Verance brings watermarking to HbbTV
October 1, 2019
In a move that will significantly expand the reach of interactive television services in markets worldwide, standards-based watermarking provider Verance has revealed plans to bring its Aspect watermarking technology to Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV (HbbTV).
Aspect uses Verance’s high-performance implementation of the standards-based watermarking technologies sanctioned by the HbbTV Association – a global initiative dedicated to providing an open standard for the delivery of advanced interactive television services through broadcast and broadband networks for connected TV sets and set-top boxes – in its recently-published Application Discovery over Broadband specification. It enables consumers to access HbbTV services on their television sets, even when they receive TV service through a legacy set-top box.
By deploying Aspect, these services will be seamlessly delivered through any distribution path, where they can be discovered and accessed on watermark-enabled HbbTV televisions. Because Aspect watermarking is compatible with all distribution environments – cable, satellite, IPTV and OTT – it significantly increases the household reach of these services.
In addition to supporting the HbbTV standard, Aspect is a proven technology that provides access to hybrid services as part of the ATSC 3.0 next-generation US television standard, offering global compatibility, scale and cost efficiencies. Aspect products have already been successfully adopted by leading US programmers in connection with the new US broadcast system, which is being readied for deployment nationally starting in 2020.
“We are pleased to extend the support of Aspect to the HbbTV ecosystem,” said Joe Winograd, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder of Verance. “Aspect is now a global watermarking solution that benefits the entire HbbTV ecosystem – programmers, manufacturers, advertisers and consumers, expanding the availability of advanced interactive television, on-demand viewing, audience insights and other HbbTV features.