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TWC to use Biap’s ETV User Agent to enable EBIF apps
Tue, 10/28/2008 - 8:40am
Traci Patterson

Time Warner Cable and Biap Inc. announced that they have reached a five-year license agreement, under which TWC will use Biap’s enhanced television (ETV) User Agent in its advanced advertising platform.

When Biap’s software is fully deployed, Time Warner Cable’s digital set-top boxes will be able to run Enhanced TV Binary Interchange Format (EBIF) applications – either apps created by the operator or by third parties, such as TV networks.

And in addition to supporting third-party EBIF applications, the Biap ETV User Agent will support Time Warner Cable's newest MDN navigator, the operator said.

EBIF, a multimedia content format standard that was developed under the OpenCable project of CableLabs, is one of the key elements of Canoe Ventures (more info here).

EBIF works with a larger base of legacy set-top boxes than the more advanced tru2way, which consists of a stack of middleware software that resides between applications and the operating system within a consumer electronics device, such as a set-top box or OCAP-compliant TV set.

In July, CED reported that Time Warner Cable was working on bound ETV/EBIF applications that could run on the large number of legacy set-top boxes, with the goal of porting these applications to a full-tru2way environment once the technology matures (story here).

Meanwhile, TWC has named David Flessas to the role of senior vice president of technical operations. Flessas will be responsible for managing the company’s technical operations that support the delivery of high-speed data and telephone services.

He joins Time Warner Cable from Sprint, which he joined in 1983, and where he was most recently vice president of interconnection solutions in Sprint Network Services. He was responsible for all aspects of Sprint’s VoIP phone service provided through cable company partners, and he was involved in numerous operational functions supporting Sprint Business Solutions and Consumer Solutions, including domestic and international voice, data, wireline and wireless, the company said.

More Broadband Direct:

• NCTA: FCC's white space approval "inexplicable"

• TWC to use Biap's ETV User Agent to enable EBIF apps

• Harmonic posts third-quarter profit of $12M

• Juniper Networks' router garners energy efficiency rating

• Latens inks global reseller agreement with Motorola

• Charge drops Convergys into the red

• Microsoft, Akamai beef up video quality on PCs

• Sprint's board member moves on

• AMD completes unit sale to Broadcom at lower price

• Broadband Briefs for 10/28/08

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