Solutions
Media and Entertainment | September 14, 2023
Entertainment technology industry leader IMAX Corporation® (NYSE: IMAX) and PFT, the creator of AI-powered technology solutions for the Media and Entertainment (M&E) industry, today announced plans to expand their strategic relationship beyond theatrical and into the streaming ecosystem.
Under the arrangement, IMAX will expand access to its Stream Smart™ technology to PFT customers across Europe, Asia, and Australia. The expanded partnership will dramatically increase the global availability of Stream Smart™, which helps streaming platforms deliver maximum picture quality while significantly reducing distribution and storage costs.
"We are thrilled to deepen our partnership with IMAX, an industry trailblazer with a remarkable legacy of revolutionizing the global entertainment industry," said Ramki Sankaranarayanan, Global CEO of PFT. "For over a decade, CLEAR®, our flagship product, has spearheaded digital packaging and delivery services for prominent streaming platforms worldwide. CLEAR® & Stream Smart will help optimize our customers' encoding pipeline, so they deliver better streaming quality while optimizing CDN & storage costs."
"Many of Hollywood's biggest streaming platforms use Stream Smart™ to ensure quality and reduce costs, and we're excited to work with our partners at PFT to extend the reach of our technologies throughout key markets in Europe, Asia, and Australia," said Vikram Arumilli, General Manager of Streaming and Consumer Technology at IMAX. "Our suite of streaming technology products, including Stream Smart™, provides a best-in-class service for direct-to-consumer broadcast and streaming companies, and PFT's' ability to leverage this for their customers is a win-win for both organizations."
PFT and its parent company, DNEG, are industry leaders providing a full suite of technology and creative solutions, including IMAX post-production and 3D mastering.
IMAX and DNEG joined forces in 2022 for post-production, which included Indian films like Jawan, Pathaan, and RRR. This extended partnership will build upon the established theatrical relationship between IMAX and DNEG to develop a comprehensive video optimization solution. Stream Smart™ is an enterprise software product designed to deliver the best image quality and optimize delivery to unlock cost savings. This product was built from cutting-edge scientific advancements, state-of-the-art engineering, trusted studio relationships, and rooted in a real-world at-scale Emmy®-winning collaboration with Disney Streaming Services and SSIMWAVE.
Stream Smart™ will be the centerpiece of the IMAX showcase at IBC 2023. Sign up to meet with PFT and IMAX Streaming & Consumer Technology group at IBC:
About IMAX Corporation
IMAX, an innovator in entertainment technology, combines proprietary software, architecture, and equipment to create experiences that take you beyond the edge of your seat to a world you've never imagined. Top filmmakers and studios are utilizing IMAX systems to connect with audiences in extraordinary ways, making IMAX's network among the most important and successful theatrical distribution platforms for major event films around the globe.
IMAX is headquartered in New York, Toronto, and Los Angeles, with additional offices in London, Dublin, Tokyo, and Shanghai. As of June 30, 2023, there were 1,718 IMAX systems (1,638 commercial multiplexes, 12 commercial destinations, 68 institutional) operating in 87 countries and territories. Shares of IMAX China Holding, Inc., a subsidiary of IMAX Corporation, trade on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the stock code "1970."
About Prime Focus Technologies
Prime Focus Technologies (PFT) is the creator of CLEAR® and CLEAR® AI. It offers streaming platforms, studios, and broadcasters transformational AI-led technology and media services powered by the cloud that help them lower their Total Cost of Operations (TCOP) by automating their content supply chain. PFT works with major companies like Walt Disney-owned Star TV, Channel 4, ITV, Sinclair Broadcast Group, A&E Networks, Warner Media, PBS, CBS Television Studios, 20th Century Fox Television Studios, Lionsgate, Showtime, HBO, NBCU, TERN International, Disney+ Hotstar, BCCI, Indian Premier League and more.
About DNEG
DNEG (www.dneg.com) is a world-leading visual entertainment services company for the creation of feature film, television, and multiplatform content, with worldwide offices and studios across North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
DNEG's critically acclaimed work has earned the company seven Academy Awards® for Best Visual Effects and numerous BAFTA and Primetime EMMY® Awards for its high-quality VFX work. Current and upcoming DNEG projects on behalf of its Hollywood and global studio and production company partners include Spy Kids Armageddon (September 2023), No One Will Save You (September 2023), The Gilded Age S2 (October 2023), Nyad (November 2023), Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (December 2023), Lift (January 2024), Dune: Part Two (March 2024), Mickey 17 (March 2024), Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (April 2024), Garfield (May 2024), Borderlands (August 2024), Furiosa (2024), That Christmas, Coyote vs. Acme, The Gorge, and Animal Friends.
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Solutions
businesswire | August 10, 2023
Loop Media, Inc. ("Loop Media") (NYSE American: LPTV), the free streaming television media company for business which provides over 2 billion video views every month via restaurants, retail businesses, office buildings, doctors’ offices, airports, bars and college campuses, announced today Microsoft Advertising has created a new inventory category for SSP partnerships, called CTV Out of Home (OOH).
This first of its kind SSP category will provide an additional distribution category to advertisers and DSPs from which they can access and purchase Loop Media advertising impressions. On other DSP and SSP platforms, Loop Media is categorized as DOOH (Digital Out of Home), CTV (Connected TV), Streaming, or other. This new category expands Loop Media’s potential reach in the marketplace for all potential DOOH advertising buyers, including those advertisers looking to distribute ads on CTV Out of Home service platforms.
“With this new category, Loop Media may be seen and purchased by an expanded group of advertisers in the marketplace,” said Bob Gruters, Chief Revenue Officer for Loop Media. “My team and I have been working diligently to get Loop Media positioned well across all revenue advertising categories including Microsoft Advertising’s CTV Out of Home category.”
“We are pleased to launch our new CTV-OOH library on the Microsoft Advertising platform which provides a path for clients to buy CTV-OOH supply in the proper context with clear labeling in our new venue category packages,” said Erik Zamkoff, Microsoft Advertising, associate director of Marketplace Development. “We are thrilled to feature Loop CTV-OOH supply in our new venue category packages.”
This new category premiered on Microsoft Advertising in June 2023. Buyers can access the venue category packages in Microsoft’s Deal Catalogs available via Microsoft Advertising's DSP, Microsoft Invest and 25+ participating DSPs.
About Loop Media, Inc.
Loop Media, Inc. is a leading digital out of home (DOOH) TV and digital signage platform optimized for businesses, providing free music video, news, sports and entertainment channels through its Loop TV service. Loop Media is the leading company in the U.S. licensed to stream music videos to businesses through its proprietary Loop Player.
Loop Media’s digital video content reaches millions of viewers in DOOH locations including bars/restaurants, office buildings, retail businesses, college campuses, airports and on free ad-supported TV platforms and at local gas stations on GSTV terminals in the United States.
Loop is fueled by one of the largest and most important short form entertainment libraries that includes music videos, movie trailers, branded content and live performances. Loop Media’s non-music channels cover a multitude of genres and moods and include movie trailers, sports highlights, lifestyle and travel videos, viral videos and more. Loop Media’s streaming services generate revenue from advertising, sponsorships, integrated marketing and branded content, and from subscriptions.
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Technologies
businesswire | September 01, 2023
The CW Network (The CW) today announced that it has expanded and extended its network affiliation agreement with Gray Television, Inc. (Gray). Gray will continue carrying The CW’s entertainment and sports programming on television stations in a total of 55 markets across the country, 42 of which are covered under the terms of the new agreement and 13 of which are covered by previous agreements with the network. In addition, beginning September 2, Gray will launch The CW on PeachtreeTV (WPCH-TV) in Atlanta, Georgia. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
“Gray Television has been a great partner of The CW from the beginning,” said Dennis Miller, President of The CW Network. “We look forward to sharing more success together as we transform and grow the network and add WPCH-TV to The CW’s expanding portfolio of affiliate partners. Atlanta is an important market for the CW, especially with ACC football and basketball debuting this Fall and NASCAR’s Xfinity Series racing coming in 2025.”
About The CW Network
The CW Network, LLC is one of America’s major broadcast networks and reaches 100% of US television households. The CW delivers 14 hours of primetime entertainment programming per week in addition to over 300 hours of sports per year as the broadcast home to LIV Golf, ACC football and basketball games, and the NASCAR Xfinity Series beginning in 2025. The fully ad-supported CW App, with more than 96 million downloads to date, is available for free to consumers on all major platforms and is home to the latest episodes and seasons of The CW’s primetime programming, live streaming of LIV Golf tournaments and a library of entertaining film and television content for on-demand viewing. The CW is 75%-owned by Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXST), a leading diversified media company and largest CW affiliate group with 37 CW affiliates, covering 32% of the population.
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Media and Broadcasting
prnewswire | July 26, 2023
SB22, an award-winning software development firm, is thrilled to announce a groundbreaking partnership PICO, a ByteDance company and the leading manufacturer of innovative VR (Virtual Reality) solutions to collaborate on the development of next-generation entertainment experiences that combine SB22's innovative VR22 platform and PICO Headset devices.
The partnership between SB22 and PICO marks a significant milestone in the world of VR entertainment. By leveraging SB22's ability in creating immersive and interactive sports entertainment experiences and PICO's exceptional hardware and technology capabilities, this collaboration aims to redefine the way users engage with VR content.
"We are thrilled to join forces with PICO to create the next generation of VR entertainment experiences," said Marko Savkovic, CTO of SB22. "By combining our expertise in interactive sports entertainment with PICO's industry-leading technology, we are poised to deliver unprecedented VR experiences that will captivate users like never before."
Through this partnership, SB22 and PICO will focus on the development of state-of-the-art VR entertainment experiences that cater to sports enthusiasts, gaming aficionados, and entertainment seekers. These experiences will offer unparalleled realism, interactivity, and immersion, enabling users to feel as though they are truly part of the action.
"We believe that virtual reality has the power to transform the way people consume entertainment," said Amir Khorram, Head of PICO Enterprise North America. "Partnering with SB22, a pioneer in VR sports entertainment, allows us to push the boundaries of what is possible in the VR space and bring unparalleled experiences to users around the world."
"Partnering with a VR partner as esteemed as PICO marks SB22's continued growth and evolution into the sports and live entertainment industries," added Vik Shrestha, CCO of SB22. "By using our proprietary platform combined with the power of PICO headsets, we can offer an engaging user experience that blends high quality 360-degree video with real-time interaction."
About SB22
SB22 recently won the Rising Star in Sports Betting Award at SBC North America Summit due to our focus on innovation in the sports betting industry. We are software development company that is focused on solving industry challenges as sports entertainment, media, and betting converge. With our rockstar team of 60+ senior software developers, we have built an immersive betting experience.
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