OpenTV Raises Prospect of Behavioral Ads

Digital TV solutions firm OpenTV Corp is to publish details of the data its platform is able to measure on set-top boxes (STBs), helping operators to gather detailed data on what programs and ads viewers watch and for how long.

OpenTV's software has been integrated in more than 133 million devices around the world and enables advanced program guides, video-on-demand, personal video recording, interactive and addressable advertising and a variety of enhanced TV applications. Its platform allows collected data to be anonymized or filtered according to privacy rules.

The firm says this latest move will enable the developer community, data analysis partners and other service providers to 'foster the creation' of next generation set-top-box services with enhanced personalization features, such as addressable and interactive advertising.

'By opening up our platform, we are taking a major step toward creating a uniform approach to measurement,' said SVP Business Development Tracy Geist. 'We're not only enabling service providers to capture relevant information and giving them access to crucial reporting and analysis capabilities, but we're also enabling the developer community to create exciting new applications for next generation TV, to make it more personalized and meaningful.'

OpenTV has also created an Analysis Partner Program, which will offer operators a solution for measuring viewer behaviour on STBs with minimal change to existing infrastructure.

Initial participants in this program include audience measurement specialists Nielsen, Rentrak Corporation, TNS and AdsVantage.

Web site: www.opentv.com .