A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM VIDEOLOGY

Cynopsis DIGITAL: CES Wrap Up
01/15/13

Good morning. It’s still Tuesday, January 15, 2013, and this is a special Digital edition wrapping up the 2013 International CES, with a special focus on news, trends, and events tied to digital video.

by Sahil Patel

Much has been made about the supposed decline of the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES). An annual extravaganza of new and sometimes innovative technology and gadgets — appropriately set in Las Vegas, a city that’s no stranger to gaudy monstrosities — the trade show has lost a little bit of its luster. In fact, in recent years analysts have been quick to ring the death knell for CES.

It’s easy to see why they’re eager to bury it. None of the five major technology/software companies today — Apple, Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Microsoft — had an official CES booth or event planned this year. Microsoft, a stalwart presence at CES for nearly two decades, decided last year to end its relationship with the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), the body that oversees the entire event. The company said it no longer wished to time its product rollouts to its annual CES keynote. And this was at the beginning of 2012, a year in which the company released Windows 8, the Surface tablet, and struck deal after deal to boost Xbox Live’s content library.

With most of the top-line players sitting out CES in an official capacity, it begs the question: What’s left? That’s where this gets interesting, especially with respect to the digital video ecosystem. The tradeshow may be notorious for its unabashed love for new technology and gadgets, but it’s also increasingly become a site where the content and media worlds converge every year.

“We sometimes forget that this show used to actually be all about consumer electronics,” says JoAnna Abel, VP/Marketing, FreeWheel. “But now we’re seeing content owners and programmers, distributors and aggregators, and this year an increasing number of agencies and advertisers — it really has become a ‘media mecca’ with several layers of conferences within conferences.”

“My business partner and I, as well as other senior executives at Evolve, were there to attend meetings with bankers, venture capitalists, journalists, advertisers, agencies, and friends,” said Brian Fitzgerald, Co-Founder/President, Evolve Media Corp. “CES has turned into the Super Bowl of networking and doing business. Everyone is there, so it is a highly efficient way to kill 50 birds with one stone.”

Why, though? Why does pretty much the entire media ecosystem choose to show up at what’s long been considered primetime for consumer electronics manufacturers?

“The business being done at this show used to be all about the devices, but that conversation has evolved,” said Abel. “What content is being made available on the devices? How is content syndicating across operating systems and devices? What technology is needed to power that syndication? How is the content monetized? How do advertising experiences persist as content extends across sites and devices? What new advertising opportunities are available as a result? All of these conversations, these negotiations, these deals being done require not just device manufacturers, but also programmers, distributors, technology providers, agencies, advertisers… And so the show really just becomes a catalyst for a much wider range of discussions.”

In other words, the video business is not only evolving, but it’s also expanding, which, as the 2013 International CES demonstrated, means more mutually beneficial relationship between the hardware and software companies.

Lori H. Schwartz, Tech Catalyst and Principal, World of Schwartz, highlights a great example of such a relationship. Qualcomm partnered with Sesame Workshop, the producer of Sesame Street, to develop a game that works across TV screens and tablets in unison. Abby’s Fairy Rock allows kids to turn their tablet into a guitar and learn about different musical concepts by watching and interacting with a Sesame Street character on a smart TV/STB powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processor. The game uses AllJoyn, a peer-to-peer application development framework that enables OS-agnostic, device-to-device communication. “It requires some really creative thinking in terms of video usage,” says Schwartz. “You have characters engaging with the child and that interaction flowing between multiple screens.”

This leads to another theme of this year’s CES — transmedia content and storytelling. This showed up in several different ways at the tradeshow, including services that allow users to push content from one device to another, all the way to home entertainment systems that look to connect every device with each other for a seamless living experience.

It’s actually one of the themes that top video ad companies such as Tremor Video and Videology say the industry should be on the lookout for in 2013, as well as one that they saw demonstrated aplenty on the show floor.

“Digital, portable content is increasingly complementary to what people are watching on the biggest, and still most beloved, screen in the house,” said Melinda McLaughlin, CMO, Tremor Video.

Describing their curated tour of CES, Tremor says it was pointed out how people are using multiple screens everywhere, in all facets of their lives, confirming the company’s belief that the content users are consuming on different screens is starting to blur. It’s all leading to one unified viewing experience.

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This doesn’t mean advertisers should forget about TVs, though. As TV screen sizes continue to grow, Tremor notes that it’ll be interesting to see how brands choose to showcase their ads in these larger environments. “4K technology means viewers can literally see every hair on the back of their favorite TV character or every product detail in a commercial,” says Paul Sluberski, VP/Sales, CPG, Tremor Video. “As more people buy these sets — at $25,000, they are an early-adopter luxury for now — brands and agencies will need to produce their ads, and test them, to make sure they’re compatible with the living room experience.”

Adapting ads based on the device. In an increasingly transmedia environment, that’s a pretty big deal.

“Today, content consumption is contextually relevant to the device you’re using,” says Schwartz. “This requires knowledge of the technology and solutions that the content is running on, as well as how that will impact who is watching and how they are watching. To put it simply, you can no longer be a storyteller of any kind without understanding what these devices can do. CES has become a pilgrimage for everybody to understand the current role of technology, and to understand what’s coming six months from now so we can be well-educated and prepared for it.”

For programmers and advertisers, this includes the Upfronts. “Given the breadth of the audience now attending CES, it seems to be a test bed to start floating ideas and opportunities that will be available at the Upfronts,” says JoAnna Abel. “Agencies and advertisers have the chance to get a read on what new content deals may be struck, what new devices are coming, what new levels of consumer engagement are possible, and what new opportunities may exist to deliver brand messages in new and innovative ways.”

“All of these electronic devices are becoming less tethered by wires,” says Brian Fitzgerald. “The content that’s being created or consumed on them is increasingly more personal. This is a ripe opportunity for advertisers who want to learn how to tap into these mobile, often data-driven devices in order to drive sales. CES has become advertising R&D for agencies and their clients.”

This is all to say, when it comes to the 2013 International CES, a lot of it had to do with the consumer, which means, a lot of it had to do with content. At the end of the day, screen resolutions, processing speeds, or any other specifications will not be enough. For the tech world to thrive, for CES to thrive, it has to continue to embrace the content and media side of the equation. That’s what will really pique consumer interest and drive them to point-of-purchase.

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IAWTV AWARDS

The 2013 International CES also hosted the Second Annual International Academy of Web Television (IAWTV) Awards, which look to honor the best in native online video programming during the previous year.

“Close to 500 web series submitted themselves for consideration to this year’s IAWTV Awards,” said IAWTV Chairman Paul Kontonis on stage at the awards show. “That’s five times the number of web series that launched in 2009 alone. Our industry overall is growing at an unbelievable pace. In 2011, approximately $50 million were spent on producing original content [for the web]. The forecast for 2013 is about $250 million dollars, with nearly a 1,000 new web series to come online this year.”

Click here for the winners.

DEALS

TV-over-the-web provider Aereo has closed a $38 million Series B round of financing led by existing investors IAC and Highland Capital Partners. Previous investors from the start-up’s Series A round, including FirstMark Capital, First Round Capital, High Line Venture Partners, and select individuals, also participated in this second round of financing. With this fresh influx of capital, Aereo will be able to expand its live local TV streaming/DVR service to additional US markets. In fact, the start-up announced its intention to do just that. It’s picked 22 initial markets to expand to in 2013, beginning in late spring: Boston, Miami, Austin, Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Washington, DC, Baltimore, Detroit, Denver, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Tampa, Cleveland, Kansas City, Raleigh-Durham, Salt Lake City, Birmingham (AL), Providence (RI), and Madison (WI).

Time Warner Cable struck a deal with Roku to launch its TWC TV app on Roku streaming players in the US. TWC TV is the cable provider’s authenticated service that allows its customers to access live channels on a variety of connected devices, as long as they’re subscribing to those channels as part of their cable package. Expected to launch on Roku devices this quarter, the TWC TV app for Roku will feature up to 300 live TV channels. This is first time that TWC TV will be available on a consumer device connected to a TV set. Roku devices on which TWC TV will be available are as follows: All Roku 2 players; Roku HD (model 2500R), Roku LT, and the Roku Streaming Stick. The app is currently available for iOS devices, select Android smartphones and tablets, and online.

ComcastandSamsungare partneringto offer a custom Xfinity TV app/experience on Samsung Smart TVs and the Android-powered Galaxy Tab later this year.Xfinity TV digital customers will be able to browse, discover, and sort video content on their tablet as well as change channels and program DVRs. They will also be able to stream TV shows and movies on-demand directly on the tablet, while also having the ability to access that content on other devices. This includes the ability to stop watching something on the Galaxy Tab and then picking it back up on a Samsung Smart TV, and vice versa.

Similarly, Intel cut a deal with Comcast to bring Xfinity TV to “Intel-based devices in the home.” These include IP set-top boxes, Ultrabooks, and Intel-based all-in-one PCs, tablets, and smartphones, as well as smart TVs. On the back-end, this service is being handled by the Intel Puma 6MG-based X6G multi-screen video gateway, which is designed by communications and technology company Arris. The point of these multi-screen gateways is to enable any screen inside the home to access live and on-demand content.

Univision inked an agreement with Samsung Electronics to bring UVideos, the network’s bilingual digital video network,to all 2013 Samsung Smart TVs, connected Blu-ray players, and home theater systems.Beginning this spring, the UVideos appwill come pre-installed in Samsung’s personalized app section, allowing the device owners to watch Univision’s lineup of daytime, primetime, and entertainment, sports, and news programming in English and Spanish. The UVideos app for Samsung deviceswill also feature a synchronized social stream, which allows viewers to converse with friends, show talent, and others while watching a video.

Russell Simmon’s Rush Digital Media is partnering with AwesomnessTV to launch a new YouTube channel in spring 2013 calledAll Def Digital(ADD). ADD’s stated goal is to produce and share “cutting-edge programming from diverse talent to help broaden YouTube’s audience, much in the way Def Comedy broadened HBO.” Rush Digital Media and AwesomenessTVwill work together on the production, operation, and marketing of the channel, which is one of the new slate of channels that’s being funded by YouTube as part of the site’s ongoing original programming initiative.Prior to launching the channel, Simmons will curate his favorite videos, shows, and creators on the channel as well as reach out to fans to determine what type of programming they’d like to see.

Sigma Designs, a provider of System-on-Chip (SoC) solutions for “home entertainment, connectivity, and converging media delivery,” is teaming up with Boxee to develop a new cloud-based entertainment solution on Sigma’s UXL processor. The two companies said they’re working together to make it easy for manufacturers to embed Boxee’s Cloud DVR, web apps, and social TV guides into their next-generation TVs. Boxee’s Cloud DVR allows users to record an unlimited number of shows and then store them, which they can then access on a multitude of devices inside the home or on the go.

The Smart TV Alliance, a coalition of manufacturers, solution providers, and media companies formed to “stimulate cross-platform smart TV applications and services,” added several new members, including Panasonic, ABOX42, TechniSat, IBM, and Specific Media. They join existing members and LG Electronics, TP Vision, Toshiba, Obigo, Qualcomm, and YuMe in their efforts to create a non-proprietary ecosystem for developers to build platform-agnostic smart TV apps and services. To do this, the Alliance updated and unveiled its new SDK, which developers can use to distribute apps and services to new smart TVs from the Alliance’s manufacturing partners this year. The new SDK features for 2013 smart TVs include upgraded HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript specifications, support for 3D video, support for MPEG-DASH, and updated digital rights management (DRM) features to meet requirements from content owners. Developers will also have access to a common emulator so that they can test an app once and ensure it will work with all Alliance members’ TV sets, as well as access to an app compliance checking tool and advanced debug tools.

During his opening keynote address at CES, Panasonic President Kazuhiro Tsuga stressed how his company is more than just one that builds and sells TVs. The decision to join the Smart TV Alliance is a representation of that. However, the manufacturer also unveiled a partnership with interactive media company Specific Media to demonstrate its commitment to providing engaging user experiences. The two partners unveiled Myspace TV, a social TV service that’s designed to let consumers discover shows to watch as well as comment on and share what they’re watching (Specific Media owns Myspace). Available on Panasonic’s Viera Connect smart TV platform, initial channels on Myspace TV will be music-focused, tapping into its library of music content, which spans 100,000 videos and over 42 million songs. Later on, the companies said Myspace TV will add movies, news, sports, and reality channels. Scheduled to debut in the first half of this year, a companion app will also be available on smartphones and tablets.

UK second-screen start-up Zeebox, which is backed by Comcast and NBCUniversal in the US, selected to integrate Gracenote’s Entourage ACR system into its apps for iOS and Android devices. This allows the Zeebox app to automatically identify the show the user is watching in order to send them synchronized second-screen content and services for live and on-demand TV programming. The extra content ranges from additional info on the program to polls, social posts, and e-commerce options.

Netgear added Sling Media’s SlingPlayer software to its line of NeoTV Streaming Players. The software makes it possible for consumers to watch programming on their main TV from a second, third, or remote TV outside the home. Using a combination of SlingPlayer and the Slingbox, consumers can connect to their home TV over an internet connection in order to access live, on-demand, and recorded programming. In addition to the SlingPlayer integration, Netgear also announced that it’s added TuneIn Radio, ShopNBC, and WKNTV to its list of channels on NeoTV devices. It joins the likes of Netflix, Hulu Plus, Vudu, and YouTube. TuneIn Radio offers streaming music, sports, and news programming from over 70,000 radio stations. ShopNBC offers access to live-streaming feeds from the home shopping network. WKNTV is an international channel with both live streaming and on-demand Korean content.

Cablevision will now have direct access to Netflix’s in-house content delivery network. Netflix Open Connect is designed to help internet service providers (ISPs) more effectively manage their own networks and efficiently deliver internet services to consumers, especially those that require huge amounts of bandwidth, like Netflix. It enables ISPs to receive, at no cost, Netflix video directly at the interconnection point of their choosing. Netflix Open Connect serves a bunch of ISPs from across the globe, including those in Europe, Canada, and Latin America, as well as “a growing proportion” in the US. Available through Open Connect partners, Netflix Super HD is the highest quality video format offered by the streaming company, which is also offering a small number of titles in 3D.

Technicolor is partnering with Entropic to develop a next-generation video client based on the Reference Design Kit (RDK) software specifications developed by Comcast. This new MediaPlay set-top box, when bundled with a multi-tuner gateway from cable operators, will be able to deliver IP video to any screen in the home, the companies said. The Technicolor MediaPlay client solution will also support 3D video and graphics.

T-commerce platform providerDelivery Agent inked a deal with Samsung to enable Samsung Smart TV owners to shop for products seen on the show they’re watching, in real time.Viewers can do this via their Samsung Smart TV remote or by accessing the Shop the Shows app in the app marketplace. To enable such real-time shopping, Delivery Agent has exclusive commerce partnerships with over 500 TV shows on over 50 networks.

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COMPANIES & PRODUCTS

Product of CES: Manufacturers like Sony and Panasonic unveiled new 4K TVs, which blow the screen resolution of current HDTV models out of the water by — you guessed it — four times. Still years away from being available and affordable for most human beings, these screens are supposed to be the latest Future of TV, one that many TV manufacturers seemed eager to adopt. Essentially dethroning 3D as the hottest new feature in the TV industry, it’ll be interesting to see how 4K affects the content and advertising worlds.

This was announced before the start of CES, but it’s available in various connected devices showcased by Bang & Olufsen, LG, Panasonic, and Sony: YouTube launched a new AirPlay-like feature that allows users to send videos from their smartphones and tablets to their smart TVs with one click. YouTube said that the feature will come to devices from the likes of Philips, Samsung, Sharp, Toshiba, Vizio, Western Digital, and more later on in 2013. These devices will also be armed with the new YouTube on TV design and user interface.

Samsung unveiled a new version of its Smart TV Hub product, which not only features a refreshed interface but also brings voice and gesture controls into the fold. The Hub is split into five sections: Live TV, on-demand, apps, social networks, and personal content. It also includes an updated S-Recommendations engine, which surfaces what users might want to watch based on previous viewing habits.

Asus, Hisense, and TCL showed off new Google TV products, which will be launching in the coming weeks. Existing Google TV partners like LG, Vizio, and Sony previewed the newest Google TV platform. Google said that the combined collection of set-top boxes, integrated TVs, and IPTV boxes featuring Gogole TV span nine partners across 10 countries. New Google TV apps, including those for Amazon, France24, and DramaFever, were also showcased.

Cisco has unveiled Videoscape Unity, a new and expanded version of the Videoscape video services delivery platform that integrates the assets and business model of NDS, a video software and content security solutions provider that Cisco acquired in 2012. The new platform is designed to enable operators and media companies to deliver multiscreen video and TV services to consumers. These include a cloud-based multiscreen DVR (so consumers can watch, record, and play back content anywhere from any screen); a “Video Everywhere” capability (that consists of unified search, discovery, and viewing functions to allow consumers to watch live and on-demand content from any connected device, regardless of location); and the ability to distribute video content and metadata, and offer a unified user experience, to any IP-connected device inside the home via Cisco’s Connected Video Gateway.

Salt Lake City-based Red Touch Media is best known for distributing licensed movies, TV shows, music, games, and eBooks to users via its network of retail interactive download stations. Now, through the Red Touch Digital Media Platform, the company’s offering distribution through web and mobile devices. It provides content owners with a range of business management services, from distribution to consumer analytics and billing. It also helps content owners and advertisers by offering a bunch of targeting capabilities (demographic, geographic, behavioral, and facial recognition) to reach the right consumers.

Sling Media introduced a digital media management feature as well as a second-screen/social TV iPad app for customers who own the Slingbox 500 “place-shifting” devices. My Media will allow Slingbox 500 customers to transfer and enjoy personal videos and photo content from a USB hard drive attached to the 500. It features, SlingSync, which works as a personal cloud that archives and stores captured moments on to a compact USB drive, while opening up space on the smartphone to capture new moments. Slingbox Companion is a free second-screen app that will allow Slingbox 500 customers who own an iPad 2 or higher to discover new shows based on interest, access additional content, and share what they’re watching. The app will be available in the spring. Support for the Slingbox 350 will also arrive later this year.

The Mobile500 Alliance showcased its live mobile TV app for iPhones and iPads. The MyDTV app links up with a mobile receiver to play broadcast TV, and features the ability to record live TV, closed-captioning, social media integrations, and an electronic program guide. The service will initially roll out in the Seattle and Minneapolis markets. The Alliance also announced that Chrysler/Jeep and The Lincoln Motor Company have signed on to participate in the soft launch. To help those ad partners out, the Alliance had already partnered with Nielsen and Rentrak to provide it with live recording and audience measurement. The measurement partners will focus on evaluating viewer habits and recording demographics. The Mobile500 Alliance is comprised of over 400 TV stations from across the country.

Later – Sahil
Sahil Patel, Associate Editor for Cynopsis Digital
01.15.13

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