Skitter.TV App Brings Live TV Programming to Roku Players

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  Skitter, Inc. today announced the completion of a customized version of the Skitter.TV converged video app for the Roku digital video player product line. The app adds live off-air broadcast, satellite network and local programming to the Roku player for the first time via the Skitter.TV video platform.  Roku customers whose broadband service providers offer Skitter.TV entertainment services will be able to enjoy live streaming of their local broadcast affiliate channels and national cable channel content on any of the Roku players.  In some markets, telecom service providers will also produce local community programming.

“The Roku player is one of the first and most successful environments for enjoying video-on-demand and now Web content streamed to the living room,” said Robert Saunders, Skitter president and co-founder.  “The addition of Skitter.TV adds live television programming to the Roku environment, creating the converged media environment consumers want.”

Live TV Content on Roku to be Made Available via Local Telecommunications Service Providers

For Skitter.TV service providers who choose to support the Roku player, an activation code will allow the customer to add the Skitter.TV as a “channel” on their Roku player.  When the Skitter.TV channel is selected, a submenu appears within the Roku interface, allowing the user to scroll through available live TV channels.  The Skitter.TV video platform is specifically designed for tier-two and tier-three telecom service providers, allowing them to offer live, community-centric TV services in a easily managed, affordable environment that takes advantage of a provider’s existing DSL or fiber network.

Skitter.TV’s advances in video encoding and streaming give the provider greater control over the impact of Internet video on bandwidth and network resources, thereby optimizing the viewing experience for the consumer. “That’s the other angle on our partnerships with Roku and with local telco’s that will ultimately benefit our mutual customers,” Saunders continued. “It’s the local service provider who controls and manages IP network accessibility and reliability.  For those telco’s who choose to support the Roku player along with Skitter.TV, quality of service can be optimized for not just the live content, but all the Roku channels.”

Roku Players Give Skitter.TV Service Providers STB Choice

With the completion of the Roku app, individual telco’s may choose to support Skitter.TV with the Roku player exclusively or in combination with other boxes.  According to Saunders, Skitter’s strategy is to support multiple set-top boxes, starting with those that enjoy the greatest customer satisfaction, demonstrate the most momentum in overall market acceptance, or offer the most advanced technology.  This is a radical change from traditional cable and IPTV business models that lock the provider and the customer into a particular device. “We give the service provider the flexibility to choose the set-top box, or multiple STB’s, that best match their business model and customer needs,” Saunders said.  “That means the telco can choose to lease, resell or giveaway set-top boxes, or to simply refer their customers to online or local retailers to buy their own box.  In this way, the provider can make decisions that best meet their business goals and technical architecture.”

About Skitter.TV

Skitter.TV™ is video technology enabling telecomm service providers to encode, configure, deliver and monetize converged TV services.  Skitter.TV provides a broadband TV experience on computers, televisions, mobile devices and gaming consoles.  The end-to-end video platform includes head-end hardware and software for integrated Web video, live (linear) cable network and broadcast TV, and video-on-demand content, delivered over IP via DSL, fiber optics or wireless networks. Skitter.TV’s end-user software and program guide offer consumers premium-quality high definition (HD) or standard definition (SD) multiscreen video service that combines live and on-demand content in a unified, remote-control-driven environment.

About Skitter, Inc.

Skitter is a converged media technology startup based in Atlanta, GA.  Its founders have a combined experience base of more than 50 years in computing, telecommunications and Internet technology and more than 30 years in video technology, including numerous patents in video compression.  For more information, visit www.skitter.tv.

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