Coactive TV -- CoTV Enables Powerful Interactive TV Now

New York, NY -- September 19, 2002 /PRNewswire/ -- A simple but unconventional new software technology called CoTV™ can break through current barriers to rapidly enable advanced interactive TV services. This "coactive TV" technology--being developed through Teleshuttle Corporation, and the subject of recent patent filings--will enable cable operators to link TV programs and ads to richly coordinated Web services. These CoTV™ services can be deployed quickly and grow to wide use without significant new capital expense.

"Interactive TV (ITV) has long been seen as the next stage of media evolution, but its potential remains elusive because of so-called ‘chicken and egg’ problems," says Teleshuttle president and CoTV™ inventor Richard Reisman. "Few viewers appreciate the potential of ITV because implementations have been very limited, and they remain limited because it is not established that viewers will appreciate it."

CoTV™ avoids the need for expensive new cable boxes in viewer homes, and overcomes the limitations of current methods for adding interactivity to selected TV programs using crudely synchronized Web sites. It provides the missing link for using existing production and distribution infrastructures to provide "smart synchronization" between currently installed cable TV boxes and standard PCs.

Unlike prior, dumb "sync-TV" Web enhancements, this CoTV™ coordination can be always on, and fully responsive to individual channel surfing, video-on-demand, and advanced features for personalized viewing. Initial deployments are expected to be based on CoTV™ portals operated by cable TV services (which avoids any need for new connections in the home). Advanced versions can give viewers full freedom to coordinate between "lean-back" TV-screen-based interactions, using advanced set-top boxes, and "lean-forward" Web-like interactions on any of the wireless laptop and tablet PCs (or PDAs) that are becoming common. CoTV™ is also applicable to satellite, broadcast, and Internet streamed distribution, and to DVDs.

CoTV™ can change the nature of TV advertising: it can tightly link Web services to TV ads--to provide direct response and to aid in considered purchases and relationship marketing. Linked Web enhancements can include product details, infomercials, virtual test-drives, product configurators, service rep call placement, and complex ordering services, all built on standard Web technology.

Reisman observes, "Much of what is called interactive TV is interaction not with what is on TV, but with content related to what is on TV. To support this inherent multi-tasking, CoTV™ takes a user-centered, task-centered approach to coordinating TV and PC activity. This creates new pathways for programmers and advertisers, and new revenues for TV system operators that facilitate this linkage." Reisman refers to this "coactive" coupling as "co-vergence," because it allows the viewer’s PC and TV boxes to be independent, yet coordinated so that each can be used for what it does best.

"The industry has been struggling to build very expensive new ‘convergent’ platforms to enable ITV, but these will be confining to the coactivity we need, even if they can be deployed," says Reisman. "Instead, by finding smart ways to link the platforms we already have, we can get on the right track to coactivity now, create compelling and profitable ITV services rapidly, and add more advanced features as demand pulls them."

Teleshuttle is seeking industry partners and strategic investors to develop initial services, leading to wide deployment for all forms of TV and video. Based in New York, Teleshuttle was founded in 1994 to create new media technologies, and also provides consulting services. Additional details on CoTV™ are available at www.teleshuttle.com/cotv.

Coactive media: Relating to media multitasking. The simultaneous or alternating use of two or more media, such as TV and Internet (Web, etc.), especially where the using of the media is synchronized or coordinated – typically (but not necessarily) on multiple devices or screens.

Coactive TV: Relating to multitasking use of both television and the Internet (Web, etc.). The simultaneous or alternating use of TV and the Internet, especially where the using of both media is coordinated or synchronized, and especially where the TV and the Internet browser are automatically coordinated with one another – typically (but not necessarily) on multiple devices or screens.