iWorld
Trace to launch its new OTT service Trace Play in Arkena
MUMBAI: Arkena has announced that they have been selected to deliver an end to end OTT platform for Trace, the international multicultural TV network. To offer its fans and communities their favorite unlimited on-demand content, Trace is launching Trace Play, a new SVOD service.
Trace audiences will be able to watch a broad range of original and curated content related to urban and black culture on any screen via web and mobile apps on iOS and Android. To support TRACE in its multiscreen development strategy, Arkena is providing the complete end-to-end platform covering the content management, back-office and delivery for both live and on-demand content.
“Scalability is a key factor for our operations, especially as we plan to extend our OTT SVOD offering while addressing alternate business models such as IPTV,” says Trace CEO Olivier Laouchez.
Arkena live head-end services will streamline live content preparation and distribution from around 10 live channels, increasing security thanks to multi-DRM management. The OTT platform will be powered by Arkena OTT Service Manager (OSM), the company’s open and cloud-based video distribution solution. OSM is a future proof solution boasting a vast array of turnkey components including content, metadata, offers and device management. The on-demand workflow based on Harmony, Arkena content management system, will process more than 4 000 hours of content. Arkena is partnering with Cleeng, the leading video e-commerce platform for global brands including IMG, Elisa/Fanseat, Cirque du Soleil, Cox, Setanta, Dailymotion, for payment and subscribers management, and Dotscreen, one of Europe’s leading multiscreen agency for advanced video apps, for user interfaces and front-end applications.
“Arkena OTT solutions have proved to be easily and cost-effectively scalable to enable new channels, devices and customers on a single and reliable platform. We are confident that Arkena longstanding expertise and outstanding service quality will help us meet our new challenge head on”. “OTT is an important part of Trace interactive television strategy and we are proud that our advanced platform was selected to help Trace open up a world of live and on-demand content to its existing and new subscribers,” said Arkena CEO Aymeric de Cardes.
Arkena will be demonstrating its end to end cloud based OTT platform at TV Connect Booth 46, from 26 April to 28 2016 in London.
iWorld
Talk to your telly: JioHotstar’s new AI voice feature reads your mood to suggest shows
The streaming giant ditches the scroll for a “conversational” AI that understands moods, cricket and Hinglish
MUMBAI: The era of the endless scroll may finally be over. JioHotstar has officially flicked the switch on its “Conversational Voice Discovery” (CVD) feature, a high-tech overhaul designed to turn the hunt for a Friday night film into a natural chat. Developed in a landmark partnership with OpenAI, the tool moves beyond clunky keyword searches, allowing users to find content by describing their mood, context or even the most bizarre viewing scenarios.
The feature is vision of Uday Shankar, vice chairman of JioStar, whose goal is to eliminate “content overload” by replacing the tedious, traditional scroll with natural dialogue. By leveraging ChatGPT’s ability to grasp context and cultural nuance, the new mobile interface allows users to bypass menus entirely, turning search into a seamless conversation.
The launch, which rolled out across India this month, sees a ChatGPT-powered interface integrated directly into the heart of the app. Instead of typing “action movie” into a sterile search bar, viewers can now speak to their devices as if they were asking a well-read friend for a tip. For now, the feature is exclusive to the mobile app, with a rollout for Connected TV (CTV) expected in later phases.
Beyond the keyword
The CVD feature is built on what JioStar calls “Multilingual Cognitive Search.” It is designed to interpret nuance rather than just matching text. If you tell the app, “I’ve had a long day, give me something mindless and funny,” it won’t just look for those words in a title; it will sift through 300,000 hours of library content to find a light-hearted sitcom or a stand-up special that fits the vibe.
The tech is natively multilingual, catering to India’s diverse linguistic landscape. Users can switch effortlessly between languages—asking for “Koi light-hearted comedy dikhao” (show me some light-hearted comedy) or requesting a “Thriller hai but zyada dark nahi chahiye” (a thriller that isn’t too dark).
Real-time curiosity and live sports
Perhaps the most ambitious aspect of the rollout is its integration with live sports. During a high-stakes cricket match, the AI acts as a digital companion. Fans can ask, “Who is the top scorer right now?” or “Show me that last wicket again,” and the system will pull the relevant data or clips instantly. It even attempts to explain the “why” behind the crowd’s energy, responding to prompts like, “Why is everyone reacting like that?” by contextualizing on-field events.
A shift in streaming strategy
The move is part of a broader reimagining of the entertainment experience following the massive merger between JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar. Uday Shankar noted that the goal is to make premium entertainment “truly accessible” by embedding AI at the core of the user journey. By anticipating culture and context, the platform hopes to kill off “decision fatigue.”
For OpenAI, the partnership represents a major play in the Indian market. Fidji Simo, the head of applications at OpenAI, said the goal was to turn a “one-way” passive consumption experience into a “deeply personal conversation.”
As the feature goes live for millions of subscribers, the message from Bombay House is clear: the remote control is becoming obsolete. Whether you’re looking for a show that “feels like a rainy Sunday afternoon” or a crime series with a “strong female lead but not too violent,” all you have to do is ask.
