XML-Based Open Standards Introduced for Producing iTV Content

Reprinted from a GoldPocket press release:

LAS VEGAS, NV – NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BROADCASTERS CONVENTION – APRIL 8, 2002 – At the National Association of Broadcasters convention in Las Vegas today, a group of leading television and interactive production companies, programmers, and technology providers introduced open standards for producing iTV content. The standards enable producers and studios to write interactive content once for distribution on all major set-top box and personal computer platforms.

The production standards will increase the amount of iTV programming in the U.S. by making it more economical and efficient to produce and deploy interactive programming. This will create value for all companies with a stake in the industry, from producers and networks to middleware players and cable and satellite operators.
This is the first time in the industry that the content community has come together to develop a standard way of producing iTV. Until recently, fragmentation and disparate middleware platforms, operating systems, and hardware devices stalled growth in the iTV industry. Recent consolidations, however, have created an opportunity for a group of key players to define a production standard that will streamline the creation and deployment of iTV programming.

Standards Specifications
The XML-based production standards, initially developed by two-way iTV provider GoldPocket Interactive, establish a method for content production and presentation description for interactive programs. In particular, the content production standards specify the timing and content of interactive assets such as trivia games, polls, interactive advertising, leaderboards, and more. The presentation description standards specify the visual elements of the program, the location of these elements, and a method for mapping content to these locations.
XML was chosen for the standard because of its general acceptance as an open method for transferring data and its compatibility with all of the major iTV platforms. The standard will support the leading one- and two-screen platforms, including middleware from Liberate, OpenTV, Microsoft, and PowerTV; AOLTV, UltimateTV, and MSNTV/WebTV set-top boxes; and PCs and Macs.

Standards committee
Dozens of the leading television and iTV production companies, representing over 90% of all interactive content produced in the U.S., have come together as participants in the standards effort. Some of these include American Film Institute, ANIMAX Interactive, ARTiFACT [+] iTV, Beyond Z Interactive Media, Chyron Corporation, Cylo, Inc., Final Draft, Inc., GIST Communications, Inc., GoldPocket Interactive, grim.TV, H Design, Interspot, Inc., PushyBroad, and Zeek Interactive.

An advisory board of visionaries in the iTV space will provide strategic direction for the committee. The advisory board includes Carlos Silva Jr., Vice President for America Online, Inc.; John Roberts, Senior Vice President Interactive and Online Entertainment for Game Show Network; R. A. Clark, Senior Vice President, Television: Production and Programming for dick clark productions, inc.; Adrian Sexton, Director, Business Development for Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.; Chris Pizzurro, Vice President Multimedia for Turner Broadcasting; Karen Lennon, CEO of Beyond Z Interactive Media; and Kirt Gunn, President of Cylo, Inc.

A working group with representatives from the committee will continue and expand the standards effort. The committee will be chaired by Martijn Lopes Cardozo, Vice President of Product Management for GoldPocket Interactive.