The new TV key uses a better performing WIFI, providing an optimised quality of data feed. “Cabasse For Orange” aims to be the immersive experience in terms of sound.
The promise of the Orange TV Key, launched in July 2015, was made in response to a strong request from customers: to have access to the majority of their Orange TV offering on a second television, without a decoder. The TV key, which can be controlled from a smartphone, is plugged directly into the HDMI port of a television, and connects using WIFI, it enables broadcast of Orange TV programmes live, on Replay (TV on demand), or on VOD (video on demand), as well as distribution of personal content (photos, music, videos) from a smartphone.
So, Orange TV is not just on your main television. Orange thus enables all of its TV customers to access their favourite channels and content no matter what the television, be it their neighbour’s, their friend’s, or on holiday. To do this, they just need to have access to any private WIFI connection and an HDMI port on the television set.
But in order to improve the customer experience even more and to optimise this service, a new generation TV key has been born. “We wanted to respond to the expectations expressed by our customers who are users of the TV key, and also improve both its connectivity and practicality”, declares Denis Huynh-Kim, TV Key product manager at Orange.
Available in Orange boutiques since 15 November 2018, this new version bears significant improvements. In terms of connectivity: the 802.11n WIFI used up until now by the TV key was limited, for both image and connection quality. The new TV Key, which uses the best of technology, i.e. a better performing WIFI (802.11ac), provides an optimised quality of data feed. “The improved signal thus obtained enables access to a much higher definition image than Full HD, reaching 4K or HDR formats”, stresses Jean-Marc Farant, TV product manager at Orange.
The TV key thus revisited also makes things easier for customers, who now only have one application to access the service: the Orange TV application. Up until now, a user who had both the dedicated TV key app and the specific VOD app couldn’t go via the Orange TV app despite its widespread use among customers. From now on, the latter will be the unique connection channel.
The handy “little extra” of this service! A remote control. The user’s smartphone is thus no longer tied up managing the TV key, as the remote control is available for the usual functions of changing channels and adjusting the volume.
Orange, Cabasse, and Dolby: a resounding success
The Orange TV experience aims to be as complete as possible. “Since last year, with the Livebox 4, we have been offering our customers 4K as well as Dolby Surround and Atmos®. Yet we would like to provide an even more immersive experience, in particular in terms of sound”, notes Arnaud Isaac, product manager at Orange, “but at the time, sound bars were complex and expensive. So, we decided to design a compact, easy-to-install ad hoc product.”
Orange therefore turned to French manufacturer Cabasse, an audio, video, and voice technology specialist, and longstanding partner of Orange, in particular regarding boxes. “Cabasse brought its expertise in acoustics processing in relation to compactness constraints, and Orange its advice on adapting its technology to the format of its content”, highlights Arnaud Isaac.
Carried out by a team of around ten people, the project was completed in record time. Launched in April 2017, it led to the commercialisation from 16th November of the first type 2.2.1 (2 front speakers, 2 upward-firing speakers, and 1 subwoofer) compact sound bar to benefit from Dolby Atmos® sound technology.
Thanks to the Dolby Atmos® process, “Cabasse for Orange” enables amplification and spatialisation of sound all around, even high up, for three-dimensional audio. A new opportunity to offer customers access to the sound restitution technology of major film productions.
