The challenge
To make the Hybrid TV business case more attractive and sustainable, a leading French broadcaster was looking to maximize the reach of its new HbbTV-based services to a national audience.
Nowadays, most of the French audience receives TV signals through distributors (cable/IPTV) rather than directly over-the-air. Without ADB2 watermarking (the new extension of the HbbTV standard), HbbTV Services can only reach 40% of households. With the application of the ADB2 Watermarking, HbbTV services can potentially be delivered to 100% of TVs, including all set-top box scenarios.
The solution
Fincons, in partnership with Verance, is implementing HbbTV ADB2 as an infrastructure to create new revenue opportunities.
This first of its kind pilot covers two interactive use cases:
- VOD catalogue access, through the launch of an HbbTV app;
- Dynamic Advertising Substitution, via the synchronization of the broadcast signal and the HbbTV application.
The objective is to enable broadcasters to take advantage of all HbbTV capabilities, even in homes that receive TV signals through an set-top box. This supports the highest penetration of HbbTV experiences, without affecting the broadcast signal.
Fincons built the HbbTV applications as well as the backend cloud infrastructure to deliver the application code and content entirely over the internet.
Key components of this infrastructure are Fincons Synchro AD, enabling synchronization between the broadcast signal and the HbbTV application, and Verance Aspect, to insert and detect ADB2 triggers.
The benefits
The successful launch of interactive applications using ADB2 in a field test TV receiving signals passing through set-top boxes proves to the entire HbbTV community that this is a viable solution for countries which have a large number of set-top boxes in the marketplace.
This solution finally enables the extension of HbbTV reach and volume scalability, making new monetization paradigms such as TA, Interactive Advertising and DAS, consistent and attractive to brands and investors.
Proud to be part of the first 24/7 embedding of the ADB2 watermark in France and in Europe.
Jason Patton - SVP Sales & Marketing Verance