OTTAWA—What do AT&T, Starbucks, and Tesla have in common? They all accept payments using various forms of cryptocurrency. Granted, these payment options are currently limited; for instance, you can use Dogecoin to buy Tesla clothing and car accessory purchases at shop.tesla.com, but not an electric car. Still, the fact that “crypto” (as it is commonly called) is finding growing acceptance as a legitimate form of payment is likely a sign of things to come.

In the TV broadcasting/content distribution market, companies such as Sling TV, Replay, Script TV and ZEBEDEE are pushing ahead with crypto payment transactions. The reason? “Crypto payments enable smart contracts that automatically generate payments in real time whenever video is viewed,” said Replay CEO Krish Arvapally. “For TV broadcasters and content deliverers, this eliminates the time spent tracking down and managing these payments.” 

Creators are happier too, Arvapally adds. “Instead of chasing down or waiting on royalty checks coming from a variety of sources, months after a video is played, the open-source and transparent nature of blockchain payments means that creators can trust that they’re being paid as soon as possible.”

Sling TV: Early Adopter
As of Feb. 22, Sling TV allows subscribers to pay their monthly bills using the crypto payment provider BitPay, which handles digital currencies such as Bitcoin, Dogecoin, or Ethereum. 

The only catch: “BitPay is available to established Sling customers and can be used to extend an existing monthly subscription,” a Sling TV spokesperson told TV Tech. “Notably, BitPay cryptocurrency payment is available any time after the first bill as a monthly subscriber, including after a free trial or promotional offer.”

This proviso notwithstanding, “accepting crypto payments was a natural next step for Sling subscribers,” the spokesperson added. “Sling’s new integration with BitPay adds to DISH Network’s already robust reputation as an industry innovator. In fact, DISH TV [which owns Sling TV] has accepted crypto payments since 2014.”

Watch TV, Get Rewarded
Imagine paying viewers to watch an ad-free, subscription-free OTT TV service with crypto: That’s the business based behind Rewarded TV, which is being launched by blockchain video tracking and payments platform Replay. 

“Our viewers will receive rewards and pay for premium content with RPLAY, a new crypto token built on Theta, the leading blockchain for entertainment organizations,” said Arvapally. “RPLAY will be available to exchange for cash, or can be earned by watching free content on Rewarded TV. 

“Users can also earn multipliers on their RPLAY earnings through ‘gamified content’—by engaging with certain promoted content or earning NFT passes in relation to specific viewing activities,” Arvapally added. “For example, sharing a specific piece of content or creating a playlist featuring certain movies or shows can yield additional rewards for driving engagement.” 

Viewers can also purchase NFTs, whose crypto payments will be used to pay content providers (along with revenues from gamified content promotions.) Worth noting: As soon as someone’s content is viewed, they get paid in RPLAY, a theta token by Replay.

If the Rewarded TV concept sounds rather unconventional for commercial OTT TV, it is. Using Rewarded TV to introduce new models of monetization, Replay is launching this service as a proof-of-concept, for their own open-source Replay video tracking and payments platform. But Arvapally is confident that the time is right for Rewarded TV and Replay. 

“The continued adoption of crypto payments in film and TV is a trend that is here to stay,” he said. “Digital streaming and syndication are perfect use cases for crypto payments: content owners and distributors will turn to crypto for its ease of use in distributing earnings in real time.”

In another deal with Theta, OTT distributor Cinedigm entered the crypto universe in 2021 by agreeing integrate the native Theta peer-to-peer streaming technology, blockchain protocol and Theta Fuel (TFUEL) micropayments on its CONtv Anime branded channel page. It allows visitors to Cindegigm’s CONtv to view its large library of anime, sci-fi, horror and cult shows and films directly using Theta’s fully decentralized technology and protocol.

Theta says integrating its blockchain allows entertainment and streaming platforms like Cinedigm to lower their video delivery CDN costs by 50% or more, while increasing user engagement, viewing times and monetization. Users in return can earn FUEL rewards for sharing video content utilizing their excess bandwidth and computing resources. The company adds that its blockchain approach enables fans to earn as much as $10-$15/month simply by watching their favorite content on their browser with no download required.

‘Tipping’ Content Providers
Although aimed at the online gaming world to allow viewers to “tip” their favorite live gamers using Bitcoin, ZEBEDEE’s ZBD Streamer software could potentially be used by broadcasters and OTT creators to boost their own revenues. For instance, viewers could signify their support for a specific player on a live TV series through tipping, with the crypto being split between the player and content producer.

“ZBD Streamer is a free OBS plugin that pairs with the user’s ZEBEDEE account, and allows live broadcasters to post a static QR code overlay onto their stream to accept tips from viewers via their smartphone,” said ZEBEDEE Marketing Director Mark Mulvey. “What’s great about this solution is that the audience can send payments as ‘microtransactions’—fractions of a penny—which until now was completely uneconomical and technically infeasible. 

“By transacting in tiny satoshi increments (a satoshi, or ‘sat,’ is 1/100,000,000th of one Bitcoin), broadcasters can collect affordable tips from viewers in a fun, frictionless way—without losing the ability to exchange those sats into their local fiat currency at a later time if they choose.” Mulvey added.

Could this technology be used in traditional OTA/OTT content advertising? According to Mulvey, the answer is, theoretically, yes. 

“The underlying Bitcoin Lightning Network technology certainly allows for this type of functionality, though no one to our knowledge has built out this specific solution just yet,” he said. “But similar innovations are occurring in the podcasting space, as something called ‘Podcasting 2.0’ [also known as the ‘Value-for-Value’ model] is allowing creators to receive sats streamed directly to them by listeners in lieu of, or in addition to, their traditional audio advertising revenue. This technology also makes the inverse possible: for advertisers to compensate listeners directly, streaming sats to their wallets based on how much of the ad was actually listened to.”

Script.TV Balances All Sides
About to be launched in its beta version, Script.TV seems to resemble Rewarded TV in that it too pays viewers in crypto for watching. However, the Script.TV model is actually quite different. 

Unlike Rewarded TV, Script.TV will play out its stable of free-to-watch TV channels and movies online like a conventional broadcaster. Its online TV programs will run on a schedule with no ability for viewers to jump back to the beginning, and with non-skippable ads being part of the content. This model will ensure that everyone, including content providers and advertisers, benefit from the Script.TV platform. 

“Although Script.TV gives viewers the opportunity to profit from their viewing time and personal data in return of SCRIPT blockchain tokens [SCPT] to reward them, it of course, is not our business model to purely just give out tokens,” said Script.TV Co-Founder Akeem Ojuko. As well, the company will encourage viewers to spend their SCPTs within the company through the sale of special NFTs.

In reality, Script.TV is actually an attempt to resolve content delivery bottlenecks commonly encountered online by creating a distributed, decentralized online base of content storage/playout. And it will make money for itself and content providers as well, with the latter being paid using a second class of tokens known as SPAYs based on how much their content is watched. These tokens will be convertible into conventional currencies, should content providers choose to sell them. 

In doing all of this, Script.TV’s goal “is to fix a lot of the problems that content providers and advertisers have in working in the online market,” Ojuko said.

SIDEBAR 

What is Theta? 

In 2017, Sliver.TV subsidiary Theta Labs announced that it was developing a decentralized video streaming network enabled by blockchain to provide less expensive video storage and playout to content providers worldwide. “The core of the network enables users worldwide with un-utilized PC bandwidth and resources to cache and relay video streams to others in the network and in turn mine Theta tokens, similar to Bitcoin and Ethereum,” the company said at the time.

Today, Theta Labs runs the “Theta Network” decentralized blockchain-enabled streaming platform using the company’s Mainnet 4.0 software. Google, Samsung, Sony, Creative Artists Agency (CAA), Binance, Blockchain Ventures, DHVC and gumi are  global enterprise validator partners while strategic corporate investors reportedly include Samsung NEXT, Sony Innovation Fund, Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments (BDMI), CAA, plus Silicon Valley VCs including DCM and Sierra Ventures.

To explain the company’s market position in more tangible terms, Replay and Rewarded TV are using Theta Labs’ TNT-20 (Theta Network Token-20) tokens as the basis of their RPLAY tokens on both services. 

Meanwhile, game show producer Fremantle is marking the 50th anniversary of CBS game show “The Price is Right” by issuing NFTs (non-fungible tokens) in collaboration with Theta Labs. The NFTs will feature popular “The Price Is Right” games such as Cliff Hangers, Plinko, and Punch-A-Bunch.

In addition, the “American Idol” brand partnered with Theta Network to launch NFTs to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the reality show which wrapped up in May. Featuring the Top 14 contestants from Season 20 of American Idol, the NFTs were sold for $99 as packs of digital trading cards. “Holders of the NFTs will participate in a five-week-long competition where they can win prizes based on how far contestants go,” Benzinga.com reported in April.  

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif.—Replay, a real-time video tracking and payments platform recently launched “Rewarded TV,” a new streaming service that allows viewers to earn “crypto tokens” for watching, sharing and engaging with content on its service. The service is using Bitcentral’s FUEL + Powr.tv streaming solution to create dynamic linear channels from Rewarded TV’s VOD library and syndicate them efficiently and effectively through one unified workflow to Rewarded TV’s third-party endpoints .

The service is available on Android TV, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku TV, and Smart TV. As well as enabling Rewarded TV to reach a wider audience, FUEL + Powr.tv increase viewer engagement through a live chat feature, Bitcentral said.

Bitcentral provides Replay with a best-in-class solution suite that is pre-integrated and tested, eliminating vendor and content duplication while lowering complexity and cost. Rewarded TV will introduce new means of instant video monetization based on real-time access and NFT-gated premium content, using Bitcentral’s solutions to manage content libraries, scale streaming applications, and enable social video features.

The project sees Powr.tv, which was acquired by Bitcentral earlier this year, integrated with Bitcentral’s online video platform, FUEL, to deliver a suite of capabilities that simplify video management and streaming monetization, consumer application experience, and distribution for broadcasters, publishers, and media companies. The combined platform provides users with the tools to eliminate integration challenges and vendor management fatigue, improving the time-to-market and increasing ROI on their valuable content.

Krish Arvapally, CEO of Replay, said: “We turned to Bitcentral to power Rewarded TV because its full suite of video streaming solutions enables us to scale rapidly across mobile, web, and OTT to concentrate on delivering real-time video payment and tracking. Enabling social engagement and community building with live chat and live event support, Bitcentral aligns with our vision of community-led video.”

Greg Morrow, General Manager, Streaming Media Group, said: “The industry is rapidly changing, and Rewarded TV is offering the market a refreshing new approach. It’s a great example of the enormous flexibility that FUEL + Powr.tv provides to support innovation in OTT. Our platform provides a powerful turnkey solution that offers a more cost-effective way for the Rewarded TV team to deploy their library wherever the viewer wants to watch. This toolset is combined with our 20-plus years of experience in broadcast to mean we can be a true partner to Rewarded TV rather than just a technology provider.”

Rewarded TV is available in North America now at www.rewarded.tv

STATE COLLEGE, Penn.—AccuWeather has announced that it has made a wide range of weather data and insights available for blockchain applications via Chainlink. This marks the first time a major weather brand has arranged to accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment for weather services, AccuWeather said. 

AccuWeather's official Chainlink oracle node delivers critical weather data to blockchain applications to create new products and markets, such as weather predictions, hedging markets, and dynamic NFT art and games based on current weather conditions in localized regions, the company announced.

The AccuWeather node on Chainlink broadcasts data across leading blockchains and cryptographically signs it, allowing users to know definitively that it originated from AccuWeather. Utilizing Chainlink as a universal gateway to blockchains, AccuWeather is extending the reach of its premier weather data into emerging markets, as well as support for the next generation of weather-related applications, the company said. 

"Launching our official Chainlink node begins a new era of AccuWeather supporting blockchain-based markets, opening up increasingly sophisticated and globally accessible applications, spanning weather-related insurance and more," said Kurt Fulepp, AccuWeather global chief product officer. "We look forward to seeing how hybrid smart contracts using AccuWeather data will create value for everyone from farmers to businesses, and organizations around the world."

Will Janensch, director, data providers at Chainlink Labs added that when “combined with smart contracts, AccuWeather's expansive collection of datasets can be used to power parametric insurance models across numerous global industries and securely optimize weather-dependent supply chains. Chainlink provides the time-tested oracle infrastructure that AccuWeather needs to enter blockchain-based markets and provide its premium weather data on-chain to accelerate smart contract innovation." 

Chainlink is a decentralized blockchain oracle network. Chainlink oracle networks provide smart contracts that reliably connect to any external API and leverage secure off-chain computations for enabling feature-rich applications. 

Chainlink currently secures tens of billions of dollars across DeFi, insurance, gaming, and other major industries, and offers global enterprises and leading data providers a universal gateway to all blockchains, the companies said. 

Developers interested in accessing AccuWeather data on blockchains can find more information here.  

LOS ANGELES—Digital media management and licensing company Bitmax has announced a new partnership to license and provide new release content to MTonomy, a blockchain-based digital media rights and content management company. MTonomy customers rent and buy content through ether, a cryptocurrency of the Ethereum blockchain, and through this deal will now have access to Bitmax TV series, movies, documentaries and digital shorts.

Jim Riley, chief revenue officer at Bitmax, says that by making its content available via cryptocurrency on the MTonomy online platform, Bitmax’s content has now been made available to millions of new viewers and provides the filmmakers new and innovative revenue streams.

Another facet of this new partnership is Bitmax assisting MTonomy to onboard, manage and audit digital media content.

Viewers can access MTonomy’s entire range of VOD content using cryptocurrency wallets such as Metamask, Coinbase Wallet and Cipher.