LONDON—Amagi and its tech partner 24i have announced that U.K. telecom Virgin Media used their integrated solution to launch and monetize a new line-up of themed Free Ad-supported Streaming TV (FAST) channels on Virgin TV.

An initial selection of 14 channels have been rolled-out to Virgin Media's V6, TV 360, and Stream set-top boxes (STBs), allowing customers to instantly access an extended range of content monetized through advertising.

"Our collaboration with Virgin Media has been an excellent opportunity for us to showcase our technical prowess,” Srinivasan KA, co-founder and CRO at Amagi said. “Our achievement in integrating multiple FAST channels into Virgin Media's STB environment through a unified gateway has significantly enriched user choice and paved the way for incremental revenues."

Harnessing the Appstage application framework within the 24i Mod Studio streaming platform — which is pre-integrated with Amagi's playout solutions — the project introduced the FAST channels into Virgin Media's Electronic Programming Guide (EPG) without making any changes to existing STB configurations, the companies said. 

Through a collaborative effort with Amagi's technology partner, 24i, the app was configured to perfectly align with Virgin Media's UX, facilitating a seamless integration of channels into Virgin Media's EPG, providing an enhanced user experience for their customers on V6, TV 360, and Stream STBs running the RDK and Opera operating systems.

"This has been a real team effort to give Virgin Media's customers access to a range of exciting new streamed content with a great user experience,” explained Donald McGarva, CEO of 24i and its parent company Aferian plc. “The successful and seamless roll-out to a variety of device models already in the field is a testament to the powerful and flexible combination of 24i's Appstage Big Screen client, cloud-based Backstage content management system, and Amagi's unrivaled FAST solutions."

Amagi provides a complete suite of solutions for channel creation, distribution, and monetization. Amagi's clients include ABS-CBN, A+E Networks UK, beIN Sports, Curiosity Stream, Cinedigm, Warner Bros. Discovery, Fox Networks, Fremantle, Gannett, Gusto TV, NBCUniversal, Tastemade, and Tegna, among others.

For more information about Amagi and its streaming TV solutions, visit www.amagi.com.

LONDON—The French Open tennis tournament is currently underway in Paris, and fans in the U.K. will be able to catch all the matches on the Phillipe Chatrier court in 4K UHD with HDR courtesy of Virgin Media and Eurosport. Virgin will provide the hi-res content, which it says is a first for a U.K. broadcaster, with HLG technology on its V6 set top box.

Eurosport will feature 4K coverage of the tournament every day for its two week run. Customers with a V6 set top can access the 4K content by pressing the red button on their remote while watching Eurosport channels or Virgin TV Ultra HD channels. Customers’ TVs must also be HLG compatible.

“We are upping our game once more this summer by broadcasting one of the most prestigious tennis competitions in the highest picture quality available,” said David Bouchier, chief digital entertainment officer at Virgin Media. “Our customers will be able to get even closer to the action with HDR technology on our V6 box bringing the action right into the homes of our customers.”