Hofbauer: NDS decison
Nordic DTH operator Canal Digital has announced plans to launch a hybrid satellite and over-the-top platform using a series of technologies provided by NDS.
It is the first major announcement for NDS under new owner Cisco.
The deployment embraces the multiscreen environment and will allow subscribers to access content both in the home and on the go. A single user interface will be used on a cross-platform basis.
“In providing a wholly managed service for Canal Digital we are combining our experience and technical capability to extend our role as solutions provider further than ever before. But more significantly, the approach taken by Canal Digital shows market innovation and progression to hosted and cloud-based technologies that will enable future-proofed platforms, optimised resources and scalability,” said Jesper Andersen, senior vice president and general manager, service provider video technology group, Cisco.
The framework for the system is the NDS Snowflake interface, already deployed by Portugal’s TV Cabo, and slated for the UPC Horizon project. It is a step up on Canal Digital’s DTH rival Viasat, which has used NDS MediaHighway middleware since 2008.
Snowflake centres on linear programming with the ability to scroll into either the past or the future, providing access to on demand content, and the booking of shows yet to be transmitted.
A hosted NDS Unified Headend will sit outside the Canal Digital Network and link to the subscriber’s home through a multimedia gateway. NDS will also use NDS MediaHighway across the gateway and multituner zaper boxes.
“Our new platform will provide what can only be described as a new generation of TV entertainment for our subscribers. With NDS, we are investing in our future to provide the ultimate user experience and the best possible infrastructure to support the growth of our business,” said Patrik Hofbauer, CEO, Canal Digital.
The move to NDS marks another turnaround for Canal Digital and its choice of technology suppliers. In November 2010, the Telenor-owned platform announced it was to deploy the TiVo system.
Six months later, and with radio silence on TiVo, it was MHP boxes manufactured by ADB that were paraded in front of the media by recently appointed CEO Hofbauer. By choosing the NDS unified headend, Canal Digital has also unified the technology choice of Viasat, but also the Norwegian cablenet Get, another NDS customer.
Canal Digital will continue to use the Conax conditional access system.
