Panasonic opening up Viera Connect TV service to application developers

TOKYO – Panasonic is opening up its Viera Connect cloud-based TV service for developers to create IPTV applications for the worldwide platform outside Japan.

“Because of the popularity of Actvila in Japan [the country’s leading IPTV portal, launched in 2007], the Viera Connect platform isn’t being released in the domestic market,” a Panasonic spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter.

Actvila is operated by a consortium of major Japanese TV manufacturers, consisting of Panasonic, Sony, Toshiba, Sharp, and Hitachi.  

The Viera Connect Developers website allows application developers and media companies to create services including games, social network platforms, video, music and other content to be delivered through Viera HD TVs. The Viera Connect service was launched globally in April and already offers video-on-demand, games and multi-media contents; the new website is designed to make the service more accessible to developers.

The cloud-based system means that applications don’t need to be downloaded to TV hard drives. According to Panasonic, the quick start-up and response times of the platform, along with the high-definition picture quality, will provide the opportunity to deliver a wide range of services and applications through Viera Connect.

The service is currently available in more than 100 countries.