Alibaba, Wasu Announce TV STB 'Wasu Rainbow'
iFeng Tech, 7/22/13
Chinese e-commerce conglomerate Alibaba Group has announced the release of the company's new smart TV/STB operating system, as well as a new set-top box (STB) product jointly developed with Chinese media company Wasu Media Holding (000156.SZ), the "Wasu Rainbow" ("Huashu Caihong"). Wasu Media's internet TV broadcast platform has been integrated into Alibaba's smart TV OS, and will be responsible for Alibaba smart TV/STB OS content services.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Alibaba is still in the process of securing an OEM to produce its new STB product. The Wasu Rainbow STB will be released in September for RMB 300-400 using a one-time payment, hardware+service bundled sales model. In addition to Alibaba's online distribution channels, the STB may also be sold through a number of offline retailers.
Alibaba's new smart TV/STB OS allows for on-TV e-commerce and online payment functionality. Alibaba platforms currently available on the OS include group buy site Juhuasuan and third-party payment processor Alipay.
Alibaba also plans to release a "smartphone remote" app, allowing users to control Alibaba smart TV/STB OS products with smartphone handsets, as well as share content from user handsets to TV sets. Video calling features are also planned for the OS.
According to Alibaba, the company has established an alliance of internet TV providers, STB manufacturers, TV manufacturers, and chip manufacturers to support the future release of Alibaba smart TV/STB OS products. Partner companies include: Wasu Media, Huawei's HiSilicon subsidiary, Cisco, Skyworth Digital Holdings (0751.HK), Haier, Changhong, Mstar, Amlogic, and Allwinner.
Alibaba will partner with chip manufacturers to optimize its smart TV/STB OS for usage across a variety of chips to lower the R&D effort required for manufacturers looking to release Alibaba TV/STB OS products.
Editor's Note: For more background on this topic, please see "Wasu Media Partners with Alibaba on Internet TV STB" MD 7/18/13 issue.
Keywords: television Internet TV OS set-top box Alibaba Group smart TV 000156.SZ Wasu Media Holding e-commerce
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