UNISYS ENTERS INTERACTIVE VIDEO SERVICES MARKET WITH NEW VIDEO ON DEMAND SOLUTION.Initial NT-Based Video On Demand Offering Sends Up To 7,200 Concurrent Video Streams Unisys Corp. last week released details on its upcoming e-@ction Interactive Television Services solutions, advanced electronic business offerings that will enable cable operators and telecom companies to capitalize on Cap´i`tal`ize on` v. t. 1. To turn (an opportunity) to one's advantage; to take advantage of (a situation); to profit from; as, to capitalize on an opponent's mistakes s>. the emerging interactive television market. Video on demand, the first in a series of interactive television applications Unisys plans to make available, integrates a number of technological advances into a single-cost solution. Unisys video on demand allows subscribers to view movies with video player capabilities at any time, around the clock. The approach allows a high concurrency Operations that are performed simultaneously within the computer. For example, dual-core CPUs provide complete overlapping of two independent processes. See dual core, hyperthreading, multiprocessing, multitasking, multithreading, SMP and MPP. concurrency - multitasking per video, enabling the system to scale to meet growing demand. The advantage of the solution, says Unisys, is augmented by large scale server computers running Windows NT (Windows New Technology) A 32-bit operating system from Microsoft for Intel x86 CPUs. NT is the core technology in Windows 2000 and Windows XP (see Windows). Available in separate client and server versions, it includes built-in networking and preemptive multitasking. and engineered for extremely high I/O (Input/Output) The transfer of data between the CPU and a peripheral device. Every transfer is an output from one device and an input to another. See PC input/output. I/O - Input/Output bandpass that can send up to 7,200 concurrent video streams per server in a system designed to accommodate multiple servers with predictable competitive costs per subscriber. "We believe there is an untapped market for interactive video services developing," says Brian Hadfield, who heads Business Development and Communications for Unisys Systems & Technology. "We are entering this market with a video on demand component that we believe is unparalleled in price, performance and scalability. As cable operators implement this solution wide- scale, and look to new revenue sources from interactive video services, Unisys is prepared to offer a range of complementary interactive services that the operators can deliver to their subscribers' homes." The Unisys system is comprised of the multimedia application server, based on Unisys e-@ction Enterprise Servers, and the video servers. The multimedia application server provides the centralized cen·tral·ize v. cen·tral·ized, cen·tral·iz·ing, cen·tral·iz·es v.tr. 1. To draw into or toward a center; consolidate. 2. management and control of the VOD See video-on-demand. VoD - video on demand system, managing all the subscriber and content databases and providing interfaces to industry-standard billing systems. It also serves as the central processing point for all set top remote control commands and directs the video servers to stream content to set top boxes. The subscriber uses a VCR-like remote control to select a film from a menu on the television screen. The 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. decodes the selection and sends a message to the network, which routes it to the multimedia application server. The multimedia application server verifies the subscriber's authorization The right or permission to use a system resource; the process of granting access. See access control. to receive the video, logs the transaction against the subscriber's account for billing, and locates the video on one of the video servers. When the subscriber is authorized au·thor·ize tr.v. au·thor·ized, au·thor·iz·ing, au·thor·iz·es 1. To grant authority or power to. 2. To give permission for; sanction: to receive the video, the multimedia application server instructs the video server to stream the video to the subscriber's set-top box. If the video is not currently loaded on a video server, the multimedia application server retrieves it from storage and loads it onto an available video server for delivery. Unisys says it worked closely with a number of partners to design an open system that can interface with a variety of interactive television applications in the future. Unisys partnered with Prasara Technologies in developing an interface for add-on A purchase of additional goods before payment is made for goods already purchased. An add-on may be covered by a clause in an installment payment contract that allows the seller to hold a security interest in the earlier goods until full payment is made on the later goods. services, which include Prasara's television banking, food ordering, community information and newly added e-retailing applications. Prasara also developed business management tools that record, track, and initiate billing procedures for purchases from the backend of the system. The Unisys video on demand solution can interface with multiple set-top boxes and their associated software (navigators, electronic programming guides, etc.) Unisys has been working with General Instrument Corp., Scientific Atlanta and Bosch to create a system that fully integrates with a number of platforms. The video on demand solution provides browser-style administrative controls Direction or exercise of authority over subordinate or other organizations in respect to administration and support, including organization of Service forces, control of resources and equipment, personnel management, unit logistics, individual and unit training, readiness, mobilization, for billing and access to films. A database of subscriber profiles is maintained to determine which viewers are authorized to access which films. The system records the initiation of a video stream in the system log for use in billing and the format of the billing records can match whatever interface standards the service provider specifies. For providers who want to post usage of particular streams electronically, the system can gather the usage data for transmission to a centralized asset tracking authority. |
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