IP Video Transport Specialist LTN Buys Broadcast Software Maker

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IP video transport specialist LTN Global has snapped up a provider of software that automates the monitoring, control and metadata management of end-to-end broadcast and digital media operations.


In a deal announced Wednesday (7/17), LTN said its agreement to acquire Crystal brings it a greater ability to offer ad insertion, digital watermarking, and other features that allow networks and digital platforms to benefit from a fully managed IP multicast network.

“Over the past three decades, Crystal’s customized software solutions have provided a management and control backbone for the world’s leading broadcast, cable, and satellite networks,” said Malik Khan, co-founder and executive chairman at LTN Global. “Now, LTN will integrate Crystal’s innovative technology into our software-managed IP production and transmission workflows. This integration allows our customers to leverage the power of a managed network to greatly reduce high CAPEX costs and puts essential content monetization tools at their fingertips.”

By combining forces, Crystal and LTN “solve one of the most pressing issues faced by video content distributors today,” LTN says: the RF spectrum consolidation caused by the advance of 5G that results in a reduction of valuable C-band satellite capacity – the bedrock of TV distribution.

Khan added, “With this acquisition we’re extending our business to provide all of the critical components of a video transmission workflow in a model that reduces customers’ technology risk along with many of the costs associated with scalable video delivery and content monetization.”

More than 100 linear networks have deployed Crystal’s AdConnect software to provide customized digital markings to OTT platforms.The company’s technology enables TV ad inventory owners to sell advertising on an addressable basis on any platform, whether delivered via Over-the-Air to smart TVs (e.g. Open Addressable Ready, OAR), traditional distribution, or OTT.

“Crystal’s goal is to be a ubiquitous element across a network’s distribution chain, providing the mission-critical ad signaling and marking associated with all of the current and emerging MVPDs and vMVPDs,” said Crystal CEO Roger Franklin. “By joining forces with LTN, Crystal now has the ability to transport these properly marked video feeds with fully managed reliability and latency and in any required format.”