TIE Kinetix is technology provider in European Union Project “SAM” combining Content Syndication with Social Media and 2nd screen

Breukelen, October 29, 2013 – SAM’s (Socializing Around Media) aim is to develop an advanced social media delivery platform based on 2nd Screen and Content Syndication within a Social Media context. It will provide open and standardized ways of characterizing, discovering, syndicating media assets interactively so that users can prosume digital assets from different syndicated sources and synchronized devices (e.g. Connected TVs) thus creating richer experiences around media.

The project, lead and concepted by TIE Kinetix, started in October and will last for 37 months involving 9 partners from a pan-European consortium of Technology Providers (TIE Kinetix, Ascora, Talkamatic), Research Organizations (Universities of Reading and Alicante, Athens Institute of Communication and Computer Systems) and User Organizations (Bibliographic Data Services/West10, TP Vision, Deutsche Welle).

Today’s generation of internet devices has changed how users are interacting with media. From passive and unidirectional users to proactive and interactive ones. Users can comment or rate a TV show and search for related information regarding characters, facts or personalities. They do this with both friends and wider social communities. This phenomenon is known as “2nd Screen”. Another coupled phenomenon is Content Syndication, a field of Digital Marketing where digital content is created once and delivered to different marketing channels and a focal domain of TIE Kinetix.  SAM’s innovation is that instead of users reaching for the data; it is the data, which reaches the user through the content syndication approach to their 2nd screen.

“Content Syndication and 2nd Screen are key enablers and service points for BDS/West10”, says Barry Smith, Sales Director of West10, the entertainment division of BDS. “SAM will allow us to capture and analyze valuable business intelligence which can be used to augment, extend and monetize our services as Europe’s leading provider of entertainment content assets”. Barry concludes: “By working closely with TIE Kinetix, in terms of its innovation, research and commercial leadership in this field, BDS and our clients, partners and the end consumers will be enriched with new tools and technologies to extend our business activity.”

Guido Baumhauer, Director of Strategy, Marketing and Distribution at Deutsche Welle: “As Germany’s International Public Broadcaster and Media Provider we recognize 2nd Screen as a significant current and expanding area. The combination of Second Screen and Content Syndication approaches – as envisaged by the experimental SAM platform – could have the potential to enrich video and social experiences of our audiences”.

Stuart Campbell, CTO of TIE Kinetix, states: “As a key provider in the Content Syndication domain TIE Kinetix has already made product announcements in the Social Media area. From this has stemmed collaborative work with BDS and further networking with Deutsche Welle as well other partners to propose SAM as an platform in the Future Internet domain.  The TIE Kinetix role is to lead the project and to provide the prime software components related to Content Syndication and Business Intelligence around this.”

Social media, Content Syndication and Digital marketing are cutting-edge, billion-dollar markets (still) expected to grow significantly in the next years. The SAM project proposes to integrate them into a common, holistic, open framework, and at the same time taking on another growing billion/market phenomenon of 2nd screen coupled with dialog interaction.  These elements will be fused together to service both the Smart and TV-orientated device areas and the inclusion of significant industry players will enable addressing of the breath of market needs and a clear exploitable direction. User partners are:

• Media Content: Deutsche Welle, the German public media provider
• Media Assets:    BDS Distributor of cross-linked Media Assets
• Media Devices:  TPVision, the joint Philips & TPV, TV manufacturing/commercial arm

The SAM result will be the driver to simplify user access and make this market easily available to different stakeholders, but especially to media and content provider SMEs. The fusion of these elements will create the following impacts:

• Reinforce the European Media industry at all levels by the breadth of user partners
• Guarantee sustainability / exploitability through market-orientated research
• Enable an ecosystem of connected 2nd screen devices, media and social interaction
• Achieve a holistic framework of Media Assets, and Crowd information
• Stimulate immersive and creative experiences through easy 2nd screen use

Jan Sundelin, CEO of TIE Kinetix, says: “SAM is another landmark research project for TIE.  Formulated by TIE specifically to innovate further our leading edge Content Syndication solutions and to explore the 2nd screen phenomenon of today.  We have composed a consortium of leading market players, technologist, users and researchers, who have similar needs and demands and jointly we will build the SAM concept and in turn this will enhance TIE’s product offerings with significant-funding from the European Union illustrating our leadership in this field.”

SAM: “Socializing Around Media”