Advanced Television

EchoStar sings Aria for cable TV

June 7, 2011

EchoStar Technologies is to unveil Aria, a new technology ‘ecosystem’ designed exclusively for mid-sized and independent cable TV operators at the upcoming Cable Show in Chicago.

“Our engineers have designed an economical technology platform that will allow smaller cable operators to deliver the premium television features and services most in demand by consumers today without the need to invest in new facilities, servers, data centres and additional engineering staff,” said Mark Jackson, president of EchoStar Technologies, a business unit of EchoStar Corporation.

Aria features cloud-based VOD, TV Everywhere, and an interactive HD programme guide, among other attributes. EchoStar suggests that operators will gain an edge against the nation’s most competitive providers by using their current cable plant to economically deliver the most popular TV and broadband services.

Michael Hawkey, vice president of sales and marketing, EchoStar Technologies, noted that innovative products were being introduced every day, but suggested that the technology to use them was designed for the nation’s largest providers. “America’s greatest entrepreneurial cable operators still need flexible and scalable solutions that are built for their unique business needs,” he stated, adding that EchoStar’s technology suite could provide an ‘ecosystem’ that would help operators provide the services to be more competitive, being engineered to perform on existing networks without a painful integration period.

Aria will run in concert with new EchoStar SD, HD or SlingLoaded set-top boxes that will also be introduced at The Cable Show. This will allow operators to take advantage of the trend in multi-platform, out-of-home viewing but in a way that brands the experience to the local cable operator, says EchoStar.

 

 

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