Pushbutton
Encyclopedia
Pushbutton is a UK-based digital agency
specialising in designing, developing, and delivering interactive television
.
As one of the industry forerunners creating rich interactive television experiences, Pushbutton have graduated from traditional 'red button' services for Sky, ITV, Disney, National Geographic channel and the BBC to become one of the most trusted UX agencies designing and developing connected TV and multi platform apps on behalf of global clients. Pushbutton have also researched, developed and launched its own brand products, such as the companion applications pbRemote and pbTV, Time Capsules, and FireflyUK.
Prior to setting up Pushbutton, Paula Byrne led the team responsible for delivering interactive applications and services on the Open.... interactive television
platform, which subsequently evolved into Sky Active
after Sky bought out the other partners in the Open.... venture (BT, Matsushita, and HSBC
).
In 2004, James Cumberbatch, also ex-BSkyB joined the company as Development Director, and became a co-owner of the company; in the same year the company established a design studio in Brighton
. Since then more ex-BSkyB staff have been added to the development and design teams, and the company has branched out into interactive advertising
, and the creation of complete interactive services for the likes of National Geographic Channel
and Disney Channel UK.
In 2007 the company relocated operations from Brighton
to Carlisle Street in Soho
. Their main offices moved again early in 2008 to St John Street in Smithfield, London
. They have a separate administrative office in Harpenden
.
From 2007 to 2010 Pushbutton won some large pitches including work for Disney, National Geograhic, Foxtel (Australia), Diagio, Sky, BBC, ITV and Camelot.
On 22nd March 2011, Pushbutton released two new products. pbRemote and pbTV.
On 23rd March 2011, Pushbutton announced a new partnership with US music streaming site Grooveshark
.
On 28th July 2011, Pushbutton was acquired by Amazon.com
.
Information about technologies for application delivery on internet-based
platforms is widely available, both for services delivered via the public internet to traditional web browser client software (perhaps using Flash
or AJAX
), and those delivered on closed
networks like BT Vision
(which uses Microsoft
's Mediaroom
platform).
However, the digital satellite services Pushbutton have created are chiefly designed to run on set-top boxes
with the less-well-known OpenTV
middleware, where Pushbutton's exposure to interactive tv
technologies on "both sides of the fence" is notable:
's shows on Sky were created in bespoke XML
targeting a web browser
-like application framework called GEOFF (Generic Application Framework). GEOFF was originally developed by Carlton Interactive Media
at the time of the merger between Carlton and Granada
.
Development of interactive services was subsequently simplified using a templated subset of GEOFF functionality created for ITV
by TwoWayTV, and integrated with a Content Management System
developed by Tamblin (now part of Alcatel-Lucent
). Pushbutton staff assisted in the template development, and in steering the development of the GEOFF platform.
During 2007 ITV
changed the underlying technology supporting their interactive services on Sky; ITV
's most recent interactive services, as seen alongside shows like Loose Women
are created using tools provided by Emuse amongst others.
house a 28.8k modem
which is normally connected via the telephone network to proxy servers run by Sky or YooMedia; this connectivity allows interactive applications to communicate one-to-one with application servers dedicated to a particular interactive service, for the price of a phone call.
Where the phone call is made to a freephone number, the cost of the connection is borne by the providers of the interactive service, rather than by the consumer.
Pushbutton have been involved in the creation of interactive services (or supporting CMS
systems) exchanging data in XML
or delimiter-separated text with:
, Kodak, and Guinness
.
Their largest client for some years was UK broadcaster ITV
. Between 2004 and 2007 Pushbutton designed and built interactive services for all of ITV
’s biggest shows, including The X Factor
, Coronation Street
, I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!, Emmerdale
, This Morning
, and ITV
's World Cup
coverage.
More recently, they have completed work for BT Vision, LOVEFiLM
, BBC iPlayer
, Microsoft Mediaroom
and Virgin Interactive
.
Digital agency
A digital or new media agency is a business that delivers services for the creative and technical development of internet based products. These services range from the more generalist such as web design, e-mail marketing and microsites etc...
specialising in designing, developing, and delivering interactive television
Interactive television
Interactive television describes a number of techniques that allow viewers to interact with television content as they view it.- Definitions :...
.
As one of the industry forerunners creating rich interactive television experiences, Pushbutton have graduated from traditional 'red button' services for Sky, ITV, Disney, National Geographic channel and the BBC to become one of the most trusted UX agencies designing and developing connected TV and multi platform apps on behalf of global clients. Pushbutton have also researched, developed and launched its own brand products, such as the companion applications pbRemote and pbTV, Time Capsules, and FireflyUK.
History and origins
The company was founded as "Push Button Limited" in 2002 by former executives of BSkyB Sheila Creak, and Paula Byrne (who remains Managing Director).Prior to setting up Pushbutton, Paula Byrne led the team responsible for delivering interactive applications and services on the Open.... interactive television
Interactive television
Interactive television describes a number of techniques that allow viewers to interact with television content as they view it.- Definitions :...
platform, which subsequently evolved into Sky Active
Sky Active
Sky Active is the brand name for interactive features on Sky Digital and is available in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. It enables a viewer to interact with TV content, respond to an advertisement or access internet-based services....
after Sky bought out the other partners in the Open.... venture (BT, Matsushita, and HSBC
HSBC Bank (Europe)
HSBC Bank plc is one of the four major clearing banks in the United Kingdom and is a wholly owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings. The business ranges from the traditional High Street roles of personal finance and commercial banking, to private banking, consumer finance as well as corporate and...
).
In 2004, James Cumberbatch, also ex-BSkyB joined the company as Development Director, and became a co-owner of the company; in the same year the company established a design studio in Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
. Since then more ex-BSkyB staff have been added to the development and design teams, and the company has branched out into interactive advertising
Interactive advertising
Interactive advertising uses online or offline interactive media to communicate with consumers and to promote products, brands, services, and public service announcements, corporate or political groups....
, and the creation of complete interactive services for the likes of National Geographic Channel
National Geographic Channel
National Geographic Channel, also commercially abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo, is a subscription television channel that airs non-fiction television programs produced by the National Geographic Society. Like History and the Discovery Channel, the channel features documentaries with factual...
and Disney Channel UK.
In 2007 the company relocated operations from Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
to Carlisle Street in Soho
Soho
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster and part of the West End of London. Long established as an entertainment district, for much of the 20th century Soho had a reputation for sex shops as well as night life and film industry. Since the early 1980s, the area has undergone considerable...
. Their main offices moved again early in 2008 to St John Street in Smithfield, London
Smithfield, London
Smithfield is an area of the City of London, in the ward of Farringdon Without. It is located in the north-west part of the City, and is mostly known for its centuries-old meat market, today the last surviving historical wholesale market in Central London...
. They have a separate administrative office in Harpenden
Harpenden
Harpenden is a town in Hertfordshire, England.The town's total population is just under 30,000.-Geography and administration:There are two civil parishes: Harpenden and Harpenden Rural....
.
From 2007 to 2010 Pushbutton won some large pitches including work for Disney, National Geograhic, Foxtel (Australia), Diagio, Sky, BBC, ITV and Camelot.
On 22nd March 2011, Pushbutton released two new products. pbRemote and pbTV.
On 23rd March 2011, Pushbutton announced a new partnership with US music streaming site Grooveshark
Grooveshark
Grooveshark is an international online music search engine, music streaming service and music recommendation web software application, allowing users to search for, stream, and upload music that can be played immediately or added to a playlist...
.
On 28th July 2011, Pushbutton was acquired by Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
Technology
Interactive television services created by Pushbutton fall into two broad categories - digital satellite, and broadbandBroadband
The term broadband refers to a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device . Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times...
.
Information about technologies for application delivery on internet-based
IPTV
Internet Protocol television is a system through which television services are delivered using the Internet protocol suite over a packet-switched network such as the Internet, instead of being delivered through traditional terrestrial, satellite signal, and cable television formats.IPTV services...
platforms is widely available, both for services delivered via the public internet to traditional web browser client software (perhaps using Flash
Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...
or AJAX
Ajax (programming)
Ajax is a group of interrelated web development methods used on the client-side to create asynchronous web applications...
), and those delivered on closed
Walled garden (media)
A walled garden is an analogy used in various senses in information technology. In the telecommunications and media industries, a "walled garden" refers to a carrier or service provider's control over applications, content, and media on platforms and restriction of convenient access to...
networks like BT Vision
BT Vision
BT Vision is a hybrid IPTV-digital terrestrial television service provided by BT Group in the United Kingdom which was launched in December 2006...
(which uses Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
's Mediaroom
Microsoft Mediaroom
Microsoft Mediaroom is the latest update of the Microsoft TV IPTV Edition platform software, which is the Smart TV platform from Microsoft that is intended for interactive television use to access on-demand, live television programming, and applications via a 10-foot user interface...
platform).
However, the digital satellite services Pushbutton have created are chiefly designed to run on set-top boxes
Set-top box
A set-top box or set-top unit is an information appliance device that generally contains a tuner and connects to a television set and an external source of signal, turning the signal into content which is then displayed on the television screen or other display device.-History:Before the...
with the less-well-known OpenTV
OpenTV
OpenTV is an interactive television company founded in 1994. Its main business involves the sale of set-top-box operating systems and software. On March 28, 2010 OpenTV became a fully owned subsidiary of the NAGRA Kudelski Group and officially delisted from the NASDAQ, where it was previously...
middleware, where Pushbutton's exposure to interactive tv
Interactive television
Interactive television describes a number of techniques that allow viewers to interact with television content as they view it.- Definitions :...
technologies on "both sides of the fence" is notable:
Services on ITV
The earliest interactive applications accompanying ITVITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
's shows on Sky were created in bespoke XML
XML
Extensible Markup Language is a set of rules for encoding documents in machine-readable form. It is defined in the XML 1.0 Specification produced by the W3C, and several other related specifications, all gratis open standards....
targeting a web browser
Web browser
A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content...
-like application framework called GEOFF (Generic Application Framework). GEOFF was originally developed by Carlton Interactive Media
Carlton Television
Carlton Television was the ITV franchise holder for London and the surrounding counties including the cities of Solihull and Coventry of the West Midlands, south Suffolk, middle and east Hampshire, Oxfordshire, south Bedfordshire, south Northamptonshire, parts of Herefordshire & Worcestershire,...
at the time of the merger between Carlton and Granada
Granada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
.
Development of interactive services was subsequently simplified using a templated subset of GEOFF functionality created for ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
by TwoWayTV, and integrated with a Content Management System
Content management system
A content management system is a system providing a collection of procedures used to manage work flow in a collaborative environment. These procedures can be manual or computer-based...
developed by Tamblin (now part of Alcatel-Lucent
Alcatel-Lucent
Alcatel-Lucent is a global telecommunications corporation, headquartered in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, France. It provides telecommunications solutions to service providers, enterprises, and governments around the world, enabling these customers to deliver voice, data, and video services...
). Pushbutton staff assisted in the template development, and in steering the development of the GEOFF platform.
During 2007 ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
changed the underlying technology supporting their interactive services on Sky; ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
's most recent interactive services, as seen alongside shows like Loose Women
Loose Women
Loose Women is a British lunchtime television programme, first broadcast in 1999 on ITV. It consists of a panel of four women who interview celebrities and discuss topical issues, ranging from daily politics and current affairs, to celebrity gossip...
are created using tools provided by Emuse amongst others.
Services on other channels
Pushbutton's developers have created interactive services on other digital satellite channels carried by BSkyB using a variety of approaches:- Services created using OpenTVOpenTVOpenTV is an interactive television company founded in 1994. Its main business involves the sale of set-top-box operating systems and software. On March 28, 2010 OpenTV became a fully owned subsidiary of the NAGRA Kudelski Group and officially delisted from the NASDAQ, where it was previously...
's SDK to run directly on the set-top boxSet-top boxA set-top box or set-top unit is an information appliance device that generally contains a tuner and connects to a television set and an external source of signal, turning the signal into content which is then displayed on the television screen or other display device.-History:Before the... - Services written in WTVMLWTVML- Worldwide TV Mark-up Language :See also waptvWTVML is an XML based content format designed to allow web site operators to easily develop and deploy Interactive TV services, typically it reduces the time taken for web site operators to create a TV Site, and results in the Site being deployable on...
for deployment to the Sky-developed WapTVWapTVWapTV was the name given to the company which originated the WTVML as a content format for the delivery of Interactive TV applications using Internet Servers...
browser, or in XML to be transcoded for deployment to ITV'sITVITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
GEOFF browser - Services that integrate with code libraries supplied by broadcasters (for example, both BSkyB and YooMedia supply custom wrappers for the set-top boxSet-top boxA set-top box or set-top unit is an information appliance device that generally contains a tuner and connects to a television set and an external source of signal, turning the signal into content which is then displayed on the television screen or other display device.-History:Before the...
HTTP API) - Services broadcast via automated compilation and delivery systems (for example, Sky's ABB system, or ITV'sITVITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
Automated Broadcast Compiler)
Server integration
Sky's digital satellite set-top boxesSet-top box
A set-top box or set-top unit is an information appliance device that generally contains a tuner and connects to a television set and an external source of signal, turning the signal into content which is then displayed on the television screen or other display device.-History:Before the...
house a 28.8k modem
Modem
A modem is a device that modulates an analog carrier signal to encode digital information, and also demodulates such a carrier signal to decode the transmitted information. The goal is to produce a signal that can be transmitted easily and decoded to reproduce the original digital data...
which is normally connected via the telephone network to proxy servers run by Sky or YooMedia; this connectivity allows interactive applications to communicate one-to-one with application servers dedicated to a particular interactive service, for the price of a phone call.
Where the phone call is made to a freephone number, the cost of the connection is borne by the providers of the interactive service, rather than by the consumer.
Pushbutton have been involved in the creation of interactive services (or supporting CMS
Content management system
A content management system is a system providing a collection of procedures used to manage work flow in a collaborative environment. These procedures can be manual or computer-based...
systems) exchanging data in XML
XML
Extensible Markup Language is a set of rules for encoding documents in machine-readable form. It is defined in the XML 1.0 Specification produced by the W3C, and several other related specifications, all gratis open standards....
or delimiter-separated text with:
- GamblingGamblingGambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
and fixed-odds gamingGame of chanceA game of chance is a game whose outcome is strongly influenced by some randomizing device, and upon which contestants may or may not wager money or anything of monetary value...
services - Peer-to-peer chat services
- Television schedule databases
- Sporting event scores and results services
- Vote and competition aggregators
Clients
Pushbutton's most prominent clients include Sky, Disney Channel UK, the National Geographic ChannelNational Geographic Channel
National Geographic Channel, also commercially abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo, is a subscription television channel that airs non-fiction television programs produced by the National Geographic Society. Like History and the Discovery Channel, the channel features documentaries with factual...
, Kodak, and Guinness
Guinness
Guinness is a popular Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin. Guinness is directly descended from the porter style that originated in London in the early 18th century and is one of the most successful beer brands worldwide, brewed in almost...
.
Their largest client for some years was UK broadcaster ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
. Between 2004 and 2007 Pushbutton designed and built interactive services for all of ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
’s biggest shows, including The X Factor
The X Factor (UK)
The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. Created by Simon Cowell, it began in September 2004 and is contested by aspiring singers drawn from public auditions. It is the originator of the international X Factor franchise. The seven series of the show to date...
, Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
, I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!, Emmerdale
Emmerdale
Emmerdale, is a long-running British soap opera set in Emmerdale , a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, Emmerdale was first broadcast on 16 October 1972...
, This Morning
This Morning (TV series)
This Morning is a British daytime television programme broadcast on ITV. As of September 2011, its main presenters are Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, and Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes, with various other presenters standing in for illness or contributing to sections of the programme.The...
, and ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
's World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
coverage.
More recently, they have completed work for BT Vision, LOVEFiLM
LoveFilm
LoveFilm is a UK-based provider of home video and video game rental through DVD-by-mail and streaming video on demand in the UK, Germany and Scandinavia...
, BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer, commonly shortened to iPlayer, is an internet television and radio service, developed by the BBC to extend its former RealPlayer-based and other streamed video clip content to include whole TV shows....
, Microsoft Mediaroom
Microsoft Mediaroom
Microsoft Mediaroom is the latest update of the Microsoft TV IPTV Edition platform software, which is the Smart TV platform from Microsoft that is intended for interactive television use to access on-demand, live television programming, and applications via a 10-foot user interface...
and Virgin Interactive
Virgin Interactive
Virgin Interactive was a British video game publisher. It was formed as Virgin Games Ltd. in 1981. The company became much larger after purchasing the budget label, Mastertronic in 1987. It was part of the Virgin Group...
.
See also
- OpenTVOpenTVOpenTV is an interactive television company founded in 1994. Its main business involves the sale of set-top-box operating systems and software. On March 28, 2010 OpenTV became a fully owned subsidiary of the NAGRA Kudelski Group and officially delisted from the NASDAQ, where it was previously...
, supplier of digital TV platforms - WapTVWapTVWapTV was the name given to the company which originated the WTVML as a content format for the delivery of Interactive TV applications using Internet Servers...
, originators of WTVML - Orbis, providers of online gambling and gaming technology
External links
- ITV's official site
- Pushbutton's company website
- Our data partner, Tribune
- Grooveshark
- pbRemote - iPhone, iPad or android compatible television remote
- pbTV - Remote device for listings and channel information on your tablet or phone