Category: Software

MUMBAI: Geodesic‘s live mobile TV platform, MunduTV, is now available on the Windows Phone 7 platform.

MunduTV streams on the Mango OS running on WP 7 platform. Industry analysts have predicted that 43 million Windows Phone handsets will be shipped from Nokia and HTC during the year, and this will add to the opportunities for MunduTV in the Windows marketplace.

MunduTV, the company says, had more than 5 million downloads on the Nokia OVI store in just 11 months and is promoted at Nokia Priority Stores as a Top 10 Ovi Store application.

This is in addition to its user base drawn through device manufacturers and mobile operators worldwide that have already deployed MunduTV based mobile TV solutions. With the launch of MunduTV on WP 7, it becomes possible to have the same user experience on Windows Phone devices.

MunduTV can now be viewed on the Lumia 800 and 710 smart phones recently launched by Nokia, which are expected to add to the popularity of the Windows Phone 7 OS.

MunduTV offers channels across news, entertainment, music and kids genre including NDTV, Times Now, UTV Bindass, 9XM, and Pogo among others.

MUMBAI: After repositioning as Life OK in India, Star One is going to go through a similar surgery in the US.

Star One had ceased operations on 16 December and the Hindi general entertainment channel was given a new life as Life OK on 18 December in India. Now the channel has been rebranded in the US as well.

Life OK is distributed in the US by International Media Distribution as a complimentary service to its fellow Star India Networks including Star India Plus, Star India Gold, and Star India News.

The rebranded channel and logo play out the popular mantra- “Life is Good.”

The channel will air shows including Meri Maa, Smile Please, Saubhagyavati Bhava, Tum Dena Saath Mera, Devon Ke Dev, Mahadev, Sapnon Ke Bhanwar Mein, Sach Ka Saamna, and Main Lakshmi Tere Angan Ki.

“Life OK stands for everyone who is positive, full of energy, optimistic and is committed to entertain its viewers with content that propels them in a new direction,” said Star TV EVP international business Rajan Singh. “This rebranding and programming reflects a value system that reminds people to cherish what they have. The channel remains part of Star Television Network.”

Life OK is available in the US with operators like CableAmerica (MO), Cincinnati Bell (OH), Comcast (CA, DC, IL, NJ, PA, TX, VA, WA), Cox (VA), En-Touch (TX), OpenBand Media (VA), RCN (DC, IL, MA, NY, PA) and San Bruno Cable (CA), Star said.

MUMBAI: Siddharth Kelkar has put in his papers at Reliance ADA Group‘s gaming company Zapak as the head of advergames and digital solutions.

Industry sources confirmed that today would be Kelkar‘s last day at Zapak. His next move is still not known but he will remain in the digital space.

Kelkar holds over 11 years of experience across print, television and integrated marketing space. He was with Zapak for around five years. He joined Zapak as regional head west and east wherein he used to take care of regional sales social media, activation, advergaming and digital solutions. He has been responsible for key accounts like Cadburys, P&G and Parle-G and has also been instrumental in driving revenues from Pune, Ahmedabad and Kolkata as a region and push the sector further with key accounts like Amul, Cadilla, Emami, Bajaj and Paras.

Prior to Zapak, he has worked with Bennett, Coleman and Co, Hindustan Times and Network18.

MUMBAI: E-commerce website, Flipkart.com, has announced the launch of a digital music store, ‘Flyte’.

With this launch, Flipkart marks its foray into the emerging digital content market.

Flyte will allow users to discover and download music in the form of individual songs or entire albums from a collection that is backed by Indian and International music companies.

Flipkart co-founder and CEO Sachin Bansal said, “We had maintained that making digital content available was one of our focus areas and this launch marks our first step in that direction. An online music store made sense given the wide appeal this category enjoys in the country.”

Flipkart VP- digital Sameer Nigam added, “With Flyte, consumers in India will now be able to download a wide range of music legally, and at an extremely reasonable price. We hope that such a move will help curb piracy and go a long way in supporting original music and its creators. With music available across 55 languages and 700 genres and sub-genres, this is a service that should appeal to all age groups and music lovers”.

Flyte will offer the Indian consumers online music collection of over a million tracks from 150,000 unique albums. It will have Mp3-format music downloads that can be played back on any digital media device (mobile phones, PCs, tablets, car stereos etc), CD-quality music (320 kbps) available for 99 per cent of the music catalogue. It will also avail ‘DRM-free’ music which means that users can freely transfer their music from one device to another very easily.

Also, it will allow users to download the same file three more times after the initial download – at no extra cost, to make it even more convenient for users to sync their entire Flyte music library across their multiple digital devices. The single song prices start from Rs 6 while that of albums start from Rs 25. All standard payment options such as credit or debit card, Internet banking, gift vouchers and the Flipkart Wallet will be available for purchases made on Flyte.

MUMBAI: Tata Teleservices’ telecom brand, Tata Docomo, has launched a location-based advertising service, ‘Offers Near Me’, for its GSM customers in Andhra Pradesh.

With this new offering, the company attempts to live up to its brand philosophy ‘phones are not just for talking’. It has partnered with Stay In Touch Mobile for this value-added service (Vas) offering and has piloted this project in Andhra Pradesh.

The new service will be rolled out nationally in a phased manner. It will allow Tata Docomo GSM customers to receive deals, offers and discount coupons from their favourite retailers like FMCG brands, apparel companies, malls, restaurants, cinemas, coffee shops and auto dealers. Value deals and discounts offered depend on the location the customer is travelling in and individual retailer offers. The service is free of charge.

Tata Teleservices Mobility- head non-voice Sunil Tandon said, “Tata Docomo is pleased to partner with Stay In Touch Mobile, which specialises in real-time location-based advertising service. We were very encouraged by the pilot results of ‘Offers Near Me’, and we are sure this will provide even greater value to our customers, enriching the mobile experience beyond just talking. It will not only keep customers abreast of the latest deals and discounts in their vicinity, but will also ensure greater savings by providing relevant offer details on their phones.

Customers have already seen great results from the preferential and location-based services launched earlier like Route Finder and Smart Pilot, and I am optimistic that ‘Offers Near Me’ will see a huge uptake in the Indian context.”

Stay in Touch Mobile CEO and co-founder Raj Karan added, “Offers Near Me is India’s early first location-based opt-in program that allows opt-in mobile consumers to receive relevant deals and discount coupons from their favorite retailers. Advertisers and retailers can also register with Stay In Touch Mobile and create targeted, geo-fenced campaigns to reach out to Tata Docomo subscribers with offers when they are at key locations—like airports, malls, at office or even at home.”

MUMBAI: Indian media conglomerate Times Group‘s digital arm, Times Internet, plans to launch BoxTV.com, an online video platform that will enable viewers to access content like films and television through Internet.

Addressing AdTech India conclave in New Delhi, Times Group‘s new media director Satyan Gajwani said the company is in the process of introducing new products across the news and entertainment categories with the aim to become more relevant for new-age consumers.

“We‘ve launched ETSpeed. com a couple of days back, which is a Twitter-like service for the financial world; Tweek, which is a tablet-based magazine, and Speaking-Tree. BoxTV will be India‘s answer to Hulu, and allow viewers to legally access the latest movies and videos,” Economic Times quotes Gajwani as saying.

The company, which runs the popular Indiatimes.com portal, plans to come up with more personalised products which can be accessed through various devices.

“Our strategy is to try to be faster and smarter with personalised content offered through multiple channels.
Experimentation is part of the strategy,” he said.

Times Internet will also replicate Gaana.com‘s success on mobile phones, he added.

The company, which holds the Internet rights for IPL, has also made plans for the upcoming season with several new initiatives like video scorecard – a timeline for every over, on the anvil. Besides, it plans to enhance the viewing experience of fans this year.

MUMBAI: European automotive-themed content provider Motorvision has selected Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) to distribute its High Definition car and motor channel, Motorvision TV, across the Asian continent.

The HD channel launched its broadcast services to Asia via the ABS-1 satellite (at 75° East) HD video platform on C-band.

ABS is providing a comprehensive end-to-end broadcast solution including turn-around, encryption, HD multiplexing and transmission services for Motorvision TV from ABS‘ uplink facilities in Munich. The HD channel is transmitted in 1080i format at 12 Mbps for optimal quality.

Motorvision TV covers all aspects of the world of the auto-mobility industry from luxury limousines to super-sport cars, from classics to innovative cars and cutting- edge technology. Viewers and motor enthusiasts alike can enjoy in-depth documentary features, reports, portraits and magazine shows as well as various lifestyle formats and motorsports.

The channel can also be watched in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Luxemburg and Liechtenstein as well as in 22 countries of the Middle East and North Africa.

Motorvision TV CEO Jochen Krohne said, “We are very happy to extend the coverage of Motorvision TV to the Asia Pacific region through our partnership with ABS. Now that the signal is available, Asian TV operators can gain an insight into our program offering.”

Motorvision is working on the next international rollout of Motorvision TV and announced in early February its cooperation with Multi Channels Asia, Asia‘s leading distributor of independent pay TV channels.

ABS chief development officer Richard Pak said, “ABS is very excited to work with Motorvision TV to support their expansion plans into the Asian TV market. The addition of Motorvision adds to our strong line-up of international broadcasters and the growing number of HD channels taking advantages of our wide market coverage and the unique orbital position connecting Central Europe directly to Asia”.

MUMBAI: High TV 3D has announced the launch of its channel in Indonesia on cable pay TV provider First Media.

Apart from the strong emphasis on 3D, the broadcaster‘s lineup also encompasses lifestyle and entertainment programs such as far-flung exotic destinations, coverage of exclusive parties, celebrity news and gossip, and a slate of in-house productions such as reality shows.

PT Link Net CEO Hengkie Liwanto said, “We have succeeded in launching the first High-Definition TV quality programs for the first time to Indonesia homes. And we are proud continuing to be the first to launch HD-3D TV in Indonesia with HighTV 3D that represents another breakthrough service by First Media. With so many households now with HDTVs, people are looking for new ways to enjoy quality entertainment, at home” said Hengkie.

High TV 3D CEO Eric Klein said, “It is indeed a major milestone for us, as an international 3D channel, to be present in Indonesia on the platform with a high reach. We are excited to be bringing the very best in lifestyle and entertainment programming to an audience that embraces Entertainment as the very essence of their culture. We look forward to presenting HIGH TV 3D eclectic programs to territories across the rest of Asia”.

MUMBAI: You On Demand Holdings, a Pay-Per-View (PPV) and Video On Demand (VoD) content service provider, has signed an agreement with Disney Media Distribution, a distribution arm under Disney to distribute Disney films for both Transactional Video On Demand (TVOD) and Subscription Video On Demand (SVOD) throughout China.

As a result of this deal, You On Demand will now be adding Disney‘s library of titles, ranging like ‘The Help‘; ‘Cars 2 and ‘Beauty and the Beast‘ to its Hollywood offerings.

You On Demand chairman, CEO Shane McMahon said, “We are very proud to work with The Walt Disney Company in bringing the best in home entertainment to China. Disney films define quality family entertainment and we‘re thrilled that You On Demand will be their showcase to the world‘s largest television audience.”

MUMBAI: PlayUp, an interactive social engagement platform for sports, has launched a new game Cricket Empires – Claim your fame.

The new game, planned to coincide with the season 5 of IPL to derive maximum mileage, will have expert inputs from Australian legend Steve Waugh, one of the key stakeholders in the PlayUp business, and Indian cricket star Rohit Sharma, who is also the company’s brand ambassador.

PlayUp India CEO Rajat Kulshrestha said, “As pioneers in interactive social engagement for Sport, we are proud to bring our expertise to creating a new genre of social games. The modern-day sports fan is extremely well-informed and demands the very best. Our understanding of Sport and Social media allows us to create products with intense engagement for fans. We have learnt from both, our very active Facebook community and our Cricket experts – Australian legend Steve Waugh and Indian Cricket star Rohit Sharma – who have been intensively involved in the design and development of this game.”

Cricket Empires, PlayUp asserts, puts users in an immersive world that they can develop as they progress through the game. Users have two main assets – their Sports City and their Teams, which can be chosen from 16 of the latest generation of international and domestic players.

Fans create their perfect Empire with the addition of facilities such as stadiums, gymnasiums, team offices and training centers. Utilising these facilities for training players leads to increased health and better health leads to improved performances in the tournaments in Cricket Empires.

PlayUp says the game is different since it establishes close connect between user strategy and the real-world performance of Cricket players. Real world performances affect the popularity and demand for players within the game and fans need to adjust their Super-16 accordingly.

Cricket Empires will be launched as a public beta in early March with a full release to follow in time for the new IPL season. Users can enjoy the game on popular Social Media platforms and from their smart phones.

For the last year’s IPL, the company had partnered Deccan Chargers and Pune Warriors India to engage with cricket fans and had invested close to Rs 50-60 million on vigorous branding strategy targeting the digital space.