Inlet Technologies to Assist NBC Universal with Video Streams During Olympic Games

Inlet Technologies, a provider of live streaming and video-on-demand solutions for digital media, has reportedly been selected to provide Microsoft (News - Alert) Internet Information Services Live Smooth Streaming online video for NBC Universal during the company’s coverage of the XXI Olympic Winter Games from Vancouver from Feb. 12-28.

 

NBC, America’s Olympic Network, has broadcast 11 Olympic Games. The 2010 Vancouver Games mark the sixth of an unprecedented seven consecutive Olympic broadcasts by NBC Sports which began with the 2000 Sydney Games and continues through the 2012 London Games.

 

“Inlet is proud to help NBC deliver the highest quality live streams of Vancouver Winter Olympics coverage,” John Bishop, senior vice president of strategy and business development, Inlet Technologies (News - Alert), said in a statement.

 

Inlet’s Spinnaker family of encoding solutions is specifically designed for live sports as it provides broadcast-quality streams over the Internet to multiple screens and devices. With its built-in support for adaptive streaming protocols, including IIS Live Smooth Streaming, Spinnaker is said to generate high-quality streams that enhance online viewing of live sports action.

 

“Spinnaker, combined with IIS Live Smooth Streaming, will ensure that viewers have access to higher quality video and viewing controls than in the past, helping NBC to improve viewer retention and the time fans spend enjoying Olympic Winter Games coverage online. We look forward to being part of this monumental event,” Bishop said.

 

For NBC’s coverage of the Vancouver Winter Olympics, Spinnaker will provide high-definition streams in real time at resolutions up to 720p. Spinnaker also will enable Olympic Winter Games fans on NBCOlympics.com to easily switch between multiple events.

 

 “NBC’s broadcast of the Vancouver Winter Olympics is a great opportunity for a broad audience to experience the type of HD-quality, live, online video that Microsoft and its partners can deliver with technologies like Silverlight and IIS Live Smooth Streaming,” said Scott Guthrie (News - Alert), corporate vice president of the .NET Developer Platform at Microsoft Corp., in a statement.

 

Guthrie also said that Inlet’s encoding solutions are essential to providing viewers with the highest quality IIS Live Smooth Streaming video that will enrich the NBC online experience of the Olympic Winter Games.

 

“We approach every Olympics with the goal of delivering the best possible viewer experience,” Perkins Miller, senior vice president, digital media, NBC Olympics, said in a statement. “With Inlet’s Spinnaker, we’re able to take a major leap forward with advanced video player controls and the first-ever HD delivery of online Olympic Winter Games video.”