Category Archives: Television

EMEA, Germany, Spain, Sweden, Television, Venture Funding

Breaking: Internet-based TV Operator Raises $19 Million

Magine, the Swedish cloud-based cable operator, today announced that it has closed a $19 million Series A round led be a group of Swedish and international investors.

The company says that it will use this new influx of cash to fund its international expansion, with Germany and Spain being the next countries on its radar. The service is already available in Sweden.

“Magine is not just another TV platform, but a totally new way of accessing and consuming content,” said Magine chairman Michael Werner. “It is a subscription service that was devised to make viewers come back to watching TV and this is why broadcasters and content providers are very keen to adopt the service. Magine helps them create new forms of monetizing whilst respecting the current rights chain.”

Android, Google, Google Chrome OS, Google Compute Engine, Google Drive, High Performance Computing, Internet Technology, Kansas City Missouri, Mobile, Motorola, Networking, Telecommunications Industry, Television, Video

Google Fiber Has Far-reaching Implications

Image representing Google as depicted in Crunc...

Reading this post on Google’s low-cost, super-fast fiber-to-the-home initiative (makes me sort of wish I lived in Kansas City) brought to mind all the other Google products and initiatives that might be empowered by it. Go read it, then come back here and consider:

Chrome OS: it takes a long time to make a new operating system and it looks trivial today, but with widely available gigabit internet at the household and small business level it begins to look like a realistic “the network is the computer” future.

Mobile OS: Google already has that covered with Android.

Add Google Drive: Ubiquitous very high speed connectivity at a low price makes Drive viable for more than backup, sharing and synch. Actually synch becomes easier if the only copy is on a server.

Add Google Compute Engine: A thin-client netbook running Chrome OS, or Android on tablets and handsets, become more appealing if you  can quickly access network-based computing resources for high-performance computing tasks like video transcoding.

Add Google Voice: consider all those hypothetical hotspots. Combine with Android and Voice. Can a Google competitor to cell phone providers be far behind, one that leverages the coming Google network? All it would take is a couple extra capabilities in the fiber/WiFi box that seems inevitable. And don’t forget they now own Motorola, a top-notch mobile phone company.

YouTube/Google TV: Already dipping its toe into original programming, and fast fiber means TV will change dramatically.

Living In the cloud would become a real option for everyday consumers. What about effects on professionals and small businesses?

And what about those other seemingly sci-fi projects, self driving cars and Glass? Hey, if the car drives itself my brain then has the bandwidth for augmented reality. How might they benefit from the ability to hop from fiber-connected WiFi hotspot to hotspot?

All this based on a good search engine algorithm, and then ads next to search results? Who’d a thunk it?


Arts and Entertainment, Content Management, Free, Media Production, Scenios, Television, Video

Scenios Launches Free Version of Cloud Platform for Film, Video Production

Scenios LogoScenios now offers a free version of its secure, cloud-based platform for film and television production.  The free version allows film, TV and commercial producers to manage every aspect of their production, including 5 GB of cloud storage and an unlimited number of users.

Studios, networks and production companies can use Scenios as a comprehensive “virtual production office” to manage all aspects of their productions, and to collaborate more effectively online with their teams. Scenios provides a set of online, real-time collaboration tools that significantly streamline the production process, and that help reduce costs for many people working in the industry.  Key features of the Scenios platform include the ability to:

  • Write the script in your web browser, and collaborate on it in real time.
  • Create your budget in Scenios, and restrict who sees it by setting access permissions.
  • Distribute call sheets and other documents instantly.  Send them to individuals, departments, or to the entire production team.
  • Share professional HD video files, and do reviews and approvals in your web browser.
  • Set up video conferences in Scenios for up to 10 people, for things like virtual production meetings and virtual table reads.
  • Customize Scenios to match your workflow, by creating and organizing your own production-related apps.

The free Scenios plan also allows users to connect to one other production that they aren’t managing.

“Many aspects of the production process now require complete flexibility, and our secure, cloud-based platform helps productions operate more efficiently in a real-time, location-based environment,” said CEO Mark Davis. “This new free option will provide the TV and film industry with an innovative, time and cost saving way to manage a production.”

In addition to the free service, additional account options include:

  • SCENIOS PLUS: allows users to manage 2 productions, to connect to 2 other productions, and to get 100 GB of cloud storage ($19 per month)
  • SCENIOS PRO: allows users to manage an unlimited number of productions, to connect to an unlimited number of productions, and to get unlimited cloud storage ($49 per month)
  • SCENIOS ENTERPRISE: provides 10 Pro seats, plus the Enterprise Control Dashboard, and unlimited cloud storage for $299/month. Add more Pro seats for $39/month each.

For more information go to http://www.scenios.com