While interactive TV has idled on the launch pad for years on end, 2010 promises to be the year it finally takes off, and on that note, Zodiac Interactive said its EBIF user agent is ready to roll.
Zodiac’s EBIF user agent is successfully operating with applications from multiple vendors and in various development environments within the cable industry, including with NDS for addressable, EBIF-based interactive ads to Cisco set-top boxes.
Zodiac said its user agent would be deployed next year by several top-10 North American MSOs that are gearing up for commercial EBIF deployments in the first half of 2010, enabling iTV capabilities such as t-commerce; addressable, targeted advertising; and TV widgets such as telescoping to long-form content, voting, polling, click-to-call, Caller ID, movie guides and local search.
“Our EBIF player/agent works well with all environments and applications because it follows the CableLabs’ EBIF spec, without waver,” said Zodiac’s CEO Brandon Brown. “Because the user agent was built from the ground up based on CableLabs specs, we can assure applications will run properly across various environments, including legacy and new set-tops and iTV-enabled TVs, and, more importantly, without another layer of integration concern.”
EBIF deployments are expected to jumpstart this year, some of which is related to Canoe Ventures’ EBIF initiative that includes about 25 million EBIF-enabled set-top boxes in 2009.
