Falcon Communications Inc. signed an agreement with Intelsat Ltd. to distribute “Ampiage,” a satellite-based MPEG-4-video open-architecture transport service, to telcos and other multichannel system operators in North America, officials said Monday.
Falcon will distribute Ampiage to the roughly 800 U.S. telcos it currently serves, offering them an entry point into the Internet-protocol-TV, MPEG-4 and triple-play markets. Ampiage -- which centralizes the aggregation, processing and distribution of fully digital audio and video content -- enables telcos to bundle a robust standard-definition and HDTV programming package with voice and broadband services without incurring significant upgrade or start-up costs.
Intelsat expects Ampiage to be commercially available starting this summer.
