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May 2, 2012 Digital Rapids Adaptive Streaming Encoders Enable Rich Online Coverage of Indian Premier League Cricket
Passfield, UK: Digital Rapids announced today that the company's StreamZ Live adaptive bit rate (ABR) encoders have been chosen by Times Internet Limited (TIL) for live online streaming of the 51-day Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament through the indiatimes.com website and via YouTube.
Eight StreamZ Live ABR encoders were supplied for the project by Digital Rapids partner Shaf Broadcast Pvt Ltd. The encoders are deployed in a high-availability configuration, with redundancy further bolstering the robust reliability of the StreamZ Live encoders. Each high definition input source is encoded to multiple output profiles at varying resolutions and bit rates for adaptive streaming, enabling seamless viewing experiences that automatically adapt based on the viewer's available bandwidth. Separate streams are available for different geographic regions with varying time delays. Leveraging StreamZ Live's extensive integration capabilities, a custom tool allows operators to insert cue points for important match events, celebrity movements and advertising. TIL can subsequently use these cue points, in conjunction with metadata and geolocation, for dynamic advertisement delivery.
The live HD streams of the IPL matches are supported by a host of new features and interactivity introduced by TIL this year on its IPL website. A new interactive video scorecard shows important highlights such as wickets and runs scored, while new video-on-demand features offer additional highlights such as fours, sixes and face-offs between players. New DVR-like features allow viewers to rewind the live stream and watch any parts of the match they may have missed, while social media integration enables fans to come together to support their favorite teams and players. Digital Rapids solutions were also used by TIL for the 2011 IPL season, when TIL reported that 72 million users visited the ipl.indiatimes.com online site -- a significant rise in viewership over the previous year.
"With IPL on India Times, there was a 79% rise in viewership of the site in just one year. This year, we hope to take that figure even higher by creating a virtual IPL hub where fans can view and engage with the game even more actively. High-quality streaming video is at the centre of that experience, and the Digital Rapids solutions are critical in delivering that to our viewers," said Rishi Khiani, CEO, Times Internet Limited. "Our online IPL video and site are a tremendous revenue opportunity for us. We have already generated 40% profit, and the figure is rising. This might well be our largest revenue generating online event."
"Indian Premier League cricket is followed passionately by tens of millions of fans around the world, and we're very pleased that Times Internet Limited has again chosen our solutions to bring live streaming of the tournament to their audience," said Clive Vickery, Managing Director, EMEA and Asia at Digital Rapids. "StreamZ Live's outstanding visual quality, reliability and support for integration with TIL's advertising workflows enable TIL to capitalise on broad monetisation opportunities while delivering a rich online experience to their viewers."
StreamZ Live encoders provide superior quality, outstanding reliability and flexible, multi-screen output format support for audience-expanding live streaming applications. Powering services from online and mobile video to over-the-top (OTT) services and IPTV, StreamZ Live's rich output capabilities and adaptive streaming support are ideal for capitalising on today's lucrative multi-screen content distribution opportunities, allowing content and rights owners to reach viewers on devices from tablets and mobile phones to game consoles, PCs and 'smart' TVs.
For more information about Digital Rapids, please visit www.digitalrapids.com.
About Digital Rapids Corporation – Digital Rapids provides market-leading content transformation and workflow solutions that empower the world's leading media organizations to reach wider audiences more efficiently, more effectively and more profitably. Recipients of more than two dozen prestigious awards for company and product excellence, Digital Rapids combines innovative technology with proven expertise and visionary insight to help our customers expand their audiences, increase their revenues, and reduce their costs. Digital Rapids Corporation (www.digitalrapids.com) is headquartered in Ontario, Canada with offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Australia and Argentina.
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