Etisalat Announces Deal with Endavo Media on Major Online Video Platform Licensing Agreement

2009-10-19 20:45:05 -

Endavo Media : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. , a leading provider of Internet TV platforms, signed a multi-year, white-label platform licensing deal with Etisalat : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. , a leading telecom services provider in the Middle East and one of the top 20 telecom operators worldwide.

Under the agreement, Etisalat will install Endavo’s platform to support the roll-out of an IP-based over-the-top (OTT) video

delivery infrastructure over its own Internet and wireless networks. Etisalat will market its video services to broadcasters and content producers across 17 countries, including all of the Middle East and part of North Africa. The licensing deal expands the growing relationship between the Internet TV provider and the global telecom company.

Already, Etisalat has leveraged the capabilities of the Endavo platform to enable the largest Middle East-based broadcaster, MBC ( shahed.mbc.net/ : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsha .. ), and one of the most prominent local broadcasters in the United Arab Emirates, Dubai Media, Inc. ( vode.dmi.ae : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fvod .. and vod.dmi.ae : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fvod .. ), to deliver over 20 million videos. More than 10 million videos were viewed last month alone during special programs that were offered online to a global audience of users via the two broadcasters’ Web sites during the Holy Month of Ramadhan.

“Endavo Media’s Platform has proven itself as an effective way for Etisalat to power Internet TV for millions of people across the Middle East and around the globe,” said Khalifa Al Shamsi, Senior Vice President, Consumer Marketing at Etisalat. “This licensing agreement deepens our relationship and furthers Etisalat’s commitment to bring the latest in three-screen video delivery technology to our customers around the world.”

Paul D. Hamm, president and CEO of Endavo Media, notes that the agreement comes after two years of providing Internet TV services to Etisalat. In that time, Endavo has provided its online video platform and the foundation for three-screen (PC, mobile, IPTV) technology to Etisalat and its clients including MBC, Dubai TV and e-junior.

“We at Endavo are very excited to continue to work with Etisalat in its efforts to provide Internet TV to the region,” said Hamm. “There’s a growing demand in the Middle East and northern Africa to watch video on-demand over the Internet, as seen with the millions of viewers who tuned in during Ramadan. We’ll continue to provide popular programming from our clients over the Internet, as well as develop new technologies to allow viewers to watch TV shows on their mobile phones and through IPTV before the end of the year.”

Etisalat’s decision to license the Endavo platform is the first of many steps Etisalat plans to take in order to leverage its many assets, such as the Emirates Exchange, which is peered to more than 1,000 networks worldwide, and the FLAG fiber connection, which provides the majority of Internet bandwidth in the region. This will enable content owners in the region to reach users beyond their current satellite coverage area or terrestrial broadcast network.

About Etisalat ( www.etisalat.ae : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ):

Etisalat is one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world and the largest operator in the Arab world headquartered in the UAE (as per FT500 March 31, 2008). Etisalat operates in 17 countries across Asia, the Middle East and Africa, servicing over 80m customers.

It also has Points of Presence (PoP) in New York, London, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Paris and Singapore providing a truly global reach.

In addition to being the UAE’s telecom provider, Etisalat has now expanded to manage and operate telecom companies in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, Pakistan, Tanzania, Benin, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Niger, Togo, Republic of Central Africa, Ivory Coast, Nigeria , Indonesia, Iran and Afghanistan. With shares in Sudan’s ‘Sudatel’, Inida, Qatar’s Q-Tel and Thuraya, the satellite telephone service provider, Etisalat is a key regional player that lends its expertise and resources towards the betterment of information and communication technology.

About Endavo Media ( www.endavomedia.com : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ):

Endavo Media provides a hosted platform for Internet TV, enterprise video, social media : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. and IPTV. This easy-to-use, cost-effective media management : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. and distribution system offers high-quality live and on-demand delivery of video, audio and pictures. Content is delivered through brandable players, web sites and user interfaces, across the social web and to consumer broadband devices, including portable media players, mobile phones and set-top boxes : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. . Music, entertainment and new media businesses, as well as social, cultural and faith-based organizations, get more control to connect and engage directly with their audiences, build their brands and generate revenue from their online video communities : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. . Endavo Media was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Atlanta. Endavo Media is a privately-held company. Visit www.endavomedia.com : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. for more information.


For Endavo MediaWill Wellons, 407-462-2718 Will@wellonscommunications.com : mailto:Will@wellonscommunications.com