MTG’s Viaplay launches hybrid service with Netgem

Modern Times Group has selected France-based set-top and home gateway company Netgem to supply a hybrid set-top box for its Viaplay service.

The Viaplay box can deliver OTT-delivered premium content, DTT channels and the full Viaplay online service. Viaplay will use the set-top to broaden its Swedish offering, and to make linear and on-demand pay TV content, including TV series, film and sports, available directly on TVs using a remote control.  MTG’s Viaplay service is also available on various connected devices, including PCs, tablets and smartphones.

The box is a customised version of the Netgem Multifunction hybrid receiver, running Netgem’s middleware to provision the Viaplay service and the linear channels. The set-top offers Ethernet, WiFi and HDMI connectivity to access and share multimedia content stored on the home network and also offers UPnP.

Niclas Ekdahl, CEO of Viaplay, said:  “The launch of the Viaplay Box in Sweden is the next step in our continuous evolution and development of our service. Our wide library of TV, movie and premium sports content is highly attractive to viewers, and we are focused on both improving the user experience and the quality of our streaming and make it as simple as possible for our subscribers to access the content. The Viaplay Box is a great product making high quality streaming accessible in the most convenient and simple manner.”