Alcatel-Lucent acquires Tamblin for interactive TV applications and advertising

Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) today announced it has acquired Tamblin, a privately held software company that provides applications and tool kits that will enhance Alcatel-Lucent’s solution for enabling IPTV users to easily find, connect and interact with brands and entertainment they care about. Financial terms were not disclosed.

As the traction of IPTV services continues to take hold in all regions, service providers are looking for ways to differentiate their service packages, add revenue generating applications, increase the stickiness of the services and get more value out of their IP based network infrastructure.

Service providers can use Alcatel-Lucent’s interactive TV applications, now enhanced by the Tamblin software with their existing IPTV middleware to offer their subscribers a unique TV experience that lets them interact with their favorite brands and entertainment services.

The Tamblin solutions have been recognized for the ease with which brands and broadcasters can develop interactive TV advertising campaigns and track usage. Broadcasters can create one campaign that runs across multiple operators.

“Interactivity is doubly attractive to brands and advertisers because it is based on an action of some kind that can provide a metric on which to measure advertising”, as Eden Zoller and Vincent Poulbere, Principal Analysts at Ovum, wrote in their recent report “Interactive Mobile Services”.

Tamblin’s 13 person staff will join Alcatel-Lucent’s convergence business activities within its multimedia and payment team.

“The experienced and talented team at Tamblin have developed a powerful set of applications and tools that are being used by clients such as the BBC, BskyB, ITV, Channel Five and Central Office of Information,. We look forward to leveraging their expertise and integrating them into a wider team dedicated to identifying ways to help IPTV service providers deliver a unique, interactive TV experience for their subscribers”, said Marc Rouanne, President of Alcatel-Lucent’s convergence business activities.

“We are delighted to join Alcatel-Lucent,” said Stuart Waite, CEO of Tamblin. “ We have the opportunity to bring our media and broadcast clients together with the outstanding Alcatel-Lucent IPTV operator customers to deliver leading interactive TV services to the market.”