Espial, a provider of digital TV software solutions, has announced that Sogetel, the largest independent telephone company in Quebec, Canada, is using Espial (News - Alert) solutions to deliver IP-based television and Video on Demand (VOD) services to its customers.

According to a press release, Sogetel is using the Evo TV Service Platform and Espial MediaBase to provide standard- and high-definition TV services including VOD and Time-Shift TV (TSTV) to 1,000 customers initially.

The Evo TV Service Platform from Espial is a scalable and continuously available system for delivering and managing TV services. It includes Evo Client and Evo Server as well as optional toolkits and adapters.

Espial MediaBase is characterized by rapid scaling, single head-end support, and time-shift TV services.

Espial's technology and products are based on an open architecture and open standards. The open software development kit (SDK) allows reliable integration of key ecosystem components into an overall solution including third-party STBs, Conditional Access, VOD servers, Encoders and other applications, say company officials.

Sogetel currently maintains 32,000 access lines in five different rural areas of Quebec. In the last four years, the company has expanded its landline network by acquiring five independent telephone companies.

“We are very confident that Espial's proven products and professional services are the ideal combination for us to deliver our new entertainment services,” said Jean-Philippe Tellier, IPTV (News - Alert) director at Sogetel, in the release.

“By working closely with Espial we are able to deliver a complete set of entertainment services to our customers today - and grow to provide more services to customers who sign on with our services in the future,” Tellier added.

Rob Nadon, director of product management, Espial, said the Evo TV Service Platform and Espial MediaBase allow operators like Sogetel to deliver a solution tailored to their subscriber size, feature requirements and budgets.

Today's subscribers are looking to watch TV on their own terms with on-demand services, easy access using open, scalable and reliable platforms.

Espial’s products provide compelling value for operators looking to augment their services with linear and on-demand TV services, Nadon added.

Simultaneously Espial also announced that Tele2 Netherlands, a leading Dutch IPTV Operator, selected Espial's Evo TV Service Platform to launch its IPTV service with advanced services including linear TV, Video on Demand, High Definition, Personal Video Recorder (PVR) and interactive services.

In September, Swedish cable operator Com Hem AB had picked Espial IPTV middleware for its next generation digital TV and VOD services named as Com Hem (News - Alert) On Demand, TMCnet reported.