NDS (News - Alert), a provider of technology solutions for digital pay-TV, announced its broadened relationship with Gateway Broadcast Services (GBS), the dynamic new pan-African pay-TV service delivering choice, quality and innovation to African families. GBS has chosen MediaHighway middleware and NDS Electronic Program Guide (EPG) to enhance its pay-TV satellite service for sub-Saharan Africa.

 

NDS has been one of the technology partners of GBS since the time of launch in mid-2007 when it was branded as GTV. The operator relies on market-leading VideoGuard(R) conditional access (CA (News - Alert)) technology and is currently securing more than 86.9 million active digital devices around the world.

 

According to the new agreement, MediaHighway middleware and EPG will feature in all new GTV set-top boxes (STBs), and will also be downloaded to all existing GTV STBs in a phased upgrade starting in Autumn 2008. The technology will enable GBS to strengthen its GTV brand by offering a common look and feel across current and future STBs and will help in improving the efficiency of its STB maintenance and customer care operations. Further, MediaHighway offers a solid foundation for the introduction of future service enhancements.

 

GTV delivers top-quality TV entertainment and information services to customers who were previously unable to afford subscription TV. GTV's service employs the very latest in satellite and STB technologies, which offers customers world-class digital reception and content at a price within the reach of middle-income Africans

 

"We're pleased to be broadening our relationship with GBS, a company that is revolutionizing TV viewing in sub-Saharan Africa. This new agreement will allow GBS to efficiently deploy MediaHighway middleware and EPG to new STBs and upgrade existing STBs over-the-air, significantly widening the possibilities for strengthening its brand identity and improving the overall subscriber experience," said  Jon Bannerjee, NDS regional sales manager, in a statement.

 

According to Julian McIntyre, Founder and Managing Director of GBS, "We are confident that in NDS we have a long-term technology partner committed to helping us provide the best, most affordable pay-TV service to audiences in sub-Saharan Africa. We selected MediaHighway middleware and EPG because, like VideoGuard, they truly are best-in-class solutions."