blinkx Introduces BBTV, Fusing High-Quality, Premium TV Content with the Interactive Power of the Web »
2 April 2008
Video Search Leader Delivers First Broadband TV Offering to Integrate Video into the Fiber of the Web for Full-screen, Online Television
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. – April 02, 2008 – blinkx, the world’s largest video search engine, today announced the availability of blinkx BBTV, a significant advance in online television that leverages blinkx’s patented speech and visual recognition technology to simultaneously deliver a high-quality television experience over the Internet, and link it to the universe of information on the Web, adding dimension and context to the viewer’s experience.
Launching with a library of premium independent films and a variety of high-quality programming from existing partners, blinkx BBTV is a small download (1.8 MB) that is available free of charge at www.blinkxbbtv.com, starting April 2nd, 2008.
With hybrid peer-to-peer streaming and a simple, point-and-click channel interface, blinkx BBTV delivers a new kind of online television: full-screen, TV-quality and truly immersed in the Internet. Until now, Web video has simply used the Internet as a new distribution mechanism, failing to exploit its true potential. By fusing TV and other video with the Web, blinkx BBTV enables users to instantly browse or interact with online sources related to what they are watching, whether it’s Google, Wikipedia, IMDB or other Web sites offering relevant information – from news and entertainment, to travel and sports.
“Broadband Internet connections are fast enough today that with the right technology, it’s possible to deliver an experience that’s equal in quality to television. Consumers are accustomed to Online Video: short-form, often amateur clips that play in a Web browser – blinkx BBTV delivers Online Television: full-length, professional TV programming, delivered in exceptional quality,” said Suranga Chandratillake, founder and CEO of blinkx. “The Web is the largest repository of connected information in the world – on any subject and from myriad sources. BBTV delivers television over the Internet, but it also fuses that TV with the wealth of information on the Web, rather than appearing as just another layer floating above it.”
With the click of a mouse, BBTV enables an unprecedented level of interaction with online television. blinkx’s patented video indexing automatically creates a speech track of content within the video, making it easy for viewers to navigate literally word-for-word and jump to specific points in a program, simply by searching for a spoken word or name. While watching programs or movies on blinkx BBTV, viewers can instantly access features never before possible, including transcripts of the audio track and background information on everything from actors and personalities, to reviews and locations shown within the video. Alternatively, users can opt to sit back and watch the video full-screen, on-demand and in TV quality.
In coming months, blinkx will be adding dozens of additional channels and premium video content to the BBTV offering, and will also be working behind the scenes to power similar BBTV experiences for partner media and entertainment sites that are looking for new ways to connect with their viewers. BBTV is fully compatible with blinkx AdHoc, blinkx’s contextual advertising platform.
Key features of blinkx BBTV include:
Speech-based Navigation
Leveraging blinkx’s patented speech recognition technology, BBTV automatically creates a speech track of the video, allowing users to search through content, literally word-for-word, and jump to specific points in a program, simply by searching for a spoken word.
Full-Screen, TV Quality Experience
BBTV provides a superior user experience by leveraging hybrid peer-to-peer streaming technology to allow fast, high-quality delivery of video content. All content appearing on BBTV is delivered over an encrypted network and protected by Microsoft DRM technologies.
Clickable Video
BBTV delivers online television that is truly interactive – users can “shift-click” on a word in the speech track for additional information on a person, location or object within the video.
Automatic Web Linking
BBTV is part of the fiber of the Internet, so in the same way that information on the Web is linked to other information on the Web, video that is delivered through BBTV is connected to the universe of online content, whether it’s Google, Wikipedia, IMDB or other news, entertainment travel or sports Web sites, adding a new dimension to viewers’ experience.
As the pioneer in video search technology, blinkx has built a reputation as the smartest way to search new forms of online content such as video. With more than 220 partners and 18 million hours of indexed video and audio content, including favorite TV moments, news clips, short documentaries, music videos, video blogs and more, blinkx uses advanced speech and visual recognition technologies to deliver results that are more accurate and reliable than standard metadata-based keyword searches.
About blinkx
blinkx plc (LSE AIM: BLNX) is the world's largest and most advanced video search engine. Today, blinkx has indexed more than 18 million hours of audio, video, viral and TV content, and made it fully searchable and available on demand. blinkx's founders set out to solve a significant challenge – as TV and user-generated content on the Web explode, keyword-based search technologies only scratch the surface. blinkx's patented search technologies listen to – and even see – the Web, helping users enjoy a breadth and accuracy of search results not available elsewhere. In addition, blinkx powers the video search for many of the world's most frequented sites. blinkx is based in San Francisco and London. More information is available at www.blinkx.com.
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