About Visiware

Visiware is the world-leading provider of interactive casual games. Its game channels on television are reaching more than 120 million people in 45 million households within 77 countries and 33 networks (cable, satellite and IPTV).

Playin’TV, the Visiware games channel for the whole family is now available on TV, Mobile phones and Internet, thanks to the first true convergent gaming offer in the world. You can play, save your game, even complete using either medium. It is a unique opportunity to play one’s favorite game anywhere, anytime and in total freedom.

Visiware is the most broadcasted company in the iTV space. Its own interactive game channels, such as Playin’TV, are amongst the biggest successes in the interactive TV market.

Playin’TV is aimed at the whole family and proposes all types of games: classics such as Scrabble, card and board games (Solitaire, Blackjack, Backgammon, Chess), action and adventure, sport (Tennis, Golf, Football), strategy and puzzle, kids games, casino, etc. Visiware has a catalogue of more than 200 games, with new ones every month.

Simple to access, simple to use! Viewers simply play with their remote control, no extra hardware or software is required but their set top boxes.

Visiware takes casual gaming further with a true Triple Play convergent TV, mobile and Internet offer: for a simple subscription, you can now have access to dozens of games simultaneously on TV, mobile phone and PC. Simple, easy, casual.

This is a unique possibility to play one’s favorite games anywhere, anytime and in total freedom : on TV, Mobile or on PC, in public transports, at friends’, on vacation… Playin’TV allows players to save their scores, players characteristics, to continue their game where they left it and to complete...

Do you love Carrot Mania, have reached level 50 on TV but need to leave for school? No problem! Continue where you left on your mobile. Have you trained your football player on mobile and want to continue on the net? Let’s have fun and challenge your father to beat you on the same Sudoku grid! All this and more is possible with Playin’TV.

Iptv games now! (pdf file - 1,16 Mo)

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Visiware’s leaders, complementarity and efficiency

At 46, this new technologies passionate starts right after finishing his studies to create leading French video games and other software developers and publishers. After having participated in creating 7 startups, he founds Visiware in 1994, convinced by the interactive TV’s market potential, which takes him to develop technologies, services and to conceive some of today’s most successful interactive TV channels.

Laurant is also President of the AFDESI*, Laurant WEILL stands as a genuine expert in new technologies and interactive TV.

Colas, 43 years old, Swiss, French and German citizen, CEO, works with Laurant and the Visiware team on a new development phase and growth for the firm.

He brings along a long experience in Digital TV, in particular in the management of new businesses at the convergence between content and technology. After several years in strategy consulting in France and in the United States, he held several management positions in the TF1 Group (Worldwide Sales Director of Eurosport, VP of International Activities at TF1, co-founder e-TF1). He then became CEO of Lysis (Lausanne, Switzerland), one of the most successful international providers of open software technology for digital television. He was then appointed to Executive VP of NASDAQ-listed SCM Microsystems, world leader in smartcard readers, where he managed SCM’s Digital TV business.

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Key Milestones

1994 : Creation of Visiware
1998 : Testing of a new interactive games channel on France Telecom’s cable network in Bordeaux
2000 : Launching in France of the 1st interactive game channel for the family, LudiTV (renamed Playin’TV later on)
2001 : Launching of Playin’TV in the USA
2002 : Creation of a joint venture with the group Fox Kids Europe and launching of the interactive game channel for kids, Fox Kids Play
2003 : Launching of the interactive game channel, Playin’Star (Playin’Casino in certain countries)
2004 : Visiware is granted with the award for "Best developer” and "Best game and entertainment program” (AFDESI International interactive TV Awards) and assures its position as a worldwide leader in Interactive TV Games.
2005 : Visiware launched 2 new channels, MiniKids TV and Sensual TV as well as the new mosaic portal on Playin’TV. Visiware is granted with the « best technology » award (AFDESI International interactive TV Awards), launches the 1st interactive game channel on a major US cable (Time Warner Cable).
2006 : Launch of Playin’TV Mobile, Club Playin’TV, Internet flash portal and the Triple Play offer. Visiware factory is now launching its games on 550 devices (300 mobiles + 250 TV + internet) plus the needed back office.

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iTV agency

Visiware is a developer and publisher of iTV and proposes solutions from concept to broadcast. Thanks to a huge catalogue of applications and services already broadcasted, Visiware can develop your service or content quicker and cheaper.

The company proposes architecture and backoffice tools that are tailored to test, validate, manage, monitor and broadcast realtime applications. Launch your service on time locally or around the globe.

Visiware has conceived, developed and deployed more than 50 interactive TV applications such as Electronic Program Guide (EPG), TV portal and navigator, iTV channels or services (game channel, weather forecast, local/international information, lottery…), enhanced TV, TV-commerce, interactive advertising…

Visiware is an independent company and support all main interactivity platforms and conditional access providers.

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Technologies

Since 1995, Visiware operates its interactive channels, which are deployed in 77 countries :
- on all major iTV operators

- developed 300 games
- runs on 5 middlewares and more than 350 set top boxes
- owns numerous backoffice softwares and tools

- runs on more than 300 phones

Visiware provides an integrated framework to develop the games cross platform and a backoffice suite to drive their applications and channels.
Visiware strives in supplying the best content for its customers and partners. Here is an overview of Visiware technologies:

Visi-Carousel © patent pending The bandwidth is an expensive and rare resource. To optimize is key in this industry. Visiware developed The Visi-Carousel © technology back in 1995 and has deployed it ever since. Broadcasting a game using this technology now requires 6 times less bandwidth than before. For example, 30 Visiware games require only 2MB/s. The Playin’TV portal technology enables a smooth navigational experience, with measurable reductions in game loading times, which has enhanced the user experience.

VisiSDK-Framework 1.1

The abilities, libraries and production processes have been integrated into a development suite which is named VisiSDK-Framework. It enables the quick and easy development of Visiware applications : cross platforms, cross middlewares and cross networks. With this framework, Visiware is able to launch a 30 game channel on a new ITV network within 40 days, including specific user interface, specific language and specific STBs. The framework contains:

- LTK library and the LTK tools: this is an overlay of the middleware. So the developer doesn’t need to focus on the target platform (STB manufacturer, Remote Control specifications, Conditional access provider,...)
- LTN library : this overlay includes the specifications of each network regarding the user interface, the language, the payment mechanisms, the return path,...
- GDK Template : this is the core of our game architecture.

Visi-MenuCreator 4

This is the core of Visiware’s channels. It is the perfect Wysiwyg tool to easily build the Playin’TV menus, to define the communication strategy of the channel, regarding the different players profiles (subscription level, languages,…) and the games available on the network. The tool also manages the contests, the leaderboards, voting, and special features respecting the allocated bandwidth, loading times and network technical capacities. MenuCreator is managed by the Marketing department.

Visi-Feedback 2.0

Thanks to the cookies mechanism Visiware has developed on certain networks, in conjunction with PayPerPlay usage and player votes feedback, this back office tool builds a database to better understand the usage of Visiware products : how long players play, what are players favorite games, when do players play...? All this information allows Visiware to construct the perfect offer for their audiences.

Visi-Motion 1.0

This is Visiware’s solution to synchronizing interactive content and video feed. It includes a back office tool and a front office library. Mock-ups are available. This has not yet been deployed due to video bandwidth requirements. IPTV and PVR versions will enable Visiware to produce the next generation games.

The solution to test and validate an ITV application for all networks now exists!

The solution to test and validate an ITV application for all networks now exists! In order to constantly improve the quality of its products broadcasted worldwide, Visiware’s QA department is now equipped with complete test benches, each capable of accepting up to 24 set-top boxes at the same time.

The test bench

It is composed of 6 mosaic generators, allowing four video sources to be mixed together and merged into one source, and 6 « audio switches » for sound management. The system is then monitored by an audio/video mixer, able to manage up to 6 outputs, 4 dedicated to monitors (PAL and NTSC), 1 dedicated to a PC equipped with a capture card, and one last output that remains free for access (camcorder, VCR,…). The PC is also equipped with an application and an extension card able to read up to 24 serial ports (info debug) at the same time. The test panel can then handle up to 24 set-top boxes (110v or 220v) at the same time.

More than 250 set-top boxes available

Visiware has been building for many years a data base associated with the different categories of set-top boxes. This base, open to the intranet, allows Visiware to quickly know the technical characteristics (memory, CPU, middleware,...), the pictures (front view, rearview, remote control) and the particularities (FAQ, bug,...) of each set-top box. The only thing remaining is to open the correct closet and install the set-top box on the test bank.

Broadcast panel

The tested applications can come from many different sources:

- One of the European satellites, to which our 8 dishes are constantly oriented.
- One of Visiware ASI servers.

The latter allows Visiware to broadcast interactive applications such as OpenTV or MediaHighway (and MHP very soon), but also audio or video for the applications that need synchronization tests.

2 modulators and 2 transmodulators adapt the ASI server signal to QAM or QPSK (Cable or satellite), according to the needs.

This architecture allows testing with two different sources at a given moment on the test bench, which is then available for 2 different testers, whether or not they are working on the same application. This mode is particularly used for application tests for networks having many middlewares in their area.

The modularity of this unique solution allows easy updates of its architecture towards new broadcasting technologies (IP, DTT,...) or new middlewares (MHP, FLASH).

Since 2006, Visiware runs Playin’TV on 2 additional platforms:

- Mobile (J2ME and Brew)
- Broadband (Flash/ Html)

Visiware ensures that each new platform connects with the others.

The job is in fact the same as that of the Interactive TV world (ports, many devices, content deployment, user interface, multiplayers...). In France, in June 2006, Visiware successfully launched its exclusive tripleplay offer. Visiware is now working on the worldwide deployment of this new product (already running in Canada, Spain, Singapore,...).This offer is compatible with 300 mobile phones.

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