NEW YORK, May 27, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Narrowstep, the TV on the Internet Company, has announced over $1 million in new sales orders as more companies adopt its "TV-Station-in-a-Box" platform.
New orders include the development of a games channel for mobile gaming company Mobestar; the development of a channel and provision of production services for the Swedish Match international sailing tour; the establishment of a broadband service for the UK's largest cable operator and the development of a startup heavy metal channel, Detonator TV.
Iolo Jones, Narrowstep CEO, said, "It is clear that we have established a new business model for video content online. Our platform provides clients with an affordable way to build and run their own TV channel using our technology. It is suitable for entrepreneurs entering the industry for the first time or established content owners who want to unlock new revenue streams from existing video product."
He also said, "Traditional broadcasting, with its lack of accountability and poor metrics is becoming discredited. Right now, many US TV channels are negotiating their 'upfront' deals with advertisers, but the ratings that both sides rely on are wild guesses at best. Payments based on assumptions about who the viewers are and where their interests lie is losing credibility as an advertising model. A recent survey by the Association of American Advertisers found 55.6% of marketers are dissatisfied with this process, and 47% say the network pricing system as it exists now is unfair. We offer a platform that turns TV into a below-the-line-medium, where tracking who sees what commercial is accurate and meaningful."
Narrowstep's clients are using a combination of viewer payment systems, such as pay-per-view, subscription and micro-charging, along with advertising, sponsorship, e-commerce and betting to commercialize their services. While each client has its own needs and interests, the TV-Station-in-a-Box platform is versatile enough to meet these varying needs.
"No one model works better than another," concluded Jones. "With our platform clients can evolve their commercial model to establish a profitable TV station on the internet. The components of the TV Station in a Box allow easy management of content through our Mediaserver(tm), program scheduling with our Channelserver(tm). Our Adserver(tm) relies on the same kind of fuzzy logic engine that Google uses to play ads that are so tightly targeted that two viewers in the same room may see different ads because of differing profiles. Customers can take the entire package, or select specific tools as needed."
Existing clients include High TV -- the internet's first 24 x 7 scheduled channel devoted to extreme sports; Rig TV (devoted to mining and related extractive industries); Fieldhockey TV, Cycling TV and Research TV (an academic channel). The company is also developing a tourism channel for Scotland and a sportsfan-based channel called Sportbox TV.
About Narrowstep Inc.
Narrowstep, Inc. delivers television on the internet, helping it clients turn web sites into web channels and creating a new model for broadcasting to targeted audiences that it calls narrowcasting. Narrowstep can provide a comprehensive service to help sports bodies and organizations maximize their income from mobile, wireless, broadband and broadcast distribution. Its Mediaserver (tm) manages video and media using an easy-to-use web based interface -- the product interfaces with a wide range of content management, digital rights management and digital asset management products and systems. Narrowstep's ChannelServer(tm) is a unique program scheduling tool that schedules and runs a client's online TV station, while its Adserver(tm) commercializes the delivery of broadband content on the internet using the premier broadband advertising product -- select content and channels, profile, schedule, measure and report on campaigns. High.TV is Narrowstep's own broadband television channel for extreme sports enthusiasts, a demonstration of the company's product that also provides a regular stream of income. Narrowstep's technology is being deployed by leading cable companies, ISPs and content owners globally.
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