Tech Roundup

Some hotel brands, including Marriott, in 2016 began introducing Apps on its in-room entertainment systems. Among these Apps is iHeartRadio. Now, the App from the radio broadcasting industry's No. 1 owner by station count and revenue is set to appear in a lot more hotel rooms, and a TV need not be turned on to use the App. What does this mean for in-room radios? We have an RBR+TVBR Observation on that.

You know those ads that pop up while patiently awaiting the content you really want to see? Many tune out after a few seconds, yet some advertisers have been billed for those "viewings." Not anymore at Pandora, thanks to the introduction of a new policy that will see clients only pay for ads when users watch at least 15 seconds of it.

A provider of cloud-native video management and licensing services has teamed up with fast-growing AI insights and cognitive solutions firm Veritone by offering its clients Veritone's proprietary platform of advanced cognitive engines and applications.

A Pompton Plains, N.J. broadcast tech firm has just expanded its digital recording wireless product line with a handheld microphone that can function either as a wireless transmitter, or as a hardwired microphone. The device can also handle both tasks simultaneously.

"Hey Alexa! You're welcome on our platform." That's a message that's now possible thanks to a partnership formed between XAPPmedia and Toronto-based SoCast. Find out now what this could mean for your radio stations.

Dallas-based Osprey Video is now shipping its two newest small-form-factor scaling converters. The HSCSA-2 and SHCSA-2 scaling converters automatically accept SDI input up to 3G Level A, provide scaling and frame-rate conversion as needed, and offer motion-adaptive deinterlacing.

Artel Video Systems, the provider of real-time multimedia delivery solutions, has entered into a partnership with RAVENNA. What's behind the linking of the two companies? Click here for the full details.

A Munich-based broadcast technology company has unveiled what it calls "a new approach to live ingest, media processing and channel playout that cost-effectively provides bridging technology between hybrid SDI and IP broadcast operations."

Hundreds of thousands of Floridians still don't have reliable access to TV, or the internet. Access to the radio is essential. It's why Tronc's Fort Lauderdale-based daily, the Sun Sentinel, on Friday published an impassioned editorial pleading Apple to turn on its FM chips across its iPhone products. The editorial hit a nerve with not only NAB EVP/Communications Dennis Wharton, but also the radio industry leader behind the NextRadio app—Jeff Smulyan. We've got an RBR+TVBR Observation on the topic.

Artificial intelligence as a tool for broadcast media's sales teams is gaining attention not only from the C-Suites of TV and radio companies, but from Wall Street. Thanks to some positive press and key partnerships, Veritone stock has dramatically soared in just the last five days. With company executives in Amsterdam for IBC2017, their return to the U.S. should be a giddy one. They can thank Dalet, Barron's, and financial house Jeffries.

Ooyala has just released its Q2 2017 Global Video Index, and there's a glimmer of hope for broadcast radio and TV C-Suiters intent on scraping away at some of those digital ad dollars: Mobile video plays have plateaued after 22 quarters of strong growth, increasing just over 1% since Q1 this year.

Does the potential impact on AM and FM radio listening in the self-driving car worry you? Better grab the Mylanta: a new study finds that more than half of the respondents in a recently conducted study would buy an autonomous car for their next car purchase.

It's been a banner September on Wall Street for Newport Beach, Calif., based Veritone Inc., which is bringing radio and TV broadcasters the power of using artificial intelligence to expand advertising opportunities through audio and visual cognition software. On Tuesday things got even bigger, thanks to a partnership with Wazee Digital on media asset management tools.

An operational ATSC 3.0 test station is being established in Cleveland, and Tribune Media's WJW-TV is leading its launch. But, it is not alone in its creation, and the NAB and Consumer Technology Association (CTA) are each playing significant roles with the test station's development. Now, Triveni Digital is joining as a collaborator.

An individual who most recently served as a consultant for such companies as Rightsline, TabletTV, and Mercy Neutraceuticals has been appointed VP of Worldwide Sales for a technology firm best-known for providing digital media content solutions to broadcast media.