CableLabs OKs OCAP, eTV Interoperability

Cable Television Laboratories Inc. announced the successful completion of 28 companies participating in a recent interoperability event for the OpenCable Application Platform and for enhanced TV.

The event encompassed hardware platforms, middleware implementations, interactive-TV applications and network equipment.

“This event was highly successful,” CableLabs senior vice president of advanced platforms and services Don Dulchinos said in a prepared statement. “What we’ve learned this week is that state-of-the-art for OCAP- and eTV-application development is keeping pace with advancements in the network and client pieces of the equation.”

The hardware and software platforms included wares from Osmosys S.A., Panasonic Consumer Electronics, Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co. Ltd., NDS Group plc, LG Electronics Inc., ADB, Pioneer Research Center USA Inc., Motorola Inc. and Scientific-Atlanta Inc.

Vidiom Systems Corp., Zappware NV, Cox Communications Inc., Charter Communications Inc. and Time Warner Cable Interactive provided OCAP applications and content.

Interactive applications were provided by Ensequence Inc., Walt Disney-ABC Enhanced TV, TVWorks (Comcast Corp./Cox), Showtime Networks Inc., Navic Networks, emuse technologies, GoldPocket Interactive Inc. and BIAP Systems Inc.

UniSoft Corp., Strategy and Technology Ltd., Softel-USA Inc., Thales Broadcast & Multimedia and DigiSoft.tv Ltd. provided application servers, object carousels and other playout equipment.

Dulchinos said CableLabs’ new “eTV Application Messaging Specification” specifies the synchronization and signaling mechanisms for eTV applications for any set-top or middleware. “This interoperability event was the first time we’ve seen some of these new apps up and running on a live cable plant,” he added.