Microsoft, TWIi and Vidiator Team Up to Launch
End-to-End Platform Reduces Barriers for Quick and Easy Deployment of Video Services
For Wireless Devices
REDMOND, Wash. — March 11, 2004 — Microsoft Corp., TWI Interactive (TWIi) and Vidiator Technology Inc. today announced the launch of MobileVision, an end-to-end solution for the management, creation and delivery of digital video content for mobile users. Jointly created by Microsoft, TWI Interactive, a major provider of media management and creation solutions, and Vidiator Technology, a leading provider of rich media delivery technology targeting wireless networks, MobileVision is available today from TWIi and provides wireless operators and content providers with all the tools needed to easily deploy and operate a mobile video service.
MobileVision offers network operators, content and applications service providers, and rights owners a fully integrated content management, transcoding, streaming, billing and customer-care solution. MobileVision benefits from being optimized for Microsoft® Windows Media® 9 Series and for the industry-standard 3GPP formats and protocols by using Vidiator’s adaptive transcoding and delivery technology that enables the distribution of mobile services to the widest range of handsets using either Windows® or non-Windows operating systems.
“Consumers have come to expect access to compelling content from a number of different types of devices, whenever and wherever they want it,” said
MobileVision offers operators and content providers unprecedented time to market, minimizing development time and allowing them to launch wireless content delivery services in as little as four weeks. MobileVision can be provided as a hosted service from TWI Interactive.
“The demand for streaming of content will accelerate once consumers experience the MobileVision service,” said
“Mobile video content services are emerging as a viable market opportunity for content owners and a logical means for consumers to access high-quality content,” said Todd McCormack, CEO at TWIi. “To date, the required skills and costs associated with building and licensing their own infrastructure have prohibited companies from entering this space. However, we’re confident that MobileVision will be welcomed as a solution which enables organizations to quickly and easily start offering high-quality video content to consumers.”
Highlights of the MobileVision solution include the following:
· Video acquisition from one source or multiple sources
· Presentation of content to end users or customers via custom-designed mobile video portals
· Enhanced service management tools including billing, customer care and reporting, enabling organizations to provide a high-quality, consumer-driven service
· Reporting for return on investment and measure of success criteria
· Availability as a hosted service from TWIi
· Support of multiple video formats, mobile handsets and 2.5G/3G network technologies
· Easy integration with operator customer care and billing systems
· Inclusion of optional turnkey content partners in sports and entertainment
· Carrier-grade reliability, fault-tolerance and scalability for mission-critical media delivery
As well as providing Windows Media and Microsoft .NET technology expertise, the Microsoft global telecommunications team will help introduce and deploy the solution to wireless operators.
TWIi is providing the service infrastructure, integration expertise, and content management and billing platforms. Operators also can license from TWIi content in sport and entertainment as an optional additional service and bring that content in-house using in-house resources.
Vidiator is providing carrier-grade media delivery technology integrated within the core of the platform. Vidiator’s suite of products enables the encoding, decoding, transcoding and streaming of multiformat rich media to wireless devices. Vidiator’s media delivery platform also enables 3-D rendering and animated wireless messaging.