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Mediaroom 2.0 Unites Software and Cloud Services to Power New TV Experiences Across Many Screens

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Microsoft today unveiled the next version of its Microsoft Mediaroom IPTV software platform - Microsoft Mediaroom 2.0 - which enables subscription TV providers to deliver more digital entertainment to more screens, using a single cloud-based infrastructure.  Mediaroom 2.0 will be available for operators to start testing beginning next month.

Mediaroom 2.0 can be deployed by TV operators as their ‘entertainment cloud' to power the delivery of a complete television service including cloud DVR, on-demand features, interactive applications, and access to both operator-hosted content and externally-hosted content such as Internet TV.  An operator's Mediaroom 2.0-powered service can be enjoyed by their subscribers on multiple screens including the TV, the PC, the Xbox 360 and compatible smartphones, bringing Microsoft's ‘Many Screen' vision to life. For consumers, this means more freedom over where and how they access their TV service, creating scenarios where they may start watching a show on one screen and finish watching it on another. 

This new version is all about new ways of accessing and experiencing digital content for the consumer, but as well as more screens, Mediaroom 2.0 creates further differentiation for TV providers by supporting:

  • More networks:   Mediaroom 2.0 lets service providers offer their existing on-demand TV service to their entire broadband customer base using their existing set-top box inventory, thereby expanding their service footprint beyond the reach of their IPTV network. Built-in support for  Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) Smooth Streaming also means operators can offer a premium, HD-quality, video on demand service, with minimal buffering and fast start-up times, even over IP-based networks of varying bandwidths. This significantly expands the service reach for operators and gives customers the flexibility to access content via fixed-line as well as wireless - and in the future via mobile broadband networks.
  • More content: Operators can now meet consumer demand for ever-larger content libraries by augmenting existing content with TV and video from the web. Microsoft PlayReady preserves the service provider's ability to secure their content libraries and monetize consumer experiences.
  • More revenue: A new on-demand storefront, designed to drive subscriber usage and satisfaction by providing a richly visual browsing, discovery and playback experience, further enhances the monetization potential for Mediaroom service operators. 

This news comes on the heels of several other Microsoft developments, such as AT&T's recent rollout of Windows 7 Netbooks, which illustrate Microsoft's ongoing commitment to partnering with service providers to make the industry vision for ‘Many screens and a Cloud' a reality. For more information on today's Mediaroom 2.0 news, please check out the press release here.

Ted Malone, Senior director of product management for Microsoft Mediaroom