CANADA - PixStream Incorporated, a developer of video
head-end solutions for telephone companies, and Kasenna, Inc., a provider of infrastructure software for streaming media ventures, today announced that they have signed a strategic alliance agreement.
Under the terms of the alliance, both Kasenna and PixStream will engage in product integration, joint marketing
and sales activities to further develop the high-quality video over broadband Internet and private networks market.
The result will allow telephone companies to deliver both real-time and on-demand broadband video services over their existing network infrastructures.
PixStream video networking systems aggregate audio and video signals from any digital or analog source, perform
high-quality real-time video processing as needed and adapt the resulting MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 streams to any network
infrastructure. Kasenna's infrastructure software platform provides the intelligent content distribution, content
management and streaming functions to build streaming video ervices over DSL, cable, satellite, fixed wireless
and private broadband networks.
By combining these two solutions, PixStream and Kasenna provide telephone companies with an integrated solution
to redistribute both real-time and on-demand broadband video services over existing telephone wires. PixStream
video networking systems adapt high-quality real-time audio and video
signals to telephone company networks. This same content can also be installed directly into the Kasenna MediaBase
platform for on-demand video and time shifted TV applications. The Kasenna MediaBase platform provides intelligent
content management, including the authentication, access and
accounting functions required to deliver on-demand video services.
By eliminating the customers' efforts in product integration, the PixStream and Kasenna alliance facilitates the
process that telephone companies have to go through to introduce video into their broadband networks, reducing
their overall time to market.
"Deploying an infrastructure to manage and distribute broadband video content has become a competitive imperative
for telecommunications companies worldwide," said Bill Correll, Group Manager, Digital and Interactive Media
at Sun Microsystems, Inc. "PixStream and Kasenna's product integration, coupled with Sun's systems and storage,
is helping telephone companies to rapidly deploy reliable, scalable and flexible broadband solutions."
"PixStream is recognized in the emerging field of video networking," said Neil McGowan, VP of Sales &
Marketing, Kasenna. "They have developed one of the highest density video networking systems on the market
today. This alliance extends the Kasenna software platform by adding a leading, real-time video networking component."
"Kasenna's MediaBase enhances the PixStream video networking system by adding on-demand video capabilities
to the high-quality video produced by the PixStream system," said Dave Caputo, Vice President of Marketing,
PixStream. "PixStream is committed to partnering with companies like Kasenna
to offer its customers turnkey TV entertainment solutions."
About Kasenna, Inc.
Kasenna delivers the broadband infrastructure software enabling network service providers, content providers and enterprises to build carrier- and commercial-grade streaming media networks and applications. The company provides the content management, distribution and delivery platform, focusing on the media commerce issues of video quality, network performance, preservation of brand identity and content security for use in media commerce solutions.
In January 2000, Kasenna, Inc.
spun off from SGI with funding from U.S. Venture Partners, Alloy Ventures, Entertainment Media Ventures and SGI.
Kasenna, pronounced [kah-SEN-ah], is headquartered in Mountain View, California.
About PixStream Incorporated
PixStream develops, manufactures and globally markets hardware and software solutions that enable network service
providers and enterprises to reliably distribute and manage digital video. PixStream solutions transport high-quality
video and audio over broadband networks, optimizing bandwidth
and enabling customers to introduce video services and applications.