Propelled by the availability of low-cost, high-resolution connected devices, consumers have rapidly bypassed the ‘novelty’ phase of TV Everywhere turning acceptance into expectation. With the demand that any media should be available essentially on any device over any network connection, 2013 is going to be an exciting year for multiscreen!

Looking ahead, we here at RGB Networks have compiled the top 10 industry trends we see for 2013:

1. IP Video

Internet-based video consumption will continue to boom, driven by the proliferation and popularity of mobile devices and connected TVs and changing consumer habits. With more than 70 IP video customers worldwide, including three of the top MSOs in North America, our advancements in video processing technology are enabling video service providers (VSPs) to retain the competitive edge for the year ahead.

2. TV Everywhere Expansion

Significant broadcast events like the London 2012 Olympic Games have hammered home how imperative it is for providers to establish an all-encompassing TV Everywhere strategy that can deliver premium quality video content to a myriad of viewing devices. With many TV Everywhere rights deals negotiated in 2012, and certainly more to come, many hurdles to the deployment and expansion of TV Everywhere services have been removed. Over the next year, operators will therefore need intelligent, high-capacity and scalable solutions to begin or grow their delivery of content to a multitude of devices, which can equally address all related infrastructure and network issues while still keeping the balance sheet in check.

3. Streamlining and Cost Reduction

The need for streamlining operations and cuttings costs will be imperative in 2013 and as a result, integrated, scalable, future-proof solutions will be the focus of attention. In the quest to deliver content to any connected device, innovative adaptive streaming technologies like RGB’s just-in-time packaging – which can alleviate the challenges intrinsic to growing TV Everywhere services such as storage, bandwidth and other headaches – will be in high demand.

4. nDVR Services

Operators’ enthusiasm for nDVR will see significant growth over 2013, driven by the fact that it is a “sticky” service that can reduce subscriber churn, while also generating revenue from subscribers who might not otherwise pay for multiscreen services. With the development of integrated solutions to deliver on-demand services alongside live multiscreen video, operators will be able to meet subscriber demands and reap the benefits of IP video’s rapid evolution better than ever before.

5. Monetization

Content monetization through techniques such as targeted ad insertion will be a critical piece of the multiscreen puzzle in 2013. As the video delivery industry is busy keeping pace amid a landslide of changing consumer tastes and competitive positioning against pure OTT services, difficult questions concerning business cases and financial justification of multiscreen investments have come to the forefront. Coupling ad insertion with other revenue-generators such as nDVR services, as well as with cost reductions, VSPs will be looking for profitability in multiscreen this year.

6. Securing Content

As consumption of mobile video continues to grow, VSPs will increasingly require an access and rights management system that unifies revenue security for video services and prevents piracy of high-value video content delivered using adaptive HTTP streaming. Selecting the right streaming and security combination will enable providers to offer a richer consumer experience with more personalized choices in regards to content, time and place.

7.Multiscreen Ecosystem Partnering

As the multiscreen ecosystem expands to offer new services, strategic partnerships enabling integration with various market players such as ad decision systems, DRM and CDNs will be essential in adapting and thriving in a changed economic climate. We will see many multiscreen solution providers building sustainable and strategic partnerships over the next year to ease pressure on existing business models, further enhance technological offerings and help guarantee longevity of service.

8. Rise of the Second Screen

Social TV or second screen companion viewing is currently not only redefining how viewers engage with content, but also how they source and discover it. Presenting providers and advertisers with an unprecedented opportunity to engage and interact with their audiences, personalization of content and targeted ad insertion become two sides of the same coin for operators when endeavoring to capitalize on this trend for 2013.

9. Audio Regains Importance

High caliber audio is a cardinal ingredient in the consumer TV viewing experience. However, in recent years audio has taken a backseat to video as VSPs pushed to get basic multiscreen service offerings up and running. With 2013 being dubbed by many as a year of the “second wave” of adaptive bitrate delivery, audio has begun to enter the discussion again, primarily spurred by the CALM Act legislation in the US and other pending regulation around the world. In 2013 savvy VSPs will be turning their attention to implementing solutions capable of not only manipulating compressed streams in order to facilitate audio consistency and maintain industry compliance, but also to deliver a premium overall audio/video experience.

10. The Sum of it All: Multiscreen 2.0

Multiscreen 2.0 represents the next generation of TV Everywhere, consisting of a combination of solutions that enable operators to reduce costs and streamline operations in live, on-demand and time-shifted environments. This advancement of multiscreen technologies will facilitate the monetization of services across screens with hyper-targeted adaptive bitrate ad insertion, ensure the seamless delivery of premium audio across IP devices, and boost the multiscreen business case and return on investment.

Let us know in the comments below what trends you’re keeping your eye on for 2013. We look forward to sharing more on these topics in the weeks and months to come. Check back often, follow us through social media, and come see us at an upcoming trade show. Happy New Year!

2012 has once again been a fantastic year in the world of IP video, not just for RGB Networks but for the industry as a whole. For our last blog entry this year, we’re taking a look back on our top 12 highlights of 2012. Here they are in no particular order:

12. Royalty Graces Broadcasting

2012 was a year to remember for significant broadcasting events, from a celebration of true royalty (Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee), to experiencing sporting royalty (London 2012 Olympics – the first truly digital Games), to the new kings and queens of entertainment (X Factor 2012 premiere breaks record for most social media activity ever).

11. Online Video Royalty

Not to be left out of the royal circle, RGB was listed as one of Streaming Media’s 100 Companies that Matter Most in Online Video in 2012. In its second year of existence, this prestigious list has now included RGB for two years running!

10. Awards Aplenty at Home

In the US, RGB was recognized for exemplary innovation and outstanding technology, scooping up a TelcoTV win for ‘‘Best in Show’, two 4 Diamond scores in Broadband Technology Report’s Diamond Technology Reviews and a finalist nod for both Light Reading’s Leading Lights Award for Best New Cable Product and a Fierce Innovation Award.

9. Accolades Awesomeness Abroad

Across the pond, RGB received two European accolades, winning ‘Best Streaming Technology’ at the prestigious ConnectedWorld.TV Awards 2012 and picking up the ‘Highly Commended’ honor for Mobile TV Technology at the CSI Awards, both for its just-in-time packaging capabilities.

8. Just in Time to Save Costs, Bandwidth and Headaches

This leads us nicely onto the launch of our just-in-time packaging (JITP) solution this year, an addition to our award-winning TransAct Packager. A first-of-its-kind capability, JITP enables on-the-fly packaging of video streams for delivery to any device, as it’s requested, saving cost and bandwidth issues associated with storing large amounts of content for various multiscreen applications. In addition to awards, this capability is getting a lot of attention from some of the biggest operators around.

7. Showing Off

Every year, trade shows are a huge part of RGB’s calendar, but this year’s events were especially successful. We debuted JITP at NAB (Las Vegas) and ANGA (Cologne), led the speaking agenda at SCTE Canadian Summit (Toronto), The Cable Show (Boston), and ABTA (São Paulo), and once again made a splash at IBC (Amsterdam) with a constantly overflowing stand and media coverage galore…and that’s just a few of the events we attended in 12 short months!

6. Celebrating our Success

We couldn’t let 2012 go by without adding some RGB flavor to a great IP video year. Take a look at how we’ve been celebrating our successes with some creativity:


Hawaiian Shirt Day

Halloween:

Holiday Bash:



5. Leading the Industry

It’s not all just fun and games at RGB – we work hard to ensure that we’re at the forefront of the IP video industry, always delivering the next innovation that meets our customers’ needs. In addition to our pioneering JITP introduction, we were also the first to market with TV Everywhere packager support for MPEG DASH, making RGB the first to support all leading adaptive streaming protocols.

4. Winning Customers

We’ve also been hard at work securing customers aplenty, with video services providers of all types and sizes deploying our technology this year, including Ziggo in the Netherlands, HBO Europe and a number of the largest North American cable operators. In all we have over 70 IP video customers, a rapidly growing percentage of our 400+ customers worldwide. And we’re new working hard to add a strong channel sales arm to our stellar direct sales force.

3. Ad Insertion Innovation

This year, broadcasters have been more eager than ever to deliver linear and targeted ads across their multiscreen programming. To cater to this growing demand, RGB partnered with BlackArrow to deliver the industry’s first complete solution for multiscreen ad insertion and addressability. Broadcasters can now target specific ads to any device, increasing subscriber engagement and generating new revenues from their TV Everywhere services.

2. On-demand Growth

Consumer demand for multiscreen delivery continued to grow rapidly over 2012, and according to research from Informa, IPTV subscription and on-demand revenues will reach US$11.9 billion by 2016, up from US$6.2 billion in 2011. It therefore comes as no surprise that this year, video service providers were racing to provide comprehensive TV Everywhere services to satisfy their subscribers’ needs, a need fortuitously met by our complete on-demand multiscreen solution.

1. The Birth of Multiscreen 2.0

The era of ‘Multiscreen 1.0’ network architectures – which focused on delivery platforms – is now a thing of the past. Over the course of the year, the focus has moved on to how to optimize and monetize services, giving birth to ‘Multiscreen 2.0’ architectures – which provide a return on the multiscreen investment while streamlining operations.

So that’s our list of our top 12 highlights from 2012 – what were yours? Let us know in the comments!

Have a wonderful holiday season and see you all in 2013!

Just when you thought the awards season was over, we’ve logged two more finalist nods from the Fierce Innovation Awards in the categories of Cable Network Innovation and OTT Service Innovation based on the unique capabilities and real-world impact of our eVIA multiscreen IP video ecosystem. With a panel of executive-level judges from AT&T, Comcast, Cox, Sprint, TeliaSonera and Verizon, we think that says a lot.

In all, this makes nine acknowledgements in the last two months that our products rock!

Sorry to get so excited, but we take our innovation seriously here at RGB and pride ourselves on delivering the best products that we can to meet the ever-changing needs of our customers. We don’t often get the okay to publish the great things our customers say about our products, so when industry experts rank our innovations at the top of the list, we like to cheer a little and let people know.

We have many more innovations in store, so watch this blog for more news, and hopefully more award wins as we enter the new year. Thanks for your support!

Wow—what an exciting year! And what a great way to wrap up our crazy trade show schedule with a win at TelcoTV for ‘Best in Show’. We’ve had many achievements this year, with multiple award wins and extraordinary growth in our customer base, but this win really is special.

The thing that makes this award stand out for us is that it was voted on at the show by the attendees. We think it represents the convergence of many factors – our unmatched IP video products, our knowledgeable booth staff, our stellar reputation and some world-class marketing. But in the end, it may just be that we had the best cocktails on the show floor during the Booth Crawl, in the coolest glasses. And if that’s the case, we’re okay with that!

Everything we do at RGB, we try to do with innovation and excellence, always keeping the needs of our customers in mind, and it’s gratifying to see that we achieved that at TelcoTV.

From everybody at RGB, thanks to all who voted for us! We’ll keep working hard to earn your votes and to remain on the leading edge of IP video delivery solutions. In 2013 we’ll once again have a full schedule of trade shows around the globe, so check back soon and mark your calendars to visit us at a show in your region of the world.

To quote a once famous – and now infamous – celebrity, RGB is continuing its “winning” ways with a trio of recent successes: two 4 Diamond scores in Broadband Technology Report’s Diamond Technology Reviews, a finalist nod for Light Reading’s Leading Lights Award for Best New Cable Product and a spot in the Streaming Media 100. And this is in addition to the two honors that we took home from last month’s IBC for our new just-in-time packaging solution!

This year’s esteemed panel of Diamond Technology Review judges gave our TransAct Packager a stellar 4 Diamond rating in recognition of its new just-in-time-packaging (JITP) capabilities. The panel noted the cost-savings and efficiency enabled by JITP that allow operators to expand their TV Everywhere libraries while limiting the amount of expensive storage. In particular, the judges noted JITP as “…offering a ‘lasting value’ to an operator’s content storage and distribution platform, particularly where less popular and/or recently introduced formats or long-tail content are concerned.”

High praise indeed, but they didn’t stop there.

The judges also bestowed 4 Diamonds on our Ad Insertion for Multi-Bitrate (AIM) solution, the industry’s first comprehensive solution for hyper-targeted ad delivery in the ABR-based multiscreen TV Everywhere environment.

These wins and our experience in the field tell us that TV Everywhere is clearly making significant progress and operators are now moving into the second phase – Multiscreen 2.0 – finding ways to cost-effectively expand and monetize multiscreen services. We’re committed to helping operators achieve these goals and clearly the “rock stars from Mars” that make up the judging panels for these industry awards agree.

Come see us at Cable-Tec Expo booth #443 and TelcoTV booth #819 for demos and details.

And don’t forget to vote for RGB Networks in Streaming Media’s Readers’ Choice Awards – we’re shortlisted in three categories – winning!

We’re excited to add two more trophies to our awards shelf, this time for our latest innovation – just-in-time packaging – delivered on our unique and highly flexible TransAct Packager.

At the recent IBC show in Amsterdam, our just-in-time packaging (JITP) solution was named ‘Best Streaming Technology’ in the Connected Content Technology category at the prestigious ConnectedWorld.TV Awards 2012. In association with the IBC Connected World, the ConnectedWorld.TV Awards celebrate the exciting developments in television and video consumption at the intersection of broadcast and broadband. RGB beat off fierce competition from six other shortlisted vendors for the honor.

And that wasn’t all – our TransAct Packager also received the ‘Highly Commended’ Mobile TV Technology accolade at this year’s CSI Awards for its JITP capability, also presented during IBC 2012.

Launched in April of this year, RGB’s JITP technology is a first-of-its-kind capability that enables video service providers to deliver adaptive bitrate video-on-demand (VOD), network digital video recorder (nDVR) and TV Everywhere services without pre-packaging all their video assets in each of the adaptive streaming protocols. An enhancement to RGB’s widely-deployed TransAct Packager solution, JITP enables the simple packaging of programs on-the-fly into the appropriate protocol only when that content is requested by viewers on a specific device, enabling providers to manage their storage and bandwidth costs as their libraries of content available for multiscreen distribution grow.

We believe the success of our JITP solution reflects the industry’s need for robust yet flexible technology which addresses the challenges that come with service expansion in today’s connected world and enables providers to deploy the next stage of multiscreen.

For those of you attending Cable-Tec Expo or TelcoTV next month, please stop by out booth to learn more. In the meantime, you can download our white paper on just-in-time packaging and read this posting on the official IBC blog for more on JITP’s role in an on-demand multiscreen environment.

If you care about storage costs, network bandwidth or the headaches of a network upgrade, our TransAct Packager is a must-have component for your multiscreen deployment. With today’s announcement of just-in-time packaging (JITP) capabilities, this award-winning product continues to stay on the leading edge of adaptive bitrate streaming technology.

A first-of-its-kind capability, JITP enables on-the-fly packaging of video streams for delivery to any device, as it’s requested. By eliminating the need for pre-packaging, JITP saves the cost and bandwidth issues associated with storing large amounts of content for VOD and NDVR multiscreen applications.

This white paper explains the concept in more detail, providing specific use cases with cost models for storage and bandwidth vs. JITP.

Even if you have a relatively small content library today, JITP can save you headaches in other areas as well. When deploying solutions for new adaptive streaming protocols, such as the new MPEG DASH standard, JITP gives you an easy entry point, eliminating the need to convert your entire on-demand library into the new protocol all at once – do it ‘just-in-time’ and you not only save on storage, but offline transcoding costs and efforts as well. Just think – when Apple makes that next upgrade to HLS, you’ll be ready to go!

For those of you who already use the TransAct Packager in your network, adding this new JITP capability is a simple license upgrade. And for those of you who are considering adding this one-of-a kind packager to your network, click here to learn about its many other industry-leading features.

We’ll be demonstrating our new just-in-time packaging capability, along with MPEG DASH support, at NAB later this month. Come see us at booth #SU10412 and find out how you can future-proof your multiscreen deployment.

Our many multiscreen customers around the world rely on us to stay ahead of the game on the latest industry developments and we’re proud to say we’ve done that again by being one of the first to incorporate support for MPEG DASH into our TransAct Packager.

Today’s announcement of our support for this new adaptive streaming standard highlights our commitment to keeping up with the rapidly changing world of multiscreen delivery in order to provide our customers with the most comprehensive solutions for delivering video to any device.

We’re also eager to emphasize that RGB’s TransAct Packager is the only product to support all four adaptive streaming protocols – Apple HLS, Microsoft Smooth Streaming, Adobe HDS and MPEG DASH for both live and on-demand video delivery. This is just one of many unique attributes of this industry-leading product (find out here what else it can do to help make your multiscreen implementations faster, easier and more robust).

And we’re not going this alone. We’re working closely with many industry stakeholders to ensure the rapid adoption of MPEG DASH. RGB is an active member of the MPEG DASH Promoters Group, and we’re also integrating the Packager with MPEG DASH clients, including those from AuthenTec and Netview Technology.

We’ll be exhibiting at several trade shows in the coming months and invite you to stop by our booth for a live MPEG DASH demonstration, as well as other new developments. We look forward to seeing you in Las Vegas, Boston, Cologne or wherever our paths may cross.

If you’re following the quickly evolving world of IP video, you’ve heard a lot of talk lately about the new MPEG DASH standard. Rapid progress is being made to ensure industry-wide understanding, deployment and acceptance, and we’re excited to be part of an industry consortium that is tasked with promoting this new network-friendly adaptive streaming protocol.

As a member of the MPEG DASH Promoters Group, RGB Networks joins industry heavyweights such as Adobe, Akamai, Ericsson, Microsoft, NDS and Netflix in the effort to promote MPEG’s DASH specification (ISO/IEC 23009) in the industry and other standard organizations and consortia. For more information, please take a look at this press release.

One of the objectives of the group is to facilitate interoperability tests and we plan to do a lot of that in the weeks to come. Stay tuned for more on this topic…

We’ve received many honors this year (RGB is Lucky #13 on the Wall Street Journal’s ‘Next Big Thing’ List, SCTE Award Recognizes Adaptive Streaming as a Key Technology, RGB Shortlisted For Two Prestigious Awards, IP Video Drives Company of the Year Finalist Honor, And the Diamonds go to…, eVIA: Another Win for IP Video Innovation at TelcoTV) and as we head into the last few weeks of 2011, we’re very happy to add one more to our list. Forbes magazine recently published their list of America’s Most Promising Companies, and RGB Networks is on it!

This list recognizes “…100 privately held up-and-comers with compelling business models, strong management teams, notable customers, strategic partners and precious investment capital.” Please take a look at the press release for more details.

It’s wonderful to be recognized for your accomplishments within your industry, and it’s even more telling to take home an honor when compared against thousands of other companies on the rise throughout the U.S. in a wide range of industries. The comprehensive approach to compiling the list compared a number of key factors that go into building a great company and our successes over the last several years brought RGB to the top.

We won’t let this go to our heads—we’ll keep pursuing the IP video innovation and sound business practices that got us here—but we’d like to stop to thank everyone that has worked so hard to help us reach this achievement. It takes a strong team of employees, partners, vendors and other supporters—thank you.