Small MSOs Use ClearPlay For On Demand Via TiVo, Roku

I first saw this news last fall but never got around to reporting on it. Along with TiVo’s partnership with Evolution Digital to market the Premiere family to small MSOs, back in November they also announced a partnership with Clearleap for IP based VOD. As the press release put it:

Clearleap’s Stream On Demand solution enables operators to tap into Clearleap’s robust search, intuitive browse, and improved discovery of advanced video services through a white label application branded with operator’s own look and feel. Clearleap’s end?to?end, cloud?based platform allows operators to deliver a complete video service over existing broadband networks without dependencies on legacy video infrastructure.

Now Clearleap has announced four small MSOs have adopted their ClearPlay Streaming Services for VOD.

enTouch Systems, Inc. and its cable group, ETS Cablevision, serve a growing number of communities throughout the Greater Houston Area with fiber-to-the-home services. The company has offered on demand services to its subscribers for some time and recently decided to offer TiVo boxes to its subscribers. The ClearPlay streaming option complements the TiVo set top deployment with easily scalable, economical on-demand content.

Greenlight is Wilson, North Carolina’s community network. Like enTouch Systems, the organization was interested in offering its subscribers TiVo boxes for their cable and on demand services. ClearPlay answered the need for a turnkey IP-based streaming service that can scale as more subscribers sign on.

ImOn Communications, headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, plans to offer new on demand services using ClearPlay streaming services to its subscribers on Roku boxes.

Jackson Energy Authority, based in Jackson, Tenn. is launching new on demand services with the ClearPlay streaming service to its subscribers.

I believe this is the first we’ve learned of ETS Cablevision and Greenlight adopting TiVo. I don’t see it on their sites yet, but since this deal was just announced I’m not surprised. They probably haven’t implemented it yet, let alone launched it to consumers. But we may be seeing these MSOs on TiVo’s page soon.

It is interesting to see an MSO offering services through Roku boxes. Until I saw the Clearleap news last year, and checked out their site, I hadn’t heard of Roku being used by MSOs.

Clearleap will be at The Cable Show in Boston in May, as will I, so I’ll make sure to track them down and check out their solution.