NAB: Building B lifts a veil

LAS VEGAS--A few weeks ahead of its long-anticipated formal coming-out, video wholesaler Building B let one interesting bit of information out yesterday. By formally unveiling Harris Corp. as the provider of its network operations center, Building B indicated it will be using digital TV spectrum to deliver the largest part of its video offering to broadband operators including telcos and ISPs.

Building B first went public with its plans last fall at TelcoTV, promising to get telcos and ISPs into the video business quickly with no major infrastructure investment on their part. The basic idea was to use broadband wireless technology to deliver the most popular content into the home, where it would be available on-demand via a set-top box-like device with a massive amount of storage. Niche or long-tail content would be delivered over DSL lines, during off-peak hours, to the same device, which Building B has developed and patented.

At its press event on Sunday, Harris announced that Building B will co-locate its NOC within the Harris facility in Melbourne, Fla., and leverage Harris’ expertise in digital asset management and content aggregation as well as its nationwide distribution network.

“We are extremely excited to be working with Harris on creating the next generation of TV,” said Buno Pati, Building B cofounder and CEO. “This will be a seamless integration of broadcast and cable TV into what will be TV 2.0.”

Harris will build and maintain Building B’s NOC and be responsible for aggregating content and distributing it nationally. Building B will enable local broadcasters to participate in the revenues of its new TV service through more targeted advertising, made possible by Building B’s highly personalized TV service. As previously explained by Senior Vice President-Marketing David Allred, the service will include a remote control device, also created by Building B, that lets each member of the household access their own content and builds up each person’s content “portal” based on their viewing habits.

Local broadcasters also will be able to deliver branded and online contact direct to TV viewers, enabling those broadcasters to capitalize on the multibillion-dollar investment they have made in the transition to digital technology.