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In the News | 2007
In The News

Cablevision Lightpath Video Service Moves to Hosting, Ad Support, CDN Roles
ScreenPlays
8/27/2008

Cablevision Systems' Optimum LightpathSM enterprise services arm has launched Lightpath Managed Video, laying the groundwork for the New York-based company's entry into cloud computing and distribution services including video content and ad hosting, format conversion and content delivery networks.

Optimum Lightpath believes that its precedent-setting "mileage-neutral" flat-rate pricing and high-speed Ethernet transport services will prove a strong draw for a multitude of New York City area media companies, including production facilities, broadcasters, television stations and content distributors, but also for healthcare and other enterprises seeking a full range of high-quality video management and distribution services.

The initial Lightpath Managed Video service offers connectivity and encoding and decoding of digital video, as well as flexible bandwidth options, sub-50-millisecond resiliency and 24-by-7 monitoring and network management – all providing a multipoint-to-multipoint complement to Lightpath Video Transport, a dedicated Layer 2 point-to-point service designed for broadcast-quality video transport.

"Optimum Lightpath's flat-rate pricing and its Ethernet-based fiber network across the New

York Metropolitan area set it apart," says Joe Garzillo, vice president of network resources for Ascent Media, a leading provider of integrated global services for the creation, management and distribution of media content. "Optimum Lightpath is currently one of our top suppliers of fiber delivery services, and…this new Managed Video Service will be an excellent fit for our ever-growing network."

According to Glenn Calafati, director of product development for Optimum Lightpath, Lightpath Managed Video also offers a "foundation for future services" to support the evolution of production and distribution technologies favored by the media and entertainment sector.

"A logical progression would include the expansion of capabilities to include hosted storage of content, virtualized environments to support ad insertion and editing as well as format conversions and distribution in line with CDN," or content delivery network services associated with CDN pioneers such as Akamai and Limelight, Calafati says.

The company also is pitching Managed Video's Ethernet-based packet loss and jitter resiliency to non-media enterprises including healthcare facilities, municipalities and other enterprises that require high-resolution, broadcast quality video for file-based media and content transfer applications including video conferencing and security surveillance.

In the healthcare market, for example, "it is conceivable that end-users will remotely access content and collaborate via a whole new ecosystem," Calafati says. "Remote triage, clinical consultation and expert evaluations can be shared in real-time environments provided by private and secure connections."

Further, the combination of Optimum Lightpath's metro and regional fiber and Ethernet services with Cablevision's residential and small business broadband services could further extend the company's high-end video transport and access reach to every tier of Cablevision's customer base.

"It is not a stretch to think that broadband extensions will provide access to residential locations, and remote consultation can be provided from the residential bedside or from the local clinic to the health systems' premier hospitals," he adds. "The synergies between residential access and SMB [small/medium business] are part of the changing dynamic of the service provider landscape."

For now, Optimum Lightpath believes it has the price/performance edge in fiber transport and IP connectivity services for the high end of the video market.

"With the launch of our Lightpath Managed Video Service, Optimum Lightpath now offers a complete and unsurpassed suite of both managed and transport video services designed to meet the needs of the broadcast, entertainment and enterprise markets, who are embracing IP as an enabler of information and content distribution," says Optimum Lightpath General Manager Dave Pistacchio. "This service offers a true alternative to traditional video services and a more economical alternative to satellite. Additionally, we are able to leverage our state-of-the-art fiber optic network to offer our customers greater flexibility, resiliency and simplicity than any other provider in the market."

The new service accepts, transports and delivers native compressed and uncompressed digital video in common industry formats including Asynchronous Serial Interface (ASI), Standard Definition Serial Digital Interface (SD-SDI) and High Definition Serial Digital Interface (HD-SDI). The service does not require transport protocol conversions and guarantees reliability through fully redundant protected connections.


 
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