Monday, February 23, 2009

iStream Director selected as 2009 Streaming Media Editor's Choice Pic

StreamingMedia magazine selects iStreamPlanet’s iStreamDirector in its 2009 Editor’s Picks - a list of the best in innovative products and services in streaming media for 2008. Click here to visit streamingmedia.com and article on Editor's Pics.

Thursday, February 12, 2009

E3thos.com Joins Forces With iStreamPlanet to Launch Worldwide Pay-Per-View Comedy Jam With Shaq and Cedric the Entertainer

iStreamPlanet's Webcast and PayCast Technology Streams Event Live to Online Viewers

LAS VEGAS, Feb. 12 /PRNewswire/ – iStreamPlanet(R) (http://www.istreamplanet.com/About.aspx), an innovator of digital media strategy, managed webcasting services (http://www.istreamplanet.com/ManagedWebcasting.aspx), and Rich Internet Applications, and E3thos.com, an online portal dedicated to delivering urban video content, today announced that they are teaming to provide a worldwide pay-per-view for a Comedy Jam hosted by Cedric the Entertainer and Shaquille O'Neal. Cedric the Entertainer will share the stage with four outstanding comedians: Tommy Davidson, Deray Davis, Kevin Hart, and Aries Spears. Leveraging iStreamPlanet's managed webcasting and PayCast(R) technology, online viewers will be able to watch the pay-per-view Comedy Jam session live. The Comedy Jam can be seen on E3thos.com's on demand channel, which will be streamed live on February 14, 2009, at 9:30 a.m. MT. The cost is only $4.99.

"We are extremely excited about the event," said Clifford Franklin, CEO and co-founder of E3thos.com. "E3thos.com has grown rapidly over the past few months and this event is just another vehicle for continued growth. The Comedy Jam is part of Shaquille O'Neal and Cedric the Entertainer's NBA All-Star Weekend activities. The idea was to bring the NBA weekend to the people and have a low cost Comedy Jam that everyone can afford. Webcasting the event with pay-per-view capabilities provides a secure and cost-effective way to reach the widest audience."

iStreamPlanet, an E3thos.com strategic partner, is fully managing the live webcast on a Windows Media(R) platform. Specifically, iStreamPlanet will provide content acquisition and back-haul over the satellite to the webcast operations center for offsite encoding and transcoding. This includes the integration of PayCast (http://www.istreamplanet.com/PayCast.aspx), its pay-per-view and subscription service, as well as ingesting live video into Akamai's content delivery network for distribution.

"Coming on the heels of our webcasts of the presidential inauguration and the Grammy pre-telecast awards, this collaboration with E3thos.com for the Comedy Jam further validates the growth of digital media and the need to deliver live video streaming with pay-per-view across any platform simply and cost-effectively," said Mio Babic, CEO of iStreamPlanet. "We're delighted to be working with E3thos.com and Akamai to provide a seamless viewing experience to all the audiences that don't have the opportunity to be at the Comedy Jam in person."

Monday, February 09, 2009

Microsoft Silverlight Selected by Presidential Inaugural Committee to Enable Online Video Streaming of Inauguration Events

WASHINGTON, Jan. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Microsoft Corp. today announced that the Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC) has selected the company's Silverlight technology to enable live and on-demand video streaming of the official inauguration swearing-in ceremony on the PIC Web site at http://www.pic2009.org. As part of its efforts to hold the most open and accessible inauguration in history, on Saturday, Jan. 17, the PIC will also stream video of a Baltimore event on the Whistle Stop Tour that will take President-elect Barack Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden to Washington, D.C., from Philadelphia.


"Microsoft is proud to be part of this event by helping to bring the inauguration activities online," said Brad Smith, Microsoft general counsel. "Just as during the campaign itself, Internet technology is enabling people around the world to participate more directly in historic events in new and exciting ways."

In August the 2008 Democratic National Convention Committee (DNCC) used Microsoft Silverlight to stream convention proceedings, including President- elect Obama's acceptance speech.

Microsoft collaborated with iStreamPlanet Co. to develop and implement the rich media player experience powered by Microsoft Silverlight. "We welcome the opportunity to work with Microsoft again to demonstrate our expertise and ability to meet the challenges involved in such a watershed event in the history of webcasting," said Mio Babic, CEO of iStreamPlanet.

"Microsoft Silverlight was built to enable people to consume online content in unique and engaging ways," said Scott Guthrie, corporate vice president of the .NET Developer Division at Microsoft. "This will be a truly historic event, and we are honored to enable online viewers to participate and create really meaningful experiences."

Sunday, February 08, 2009

iStreamPlanet helps bring Grammy watchers more behind-the-scenes entertainment

While watching awards shows I’ve always felt sorry for the winners who never make it to prime time. You know the ones; their glory is usually promoted in a quick scroll across the bottom of the TV-screen or some obviously disinterested celebrity unemotionally reading them from a list.

The poor nominees rarely even get mentioned. More important, fans of these artists or followers of these less popular categories never get the full award show payoff.

Why am I babbling about this? Two reasons:

The Recording Academy has opted to live stream what it’s calling a Grammy Pre-Telecast Ceremony on Sunday, Feb. 8, from 1-3:45 p.m. PT
All too many times the “metal” category of the Grammys has been thrown by the prime time wayside to make room for pop music. That’s always bugged me — even though I’ve never thought The Recording Academy was an expert on the metal craft anyway.
Enough about my agenda, let’s talk about the Grammys. The 51st Annual Grammy Awards Pre-Telecast Ceremony will take place on at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The ceremony is the non-televised event where a majority of Grammy categories are awarded, and it has its own guest presenters and live performances. Comedian Wayne Brady will host the ceremony.

The live stream will be delivered by iStreamPlanet in conjunction with Springboard Productions. With Springboard producing the content, iStreamPlanet will manage onsite content acquisition; onsite encoding and transcoding; building the rich media player experience that incorporated adaptive streaming from Move Networks; content integration with the Grammy Web site; and ingestion into AT&T’s Content Delivery Network for distribution.

Even though I feel disappointment in the Grammys themselves for their treatment of my favorite genre, I am becoming quite the fan and watcher of iStreamPlanet and the interesting partnerships they keep getting themselves into. This is the second high-profile event in a month that the company has been brought in to do — the first was teaming up with Microsoft for live streaming of President Barack Obama’s inauguration.

“Audiences are getting savvier and have high expectations, especially in terms of video quality. We have to deliver video streaming that is equal to the experience they have with viewing content on their TV, regardless of what type of Internet connection they have. We are leveraging AT&T’s CDN and Move Networks adaptive streaming technology to create what we feel will be the most memorable Grammy experience yet,” said Mio Babic, CEO of iStreamPlanet.

Watch the live stream of the Grammy Pre-Telecast here. Oh, and when are the Grammys on? Check your local listings for times but they will air on CBS on Sunday night.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Mötley Crüe Announces CRÜE FEST 2008, The Summer's Loudest Show On Earth

Los Angeles (April 15, 2008) – During a press conference held today in Los Angeles, Mötley Crüe, the world’s most notorious rock band, revealed that this summer, they will bring the next generation of rock’s superstars out on the road with them for what will undoubtedly be the hottest ticket of the year for rock fans: “Crüe Fest ‘08,” which will visit cities across the U.S. and Canada July through August.

[via iStreamPlanet]

Monday, April 14, 2008

Limelight Networks Enables Content Producers to Deliver Brilliance with New Solutions Demonstrated at NAB 2008

LAS VEGAS, April 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Limelight Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq: LLNW) is showcasing content delivery solutions at the National Association of Broadcasters Convention (NAB 2008, 14-17 April, Las Vegas Convention Center, Central Hall 2 Stand C2651) that enable content producers to monetize their digital assets by creating high-quality online rich-media experiences. These solutions include Adobe(R) Flash(R) Media Server 3 technologies; the LimelightEXCHANGE Premium customer portal; support for Microsoft Silverlight DRM powered by PlayReady; and a partner ecosystem that extends the functionality of the company's content delivery network (CDN). Additionally, Limelight Networks announced that it has been selected by British Telecom for content delivery services.

[via iStreamPlanet]

- Limelight Networks Press (view full press release)

NAB Show 2008 in Las Vegas, NV will be held on April 11 - 17. Please visit Microsoft Booth #SL5520 for iStream Player Demo.

NAB Show 2008 to feature iStream Player at the Microsoft Booth

From Broadcasting to Broader-castingSM, the NAB Show™ has evolved over the last eight decades to continually lead this ever-changing industry. And while the solutions have changed to keep pace with consumer lifestyles, habits and technologies, aspirations to produce and deliver memorable content have remained constant. From conception through distribution, the NAB Show has proudly served as the incubator for excellence – helping to breathe life into content everywhere.

[via iStreamPlanet]

- NAB Show 2008 Las Vegas, NV

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

The 72nd Masters Tournament held on April 7-13, 2008 will be available live on AT&T blue room via the iStream Player powered by Microsoft Silverlight.

First played in 1934, the Masters Tournament is one of golf's four "major" events, alongside the U.S. Open, the British Open, and the PGA Championship. The tournament is staged every April at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia.

The 72nd Masters Tournament will take place on April 7 - 13, 2008 and will be available live on the AT&T blue room from some of Augusta National’s most famous vantage points. Masters fans will be able to simultaneously watch Amen Corner, the 15th & 16th holes and other Tournament highlights in the blue room via iStreamPlanet's iStream Player powered by Microsoft Silverlight.

[via iStreamPlanet]

- The Masters Tournament Site

- AT&T blue room