Greece: OTE launches hybrid TV platform, OTE TV

Paiania, Greece, 22-Jan-2016 — /EuropaWire/ — OTE TV is the first to launch in Greece the new hybrid TV platform, offering its subscribers the combined benefits of satellite and IPTV service such asinteractivity, personalized viewing and high definition content.

Changing the status quo, OTE is one of the first providers worldwide to remotely upgrade all of its subscribers to the new advanced TV environment.

With the hybrid platform, OTE TV subscribers via satellite and broadband connection will enjoy:

• The OTE Cinema on Demand service enabling to rent film premieres by all the major studios.
• The OTE REPLAY TV service allowing the viewer to rewind up to 48 hours and watch selected programs at a different time. The OTE REPLAY TV service is available for 29 channels, including all OTE SPORT channels, movies and series channels (Village Cinema HD, Sundance Channel HD, FOX), kids’ channels (Disney Junior etc.), documentary channels (OTE HISTORY, Travel Channel HD etc.) etc.
• Moreover, they will be able to record programs to an external hard drive, which will be connected to their decoder.

To access the aforementioned services, subscribers to the satellite service of OTE TV will connect their decoder with the router of their ADSL/VDSL connection[1].

The availability of the new hybrid decoder for the subscribers via satellite begins as of February 1^st. The transition of existing subscribers of the satellite service, which is to be made remotely with the use of special software which will be sent via satellite, will be launched in April and is expected to be completed in a few months.

“2016 is for OTE TV the year of customer experience. Having already built a comprehensive proposal in terms of content and continuing to enrich our programming, we place emphasis on interactivity, personalized viewing, access from different screens. With the hybrid platform we give to the viewer the control of the content, whereas with OTE TV GO and its new multi room service we offer him the opportunity to enjoy our content from any screen he likes“, said the Director of OTE TV, Dimitris Michalakis.

The new hybrid environment offers many more possibilities to the subscribers, who:

• will be able to schedule their recordings remotely through OTE TV GO.
• will be able to make more profiles/users for their family members and designate specific content viewing rights for their children.
• can better control how, when and where they can watch the programs they like, e.g. they can start watching a TV program and resume watching it on their mobile from the point of interruption.
• In case the Internet speed is low, they can temporarily store the program they like on the hard drive and display it later without interruption.

The OTE TV GO service that allows the viewing of TV content through different screens (smartphones & tablets) continues to grow with the addition of more channels (32 channels currently available), new applications and more options for the subscribers, while in the second trimester of 2016 the service will be also made available through computers and laptops.

Furthermore, by the end of the year the multi room service will be also launched enabling subscribers to watch different channels on their domestic TVs.