The HbbTV Association, a global initiative dedicated to providing an open standard for the delivery of broadcast and broadband services through connected TVs and set-top boxes, is proud to announce that seven new companies have joined the industry association in the past 12 months.
The new members include US internet company Google, European pay-TV broadcaster Sky, Italian public broadcaster RAI, Greek public broadcaster ERT, Italian technology solutions provider Kineton and Chinese consumer electronics manufacturer Skyworth.
“We are excited about these high-profile companies joining HbbTV Association. The continuing strong interest by major market players in our open specifications confirms our approach towards establishing HbbTV as a universal standard for hybrid broadcast and broadband services across all screens,” said Vincent Grivet (TDF), Chair of the HbbTV Association.
As an open standard, HbbTV reaches viewers across different platforms and reception devices, enabling broadcasters to maximise the reach and monetisation opportunities of their interactive services.
HbbTV has been adopted in 35 countries around the world. Over 300 applications on more than 44 million consumer devices are using its specifications to add features such as interactive services, OTT offers or targeted advertising to linear TV channels. The services are available, for example, through the red button on the remote control.
With the latest additions, the HbbTV Association’s membership base rises to 70 companies from all areas of the broadcast and broadband industry. The full list of members can be accessed at https://www.hbbtv.org/membership/#members.
About HbbTV Association
Hybrid broadcast broadband TV (or “HbbTV”) is a global initiative aimed at harmonizing the broadcast and broadband delivery of entertainment services to consumers through connected TVs, set-top boxes and multiscreen devices. The HbbTV specification is developed by industry leaders to improve the video user experience for consumers by enabling innovative, interactive services over networks. The specification uses elements of existing specifications from other standards including OIPF, CEA, DVB, MPEG-DASH and W3C. With the incorporation of activities from the Open IPTV Forum (OIPF) in 2014 and Smart TV Alliance in 2016, HbbTV is able to address service providers and technology suppliers for IPTV services as well as the combined scope of broadcast and over-the-top services.
This year, the 7th HbbTV Symposium and Awards will take place on November 14-15 in Berlin. Registration is possible here. The Symposium is in collaboration with Deutsche TV-Plattform and the overall theme is “Growing Value Through HbbTV”. More information: https://www.hbbtv.org/news-events/hbbtv-symposium-and-awards/
