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Privately held UK-based interactive TV technology provider, Tamblin, has been acquired by Alcatel-Lucent. The latter says that Tamblin’s applications and toolkits–which it praised as, among other things, facilitating the development and tracking of interactive TV advertising campaigns, by allowing broadcasters or brands to create one campaign that runs across multiple operators–will enhance its solutions for "enabling IPTV users to easily find, connect and interact with brands and entertainment they care about" (note: Tamblin’s software has already been integrated with Alcatel-Lucent’s AmigoTV and MyOwnTV products; the software also happens to be integrated with Microsoft’s Mediaroom platform). Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed; the companies say that Tamblin’s 13-person staff will join Alcatel-Lucent’s "convergence business activities" within its multimedia and payment team. "The experienced and talented team at Tamblin have developed a powerful set of applications and tools that are being used by clients such as the BBC, BSkyB, ITV, Channel Five and Central Office of Information," Marc Rouanne, president of Alcatel-Lucent’s convergence business activities, said in a prepared statement. "We look forward to leveraging their expertise and integrating them into a wider team dedicated to identifying ways to help IPTV service providers deliver a unique, interactive TV experience for their subscribers." Added Tamblin CEO, Stuart Waite: "We have the opportunity to bring our media and broadcast clients together with the outstanding Alcatel-Lucent IPTV operator customers to deliver leading interactive TV services to the market."

Tamblin’s products include its i-ZoneTV software, which it describes as "a dynamic publishing, template management and churn tool that allows for content within pre-designed templates to be updated across multiple platforms." Among other things, the software powers BSkyB’s interactive TV portal, Sky Active, and is also used to create and manage interactive TV content for other major UK broadcasters, including Channel 4, ITV, Five, and Flextech, as well as the BBC. Tamblin also recently announced that Directgov, a UK government office that provides information on government services, is using the i-ZoneTV software to create and manage the interactive TV version of its service on digital satellite, digital cable and IPTV. Earlier this year, Tamblin announced that it had been chosen by BSkyB’s advertising sales arm, Sky Media, to provide an SMS return-path solution for commercials on Sky-owned and third-party channels. The solution, which Tamblin dubs MiAds (short for "mobile interactive advertising"), allows clients to overlay TV commercials with an SMS call-to-action graphic (note: the call-to-action graphic can be modified during the life of a campaign). It is offered to advertisers by Sky Media as part of an integrated, multiplatform campaign offering, and is available for implementation across all digital television platforms.

Originally Published: October 12, 2007 in [itvt] Issue 7.39 Part 1

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