ROXi, Pearl TV launch interactive TV channels across US
April 15, 2024
Interactive entertainment company ROXi has announced partnerships with the major US broadcasters and a collaboration with Pearl TV to rollout interactive TV Channels nationwide, leveraging ROXI’s new FastStream technology for NextGen TV.
The new FastStream powered Interactive TV Channels will be immediately differentiated from traditional Broadcast TV Channels in that:
– Channels start at the beginning of a programme when viewers turn on that channel, or channel hop to that channel
– Viewers can pause, fast forward and rewind
– Viewers can jump to a particular programme segment instantly with their remote
– No need to download an app
Pearl TV, whose members include eight of the largest broadcast TV companies in the US, is collaborating with ROXi to accelerate the delivery nationwide of select channels.
First to be broadcast will be ROXi’s Interactive Music Channels, which aims to revolutionise the delivery of music on TV by allowing viewers on a music channel to choose genre or decade, and skip through music videos they don’t like.
ROXi and broadcasters are also now working on interactive TV channels for other genres including News (see below), Entertainment, and Sports with further announcements to be made soon.
ROXi CEO Rob Lewis believes FastStream can make broadcast TV compelling for a younger consumer, noting: “These new Interactive TV Channels are exactly what the younger consumers want from their media experiences. They’ve grown up with YouTube or Tik Tok in their pocket and expect to be able to start a programme at any time, and skip any segment they’re not interested in, even on broadcast TV at home”.
Anne Schelle, Managing Director of broadcaster group Pearl TV, said: “These new channels on NEXTGEN TV deliver a revolutionary viewing experience to consumers, one which can drive demand for NEXTGEN TVs while allowing ATSC 3.0 broadcasters to expand their market share of the growing connected TV ad market”.
Skip Flenniken, Sinclair’s VP & GM Technology Business Development, added: “We’re very excited to be working with ROXi to deliver exciting new Interactive TV experiences to consumers. We’re confident these experiences will provide consumers with a better understanding of the possibilities of broadcast TV and help accelerate the widespread adoption of NEXTGEN TV.”
Kerry Oslund, Vice President of Strategy & Business Development for The EW Scripps Company, said: “We all agree that it’s imperative we discover new ways to engage viewers, especially younger audiences who are not watching television the same way their parents do. This partnership with ROXi allows for an interactive experience that brings new and exciting ways to engage with our audiences.”
Meanwhile, Nick Colsey, Vice President of Business Development, Sony Electronics, noted: “Sony is excited to be delivering NEXTGEN TV across its entire range of US televisions. The introduction of these innovative and Interactive TV Channels in the US market will help customers enjoy their Sony BRAVIA TVs even more”.
3 News Interactive Las Vegas
3 News Interactive Las Vegas, which is being showcased at NAB, is a demo of what the future of local TV News will look like – and America’s first ever interactive TV news channel.
Powered by ROXi’s new FastStream technology in partnership with Sinclair Inc, 3 News Interactive Las Vegas has all the interactive features of a downloadable TV app without the need to download or launch an App on the TV, all delivered over broadcast TV thanks to FastStream and NEXTGEN TV.
Unlike traditional TV news broadcasts, the new Interactive Local TV News Channel always starts at the beginning of the programme with the latest headlines, no matter when a viewer tunes in. Viewers can skip any segment of the news that have no interest in, or jump directly to Headlines, National News, Local News, Investigate and Local Weather segments.
Content includes Sinclair’s local TV news station Las Vegas 3 CW and news syndicated from The National Desk combining news from local Sinclair news stations across the US into one news national feed.
Rob Lewis, ROXi CEO said: “This is the world’s first Interactive Local TV News Channel delivered in partnership with Sinclair Inc on NextGen TV and it represents the future of local TV news. With our FastStream technology, we’ve created the first Local TV News Channel that’s made for the TikTok generation.”
Skip Flenniken, Sinclair’s VP & GM Technology Business Development who partners closely with ROXi on the new FastStream-powered Interactive TV Channel experiences, commented: “This new FastStream powered local TV News experience showcases the full interactive capabilities of NextGen TV and shows how broadcasters can deliver exciting new services into homes across the US.”
ROXi’s Rob Lewis added: “Local TV news has been a core part of American life for more than 75 years with over 800 local News Channels now broadcast daily to TV viewers. Despite this, linear delivery of news content by TV Broadcasters has remained largely the same for three quarters of a century, even though the way viewers consume news media has evolved with technological advances. The generation of consumers have been brought up with YouTube and TikTok in their pocket want to control their Broadcast TV viewing experience interactively and FastStream powered local TV News Channels on NEXTGEN TV gives broadcasters the capability to deliver on this expectation, as well as accelerate demand for NEXTGEN TV televisions.”