Video service providers like Pay TV operators and even carmakers will be able to cherry-pick from among the vast array of YouTube content and make it available to customers via their UX after 3SS added YouTube as a partner for its 3Ready video entertainment platform and ecosystem. 3SS views this as another building block on the road to enabling entertainment super-aggregators, where telcos and Pay TV operators (and others) deliver holistic content experiences.
The pre-integration means video platforms can offer consumers YouTube playlists and event-based content and choose topic-specific content clusters – grouped around areas of interest – that have been pre-curated by YouTube. Categories could include fitness or business, for example, or trending content, new music or sports news, etc. There is a long list of pre-qualified entertainment content curated by YouTube. YouTube APIs will surface and deep-link YouTube content recommendations across screens.
Allente, the leading Nordic Pay TV provider with 1 million subscribers, will be among the first to leverage the YouTube integration within the 3Ready platform. The operator will be able to visually curate YouTube content to enrich the customer experience across multiple devices. YouTube curated content is expected to shorten the time it takes for users to find engaging content, 3SS suggests.
3SS is a highly regarded provider of software solutions for the entertainment market. Its 3Ready Control Center helps service providers efficiently manage and optimise UI/UX in a unified way across STBs (Linux, RDK and Android TV), Smart TV, web, mobile devices, and in-car entertainment screens, all in a highly visual and intuitive manner.
“We’re extremely excited that YouTube has selected 3SS as a partner to scale YouTube across operator and carmaker platforms,” declares Pierre Donath, CPO & CMO at 3SS. “Our trailblazing integration enables service providers including car OEMs to seamlessly curate content that people love across screens.
“With 3Ready, our operators benefit from dramatically reduced integration and certification efforts, and with the integration of YouTube Recommendation API it’s easier than ever to centrally manage, curate and deliver a content-first user experience across devices. This brings us closer to the vision where entertainment super-aggregators, whether telcos, Pay TV providers or carmakers for in-vehicle entertainment, can deliver holistic, user-centric content discovery and access.”
The 3SS/YouTube integration will be showcased at IBC next month.
Editor’s comment
Super-aggregation (closely entwined with being the most trustworthy content discovery guide) is central to the Pay TV future and operators are starting to focus on content that has not traditionally been integrated into their core UX, like FAST channels. This 3Ready YouTube integration is another example of how operators can expand their content offer.
