Online video service provider thePlatform has launched a radically re-engineered video management system for multi-screen publishing, known as mpx. It marks the tenth anniversary of the company, now a subsidiary of Comcast, and the evolution in sophistication of online video publishing requirements with initiatives such as TV Everywhere.
The new mpx management platform provides a new console for managing video assets and publishing them across the web, mobile devices and set-top boxes. The publishing platform is built on a new service-oriented architecture and has been in development for two years. It addresses customer concerns that the previous platform was difficult to use and enables the company to address not only high-end publishers but also the mid-market. The new version is being offered to existing customers in beta release.
“We’re resetting the bar today,” said Ian Blaine, co-founder and chief executive of thePlatform. “Our job is to anticipate and provide solutions that enable our customers to evolve their video businesses in the years ahead. mpx represents the culmination of all of our learning over the past 10 years, and we’ve applied the full resources of the company to develop an easy, streamlined and robust new system to meet the increasingly complex needs of the market.”
He described it as a “rethinking of media management” that aims to make things simple for the publisher user while taking into account the increasing complexity of the media market. Some of the customers of thePlatform have tens of thousands of video assets and may need to deliver them in as many as 20 different formats.
The company says that while many white label video service providers employ a linear process for managing and publishing video, mpx claims to offer more efficient workflows and smart publishing profiles suitable for clients with extensive video libraries and increasingly complex syndication requirements.
The interface can be personalised for individual users and roles to show only what is necessary to accomplish appointed tasks.
A development kit offers the possibility of managing the complete publishing lifecycle with standard application programming interfaces to access the underlying services of the platform.
“Ten years ago there were many questions about how video would be delivered, monetized and consumed,” said Blaine. “We formed our company on the premise that those questions would be answered differently by the individual customers we serve, and we built a platform designed to address them.”
“Today, these same questions remain, but our ability to answer them has expanded dramatically,” he continued. “In 2010 and beyond, consumers will be watching more video with longer durations across an evolving ecosystem of devices. Our customers, in turn, want to reach larger audiences to drive revenues and increase brand loyalty. mpx will enable them to address this growing opportunity in the years ahead.”
Acquired by Comcast in June 2006 for a reported $80 million, thePlatform provides online video management services for multiple clients, including five of the top cable television service providers in North America, including the largest TV Everywhere deployments.