV, QoE, Satellite, Set Top Box, UK

Sky Brasil's SKY Connect 4K Android TV DVR powered by Wyplay
Jul 22, 2021 – Wyplay has announced that it is powering SKY Connect, the 4K Android TV DVR, recently launched by SKY Brasil, building on the work done for the launch of Linux STBs for SKY Brasil and DIRECTV Latin America in 2016.
News categories: Wyplay, SKY Brasil, Jacques Bourgninaud, Android TV, Brazil, Digital TV, Satellite, Set Top Box

ThinkAnalytics rebrands its suite as 'Think360'
Jul 22, 2021 – ThinkAnalytics has rebranded its suite of products as 'Think360'. Think360 helps pay TV and OTT platforms deliver real-time personalization at scale, boosting engagement and reducing churn.
News categories: ThinkAnalytics, Peter Docherty, Advertising, Big Data, Digital TV, UX, Worldwide

ITV and Sky upgrade their commercial partnership
Jul 21, 2021 – ITV and Sky have signed a deal that includes enabling ITV to launch addressable advertising on Sky platforms. The ITV Hub app will also be added to the current ITV Hub service on Sky Q during 2022.
News categories: Sky, ITV, Stephen van Rooyen, Carolyn McCall, Advertising, Apps, Digital TV, Satellite, Set Top Box, Streaming, UK

Global Smart TV household ownership to exceed 50% by 2026
Jul 20, 2021 – According to Strategy Analytics, more than 665 million homes worldwide had a Smart TV at the end of 2020. This equates to 34% of global households, a figure that is set to rise to 51% by 2026 when ownership will reach 1.1 billion homes.
News categories: Strategy Analytics, Edouard Bouffenie, David Watkins, Digital TV, Market Research, Middleware, Smart TV, Streaming, Worldwide

HbbTV releases Targeted Advertising specification for TV sets in STB markets
Jul 20, 2021 – The HbbTV Association has published its second phase solution for targeted advertising. This enables substitution of broadcast with targeted ads when the broadcast signal is received by an STB and passed to an TV.
News categories: HbbTV Association, Vincent Grive, Digital TV, HbbTV, Set Top Box, Smart TV, Worldwide

Altice USA introduces Optimum and Suddenlink 4K streaming device
Jul 19, 2021 – Altice USA has unveiled Optimum Stream and Suddenlink Stream, a 4K streaming device powered by Android TV. The box, available to its broadband-only customers, is free with 1-Gig plans. Otherwise it costs $5 per month.
News categories: Altice USA, Hakim Boubazine, Android TV, Digital TV, IPTV, Set Top Box, USA

ThinkAnalytics integrates Gracenote Personalized Imagery
Jul 20, 2021 – ThinkAnalytics' has announced that its content recommendations are now integrated with Gracenote's Personalized Imagery for TV and movie titles, enabling the delivery of targeted image assets to support content selection.
News categories: ThinkAnalytics, Gracenote, Peter Docherty, Simon Adams, Big Data, Digital TV, UX, Worldwide