NAB 06: Tightrope Media Systems To Unveil Cablecast Software Upgrade

Tightrope Media Systems will unveil a new software upgrade for its Cablecast broadcast automation platform at NAB 2016, enhancing the way that Community TV broadcasters manage and present live and on-demand content to online viewers. Building on the customer acclaim and momentum of the recent Cablecast 6.0 release, version 6.1 adds features that address evolving audience viewing habits across smartphones and tablets, along with open APIs that maximize front-end presentation flexibility for Community TV station web developers. Tightrope Media Systems will exhibit at Booth SL4228.

Cablecast customers report that version 6.0's powerful Video on Demand (VOD) publishing has emerged as a very popular feature with Community TV viewers, and the new VOD Chaptering capabilities in version 6.1 expand Cablecast's powerful VOD experience. The VOD Chaptering application provides new functions that allow users to insert chapter markers at important points in the content, along with searchable descriptions of the marked events. Viewers watching the VOD version of a program can jump directly to a section of interest, such as a council meeting agenda item or a scoring play in a sporting event.

Today's busy viewers want to not only watch programs on their own schedules, but also skip directly to the particular sections they're interested in, says Steve Israelsky, VP Broadcast Solutions, Tightrope Media Systems. The new VOD chaptering feature lets viewers jump to what they want to see in one easy click, without having to scrub through the stream to find it.

Sophisticated and streamlined web content delivery was already one of the strongest selling points of Cablecast. Extending the modernized site redesign introduced in Cablecast 6.0, Tightrope further improves content presentation while simplifying program discovery for viewers. VOD programming and live streams are accessible to audiences through the new Cablecast Public Site, which provides an elegant front-end layout of a TV station's schedule, live streams, VOD content and programming highlights. Category names are customizable and galleries can be updated dynamically based on customer-defined search criteria, increasing the flexibility and freshness of how programming is presented without ongoing manual effort.

For customers with multiple channels, the site now allows viewers to switch between channels - for example, from public access to education - providing faster access to targeted live and VOD content. Behind the scenes, the Cablecast Reflect cloud-based service continues to offer customers the ability to deliver Cablecast's adaptive bit rate, H.264 streams to a virtually unlimited number of viewers while conserving station network bandwidth.

Each Cablecast system comes standard with the Cablecast Public Site, a ready-to-use website that stations can serve as a standalone web portal, or integrate into existing websites. Since all Cablecast 6.1 functionality is now built on open-source APIs, web developers have unlimited freedom to incorporate Cablecast web display features and custom applications into their own websites.

Further easing operational management, Cablecast 6.1 features an overhauled reporting engine, including an updated user interface and new functionality. A new First Run' report lists all content that ran for the first time during a specified period for one or more channels, helping stations comply with franchise authority reporting requirements.

Our customers have been very excited about the web display features we introduced in Cablecast 6.0, and the new version elevates it even further for both the broadcaster and viewer, says Israelsky. Whether online viewers are looking for public affairs shows, sports, news or simply the newest programs overall, they will be able to browse and connect with interesting content even faster across desktops, tablets and smartphones. Cablecast 6.1 ensures viewers, developers and stations have greater control of their experience.

LINK:	http://www.sportsvideo.org/2016/03/29/nab-2016-tightrope-media-systems...
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