There are now over a hundred million OpenTV compatible interactive television set-top boxes and displays worldwide, since the first digital deployments back in 1997. OpenTV software is now used by 50 network operators in 100 countries. However, only ten per cent of televisions in the world are currently digitally enabled, which represents either relatively slow progress over the last decade, or a major market opportunity.
The 100 million Open TV compatible devices exceed the combined number of Xbox, Xbox 360, Sony PS3, and Nintendo Wii units shipped since their respective launches.
“As we surpass the 100 million device mark, I can proudly state that OpenTV’s technology has truly become the cornerstone of digital television services around the world,” said Ben Bennett, the chief operating officer of OpenTV.
“This is no small feat when you consider the size and complexity of the global television industry. We have come a long way since the late nineties when HDTV, DVR’s and advanced interactive services were still immature technologies and not fully consumer-grade quality.”
“That has now changed as we see the deployment of much more advanced interactivity being integrated with the traditional viewing experience,” he said. “Considering that still only ten percent of the world’s 1.78 billion televisions are digitally enabled, we have a great market opportunity ahead of us.”
OpenTV announced its latest customer win with ZON TV Cabo in Portugal. Its forthcoming high-definition digital video recorder will feature OpenTV Core2 and PVR2 middleware.
The leading cable and satellite provider in Portugal, with 1.5 million subscribers, ZON TV Cabo is an existing customer of Nagravision conditional access solutions. The Kudeski Group, which includes Nagravision, acquired OpenTV in October 2006.
“Adding ZON TV Cabo as a customer further reinforces our footprint and cable presence in Europe, with Portugal being an important new market for us,” said the head of OpenTV.
“Through our strong partnership with Nagravision and the Kudelski Group, we are offering bundled, turnkey solutions to operators worldwide,” he said. “Our goal is to simplify the purchasing and technology deployment process for our customers and deliver advanced interactive services to market rapidly and cost effectively.”