Beamly, the social TV company traditionally focused on second-screen apps, said it will also target the big screen by supporting Android TV, the coming platform from Google that will be baked into smart televisions, streaming media players, and other types of TV-connected devices.
Comcast-backed Beamly, which changed its name from Zeebox in April, offers an apps platform that supports a personalized TV guide, content discovery and recommendations engine, and, with select providers, integrated remote control functionality. The plan now is to integrate Beamly’s capabilities, including interactive capabilities and its SpotSynch ad platform, directly into devices powered by Android TV.
While the move gives Beamly an entrée to the television set, it won’t be the first time the company has flirted with devices connected to the big screen, as Comcast, for example, has already tied parts of the company’s platform to the MSO’s X1 cloud-based guide/interface.
“We’ve always seen the future as being not about the first screen or the second screen, but a two-way connection between the device in your hand where you browse and interact with TV shows, and the big screen where you watch those shows” said Anthony Rose, co-founder & CTO at Beamly, in a statement. “The arrival of the Android TV platform will finally make this possible. For device manufacturers, this is a huge opportunity, but also a challenge – simply shipping a box with a grid EPG is no longer an option.”
Beamly said it’s working with “several” Android TV manufactures.
Google identified Sony, Sharp, TP Vision, Asus and Razr among its initial slate of CE partners when it introduced Android TV in June.
