BBC R&D teams up with Vewd for HbbTV 2.0 demo

BBC R&D has teamed up with OTT technology outfit Vewd and semiconductor specialist MediaTek to showcase its latest Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV (HbbTV) advancements in content substitution at IBC.

Content substitution involves delivering personalized content – audio or video – to viwers, for example at the end of a particular broadcast show, which then switches back to the broadcast feed seamlessly. Whether an ad, local news programme, or other interest-based programming, content substitution is designed to enable viewers to receive content tailored to them over IP.

Vewd worked to optimise Vewd Core, its HTML5 SDK for smart TVs, as well as the Vewd Core HbbTV module, to support some of the BBC’s most advanced use cases, including personalization and content substitution.

Vewd and MediaTek have worked closely to optimise their respective software to run on the MediaTek System-on-Chip (SoC) to run the most demanding HbbTV use cases, according to the companies.

“HbbTV has evolved into a standard that improves how hundreds of millions of people throughout Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East experience TV. Now we’re looking to the future with BBC and presenting what the newest update to the standard can do in a real-world deployment. This is the future of broadcasting, delivered today,” said Frode Hernes, SVP of Product Management, Vewd.

The BBC HbbTV 2.0 will be demonstrated on the BBC booth at IBC in Hall 8, Stand F08, or the Vewd booth in Hall 14, Stand F02.