Richard Humphreys |
German media company ProSiebenSat.1, which operates free-to-air commercial TV channels, pay TV channels, radio stations and related print businesses, has signed Microsoft partner MPP Global to help it launch a new premium entertainment service called 7TV in partnership with Discovery Communications.
7TV will be an over the top (OTT) platform built on MPP Global’s eSuite solution and hosted on the Microsoft Azure cloud. It will offer a full package of live streams, an extensive media library with local content, Hollywood productions and sports coverage. It will also incorporate the Eurosport Player and maxdome video-on-demand portals.
“To be successful with the ProSiebenSat.1 Digital Products and new OTT Platform, we wanted to replace our in-house subscription video on demand (VOD) solution with a much more flexible service, to support subscription management and alternative monetisation of our assets,” explains Dirk Daumann, chief technology officer at ProSiebenSat.1 Digital. “This was when we discovered MPP Global’s eSuite platform.
“Right from the get-go, we realised that eSuite presented the most flexible and complete solution for our requirements and MPP Global shared our ambitions for the future.
“We chose eSuite mainly for its feature-richness and complete APIs, especially when it comes to the flexibility in defining products and subscriptions. The platform also brings unique features which provide us with the ability to upsell our services through metering and paywalls.
“In the future we envisage a model where we let consumers ‘try before sign-up’. So, consumers can watch the start of one of our premium shows for free and, after getting a sneak preview, they can decide if they want to subscribe so they can enjoy the rest of the show. This kind of functionality is essential to the future of the consumer-friendly platform we are developing.”
Chris Cheney, chief technology officer and co-founder at MPP Global, said: “ProSiebenSat.1’s project scope is particularly exciting as the company has big plans. eSuite is perfectly positioned to take ProSiebenSat.1’s VOD ambitions to the next level, giving them access to the functionality needed to monetise their content for a growing and more diverse audience.”