The start of a long-term strategic alliance has been announced by Telenor's Canal Digital and TiVo (News - Alert) Inc. Canal Digital Direct-to-Home or DTH satellite customers in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland will be introduced to TiVo products. The products will also be distributed to provide premier consumer experience.

TV distribution in Scandinavia is led by Telenor's (News - Alert) Canal Digital. The company is also a pioneering provider of innovative TV, broadband and telephony services. TiVo, Inc., is a top company in hybrid TV software solutions and advanced television services for personal video recorders or PVRs.

Canal Digital’s strategy is to continue offering the most advanced and enjoyable television experience to viewers across Scandinavia. One of the key pillars for this strategy will now be the alliance. Available exclusively through Canal Digital, the TiVo product will serve Canal Digital's next generation platform. Linear satellite and terrestrial TV channels and Canal Digital's video-on-demand service will be seamlessly integrated with the TiVo product. A variety of current and future "OTT" services will also be integrated.

Several operators in Europe have identified TiVo's intuitive, high definition user experience. An increasingly complex world of content options is translated by this most compelling solution into a fun and elegant experience for the consumer.

In a press release, Christian Albech, CEO of Telenor Broadcast Holding AS, said, "The Scandinavian pay TV market is one of the most competitive in the world, which means that Canal Digital must continue to offer the market's best content and user experience. After considering many partners who could help us deliver this promise, we concluded that TiVo was head and shoulders above the rest. TiVo remains the gold standard for television user interface and offers an unmatched level of ongoing innovation for the consumer and the operator."

A highly strategic satellite platform with TiVo software and Canal Digital's first "networked" box is represented by the relationship. A variety of ground-breaking capabilities will be provided by this platform. These include universal search, home networking, and integration with mobile devices.

The most feature-rich and consumer friendly television software will now be accessible to Canal Digital with this alliance with TiVo. At the same time the company will be able to avoid significant in-house development costs.

Calvin Azuri is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To read more of Calvin’s articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Jaclyn Allard