LONDON – On Demand Group (ODG), the media services division of SeaChange International, Inc. (NASDAQ: SEAC), has signed a new four-year contract to provide Content Management Services for Virgin Media’s successful TV On Demand service.

ODG has been providing Content Management Services, including rights management, editorial service management, promo production, and content operations including encoding,metadata generation, and content preparation, for Virgin Media’s TV On Demand service since its launch in February 2007. ODG’s VZ VOD Content Management System, combined with SeaChange’s TV Business System VOD marketing platform, provides a seamless workflow for the management of Virgin Media’s TV On Demand.

Virgin Media offers the largest VOD service outside North America with an extensive content line-up including hundreds of hours of premium TV content, catch-up TV, blockbuster movies and music videos. Virgin Media’s 3.5 million digital TV subscribers watched over half a billion on-demand programmes during 2008, with the service’s popularity growing by 60 percent.

Katharine Burns-Rivington, Executive Director of Content Acquisition at Virgin Media commented, “More and more people are choosing to watch what they want, when they want and the popularity of our on-demand service continues to grow. ODG has a track record of successfully handling content management services on our behalf so we are pleased to continue working with them.”

Tony Kelly, Chief Executive of ODG commented, “We are very pleased to extend our successful working relationship with Virgin Media. We are working together on a range of exciting innovations, including full end-to-end digital delivery of assets, and look forward to helping continue the exciting growth of the Virgin Media TV On Demand service."
 
 

About Virgin Media
         With almost 10 million customers, Virgin Media is the UK's first quad-play provider of broadband, TV, phone and mobile.
         The company is the largest residential broadband provider in the UK, using a unique fibre optic cable network to deliver next generation ultrafast internet access of up to 50Mb to just over half of all homes. Combined with a high speed ADSL service and mobile broadband products, Virgin Media is able to offer broadband internet access to virtually the entire country.
         Virgin Media has the UK’s most advanced TV on demand service and is the only TV platform to carry BBC iPlayer. It is the second largest provider of pay TV, was the first to launch a high definition TV service and offers a high-specification, HD-ready V+ personal video recorder.
         The company operates the most popular virtual mobile network in the UK which, when launched, was the world’s first such mobile phone service. It is also one of the largest fixed-line home phone providers in the country.
         Virgin Media also owns Virgin Media Television (VMtv) which runs eight entertainment channels, including Virgin1, Living, Bravo and Challenge. VMtv is a 50 per cent joint partner with BBC Worldwide in UKTV, which consists of ten channels including Dave, G.O.L.D., Watch and Alibi.
         With operations based entirely in the UK, Virgin Media Inc. is listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market (VMED). For more information, go to www.virginmedia.com.

About SeaChange and On Demand Group
         On Demand Group (ODG) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SeaChange International specialising in the development and management of transactional television services. ODG provides services for customers such as Virgin Media, Kabel Deutschland, Unity Media, Telekom Austria and others with end-to-end content solutions, combining services management and technology with speed to market.
         SeaChange International is a leading provider of software applications, services and integrated solutions for video-on-demand (VOD), digital advertising, and content acquisition monetization and management. Its powerful open VOD and advertising software and scaleable hardware enable cable and telco operators, as well as broadcasters, to provide new on-demand services and to gain greater efficiencies in advertising and content delivery. With its Emmy Award-winning and patented technology, thousands of SeaChange deployments are helping broadband, broadcast and satellite television companies to streamline operations, expand services and increase revenues. Headquartered in Acton, Massachusetts, SeaChange has product development, support and sales offices around the world. Visit www.schange.com.