Saturday, January 9th
Noon – 1:00 PM
Las Vegas Convention Center

There are as many phrases to describe the monetization of digital content as there are industry executives trying to codify it. What’s the difference between free and freemium? Is there a market for paid content? Has technology destroyed the information business or revived it? Come ready to express your opinion.

Moderator: David E. Leibowitz, Managing Partner, CH Potomac

Panelists:

Marty Roberts, Vice President of Marketing, thePlatform
Stuart Rosove, Vice President, Media & Entertainment, Digimarc Corporation
Brian Lakamp, EVP Digital Media, Premiere Radio Networks
Jim Benz, Executive Director, CSG Systems
Matt Knopf, Vice President, Business Development, PLYmedia
Michael Manzo, Chief Marketing Officer, Openet
Mike Glickenhaus, CEO, Vmix

SEATTLE – Nov. 18, 2009 – Programming networks face an increasing number of technical options and requirements as they evaluate their “TV Everywhere” plans. Today, thePlatform, the leading white-label video publishing company, announced a new suite of features designed to enable programmers to provide “TV Everywhere” capabilities on their own Web sites, while preserving their financial and content rights arrangements with TV service providers.

“In a world where multiple service providers offer multiple subscription packages on multiple platforms, programmers need a simple, flexible solution that helps reduce complexity and meet the expectations of their service provider partners and consumers,” said Ian Blaine, CEO of thePlatform. “This is a natural enhancement of a very successful business model between programmers and TV service providers. Consumers win because there will be far more online video than ever before, and both programmers and service providers win because they can extend their video to the Web in a secure manner.”

To date, most of the public discussion about “TV Everywhere” has focused on the “authentication” of subscribers, in other words, how a programmer’s Web site knows whether an individual consumer is a subscriber to a particular TV service provider. thePlatform’s solution addresses that challenge and then adds the capability to validate and authorize the playback of individual shows. In addition, the company supports adaptive content discovery and monetization policies to support various business policies between programmers and service providers, and offers a range of other tools to improve online viewing for consumers.

Authentication and Authorization

The initial challenge for programmers’ Web sites is to authenticate a consumer is a subscriber to a particular TV service provider. Complicating matters are the various back-end billing systems used by TV service providers. Today, thePlatform introduced a new Authentication Adapter service as part of its media publishing system (mps). The Authentication Adapter will act as a proxy that can authenticate consumers for programmers for the numerous TV service providers’ billing systems. With this adapter, thePlatform will manage the complex cross-referencing and interface required from the various companies involved.

Once a consumer is authenticated as a subscriber, programmers need a mechanism to authorize playback of each show based on the consumer’s subscription package. To accomplish this, thePlatform maps each individual video to each service provider’s channels. By connecting the consumer to a list of approved channel IDs and each video to its channel ID, thePlatform’s video management system can provide robust and flexible authorization tools necessary for “TV Everywhere” video playback. Within milliseconds, thePlaform’s system can verify alignment between the video, the TV service provider’s channel lineup, and the consumer’s subscription package; ensure that media rights associated with individual shows – such as airdates, geographic restrictions, and other business polices – are enforced; and re-verify that the consumer is still an active customer of the TV service provider. This approach will ensure that consumers can start watching their video instantly, while the business policies and financial obligations between programmers and service providers are maintained.

Adaptable Content Discovery and Monetization

Programmers also need flexibility when it comes to personalizing their video Web sites for consumers based on business arrangements with TV service providers. For example, if a consumer visits a programmer’s Web site and searches for a particular show that isn’t included in their TV subscription package, service providers have a choice of what to present to the consumer. These options include: constraining the search results to only those videos the consumer is allowed to watch; providing full search results with an up-sell opportunity to subscribe to a premium subscription package; or offering a pay-per-view option for that online show, similar to today’s TV video on demand (VOD) systems. thePlatform’s “TV Everywhere” solution serves as the source of standardized content access rules across service providers, providing programmers with the versatility to support these various scenarios.

In addition, thePlatform’s media publishing system (mps) provides programmers with a wide variety of other online video tools, including comprehensive video management, optimized content delivery network (CDN) policies, advertising campaign system integration, support for all major video playback technologies such as Adobe Flash, Microsoft Silverlight, Move Networks, and others, reporting capabilities and more.

Media companies use thePlatform’s mps as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced online video views annually. thePlatform currently provides online video management services to four of the top five U.S. cable TV service providers, numerous programmers, and other leading media companies. thePlatform is also managing the back-end for Comcast’s On Demand Online trial in conjunction with numerous programming networks.

SEATTLE – Oct. 6, 2009 – thePlatform, the leading white-label video management and publishing company, and Tremor Media, the leading online video media company, have partnered to introduce a new set of comprehensive advertising management features for online video as part of thePlatform’s media publishing system (mps). The new Acudeo ad policy and management tools are designed to help publishers increase their advertising revenue, while decreasing the complexity of managing a vast ecosystem of advertising partners.

With thePlatform’s newly integrated Acudeo ad policies, companies with premium online video sites can now manage advertising policies, patterns, formats, and delivery in a single, easy-to-use interface. The new features will serve established companies seeking to integrate multiple advertising networks, or companies building new video sites that want a high-degree of flexibility and adaptability.

“For many professional online video sites, managing advertising policies can be a major headache,” said Marty Roberts, vice president of marketing for thePlatform. “It’s often a very fragmented and complex process. Our new features, however, are specifically designed to simplify our customers’ lives so they can focus on how to best generate revenue for their video.”

“We are thrilled that thePlatform selected Acudeo as their ad management platform to empower publishers with a seamless solution for monetizing video inventory,” said Jason Glickman, CEO of Tremor Media. “Our expanded partnership with thePlatform further demonstrates the value Acudeo brings to the market and validates the need for a single-source inventory management and monetization solution for video publishers”.

Acudeo Ad Policies

Customers can take advantage of an intuitive and easy-to-use control panel to set up and execute video ad policies. The new features offer a comprehensive menu of advertising policy management benefits, including the ability to:

• Manage and prioritize advertising sources: Companies can integrate and optimize the performance of multiple ad networks in order to find the right mix that maximizes advertising revenue. Companies can also set up failover policies to ensure uninterrupted ad delivery.
• Set advertising patterns: Publishers can set the use of pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll ads, and add overlays, companions, and display banners. Ad timing can use chapter points in long-form videos or run ads before a variable number of short-form video plays.
• Control ad formats and ad playback: Ad operation teams can set IAB-compliant in-stream and overlay formats, define playback policies, and sync companion banner ads with ad streams.
• Incorporate new or evolving capabilities: Using Acudeo ad policies helps companies future-proof their ad platform, saving time and effort, by taking advantage of the system’s ever-evolving list of integrations and updates. In addition to Acudeo’s compatible ad source format, Acudeo is designed to support the Digital Video Ad Serving Template (VAST) format as distributed by the IAB. Additionally, Acudeo is pre-integrated with major video ad networks, ad serving and video analytic technologies.

Media companies use thePlatform’s media publishing system (mps) as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced online video views annually. Customers of thePlatform have the option to easily add the Tremor Media ad network as part of the new Acudeo ad policy management and monetization tools.

SEATTLE – Sept. 29, 2009 – Today, thePlatform, the leading white-label video management company, announced that it has been selected to manage and publish online video for the Big Ten Network. Specifically, thePlatform will provide centralized back-end management support for two major video initiatives, one aimed at serving international audiences outside the U.S. and Canada, and the other serving domestic sports fans.

The Big Ten Network, a joint venture between Fox Cable Networks and subsidiaries of the Big Ten Conference, is the first nationally distributed network dedicated to covering one of the premier collegiate conferences in the country. For international fans, the Big Ten Network will utilize thePlatform’s media publishing system (mps) to manage the Big Ten Network’s new international streaming package, the “Big Ten Ticket.” All televised Big Ten Network football and men’s basketball games will be available live and on-demand online to viewers living outside of the United States, Canada and the Caribbean on www.BigTenTicket.com. The Big Ten Network will televise between 35-40 football games and 105 regular season men’s basketball games, plus three Big Ten Tournament games, in 2009-10.

For North American audiences, thePlatform’s media publishing system will also support the Big Ten Network’s webcast of a wide-range of other sports video for the fans of the University of Illinois, Indiana University, University of Iowa, University of Michigan, Michigan State University, University of Minnesota, Northwestern University, Ohio State University, Pennsylvania State University, Purdue University, and University of Wisconsin.

“We are expanding our online video efforts to serve the fans of the Big Ten Network worldwide,” said Michael Calderon, director of new media for Big Ten Network. “thePlatform has a proven history of managing large and complex video offerings for many leading content companies, and we believe their system gives us the flexibility, scalability, and ability to monetize video in the way that we need.”

“The Big Ten Network is already the place for fans to stay connected to their favorite teams and sports content within millions of households across the US,” said Marty Roberts, vice president of marketing for thePlatform. “We’re very proud to have been chosen to help them deliver more of their incredible library of collegiate sports video to online audiences around the world.”

thePlatform publishes video, and other media, to PCs, mobile devices, and TV. Media companies use thePlatform’s media publishing system (mps) as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced online video views annually.

Seattle, Wash. – September 15 – Today, thePlatform, the leading white-label video management company, announced that it has been selected by Travel Channel Media to manage and publish broadband video across both web and mobile destinations. Travel Channel Media is the premier channel for travel-related content, both on television and the web, serving an aggregated audience of more than 94 million U.S. cable homes and two million unique web visitors per month.

Travel Channel Media will utilize thePlatform’s media publishing system (mps) to manage the distribution and playback of short form programming, including original video and clips from popular shows such as: Travel Channel’s Man v. Food, Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern, Ghost Adventures, Samantha Brown’s Passport Series, and Dhani Tackles the Globe. In addition to broadband video publishing, thePlatform will also manage the network’s syndication efforts to third-party web destinations and mobile sites including: MSN Video, iTunes Podcast, YouTube, Comcast’s The Fan, as well as the mobile video services of Verizon Wireless, AT&T, and Sprint Nextel. Travel Channel Media is also utilizing thePlatform’s video player to create custom, interactive viewing experiences for their audiences.

“Due to the diverse viewing habits of our consumers, we want to broadly distribute our programs in order to reach the maximum number of viewers,” said Drew Frederick, Sr. Director, IT & Technology at Travel Channel Media. “We turned to thePlatform because of their vast experience in supporting wide spread syndication for online and mobile which allows us to quickly expand our advertising reach and grow our audience.”

“Travel Channel Media is widely viewed as one of the principal destinations for travel-related content, and we’re proud to support their broadband and mobile video efforts,” said Ian Blaine, CEO of thePlatform. “As their publishing needs grew increasingly complex, we were able to step in and help them distribute their content widely, increasing their brand exposure and the number of opportunities to monetize their content library.”

thePlatform publishes video and other media to PCs, mobile devices, and TV. Media companies use thePlatform’s media publishing system (mps) as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced online video views annually.

About Travel Channel Media

Travel Channel Media is an integrated travel media business, and is wholly owned by Cox Communications, Inc., a leading multi-service broadband communications and entertainment company. Travel Channel Media includes: the Travel Channel television network, available in 94 million U.S. cable homes; Travel Channel HD™, the network’s high-definition simulcast; travelchannel.com, the network’s broadband travel hub; Travel Channel’s video-on-demand (VOD) and HD VOD offerings; its mobile content platform, Travel Channel GO™; World Hum (worldhum.com), a leading online travel blog; and FlightDeck™, an innovative content-sharing and advertising network for online publishers and advertisers.

SEATTLE – Sept. 10, 2009 – thePlatform, the leading white-label video management and publishing company, today announced that more than 20 new companies have recently joined thePlatform Framework, the company’s extensive partner program. The vast majority of these newly integrated partner solutions are currently in production or trial with customers of thePlatform. With today’s announcement, thePlatform’s open media publishing system (mps) now has an even broader menu of pre-integrated service and technology choices to serve the professional online video market.

More than 80 companies now participate in thePlatform Framework, which spans the entire ecosystem of online video, including: advertising campaign management systems, ad sales networks, analytics and reporting, content delivery networks, content protection, media formats, transcoding engines, payment processors, syndication outlets, video search, and more.

“In an increasingly robust online video environment, media companies want the flexibility to integrate and test new technologies that best suit their business needs without worrying about compatibility issues,” said Marty Roberts, vice president of marketing for thePlatform. “Our role is to make online video publishing a seamless process for our customers and allow them to easily publish their content regardless of the technical requirements. thePlatform’s Framework is key to that strategy, and it enables our customers to work with a wide variety of best-in-class companies in the online video space.”

thePlatform publishes video, and other media, to PCs, mobile devices, and TV. Media companies use thePlatform’s media publishing system as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced online video views annually. thePlatform’s customers also benefit from a wide choice of pre-integrated partner services and technologies through thePlatform Framework.

thePlatform Framework gives technology companies full-featured software development kits, engineering support, training, and development sandboxes for a quick implementation. The recent additions to thePlatform Framework include companies in the following specialties:

Advertising and Monetization

• Auditude
• BrightRoll
• EyeWonder
• Google AdSense
• YuMe

Asset Management, Transport, and Protection

• Aspera
• Platformic

Community Creation

• Gloto

Content Delivery

• CDNetworks
• Nokeena Networks
• StreamGuys
• Velocix

Content Syndication and Discovery

• EveryZing
• Goodmail Systems
• Loomia
• The Filter
• Transpond

Mobile

• Azuki Systems
• Transpera

Reporting and Analytics

• MediaMorph
• TubeMogul
• Visible Measures
• Webtrends

Transcoding

• RadiantGrid Technologies

For more information, please visit our partner section.

With Verizon and Time Warner Cable adding TV Everywhere trials to the one already underway at Comcast, early successes in overcoming complex challenges to execution are dramatically improving the prospects for pervasive availability of this new subscription TV service model in the not-too-distant-future.

Read the rest of the interview here.

Listen to this webinar here.

To take your broadband video beyond novelty and into strategy, it’s critical to present a user experience that is compelling, interactive, and aligned with your business. This webinar will show you how to optimize your broadband video players to meet your business goals and provide a great user experience.

Will Richmond of VideoNuze hosted this web conversation with guests who are using thePlatform’s broadband video player solution to meet their goals:

• Bill Burke, Global Director Online Video Products for The Associated Press
• Joshua Kinberg, Director, Video Product Management, PBS Interactive

During this webinar, we discussed:

• Using player technologies to fulfill online video business considerations such as maintaining control of content through geo-restrictions
• Trends in user experience design across the broadband video landscape
• Some of the UI considerations when your business model requires players to be syndicated across broadband video sites
• How AP is able to give its 2000+ affiliates a packaged, customizable player
• How PBS has made it as easy to share broadband video content as broadcast content

Speakers

Joshua Kinberg
Director, Video Product Management – PBS Interactive

Joshua Kinberg is the Director of Online Video Product Management at PBS. He oversees design, development, and execution of rich video experiences for pbs.org, local station and producer web sites, and the video infrastructure of PBS and PBS KIDS. Before joining PBS, Joshua was VP Product Development at Odeo, a start-up focused on podcast search and syndication, and was the Founder & CEO of FireAnt, a startup that created the first RSS-enabled media player for the videoblogging community. Joshua holds an MFA in Design and Technology from Parsons School of Design in New York.

Bill Burke
Global Director Online Video Products, Associated Press

Bill Burke is responsible for global product management of AP’s online video products, including the subscription-based video and the Online Video Network (OVN). Subscription clips are produced for media and other digital companies around the world, while the OVN is an online video network of about 1,800 newspapers and television and radio stations in the U.S.

Burke joined AP in 1997 and until 2007 was Product Manager for ENPS, AP’s newsroom computer system, directing software development and managing enterprise installations such as Tribune and ESPN. Before joining AP, Burke was a news director, manager, and producer at several South Florida television stations, and at WIS-TV in South Carolina.

Marty Roberts VP of Marketing, thePlatform

Marty Roberts’ diverse leadership background includes ten years of product management and marketing. His experience developing strategy, building relationships with development organizations, and creating new products and services helped increase the customer base and profitability for organizations such as GiftCertificates.com and RealNetworks. Since joining thePlatform, Marty has contributed to the company’s success by updating the messaging, redesigning the web site, launching several successful products and increasing the brand awareness through advertising and PR.

Moderated By

Will Richmond
Editor/Publisher, VideoNuze and President, Broadband Directions LLC

Will Richmond is editor and publisher of VideoNuze, a widely-followed online publication which provides daily industry analyses and news aggregation for broadband video decision-makers available at www.videonuze.com. Will is also president and founder of Broadband Directions LLC (www.broadbanddirections.com), a market intelligence, consulting and industry events firm specializing in broadband-delivered video.

Will has worked in the broadband, cable TV, content and technology industries for 20 years. He is an acknowledged thought-leader in the fast-growing broadband video area whose insights are sought out by C-level executives, venture capitalists, journalists and others.

Will has spoken or moderated at numerous industry conferences and webinars. He currently serves on the CTAM New England and CTAM New York board of directors and American Public Television’s board of trustees. Will has a BS from Cornell University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

SEATTLE – June 26, 2009 – thePlatform, the leading white-label video management and publishing company, today announced that it was named by Seattle Business Monthly as one of “Washington’s 100 Best Companies to Work for in 2009.” At a recognition dinner held last night in Seattle, thePlatform was selected as the third best mid-sized company to work for in 2009, out of hundreds of nominated companies in Washington state.

“We are honored to receive this recognition from Seattle Business Monthly,” said Ian Blaine, CEO of thePlatform. “We continually strive to make thePlatform an engaging, fun, and rewarding place to work. As the online video industry grows, it’s clear that our success is dependent on hiring and retaining the best people available. We’re very committed to our employees, and extremely proud of the work they do everyday to serve both our customers and each other.”

“thePlatform’s strong performance in Seattle Business magazine’s 100 Best Companies To Work For competition reflects the strong culture that it has built to attract and retain talent,” said Leslie Helm, editor of Seattle Business magazine.

Media companies use thePlatform’s media publishing system (mps) as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced online video views annually. As tracked by comScore Video Metrix, thePlatform’s clients had a combined total of more than 689 million video views in March of 2009. Customers include BBC, Cablevision, CBS College Sports, CNBC, Comcast, Corus Entertainment, Cox Communications, ExerciseTV, Gannett/USA Today, HIT Entertainment, PBS, PBS KIDS Sprout, Sony BMG, Starz, Time Warner Cable and numerous others.