Interactive TV does not need, a this height, presentation. Even though it shows a lot caution in Latin American markets, the trend indicates that it inevitably advances. And the applications will not be made wait: t-commerce (e-commerce through the screen), interactive games, internet access, advertising specific, video-on-demand request and scheduling real-time pay-per-view are just some of the alternatives and the most developed to date.
The business is not minor and it is in full growth. The world's leading broadcasters work very the inclusion of TV apps interactive and Latin American markets have shown signs of wanting to move there.
Among the companies that work this segment in the software area are counted Pioneer (which recently launched its Passport suite for television interactive), Microsoft (with all its Microsoft TV package), DNS (the Value@TV of which constitutes a complete infrastructure offering, middleware and applications for cable operators), among others. On the other hand, developers of management software appear, such as SAP, which proposes its SAP Retail product as very adaptable for this incipient market.
The work should also be highlighted of Motorola, which designed the Horizon program to incentivize independent software developers (ISVs) Software Vendors) to generate and install television solutions Interactive.
To operate has been said
Navigation software becomes vitally important on television
interactive since, the more pleasant the experience,
the greater the acceptance of this new trend. Since the
current user has been browsing the internet for a long time
Traditional, television navigation has to be, at least,
of the same quality as that to which he is accustomed by
their web walks.
The first key feature that these tools should have is the search tool. Must be fast (that the user can start it with very few clicks) and flexible (different search alternatives: by title, by signal, by schedule, by age range, etc.). Other functions Important are the ability to display information about the signal or program being viewed without altering the schema of distribution of the content on the screen and the possibility of enable and disable subtitles in different languages.
From the point of view of the Operator, the work starts much earlier than in the browser. You must make an investment that encompasses infrastructure, packages of software and development tools that allow you to assemble the exact solutions your viewers are looking for.
The operator needs the capacity to create your menus, differentiate them, highlight features functional or programming that best align with your own business objectives. Ease of incorporation new functionalities and services without the user suffering interventions, is another of the key aspects that the operator you should evaluate before you start investing in solutions related to interactive TV.
Is it important to be a pioneer in this land? Or is it preferable to expect that there are some concrete and successful experiences before jumping into the ring? As always, this answer will depend on the policy and the history of each company. Interactive television is a long-term multi-million dollar business that will have room for all players who know how to move their chips well and not only for those who attack first.
As it could not be otherwise, major tech companies are already looking at the television. As a business, of course.
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