One TV app to rule them all? That's the aim of U.K.-based
startup Zeebox, which is launching Thursday in the States with big helping
hands from Comcast, NBCUniversal and HBO.
The Zeebox app lets users enter the name of the show or channel they're watching TV and then delivers enhanced and related content culled the Web, provided by TV programmers, social networks and advertisers. The free-to-download app, available for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Android smartphones and the Web, also includes e-commerce features. It does not provide automatic-content recognition.
"We've built a universal application that works across
content and across providers," said Ernesto Schmitt, Zeebox's co-founder and
CEO. "It's an open platform for the industry to join in."
Comcast and NBCU have each taken separate equity stakes in
Zeebox; the amount of their investment was not disclosed. Other investors
include BSkyB in the U.K.
