Box TV has launched a free online streaming service, built and powered by SimpleStream.  All seven Box TV channels (4Music, heat, Kiss, Kerrang!, Box, Smash Hits and Magic) can now be viewed for free through an intuitive branded video media player hosted on 4music.com and the respective channel websites.  Using SimpleStream’s Over-the-Top (OTT) technology, live streams of all the Box TV Channels are simulcast to PC’s, tablets and other mobile devices, meaning that the whole Box TV portfolio can now be viewed online and on the move for the very first time.

SimpleStream beat off stiff competition from other streaming and OVP providers to deliver a bespoke end-to-end simulcast live streaming service for Box TV, including comprehensive cross-platform rights management fully integrated with Box TV’s existing scheduling system. UK-based, SimpleStream has been working closely with the Box TV team to re-create the traditional television viewing experience online and reach a wider audience.

The multi-channel, multi-platform media player enables the end user to watch any of the seven Box TV channels from within a single player.  The user can discover content using the overlay mini-EPG, which includes ‘now’ and ‘next’ information and allows the user to scroll seamlessly between channels while still keeping within the Box TV environment. With a single click, online viewers can share the content they are watching to popular social networking sites such as facebook, twitter, tumblr and Google+.

Media Manager, SimpleStream’s proprietary software solution, manages the end-to-end delivery of Box TV’s online streaming having been fully integrated with their existing broadcast management systems.  Media Manager can receive multiple ‘black out’ commands from the scheduling system, including support for different rights profiles per channel across different devices and online destinations. SimpleStream employs optimised HLS streaming across web and mobile using multiple bitrates to ensure a high quality viewing experience.

In-built security tools further safeguard the broadcaster’s content so that it is only streamed to authorised destinations within defined rights windows. Media Manager’s comprehensive analytic suite offers detailed insight into viewing patterns and is integrated with both the scheduling system and multiple third-party ad-serving systems to provide real-time and historic reports comparing viewership and revenue across channels, series and programmes. An on-going development, this is an exciting new feature for broadcasters who are keen to learn more about their audience and viewing patterns than historically available through sources such as BARB. It also enables the sale of highly targeted online video inventory around simulcasted content.

Julie Wright, business development and commercial director at Box TV said: “We have wanted to take our much-loved linear channels to a connected audience for quite some time and SimpleStream’s solution perfectly mirrored these aspirations. We know that editorialised music videos and music programming are still a key consumer choice for music discovery and to be able to offer this choice on the web, tablet and mobile, via SimpleStream’s solution, is fantastic for consumers, advertisers and the music industry alike.”

Dan Finch, Director of SimpleStream comments, “We are delighted to have been chosen to provide end-to-end live streaming services to Box TV for their channel portfolio.  They are leading the way as a channel owner of several free to air channels in the UK to grasp the opportunity to roll out linear broadcast services to connected devices and to monetise the content through new advertising formats. Linear TV lends itself well to be a social experience and the Box TV younger audience is well placed to comment and share what they are seeing with friends – it’s the evolutionary step for all TV consumption”.

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