With some encoding wizardry from Harmonic Inc., TVN Entertainment Corp.
launched a new video-on-demand-transmission process Monday afternoon.
Known as TV Now, the venture is designed to make time-sensitive programming
-- such as live news coverage and sports -- playable on VOD platforms hours
after their original presentations on broadcast or cable networks.
Using MPEG-2 (Moving Picture Expert Group) encoding from Harmonic's DiviCom
division, TV Now can record and encode live programs, incorporate complex
asset-management details and send the programs out to cable operators in a few
hours, instead of a few days under other encoding systems.
TVN officials said the process is Cable Television Laboratories
Inc.-compliant.
Along with TV Now, TVN is also making available to operators a 1.3 version of
its "ARI," or "Affiliate Remote Interface."
This technology allows cable systems the ability to view on-demand content
from all national and local sources, including TVN's satellite transmissions,
through one location.
