TPV Turns to IBM Cloud to Help Create, Distribute New Smart TV Services

New Smart TV services built on IBM Cloud to improve TPV's product offering, and extend its reach to TV manufacturers and content providers worldwide

AMSTERDAM(20 Oct 2016)

IBM (NYSE: IBM) announced that TPVTechnology Ltd., the manufacturer of Philips-branded televisions, has adopted IBM Cloudand IoT services to more quickly and easily build new smart features and apps, such as video-on-demand and instant playback, directly into its TVs.

Consumer electronics manufacturers must keep pace with ever-changing consumer demands, while coping with slim margins. The challenge has led to a surge in the development of new applications and services for smart TVs which has helped generate additional revenue streams for TV manufacturers.

TPV partnered with IBM to develop smart TV services' cloud that includes premium apps as well as video-on-demand. The cloud infrastructure ensures application performance, increasing consumer and thus manufacturer satisfaction and ensures Service Level Agreements between TPV and premium content providers are met.

In addition to improving its ability to offer customers new features and services, IBM created for TPV a cloud-based service on IBM Bluemix that enables other TV manufacturers to quickly build, test and deploy new smart TV features. As a result, new clients of the Smart TV service will be able to leverage the array of analytic and cognitive capabilities of Bluemix to enhance the end user experience and monetization.

Manufacturers can now pre-select from more than 1,000 available apps they believe will be most appreciated by their customers, including international as well as popular local apps. Consumers can then reconfigure, download or delete apps, to organize their smart TV the way they want.

As a result, TV manufacturers are able to adapt quickly to changes in market demand since they are able to manage their smart TV platform without having to involve IT. In addition, because the service is delivered as a pay-as-you-go model, charges reflect the actual usage of Smart TV functions by consumers, keeping costs down.

"With millions of daily users, in over 40 countries and over 15,000 different device types, we turned to IBM Cloud to provide scalable services that keep our apps running smoothly and enable us to build new ones quickly," said Bryant Lin Director, Global Smart Innovations, TPV. "In addition, IBM Bluemix services can be added to establish valuable insights into customers' TV habits, supporting monetization and the creation of new services."

"TPV is a great example of a company who sees the possibility of the cloud and Smart TV services," said Sebastian Krause, General Manager, IBM Cloud, Europe. "When handling the back-end of device management, like the home screen – the user interface – and app store, TPV can focus on acquiring and monetizing more applications for their customers. It's a great collaboration of innovation and people."

TP Vision, an Amsterdam-based subsidiary of TPV, manufactures and markets the Philips Smart TV, as well as the Philips Business and Consumer range of LCD monitors, Public Signage and Hotel TV lines; it also supports brands like AOC.