Minerva Unveils First Complete Broadband TV Solution

Industry’s First BBTV Reference Platform Models New Solution, Reduces Risk and Accelerates Time to Market as Operators Pursue Opportunities in Advanced Pay TV Over Broadband

LAS VEGAS, NV — Minerva Networks, a leading provider of software solutions for the delivery of television services to IP connected devices, today revealed a complete pay television solution deployable over broadband networks. Built on Minerva iTVFusion 5, the new Broadband TV (BBTV) service combines the advanced linear and on-demand video content consumers desire over a service provider’s data network. Additionally, Minerva and its network of industry partners launched a fully functional BBTV Reference Platform and Solutions Guide that will serve as a framework for operators to investigate, model and assess business opportunities available through Minerva BBTV.

The reference platform and solutions guide provide a unique working model, and detail best practices and optimal business strategies for operators who are looking to expand their service offerings with the new BBTV solution. Whether an IPTV operator wants to extend its reach to new customers beyond the current network bandwidth limitation, or a broadband service provider is interested in offering a new high margin, easy to deploy pay TV service, the guide addresses the business rationale and alternative market positioning. Together, the platform and guide reduce risk and reveal insights into successful BBTV initiatives.

Mauro Bonomi, CEO of Minerva, commented, “Broadband TV gives operators new opportunities to reach, engage, and build relationships with their customers. A rich television experience, which blends linear TV programming with a combination of local services and premium on-demand content plus the vastness of Internet video sources, creates an attractive service that operators can monetize.”

“In a recent study, The Diffusion Group identified a significant market opportunity for service providers,” said Andrew Morton, VP of Broadband TV at Entone. “Between the high price of a full pay TV service bundle and the lower cost but less fulfilling OTT [Over-The-Top] or over-the-air content, there is a significant value gap which the broadband network operator is uniquely positioned to fill, with a lower cost and higher margin offering such as the Broadband TV solution that is enabled by Minerva and Entone.”

Reference Platform Decreases Deployment Risk and Time to Market

The new Minerva Broadband TV Reference Platform has been fully vetted in lab and operational environments. Working with BBTV eco-system partners, including Harmonic, Avail-TVN, Verimatrix, Juniper Networks, Entone, and Wistron NeWeb (WNC), Minerva has built a robust BBTV solution powered by its Minerva’s iTVFusion 5 platform.

“By building and validating a Broadband TV reference platform, Minerva has proven the ability to deliver a compelling user experience over broadband data networks and eliminated the operator’s deployment risks,” said Jean-George, CTO and EVP of Products, at Minerva. “We plan to continue adding eco-system partners, to increase operator flexibility and service portfolio.”

“Clearly, leveraging a well-made reference platform is one of the most efficient paths for an operator to get new services to market quickly. Not only is the bulk of core design and development complete, but issues such as interoperability can be built in and tested well ahead of time,” said Brett Sappington, Director of Research at Parks Associates, a leading industry research firm specializing in emerging consumer technology products and services.

The Minerva Broadband TV solution incorporates many of the latest Internet technologies such as Adaptive Bitrate (ABR) streaming, advanced data network Content Distribution Networks (CDN), cross platform digital rights management (DRM)/Conditional Access Systems (CAS), wireless 8.02.11x LAN and quality of experience (QoE). The result is a solution that improves the end user experience, reduces CAPEX and lowers OPEX for the network operator, and protects the delivery of valuable content from multiple sources to multiple devices.

“Service providers are increasingly interested in evolving their networks to more efficiently deliver the advanced video and TV services consumers desire,” said Tom Fountain, VP/GM of Juniper Networks’ Content & Media Business Unit. “Minerva’s iTVFusion 5, combined with the Juniper Networks Media Flow portfolio of content delivery solutions, facilitates that evolution, enabling innovative offerings like Broadband TV.”

Thierry Fautier, Senior Director, Convergence Solutions from Harmonic, adds, “In the last year, we have seen tremendous growth in the maturity and demand for Adaptive Bitrate Streaming. ABR provides the necessary agility and robustness to deliver video content regardless of the source over a multitude of networks to a wide variety of devices. Harmonic is pleased to continue its long standing IPTV relationship with Minerva for OTT applications.”