The cost of running a television channel has been considerably reduced by the launch of Narrowstep’s TV Station-in-a-box.

An official release informs that the technology moves the management of a broadcast stream onto Internet enabled servers and means that content can be managed and scheduled from anywhere with an Internet connection. It comprises of Mediaserver, a rich content management solution for the handling of video files, Channelserver, a scheduling and video on demand service and Adserver, an application that dynamically generates and optimises advertising revenue. TV station in a box can typically reduce the cost of scheduling, playout and distribution by tenfold for a channel in any particular territory.

As well as supporting broadcast streams in MPEGs 1, 2 and 4, the system also supports Internet broadcasting and mobile content delivery. Multiple data rates, sizes and all major formats such as DV, Windows Media, Real and Quick Time are also supported making this the most flexible application available for the management of video content distribution. The system is currently being used by a number of trailblazing broadband channels including Research TV (http://www.research-tv.com) established by the UK’s leading academic institutions.

Narrowstep has also been deploying and testing its technology with its own channels, including the Internet’s first scheduled channel, High.tv (http://www.high.tv) which has attracted 500,000 annualised unique users only three months after its soft launch adds the release.

Narrowstep has stated that the product represents as radical a development for the television industry as desktop publishing and lithography presented to the printing industry. Now corporations can run their own channels and use the benefits of video communications both internally and externally. Narrowstep was formed from one of the pioneering webcasting companies, Web Channels. It has spent the past 18 months developing and deploying its technology and is now making it available to traditional broadcasters and corporations for the first time the release informs.

The availability of the product means that any sports club can turn their web site into a web channel; any production company can produce and schedule their own channels, bypassing the commissioning process adds the release. Using the Internet there is a ready made broadband audience of over 200 million. The technology supports live streams, schedules and video on demand and includes the capability for users to access and watch their own content interests as well as searching for relevant content.

The concept supported by this is termed 'narrowcasting' by Narrowstep – the ability to offer specific content to specific audiences. Traditional television is going to the bottom of the barrel to maintain its numbers game. This concept has always been stupid and remains stupid for most marketers. Almost no one wants just to reach two million people the release said.

The release has taken the example of Volvo. 50,000 potential Volvo buyers is a much better demographic for Volvo rather than the audience for the reality show Big Brother. Channels such as High.tv can deliver this with pinpoint accuracy. The old way of media buying has finally died. The numbers game is over adds the release.