Thema taps AlterPoP for playout and distribution

French channels provider Thema has chosen managed content preparation, playout and multiplatform delivery service provider AlterPoP to provide playout and distribution services for its channels globally.

AlterPoP will provide Thema with end-to-end production and distribution of Africa-originated services Nollywood TV, Novelas TV and Gospel Music TV, and re-distribution of about a dozen channels that make up Thema’s offering to French service providers.

AlterPoP will also capture streams of Thema bouquets from Russia, Mauritius and Madagascar via fiber-optic links, transcode them in the required formats and redistributes them to French operators.

“AlterPoP is a human scale company, which allows it to be particularly attuned to its customers needs and very responsive,” said Clementine Tugendhat, senior vice-president content and edited products at Thema.

“They helped us solve many delicate situations like when one of the channel we distribute stopped its satellite broadcasting without warning us. It then became necessary to implement – in record time – a new alternative workflow to retrieve the signal via a fiber-optic link and to redistribute it to the different operators. Only highly experimented partners can offer such a level of service. As to AlterPoP’s know-how, it enables us to daily deliver the brilliant TV experience our viewers are expecting”.

Dimitri Vrignaud, COO at AlterPoP, said: “ We are delighted that this major player in the French audiovisual landscape puts full confidence in our services. We work hand in hand with Thema teams toward their deployment strategy and are proud that our expertise helps them focus on their core business without having to make costly infrastructure investments of their own or deal with all complex technical aspects.”