Netgem Launches Open Platform for Interactive TV.Business EditorsNEUILLY-SUR-SEINE, France--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 20, 2001 First European Open Sporting events called the European Open include:
Internet TV (1) Watching TV programs on or from the Internet. There are countless video clips available on Web sites for streaming as well as subscription services that offer TV programs and movies for downloading. for Viewers Netgem (Paris NM: ETGM.LN), one of Europe's leading developers of technologies enabling interactive TV based upon open and Internet standards See Internet Engineering Task Force. , announced today a design platform to accelerate development of interactive services for digital TV viewers worldwide, integrating IBM (International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, www.ibm.com) The world's largest computer company. IBM's product lines include the S/390 mainframes (zSeries), AS/400 midrange business systems (iSeries), RS/6000 workstations and servers (pSeries), Intel-based servers (xSeries) chipset technology. The Product Reference Design incorporates Netgem's new interactive digital software platform and IBM's STB See set-top box. STB - set-top box 032 set-top box The cable TV box that sits on "top" of the TV "set," although it is often located several feet away in an equipment rack. The set-top box descrambles the premium channels and provides a tuner for the higher cable numbers that very old TVs did not support. integrated controller. The platform offers TV network operators, consumer electronics suppliers and internet service providers Internet service provider (ISP) Company that provides Internet connections and services to individuals and organizations. For a monthly fee, ISPs provide computer users with a connection to their site (see data transmission), as well as a log-in name and password. , an open, secure and flexible base upon which to develop and differentiate viewer services such as: pay-TV; interactive gaming, banking and shopping; internet access and broadband offerings such as video and audio on demand. "Television is an ideal means of addressing large numbers of users and communicating with them interactively," said Eric Le Bihan, Vice President of Products & Solutions Netgem. "The Netgem and IBM solution can help a company build a personalized interactive relationship with its customers." Television is playing a crucial role in enabling the practical and cost-effective expansion of interactive services, together with a new generation of communicators, such as mobile phones, Internet access devices and games consoles. In Europe alone, Forrester Research estimates that the number of interactive TV households will grow from 15 million in 2000 to 80 million in 2005. "New services and opportunities generated by emerging interactive applications need a powerful and robust integrated architecture," said Eric Tsou, director of Digital Video Products Group, IBM Microelectronics. "The combination of IBM's advanced set-top box chips and Netgem's innovative platform solutions are geared to helping customers accelerate the expansion of interactive TV services." Netgem and IBM will provide a complete reference design platform incorporating the power of IBM's advanced PowerPC-based STB controller, with an embedded Linux port and Netgem's innovative digital software platform. "The benefits to consumer electronic manufacturers of using such a platform with a stable and free-of-charge operating system such as Linux and Netgem interactive software platform, delivering open internet standard software such as HTML HTML in full HyperText Markup Language Markup language derived from SGML that is used to prepare hypertext documents. Relatively easy for nonprogrammers to master, HTML is the language used for documents on the World Wide Web. , Javascript and IP are clear", according to Joseph Haddad, CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. Netgem. "Our Product Reference Design represents a significant step in the switch from analog to digital television. TV operators, electronics suppliers and internet service providers can obtain real competitive advantage through development of differentiated services combining the best of digital and internet technologies on the same state-of-the-art platform." Netgem is a leading provider of interactive TV technologies based on open, DVB (Digital Video Broadcasting) An international digital television (DTV) standard that is the European and Far Eastern counterpart of the North American ATSC standard. and Internet standards. Netgem licenses its interactive TV software platform to analog and digital network operators (terrestrial, cable, satellite operators, telcos and Internet service providers) and consumer electronic manufacturers (television, set-top-box ...). Netgem technology enables interactive shopping and advertising, web and mail access, video and audio on demand... Netgem offers a complementary catalogue of applications and a comprehensive range of professional services and reference designs. Netgem also supplies a range of turnkey interactive products enabling time to market deployments. www.netgem.com |
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