Melita launches video on demand service

Melita has launched its video on demand service following a successful trial over the summer months.

The beta trial ended last week with over 50,000 views of the around 1,000 shows and movies available in the library. Not surprisingly children’s programmes and cartoons were among the most popular, given that the trials were held in summer. The feedback has been described as positive and some suggestions were implemented before the commercial product launch.

i-Tech was given a demonstration of the new service by Ludolf Rasterhoff, Melita’s chief operating officer, who in recent years has overseen the launch of a similar service with leading operator KPN in The Netherlands.

“The model we have chosen is the simplest possible for the consumer. When they purchase the Entertainment Pack they can watch all the shows for free. There is no limit or additional charges to watch these shows. We decided to pursue this model for launch because video on demand is new in Malta.

“Blockbuster movie rental on-demand will be introduced at a later stage, where consumers can pay separately to watch blockbuster movies. For example the latest movies will be available against payment. But we are still discussing this with our service partner OnDemand Group.”

The OnDemand Group provides the technological solution and access to licensed content, including HBO, CBS, Paramount and Sony. Their corporate clients, amongst others include Virgin Media in the UK and Kabel Deutschland in Germany.

Melita’s video on demand library is accessible through an internet connection and an interactive netbox HD both provided by the company, but apart from that, no new cabling is needed. It uses the same interface as the traditional live TV viewing experience, though the current shows are in standard definition (SD). High-definition movies will be added soon, added Mr Rasterhoff.

Access to video on demand comes free as part of the Entertainment Pack, which consists of a Fibre Power 25 Mb/s internet connection, a TV Package and the interactive set-top-box.

The shows are grouped in different ‘clubs’, such as TV Club, Kids Club, Movie Club and Music Clubs. Then each club includes other categories. For each show there is a synopsis, including information for each episode of a particular series, related information and a search facility.

The viewer can pause, resume, rewind and go forward at will. It works just as if the viewer is enjoying at DVD at home. Indeed the video on demand content is cached on Melita’s servers after it is downloaded from abroad.

Titles include popular series such as Dexter, Sex and the City, CSI and Californication, classic movies, documentaries and children’s cartoons and music videos.

Content is refreshed every Monday and shows will remain available in the library for a period of time.

“The new video on demand service benefits from the investment we have done in Melita’s fibre-powered network and the submarine cable. Video on demand uses the so-called ‘TV channel’ of the cable that carries our services to the clients. In contrast to other communication technologies like IPTV over ADSL, video on demand will not take bandwidth away from the internet channel of the cable. In this sense the cable infrastructure is a more user-friendly technology to work with. There is no interference between TV, internet and telephony all going through the same cable,” concluded Mr Rasterhoff.