In a continuation of its relationship with South Korea’s leading IPTV service operator, Alticast announced that Korea Telecom is using Apex, Alticast’s new user experience virtualization platform, to bring rich, uniform experiences to a diverse footprint of deployed set-top boxes.
KT is using Apex to deliver a graphics-rich UX for both linear and on-demand content, completely virtualizing STB functionalities across nearly 5 million already-deployed IPTV set-top boxes from Humax, Kaon, DMT and Samsung. The new cloud-based UX replaces older text-based UIs even on low-power STBs, enabling Picture-in-Picture capabilities and cover art images that enhance the discovery and navigation experience for subscribers.
Future plans call for migrating additional services to Apex, as well as the addition of new features and functionalities, including dynamic UIs that can be personalized to target the interests and use patterns of individual subscribers.
Apex utilizes command transmission based UX virtualization to bring dynamic service experiences to a wide range of STBs, regardless of CPU specifications. The result is a highly-flexible development environment that has enabled KT to:
- Triple the frequency of service upgrades, from two per year to six per year;
- Significantly increase the velocity of upgrades, allowing changes to be deployed within a few days or less; and
- Dramatically reduce the operational costs of managing and upgrading multiple UX versions.
“In the past, varying set-top box capabilities have limited the ability of our customers to find and enjoy the content they desire,” said Jingi Choi, Head of the Service Strategy Team for Korea Telecom. “By using Apex to virtualize the UX, we have been able to create a beautiful, modern environment that engages viewers and showcases the large amount of content that we have available.”
“With increasing competition for viewers’ attention, operators are rethinking the way they can attract and retain subscribers,” said Joonhee Oh, Head of the Cloud Division for Alticast. “KT’s innovative use of Apex is showing how UX virtualization not only can increase customer satisfaction, but can improve business results as well.”
