Published: 30/8 2012
TeliaSonera and Samsung have started a collaboration and together developed an integrated smart iptv solution that makes it possible to use the TV without an external set-top box. The solution has full support for linear TV, catch-up and on-demand functions.
Under the epithet the industry's first "set-top box free iptv service", the new solution will be demonstrated in a beta version at Samsung's stand during the IFA fair in Berlin and at a press conference at TeliaSonera's headquarters in Stockholm. The new integrated Smart TV solution will be launched to consumers on TeliaSonera's Estonian market as early as 2012; in Sweden Q1 2013 and in Finland during 2013.
The new solution is user-friendly and easy for the customer to install. As soon as the Smart TV equipped with the new solution is connected to the Internet, it will automatically identify the customer's TV provider and the user interface will appear on the screen. No additional settings or other equipment is needed and the TV services will be ready to use. In addition to reducing the number of remote controls and set-top boxes for the customer, the new solution is also more cost-effective. The solution supports the use of all today's iptv services, such as VoD (Video on Demand) and Catch-up (restarting programs).
- We continue to develop solutions that make it easier for our customers to use their iptv - without the need for a digital box. This development means that we will change the way we use and watch television. Samsung will continue to cooperate with iptv operators such as TeliaSonera to make it easier and more convenient for TV customers to enjoy their favorite programs. Iptv further increases accessibility via smart TV, says Kyungshik Lee, vice president of Visual Display Division Samsung Electronics.
- At TeliaSonera, we are proud to be a pioneer in the rapidly growing field of iptv services. Our television business is growing in all the Nordic and Baltic countries and in 2012 we will make our television service available on even more screens. I am convinced that this new Smart TV solution will make our TV service even more attractive to our customers, says Malin Frenning, Head of Broadband Services at TeliaSonera.
In May, TeliaSonera - the fifth largest telecom operator in Europe, and Samsung - one of the world's leading technology companies, started a collaboration to develop the world's first solution that makes it possible to use iptv services in a Samsung Smart TV - without a set-top- box. The beta version of this new solution has been developed for Samsung's new Smart LED TV series 7 and 8 and the iptv service is initially provided by Elion, TeliaSonera's subsidiary in Estonia. The new solution will initially be launched in Estonia during the end of 2012 and then in TeliaSonera's other markets, starting in Sweden during Q1 2013 and Finland during 2013.
The new iptv solution is shown for the first time at the IFA fair in Berlin. The fair, which is the largest of its kind in Europe, runs from 31 August to 5 September 2012. It will also be shown during a press conference at TeliaSonera's headquarters in Stockholm on 30 August. The first television consumers in the world who will have the opportunity to use the new solution are Elion's customers who use this year's models of Samsung's LED series 7 or 8. In 2012, Samsung expects that the LED models in series 7 and 8 will be equipped with the new solution. In 2013, it plans to also expand with other devices in its wide range of Smart TVs.
