thePlatform is pushing cross-platform compatibility with a new offering that will let its customers create one video player that can be delivered to any device or browser that is trying to access it. That capability is being rolled out due to increased demand for HTML5 video, despite a lack of real standards across browsers for the display and rendering of video players.

Read the rest of the article here.

IMS Research, a leading global electronics market research company with over 80 analysts worldwide, awarded thePlatform with its prestigious 2012 TV Innovation Award for mpx at an award ceremony during CES 2012. Now in its third year, the TV Innovation Awards recognize the most forward-thinking companies creating products and services that are changing the way people watch television, and have grown to become one of the premier endorsements of innovation in television.

According to IMS Research President, Ian Weightman: “One of the main reasons that the TV Innovation Awards have become so sought after is that each entry is judged on a completely level playing field. This ensures that companies, ranging from the biggest names in consumer electronics to innovative start-ups, can measure objectively how their products stack-up against those of their competitors.”

thePlatform is proud of this accomplishment, and we look forward to providing our customers and partners with continued innovation throughout 2012 and beyond.

Channeling Television’s Innovation
GigaOm Roadmap 2011

If you’re watching a piece of digital video from a major broadcaster, there’s a good chance it’s handled by thePlatform. From humble beginnings, the company has grown to be a major industry player in the traditional broadcast market. In this talk, learn how the new platforms with which broadcasters’ work will dictate their innovation in the future and understand how the new platforms will affect the way you consume video.

When

4:10 PM
November 10th 2011

Where

Mission Bay Conference Center at UCSF

1675 Owens Street
San Francisco, CA 94158

Who

Ian Blaine, thePlatform CEO
Ryan Lawler, Staff Writer, GigaOm

SEATTLE, WA – October 3, 2011 – thePlatform, the leading white-label video publishing company, today announced the appointment of Michael (Mike) Horwitz as Vice President of Engineering and Tina Santos as the Chief Legal Counsel. Mr. Horwitz will lead thePlatform’s core product development, testing and deployment, and oversee the company’s operational business intelligence, including capacity planning and metrics monitoring. Ms. Santos will direct all legal and compliance matters for thePlatform. Both will be based out of the company’s headquarters in Seattle.

“Mike and Tina both have a tremendous record of accomplishment, and I am confident that their respective areas of expertise will strengthen our team,” said Ian Blaine, CEO of thePlatform. “Mike brings a wealth of knowledge to the company, in both technology management and product development functions. Tina brings extensive international experience and a strong background in corporate governance for technology companies. Both Mike and Tina will be valuable assets to thePlatform, as we continue to innovate and expand our business.”

Horwitz comes to thePlatform after spending more than five years in senior-level engineering positions at Comcast, building technology teams from the ground-up, managing backend data system development, and executing on the company’s online and next-generation product lines. Most recently, Horwitz served as Senior Director, Engineering for Comcast Converged Products. Before that, he was Senior Manager of Engineering and Principal Engineer, both for Comcast Interactive Media. Prior to Comcast, Horwitz was a technology manager and development lead for a number of network management start-ups in the greater Philadelphia area. Horwitz graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering. He will report to Ian Blaine, CEO of thePlatform.

Santos joins thePlatform after serving as the General Counsel for StreamServe – a global software company based in Boston – for the past six years, where she managed all legal aspects relating to the company’s internal and external operations in the U.S. and 13 jurisdictions in Europe and Asia. Previously, Santos was a Senior Associate at the London office of Coudert Brothers, LLP, and served as an Associate in the corporate securities and finance group of Perkins Coie, LLP. Prior to attending law school, she worked for Lone Wolf Technologies, a Seattle-based start-up company, where she managed all financing related activities, investor relations and was Corporate Secretary to the Board of Directors. Santos received her J.D. with honors from Seattle University’s School of Law, and graduated from the University of Puget Sound with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Santos will report to Jamie Miller, COO and CFO of thePlatform.

thePlatform publishes video and other media to PCs, mobile devices and TVs. Media companies rely on thePlatform’s mpx system as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced video views annually. thePlatform currently provides online video management services to numerous programmers, leading media companies, and five of the top TV service providers in North America, including the largest “TV Everywhere” deployments.

AMSTERDAM – Sept. 8, 2011 – At the IBC conference, thePlatform, the leading white-label video publishing company and independent subsidiary of Comcast, announced today that it was selected by Liberty Global, Inc., the leading international cable operator with operations in 14 countries, to provide the back-end video management system across its online video properties. Liberty Global will use thePlatform’s “TV Everywhere” solution to enable subscribers to catch-up and watch more of their favorite programs and movies on their computers.

thePlatform’s, cloud-based, mpx video management system will serve as the central aggregation hub for collecting, protecting, and publishing online video to Liberty Global’s various web portals. The system will also manage the authorization of online video watching based on a user’s paid TV subscription package.

“We’re committed to providing our subscribers even greater access to their favorite shows, and enhancing the value of their subscriptions beyond the TV screen,” said Ryc Brownrigg, Vice President of Digital Technology for Liberty Global. “By integrating with thePlatform’s mpx system, we’re gaining a powerful logistics hub that makes it easier for our subscribers to watch premium shows online, while preserving the content rights obligations we have with our content providers.”

“Liberty Global is unquestionably one of the preeminent leaders in television services around the world, and we’re extremely proud that they have selected mpx to help expand their efforts online,” said Ian Blaine, CEO of thePlatform. “Our role is to simplify the back-end complexity of online video management, enabling Liberty Global to bring new and innovative video services to market in an efficient and scalable way.”
thePlatform’s mpx system will be phased in to support various online efforts in select regions and then expanded globally. Additional details about the implementation and financial terms of the agreement between thePlatform and Liberty Global were not disclosed.

thePlatform publishes video and other media to PCs, mobile devices and TV. Media companies rely on thePlatform as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced video views annually. thePlatform currently provides video management services to numerous programmers, leading media companies, and five of the top cable TV service providers in North America, including the largest “TV Everywhere” deployments.

SEATTLE and STOCKHOLM, Sweden – Aug. 11, 2011 – thePlatform, the leading white-label video publishing company, and Real Life Venture AB, a digital media consulting company based in Sweden, today announced a reseller agreement to extend video publishing, management and development solutions across the Nordic countries of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The first joint customer is AB TRAV OCH GALOPP (ATG) with their ATG Vision initiative, the official international website of the Swedish Horse Racing Totalisator Board, which is using mpx to publish and manage video content for Swedish Racing including race replays, coverage, jockey profiles and introductory videos on racing and betting.

The joint solution gives content providers across Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden the ability to publish video to PCs, mobile devices and TV using mpx, an enterprise class video publishing platform with additional customization and system integration services from Real Life. With local and specialized support from Real Life, mpx will serve the growing media market in Nordic countries helping content providers extend video across multiple screens and destinations.

“Real Life has a great deal of experience in helping content providers architect and execute business models and technology solutions that extend their business,” said Simon McGrath, general manager of Europe for thePlatform. “As an authorized reseller of mpx we look forward to working with them as they offer local support and build custom solutions for customers across the Nordic countries.”

“Content providers with large video libraries like ATG, benefit from the combination of custom integration services and a scalable video platform to maximize their multi-screen distribution strategies,” said Bo Klevenstedt, president and founder, Real Life Venture. “mpx gives us the robust platform we need to offer our customers a full set of products to build out their digital media strategies.”

“Our business is at the center of an entertainment industry that grows each year globally via close collaborations with international partners. It was important that our online platform could keep up with the pace of change in this area and give us the ability to continue to grow and expand our presence,” said Magnus Tuononen, international project manager of ATG. “By working with Real Life to deploy mpx we were able to extend our business and bring the race track experience online with the flexibility to adapt our international strategy going forward.”

Real Life Venture offers strategic consulting services for content providers, helping them use technology to create business value for today, and step-function growth for tomorrow. The company specializes in helping customers to create online and digital destinations in the new media landscape.

Media companies rely on thePlatform as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced video views annually. The company’s mpx media publishing system is an enterprise class online video platform that offers a streamlined workflow and support for a wide range of online business models. thePlatform currently provides online video management services to numerous programmers, leading media companies, and five of the top cable TV service providers in North America, including the largest “TV Everywhere” deployments.

More information about Real Life Venture AB can be found at www.reallife-venture.com. More information about thePlatform can be found at www.thePlatform.com.

SEATTLE and AUCKLAND, New Zealand – Aug. 11, 2011 – thePlatform, the leading white-label video publishing company, and Hemisphere Interactive, a provider of multi-platform product development, today announced a reseller agreement to extend video publishing, management and development solutions in Australia and New Zealand. Under the new agreement, Hemisphere will become a preferred developer and authorized reseller of thePlatform’s mpx media publishing system, offering local support for customers across the Oceania region.

“We’ve enjoyed a good working relationship with thePlatform over the years, collaborating on online video projects with major media companies around the world,” said Glyn Beaumont, managing director, Hemisphere Interactive. “We look forward to offering our customers here in New Zealand and Australia an enterprise caliber publishing and management system that can help them achieve their business goals.”

“We think Hemisphere is the right fit for thePlatform in the region given their experience with major media companies,” said Marty Roberts, vice president of sales and marketing for thePlatform. “They understand both the business and technical requirements of online video in the local market and we look forward to working with them.”

Hemisphere Interactive provides multi-platform product development of large and small scale cloud-based applications and social media, applications, video distribution and data integration work for large media companies around the world. Customers include Turner Broadcasting, CNN, Comcast, Liberty Media, News Corp., HIT Entertainment and Lockerz.com.

Media companies rely on thePlatform as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced video views annually. The company’s mpx media publishing system is an enterprise class online video platform that offers a streamlined workflow and support for a wide range of online business models. thePlatform currently provides online video management services to numerous programmers, leading media companies, and five of the top cable TV service providers in North America, including the largest “TV Everywhere” deployments.

More information about Hemisphere Interactive can be found at www.hemisphereinteractive.com. More information about thePlatform can be found at www.thePlatform.com.

Portland, Ore. and Seattle – July 25, 2011 – Elemental Technologies, the leading provider of video processing solutions that enable multi-screen content delivery, and thePlatform, the leading white-label video publishing company, today announced a joint solution for processing and management of large, dynamic video content libraries for IP-connected devices. The integration, designed for service providers and media companies, combines the Elemental Server file-based video transcoding solution with thePlatform’s mpx video management system for multi-screen video delivery.

As part of today’s announcement, Elemental Technologies joins thePlatform’s premier partner program, and the two companies will jointly market each other’s solutions to customers. The first company to use the combined offering is Comcast, which relies on the technology to support its online and mobile initiatives.

“Elemental is at the forefront of providing robust and cost-effective transcoding solutions,” said Ian Blaine, CEO of thePlatform. “As online video libraries continue to expand, our customers need scalable means to ingest, transcode and distribute video. We look forward to working with Elemental to serve our mutual customers, and addressing new market opportunities together.”

“Elemental is excited to work with thePlatform to accelerate the management and processing of Comcast’s streaming assets to PCs, tablets and mobile devices,” said Sam Blackman, CEO and chairman of Elemental Technologies. “Comcast, and MSOs in general, are seeking solutions that allow them to cost-effectively scale their operations with minimal impact to existing operations. We’re proud to be ahead of the curve in this area.”
“Comcast is leveraging innovative new technologies that provide cost-effective performance enhancements as we bring more viewing choices to our customers online and on mobile devices,” said Charlie Herrin, senior vice president of product development and technology for Comcast Interactive Media. “Elemental has a highly reliable transcoding solution that coupled with thePlatform’s cloud-based video management, is helping us deliver compelling services to our subscribers.”

Today, Elemental Server’s integration with thePlatform’s mpx allows Comcast to deliver On Demand video to XfinityTV.com, and to the Xfinity TV app for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. Elemental Server also provides the capability to support other IP-devices.

thePlatform publishes video and other media to PCs, mobile devices and TV. Media companies rely on thePlatform’s mpx system as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced video views annually. thePlatform currently provides online video management services to numerous programmers, leading media companies, and five of the top TV service providers in North America, including the largest “TV Everywhere” deployments.

Elemental will exhibit its solutions for multi-screen video delivery at the CableLabs 2011 Summer Conference, August 7-10, in Keystone Colorado. Additional information about thePlatform is available at www.thePlatform.com. Additional information about Elemental is available at www.elementaltechnologies.com.

SEATTLE and LONDON – July 6, 2011 – thePlatform, an independent subsidiary of Comcast and leading white-label video publishing company, today announced the appointment of Simon McGrath as General Manager of Europe. Simon will lead thePlatform’s European go-to-market strategies and operations and will report to Ian Blaine, CEO of thePlatform. Additionally, the company announced that Darren Grimstead has been promoted to Director of European sales.

“Simon is joining thePlatform at a key inflection point in the history of thePlatform and the overall video market,” said Ian Blaine, CEO of thePlatform. “European content owners, TV service providers, and other video aggregators are seeking efficient and scalable means to deliver video across multiple screens. We’re confident that Simon’s operational, marketing and sales leadership will play a key role in serving the European market.”

Mr. McGrath has more than 20 years of experience leading strategic operational, marketing, sales and engineering initiatives at global organizations. Most recently, he served as Chief Marketing Officer and Commercial Director of EMEA at SeaChange International Inc., a global leader in the delivery of multi-screen video, which provides back-end solutions to companies such as AT&T, DISH Network, Hutchison Whampoa, Virgin Media, and many others. At SeaChange, McGrath led the acquisition of Mobix Interactive Ltd as well as held responsibility for all EMEA accounts, technology alliances and go-to-market strategies.

Prior to SeaChange, McGrath served as Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Director of Strategy, Development and Technology of On Demand Group Ltd., a subsidiary of SeaChange since September 2005. He joined On Demand Group in 2002 as its first Chief Technology Officer, leading the development and launch of ntl (now Virgin Media) Video On Demand, as well as building On Demand’s Content Preparation Centre in London. Previously, McGrathserved as Chief Sales and Communication Officer and Executive Board Member of Lysis SA, a software company specializing in advanced content management solutions for digital television based in Switzerland. McGrath joined Lysis in November 1999 through the acquisition of Concision Limited, a company he founded. He holds a master’s degree in computer science from Cambridge University.

Darren Grimstead has spent the last eight years leading thePlatform’s media and entertainment sales channel as Director, Media & Entertainment Sales. His clients include: PBS, Starz Play, NBC Local Media, truTV, News Digital Media, HIT Entertainment and other top media company accounts. In his new role, he will report to McGrath. Before joining thePlatform, Grimstead held executive sales positions at NetReflector and Loudeye, online media and technology companies, where he led strategic sales, market development, business development and customer acquisition initiatives.

thePlatform publishes video and other media to PCs, mobile devices and TV. Media companies rely on thePlatform’s mpx system as their open, central hub for managing, monetizing and syndicating billions of professionally produced video views annually. thePlatform currently provides online video management services to numerous programmers, leading media companies, and five of the top TV service providers in North America, including the largest “TV Everywhere” deployments.

Both McGrath and Grimstead will be based out of London.

Written By: David Gelles in New York

Television is learning some lessons from the web.

At the Cable Show, the television industry gathering in Chicago last week, technology buzzwords like “apps”, “cloud” and “social” were bandied about with much excitement.

But it wasn’t Apple, Google or Facebook showing off their latest wares. Instead, it was stalwart cable television companies such as Comcast, Time Warner and ESPN seeking to exploit advances in mobile communications, remote storage and software design in a bid to stay relevant to today’s consumer. “The users’ expectation of how to consume video is changing,” said Imran Shah, managing partner at IBB Consulting. The way viewers search for programmes is shifting, and “social recommendations are an integral part of that”.

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