NDS leads Series C funding for BlackArrow with strategic investment

LONDON – NDS, the leading provider of technology solutions for digital pay-TV, and BlackArrow, a leading provider of advanced advertising solutions for New Television platforms, announced a strategic business and technology alliance. Together, the companies will offer an integrated suite of end-to-end advanced TV advertising solutions and system integration services for the advancement of next-generation TV advertising.

The alliance will see the integration of the two companies’ technology and further development of new solutions for global markets, focusing on sophisticated advertising capabilities such as on-demand ad insertion, interactive advertising and addressable advertising on linear television – with future plans to enable multiplatform campaigns across multiple devices, optimising on NDS’ cross platform experience.

In a related announcement, BlackArrow today announced that NDS has taken the lead in the latest round of funding for the company – a strategic investment that will see NDS gain a seat on the BlackArrow board of directors.

The existing suite of advanced advertising technologies from NDS, NDS Dynamic™, enables TV operators to manage, deliver and execute advanced advertising applications to improve their existing advertising sales and develop new advertising revenue streams; all reinforced by accurate viewing analysis for programmers, addressability and interactive advertising. The NDS Dynamic suite has three solutions, audience measurement, addressable advertising and interactive advertising.

BlackArrow enables advanced advertising monetisation for New TV. The BlackArrow Advanced Advertising System is comprised of the BlackArrow Sales Suite, which allows television ad-sales organizations to define, manage and fulfil multiplatform, multioperator advertising campaigns, and the BlackArrow Decision Suite, which offers powerful ad decision logic and system interoperability for content distributors to deploy dynamic ad insertion rapidly in on-demand environments.

The combined expertise of both companies will provide a framework for operators and programmers to generate additional revenues from next-generation advertising on advanced platforms, such as on-demand television, enabling programmers and content owners to sell and manage advertising inventory; platform operators to leverage existing network and set-top box infrastructures to deploy standards-based dynamic advertising solutions; and advertisers to better understand the reach of their message with proven audience measurement technology.

“As pay-TV companies invest in DVR and VOD deployments and these gain penetration, they will be able to offer new and more effective targetable and accountable advertising. These services will be added to the core subscription revenues and can become another important revenue stream,” said Dr. Abe Peled, Chairman and CEO, NDS. “Our investment in, and alliance with, BlackArrow further reinforces our commitment and belief in the growing power of advertising to expand our customers’ business.”

“The ability to effectively monetise New TV programming represents a major driver of top-line revenue growth opportunities for content distributors and programmers,” said Dean Denhart, CEO, BlackArrow. “Our partnership with NDS leverages both companies’ domain and technology expertise to create solutions and services that can rapidly enable the global marketplace to share in these new revenue streams.”

About BlackArrow, Inc.

BlackArrow is a leading worldwide provider of advanced advertising technology for New Television platforms. The company’s multiplatform advertising system is designed specifically for video content distributed over any on-demand platform, enabling networks and content distributors to maximize advertising revenues. BlackArrow is privately held, and backed by Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (NASDAQ: INTC), Mayfield Fund, NDS Group Ltd. and Polaris Venture Partners. The company has offices in New York City and San Jose, Calif. http://www.blackarrow.tv

About NDS

NDS Group Ltd. creates the technologies and applications that enable pay-TV operators to securely deliver digital content to TV STBs (set-top boxes), DVRs (digital video recorders), PCs, mobiles and other multimedia devices. Over 70 of the world’s leading pay-TV platforms rely on NDS solutions to protect and enhance their businesses. VideoGuard® is the world’s market-leading conditional access (CA) and digital rights management (DRM) technology, currently deployed on 116 million active devices, and safeguarding pay-TV service revenues exceeding $40 billion. NDS middleware, including MediaHighway® which enables a host of advanced services for subscribers, has been deployed on 135 million devices. NDS DVR technology, centred around XTV™, leads the global industry with 25 million units deployed. (Deployment figures as of 31st December 2009).

Headquartered in the UK, NDS remains committed to investing in R&D with over 75% of its employees dedicated to pioneering work at development centres in China, Denmark, France, India, Israel, Korea, UK and US. NDS has also implemented a host of initiatives aimed at reducing its carbon footprint and helping digital TV subscribers reduce energy consumption.

NDS Group Ltd. is a private company owned by the Permira Funds and News Corporation. See www.nds.com for more information.

LOS ANGELES & SAN MATEO, Calif. – TVN, the world’s largest television on-demand company, and BlackArrow, the independent provider of advanced advertising solutions for new television platforms, announced an integrated solution to address and overcome the obstacles inherent in today’s video-on-demand (VOD) advertising workflows. Specifically, this new partnership will leverage TVN’s efficient ad distribution process and BlackArrow’s dynamic VOD advertising platform to enable customized metadata for advertising assets and a seamless methodology for rapid transfer of metadata between the two systems.

Today, the ability to plan and execute VOD ad campaigns is hampered by numerous manual processes and cumbersome workflows. In response, the joint TVN and BlackArrow solution will leverage the CableLabs ADI 1.1 standard to allow for the management of programming and advertising assets independently, offering a standard communication interface to ensure the accuracy and timeliness of asset management throughout the ad lifecycle. This integration between TVN’s Content Information Services (CIS) and the BlackArrow’s advertising sales suite is automated, scalable and fully compliant with SCTE 130 specifications.

“Monetization of VOD via dynamic advertising continues to be a key business objective for our 200 content providers and 230 affiliates,” said Jan Young, director of network sales at TVN. “Together, TVN and BlackArrow are advancing that agenda by demonstrating, for the first time, an integrated system for enabling and distributing VOD assets — including advertising assets — along with their associated metadata to interact seamlessly with ad campaign management systems.”

“BlackArrow is focused on making advanced advertising a reality for media companies and operators. Our joint solution with TVN enables ad sales organizations to dynamically manage VOD campaigns, pinpoint audiences and make quick work of ad-creative updates by delivering advertising and program assets independently,” said David Stengle, vice president of distribution at BlackArrow. “By enabling dynamic ad insertion and management, VOD becomes more attractive to advertisers with time-sensitive messages, while at the same time generating new revenue for our customers with a system that deploys smoothly and scales.”

TVN and BlackArrow are working with a number of operators and content partners on dynamic advertising trials.

About TVN Entertainment Corporation

TVN Entertainment Corporation, the leading television on-demand company, works with every major studio, network, and telecommunications video provider in North America. TVN is the preferred provider of original on-demand programs and networks. TVN supports an open, advanced technology platform, and offers the most comprehensive, end-to-end solution for licensing, managing, distributing and marketing on-demand content to virtually any platform. For more information about TVN’s products and services, please visit www.tvn.com.

About BlackArrow, Inc.

BlackArrow is the independent provider of advanced advertising technology for new television platforms. The company’s multiplatform advertising system is designed specifically for video content distributed over any on-demand platform, enabling media companies and distributors to maximize advertising revenues, and enhancing advertisers’ ability to reach target audiences. BlackArrow is privately held, and backed by Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (NASDAQ: INTC), Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. The company has offices in New York City and San Mateo, Calif. www.blackarrow.tv

SAN MATEO, Calif. – BlackArrow, the provider of advanced advertising technology for new television platforms, announced Nick Troiano has joined BlackArrow as company president. Troiano augments the BlackArrow executive team with proven management and business expertise in the digital media, advertising and video technology industries. With Troiano’s extensive understanding of the video marketplace, he will play a key role in accelerating market adoption of BlackArrow’s advanced advertising technology. The company also announced that Keith Kryszczun is now serving as vice president, sales.

“This is an exciting time for BlackArrow, as our advanced advertising system is increasingly viewed as a ‘must-have’ technology for new TV platforms including, in the near-term, both dynamic VOD and Internet TV. The addition of two exceptionally talented professionals to our leadership and sales teams only serves to underscore this,” said Dean Denhart, CEO, BlackArrow. “As company president, Troiano melds critical business acumen with a proven track record of success and revenue expansion in the video industry.”

As president, Troiano will be responsible for all go-to-market and revenue activities including the company’s sales, business development and marketing activities. “As consumers continue to embrace new consumption paradigms for TV content, providing an integrated advertising solution for publishers, marketers, agencies and distributors has never been more important,” said Troiano. “I am extremely excited to join the BlackArrow team which has developed a unique solution for addressable advertising across new TV platforms – one that I believe will provide the foundation for the media industry’s evolution.”

Previously, Troiano was vice president of business development within the U.S. Partnership Group at Yahoo!, where he led a business development team responsible for cross-platform technology and ad sales partnerships with media customers. Prior to Yahoo!, Troiano was senior vice president of sales and business development for Maven Networks (acquired by Yahoo! in February 2008), where he was responsible for all worldwide revenue-generation programs and strategic partnerships. Prior to Maven, Troiano served as executive vice president of business development at ClearStory Systems, president of WebWare Corp (acquired by ClearStory) and was a principal at SCP Private Equity Partners, where he led investments in media and communications and served on the boards of a number of SCP’s portfolio companies. Troiano holds a B.A in Political Science from Davidson College and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He will join the New York City office of BlackArrow.

As vice president of sales, Keith Kryszczun will focus on the sale of BlackArrow’s multiplatform advanced advertising solutions to content providers and premium digital video publishers. Prior to joining BlackArrow, Kryszczun was director of sales, video platforms, for Maven Networks (a wholly owned subsidiary of Yahoo! Inc.), and before Maven Networks, Kryszczun held various sales and operations positions at Oracle Corporation and Opsware Inc., a pioneering company in data center automation software that was acquired by Hewlett-Packard.

About BlackArrow, Inc.

BlackArrow is the independent provider of advanced advertising technology for new television platforms. The company’s multiplatform advertising system is designed specifically for video content distributed over any on-demand platform, enabling media companies and distributors to maximize advertising revenues, and enhancing advertisers’ ability to reach target audiences. BlackArrow is privately held, and backed by Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (NASDAQ: INTC), Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. The company has offices in New York City and San Mateo, Calif. http://www.blackarrow.tv

BlackArrow is a trademark of BlackArrow, Inc.

SAN MATEO, Calif. – BlackArrow, the independent provider of multiplatform advertising systems for viewer-controlled video, today announced BlackArrow AdMaps™, a sophisticated toolset that enables content providers and distributors to easily define and manage ad avails in and around video content. The AdMap suite extends BlackArrow’s advertising system by introducing tools to manage ad-placement opportunities for programming delivered over broadband and SCTE 130-5 compliant video on demand (VOD) environments. AdMaps provide a time-saving workflow to create new advertising inventory, integrate new ad formats easily and update ad-sales models quickly – all without requiring changes to the existing infrastructure or media player code.

The new suite consists of the AdMap Builder tool to create and manage AdMaps, AdMap Server to deliver the right AdMap for the viewer and, for broadband deployments, a software development kit (SDK) to render AdMaps in common broadband players.

“The lack of tools to easily define and manage rules for ad-placement opportunities in and around video is proving to be a major bottleneck for ad-supported business models,” said Chris Hock, senior vice president, product management at BlackArrow. “With ad strategies undergoing rapid-fire change, programmers and distributors are wanting to experiment safely — in a way that maximizes revenues, without jeopardizing innovation or user experience. BlackArrow’s AdMaps suite addresses this need head-on with practical conventions for creating new ad avails and managing ad-insertion opportunities for viewer-controlled video platforms.”

AdMap Builder is a rich Internet application (RIA) that enables users to create an unlimited combination of permissible ad types, durations and other insertion rules. All user-defined ad-insertion points are displayed graphically to help clients visualize and package ad inventory effectively across multiple video platforms.

AdMap Server selects from among multiple AdMaps to return the best fit based on viewer data – as well as targeting criteria such as audience demographics, content genre and playout environment – before fulfilling each request with the most relevant ad, or series of ads, as defined by the AdMap. AdMap Server conforms to SCTE 130-5 standards for a placement opportunity information service (POIS) in VOD environments, enabling rapid deployment and product interoperability with other SCTE-130 compliant vendors. For broadband distribution, AdMaps are stored as standard SMIL files, which can be read easily by leading media players from Adobe, Move Networks and other providers using the enhanced BlackArrow Player Framework.

AdMaps lay the foundation for BlackArrow’s continued product innovation. Designed to scale, the AdMaps suite is ideally suited to manage intricate affiliate relationships and complex ad-split arrangements within a centralized environment. Moreover, AdMaps supply an important framework from which content providers and distributors will be able to manage and accurately forecast their video inventory.

About BlackArrow, Inc.

BlackArrow is the independent provider of multiplatform ad management for viewer-controlled video. The company’s ad-management system is designed specifically for video content distributed over any on-demand platform — enabling content providers and distributors to maximize advertising revenues, and improving advertisers’ ability to reach target audiences. BlackArrow is led by an experienced team of executives from the advertising, television and digital media industries, and is backed by Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (NASDAQ: INTC), Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. The company is privately held, with offices in New York City and San Mateo, Calif. http://www.blackarrow.tv

BlackArrow and BlackArrow AdMap are trademarks of BlackArrow, Inc.

ORLANDO, Fla. – ARRIS, BIAP, BlackArrow and Sigma Systems jointly announced that they have formed an unprecedented group of technology leaders to revolutionize television advertising. The group will demonstrate its cutting-edge Advanced Advertising solution as part of TM Forum’s Content Encounter 3, which takes place at the Management World Orlando conference.

The Content Encounter initiative at the TM Forum encourages companies to collaborate on solutions that address the creation, delivery and monetization of digital media services. The Personalized Advertising for Cable and IPTV demonstration within Content Encounter 3 will illustrate that advanced advertising is real and doable with today’s telecommunications and cable standards, and that service providers can use a common deployment architecture to deliver rich entertainment services, including content specific ad-insertion and addressable ad-insertion.

“We are pleased to have this impressive group of technology leaders collaborating in this extremely important area of work,” said Jim Warner, vice chairman and head of Content, Media and Advertising at TM Forum. “The Content Encounter program is our spearhead into the Digital Media and Advertising market and we welcome the addition of the Personalized Advertising for Cable & IPTV demonstration. It adds a dimension and a focus we’d not shown before and is sure to be a highlight of Management World Orlando.”

The four technology companies contributing to the Personalized Advertising for Cable and IPTV demonstration are as follows:

ARRIS

ARRIS, a leading developer, manufacturer and supplier of carrier-grade telephony, demand-driven video, advanced advertising, high-speed data, network management and infrastructure equipment for cable system operators, will contribute its Video on Demand Server and Ad Decision Manager to the demonstration.

“Augmenting the legacy digital video and advertising global footprint that ARRIS has established, we are very pleased to announce our ability to interface with these industry leading advertising providers to bring a truly advanced and integrated advertising service to market,” said Paul Delzio, director of On Demand Product Strategy. “Building flexibility and openness into our solution allows a much greater ease of deployment and the ability to drive more services, thereby increasing the revenue potential for all stakeholders involved.”

BIAP Inc.

BIAP, the leader in EBIF software, provides the cable industry with the 3 key ingredients required in interactivity. They include EBIF platforms, applications and advanced advertising tools. In this consortium BIAP will contribute its EEIF/tru2way video middleware and applications, as well as its Ad Decision Manager to the demonstration.

“We are big believers that the transformation of television advertising from a mass audience broadcast model to a targeted, interactive and measurable model is at hand,” said Tim Peters, BIAP’s CEO. “Success will depend on companies of highly specialized disciplines coming together in support of industry-wide standards. We are thrilled to have partnered with three such companies, all with unique expertise and product offerings perfectly suited for this new advanced advertising ecosystem.”

BlackArrow

BlackArrow is the independent provider of multiplatform advertising technology for viewer-controlled video distributed via broadband, VOD and other on-demand platforms. BlackArrow will contribute its SCTE 130-compliant Campaign Manager, Ad Decision Server and Placement Opportunity Information Service (POIS) to the demonstration.

“Cable and telco operators have an opportunity to dramatically increase viewer satisfaction and advertising ARPU through personalized, timely delivery of ad-enabled content. Audiences increasingly expect to see this level of sophistication — and advertisers increasingly demand it,” said David Stengle, vice president of Distribution at BlackArrow. “By working with other industry leaders to offer standards-based systems that scale massively, BlackArrow helps operators launch next-generation, ad-supported video services that optimize for every viewer on every device.”

Sigma Systems

Sigma is an industry leader in Advanced IP Service Fulfillment solutions. Sigma will provide its service fulfillment, active mediation and Subscriber Information Service solutions in the demonstration.

“Building on a proven track record in the cable industry, Sigma Systems is strongly focused on the enablement of advanced advertising and the delivery of interactive and multimedia services for both telecom and cable service providers,” said Brian Cappellani, CTO of Sigma Systems.

For more information about the Personalized Advertising for Cable and IPTV demonstration in the Content Encounter or to schedule a tour, please contact Francis Hopkins at francis.hopkins@sigma-systems.com.

About ARRIS

ARRIS is a global communications technology company specializing in the design, engineering and supply of technology supporting triple- and quad-play broadband services for residential and business customers around the world. The company supplies broadband operators with the tools and platforms they need to deliver carrier-grade telephony, demand driven video, next-generation advertising, network and workforce management solutions, access and transport architectures and high-speed data services.. Headquartered in Suwanee, Georgia, USA, ARRIS has R&D centers in Atlanta; Chicago; State College, PA; Beaverton, OR; Wallingford, CT; Cork, Ireland; and Shenzhen, China, and operates support and sales offices throughout the world. Information about ARRIS products and services can be found at www.arrisi.com.

About BIAP

BIAP (Broadband Interactive Applications) supplies the cable industry with all of the critical tools for interactive television advertising and programming. These tools include the ETV Platform, a broad offering of applications and a complete portfolio of products for advanced advertising. BIAP’s partners include: NBC, eBay, Hearst’s Talking Phone Book, and Rasmussen Reports. Applications in deployment include eBay on TV, Fantasy Football, Yellow Pages on TV and PiTV, a local information service that can be personalized. BIAP is currently available on 24 million set top boxes principally with Time Warner Cable and DISH Network. BIAP has received two patents for its technology and has three Emmy nominations for its applications. Corporate headquarters are in Plano, Texas, with research and development in Sterling, Virginia.

About BlackArrow, Inc.

BlackArrow is the independent provider of multiplatform ad management for viewer-controlled video. The company’s ad-management system is designed specifically for video content distributed over any on-demand platform — enabling content providers and distributors to maximize advertising revenues, and improving advertisers’ ability to reach target audiences. BlackArrow is led by an experienced team of executives from the advertising, television and digital media industries, and is backed by Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (NASDAQ:INTC), Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. The company is privately held, with offices in New York City and San Mateo, Calif. http://www.blackarrow.tv.

About Sigma Systems

Sigma Systems is the proven global leader in delivering advanced IP service fulfillment solutions. Sigma’s powerful solutions enable the world’s Communications Service Providers (CSPs) to deliver a Rich Consumer Experience through communications and entertainment services—over any access technology to any device. The company’s award-winning solutions include order management, provisioning and activation, and active mediation of residential and business VoIP, and Triple, Quad and All-Play services. CSPs trust Sigma for business transformation and innovative solutions with market-leading expertise for the delivery of today’s—and tomorrow’s—new services. For more information about Sigma, visit www.sigma-systems.com.

SAN FRANCISCO (Adobe MAX 2008 Conference) – November 17, 2008 – BlackArrow, the independent provider of multiplatform ad-management systems for viewer-controlled video, today announced the addition of Adobe® Media Player to its expanding list of distribution platforms. BlackArrow provides video content publishers using Adobe Media Player with a centralized system for defining ad avails and managing targeted campaigns against their programming. BlackArrow’s seamless advertising workflow enables content providers to broaden their syndication, while optimizing revenues from ad-supported video programming.

BlackArrow gives video networks a syndication edge by delivering advertising directly into Adobe Media Player programming, as well as other Web properties and even platforms such as dynamic video on demand (VOD). To simplify advertising operations, the BlackArrow system dynamically generates enhanced media RSS feeds that incorporate targeted ads formatted specifically for playback within Adobe Media Player. Leveraging Adobe Flash® technology, Adobe Media Player supports downloaded and streamed media that scales to full-screen HD resolution.

“When it comes to user experience, Adobe has set the standard with its ubiquitous Adobe Flash platform — and has done it again with the Adobe Media Player,” said Chris Hock, senior vice president, product management at BlackArrow. “As an Adobe advertising partner, we are committed to enabling a sophisticated, engaging advertising experience for viewers — whether they watch their favorite content inside the browser, or outside the browser with the Adobe Media Player — while introducing new revenue opportunities for content and media publishers.”

“From the outset, we’ve built Adobe Media Player to provide a rich, engaging consumer viewing experience, and help content providers build an advertising business around their valuable video assets,” said Sumner Paine, product manager for Adobe Media Player at Adobe. “As consumers increasingly control their own viewing experience, BlackArrow makes it easier for content providers to both manage ad campaigns and incorporate Adobe Media Player into their overall video syndication strategy.”

Built from the ground up for video, the BlackArrow multiplatform advertising system enables content providers to solve the challenges associated with reaching today’s fragmented audiences who increasingly view video programming outside of traditional linear airtimes. The BlackArrow system works across any combination of ad types, ad-sales models, affiliate and syndication strategies, enabling its customers to more effectively generate revenue from ad-supported video content.

About BlackArrow, Inc.
BlackArrow is the independent provider of multiplatform ad management for viewer-controlled video. The company’s ad-management system is designed specifically for video content distributed over any on-demand platform — enabling content providers and distributors to maximize advertising revenues, and improving advertisers’ ability to reach target audiences. BlackArrow is led by an experienced team of executives from the advertising, television and digital media industries, and is backed by Cisco Systems (Nasdaq: CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (Nasdaq: INTC), Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. The company is privately held, with offices in New York City and San Mateo, Calif. http://www.blackarrow.tv

BlackArrow’s video advertising system helps video content providers and distributors optimize and enhance ad-supported video programming by enabling them to offer advertisers new ad types, sponsorship packages and campaigns that combine ad units in creative ways to boost brand and product awareness. By supporting VAST, BlackArrow enables its customers to increase digital video yield by utilizing ad networks to sell unsold inventory and reduce friction with buyers via the support of third-party ad tags.

BlackArrow is an active participant in the IAB Digital Video Committee, a key contributor to the definition of VAST. By supporting VAST, BlackArrow underscores its commitment to supporting open standards and interoperating with third-party systems.

For more information on the VAST standard, see http://www.iab.net/vast.

About BlackArrow, Inc.
BlackArrow provides multiplatform ad management for viewer-controlled video. The company’s ad-management platform streamlines the complexities of video-based advertising — helping ad agencies reach target audiences, and maximizing new advertising revenues for content providers and distributors. BlackArrow is led by an experienced team of executives from the advertising, television and digital media industries, and is backed by Cisco Systems (Nasdaq: CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (Nasdaq: INTC), Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. The company is privately held, with offices in New York City and San Mateo, Calif. http://www.blackarrow.tv

SAN MATEO, Calif. – BlackArrow, the independent provider of multiplatform ad-management systems for viewer-controlled video, has released a Connector (software development kit) that integrates its ad-management system with Akamai’s Media Framework, a valuable resource for the rapid development of video player applications. This integration allows broadband video providers to ad-enable video content distributed using Akamai’s Media Framework. BlackArrow is also participating in the Open Video Player initiative, a community site intended to facilitate the development and sharing of open standards and best practices for video player applications that support a wide range of advertising technologies.

By integrating Akamai’s Media Framework with BlackArrow, premium content owners and publishers can adopt turnkey video player solutions to better maximize the return from their digital video content. This reduces the complexity of developing ad-supported video players, speeds deployments and stimulates new advertising revenue opportunities.

“It’s critical that we make it easier to integrate and deploy advertising solutions, given the escalating demand to monetize video content. BlackArrow’s support for the Akamai Media Framework and participation in the Open Video Player initiative addresses this demand,” said Tim Napoleon, chief strategist for digital media, Akamai. “Together, we can enable content providers to more easily develop and deliver ad-supported broadband video content.”

BlackArrow’s multiplatform ad-management system enables video content providers and distributors to optimize and enhance their ad-supported video programming and ad-sales opportunities. Using the BlackArrow system, they can now offer their advertisers new ad types, sponsorship packages and campaigns that combine ad units in unique ways to boost brand and product awareness — generating added value for content providers and advertisers alike.

“The BlackArrow and Akamai systems work together to provide an optimal platform from which to monetize premium content, and reflects BlackArrow’s support for open standards,” said Chris Hock, senior vice president, product management, BlackArrow. “We’ve built an extensive network of broadband ecosystem partners, and our integration with Akamai furthers our goals of reducing the complexity of integrating multiple systems, while ensuring seamless deployments of the BlackArrow ad-management system.”

Built from the ground up for video, the BlackArrow system helps content providers and distributors solve the challenges created by today’s fragmented audiences who increasingly view video programming distributed over broadband, video on demand and other platforms outside of linear television.

The BlackArrow system dynamically contracts, targets, traffics and reports on advertising inventory to maximize revenues from ad-supported video programming. Because the BlackArrow system works across any combination of ad types, ad-sales models, distribution or syndication strategies, BlackArrow’s clients can more effectively generate new revenue streams from ad-supported video, while preserving critical relationships with their advertisers.

The BlackArrow Connector for the Open Video Player Initiative is available now, at www.openvideoplayer.com, in the Connectors tab within the Download folder.

About BlackArrow, Inc.

BlackArrow is the independent provider of multiplatform ad management for viewer-controlled video. The company’s ad-management system is designed specifically for video content distributed over any on-demand platform — enabling content providers and distributors to maximize advertising revenues, and improving advertisers’ ability to reach target audiences. BlackArrow is led by an experienced team of executives from the advertising, television and digital media industries, and is backed by Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (NASDAQ: INTC), Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. The company is privately held, with offices in New York City and San Mateo, Calif. http://www.blackarrow.tv

BlackArrow is a trademark of BlackArrow, Inc.

SAN MATEO, Calif. – BlackArrow, the independent provider of multiplatform ad-management systems for viewer-controlled video, today announced it has secured $20 million to further product development, expand distribution platform support and increase worldwide sales and marketing efforts. Participating in the round are BlackArrow’s existing investors: Cisco Systems, Inc., Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital, Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. To date, BlackArrow has raised a total of $38 million in private financing.

Purpose-built for video content, the BlackArrow ad management system enables content providers and distributors to create new advertising revenue opportunities, and to reach audiences that increasingly view video programming via broadband, live streaming, video on demand and other emerging platforms outside of traditional, linear television airtimes.

“BlackArrow has achieved key milestones with our ad-management technology, and we’re well positioned for growth as television and other professionally produced video content extends its reach over various viewer-controlled platforms,” said Dean Denhart, president and CEO of BlackArrow. “This additional funding validates BlackArrow’s performance to date, and our strategy for delivering advanced, multiplatform video advertising systems that help customers maximize revenues. As audiences continue to embrace viewer-controlled video, BlackArrow is increasingly the partner of choice for reaching viewers wherever and whenever they are watching television-quality content.”

The BlackArrow system is designed to dynamically manage, decide and report on targeted advertising inserted against on-demand programming across multiple playout platforms. Versatile and adaptable, the BlackArrow system works across any combination of ad types, ad-sales models, distribution or syndication strategies and media playout environments to keep pace with today’s evolving video ad-sales and distribution opportunities, thereby improving the critical relationships between advertisers, content providers and distributors.

About BlackArrow, Inc.

BlackArrow is the independent provider of multiplatform ad management for viewer-controlled video. The company’s ad-management system is designed specifically for video content distributed over any on-demand platform — enabling content providers and distributors to maximize advertising revenues, and improving advertisers’ ability to reach target audiences. BlackArrow is led by an experienced team of executives from the advertising, television and digital media industries, and is backed by Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (NASDAQ: INTC), Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. The company is privately held, with offices in New York City and San Mateo, Calif. http://www.blackarrow.tv

Los Angeles and San Mateo, Calif. – October 7, 2008– BlackArrow, the independent provider of multiplatform ad-management systems for viewer-controlled video, today announced it has signed a deal with Kabillion, the Emmy® Award-winning multi-platform kids’ entertainment service. Effective immediately, Kabillion will implement BlackArrow’s video advertising platform within their broadband and video on demand (VOD) programming, enabling Kabillion’s advertisers to most effectively run ad campaigns dynamically targeted to the network’s key demographic of six to 12 year-olds.

Available both as a free VOD channel and a robust, free online broadband site (www.Kabillion.com), Kabillion offers high-quality animated and live-action kids’ series entertainment in addition to games and chat, all wrapped around a virtual world, which creates a groundbreaking, immersive entertainment experience. Kabillion is also COPPA and CARU compliant, offering parents the peace of mind they want when allowing their children to play online.

“BlackArrow’s incredibly innovative technology provides a centralized ad-management environment in which to manage our Web, VOD and display advertising — along with the freedom to support any ad type or combination of ads,” said Deb Pierson, vice president of advertising and marketing for Kabillion. “This is great news for our advertisers, who count on us to effectively reach targeted audiences viewing our programming, whether it’s on VOD or via the Internet.”

Purpose-built for video, the BlackArrow multiplatform advertising system helps content providers and distributors solve the challenges of reaching today’s fragmented audiences who increasingly view video content distributed over broadband, VOD and other platforms outside of linear television. The BlackArrow system dynamically contracts, targets, traffics and reports on advertising inventory to maximize revenues from ad-supported video programming.

BlackArrow’s system enables Kabillion to optimize and enhance their video programming with the ability to dynamically target and reach kids with advertisers’ product and brand messages. Kabillion can now dynamically rotate ad creative targeted against viewing platform, specific programming, time of day viewed, geography and other parameters. In addition, Kabillion is able to package sophisticated, creative ad-type combinations — such as overlays, pre-loads on games, and mid-rolls — in new ways that set them apart from other kids networks.

In addition, BlackArrow’s tight product integration with other leaders in the advertising ecosystem such as thePlatform – the provider of Kabillion’s media player technology – ensures a seamless and rapid deployment of the BlackArrow advertising platform.

“Kabillion has a wealth of entertaining and compelling content for children. By deploying the BlackArrow system, Kabillion can focus on developing great content, while also providing their advertisers with innovative ways to deliver effective, engaging and creative ad campaigns,” said Chris Hock, senior vice president, product management, BlackArrow. “Our multiplatform advertising platform helps Kabillion to not only maximize advertising revenues in the near term, but also grow with them as their content is more broadly distributed over additional playout environments and syndication partner sites.”

Because the BlackArrow system works across any combination of ad types, ad-sales models, distribution or syndication strategies, BlackArrow’s clients can generate new revenue streams from ad-supported video, while preserving critical relationships with their advertisers.

About Kabillion
Kabillion is the multi-platform, kids’ entertainment program service launched in January 2007 and available both as a free video on-demand (VOD) channel and a free online broadband site (www.Kabillion.com). Initially launched on Comcast Cable’s Select On Demand across the US, the VOD platform is now also available to digital cable subscribers nationwide on Charter and Bresnan cable systems, with more to be added soon. Part of The MoonScoop Group, a leading worldwide production, distribution, brand management and entertainment company, Kabillion offers high-quality animated and live-action kids’ series entertainment on both platforms. Kabillion is owned in part by Taffy Entertainment, The MoonScoop Group, REMIX Entertainment Ventures and Belgium-based Studio 100.

About BlackArrow, Inc.
BlackArrow is the independent provider of multiplatform ad management for viewer-controlled video. The company’s ad-management system is designed specifically for video content distributed over any on-demand platform — enabling content providers and distributors to maximize advertising revenues, and improving advertisers’ ability to reach target audiences. BlackArrow is led by an experienced team of executives from the advertising, television and digital media industries, and is backed by Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (NASDAQ: INTC), Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. The company is privately held, with offices in New York City and San Mateo, Calif.

Suwanee, GA – June 25, 2008:  ARRIS (Nasdaq: ARRS) and BlackArrow, a provider of multiplatform ad-management systems for viewer-controlled video, today announced the completion of interoperability testing between the companies’ respective VOD delivery and addressable advertising systems. This follows a similar such announcement in May and subsequent demonstrations at the National Show of interoperable applications between ARRIS and other SCTE 130-enabled providers.  Built on the SCTE 130 open standard, these combined dynamic, targeted VOD advertising services will help operators and content providers rapidly derive additional ad revenues from on-demand video services.  ARRIS will feature its SCTE 130 open interfaces in demonstrations with BlackArrow and other partners in the ARRIS booth (#2050) during the SCTE Cable-Tec EXPO in Philadelphia this week.

“As audiences embrace time-shifted content, content providers and advertisers are looking for associated addressability and accountability across all programming, particularly for cable on-demand systems,” said Joe Matarese, ARRIS VP/GM On Demand Business Unit. “The integration of BlackArrow’s ad-management technology expands our core VOD delivery solutions, and helps customers add revenues and differentiate their services through targeted advertising. Additionally, since both the ARRIS and BlackArrow systems are based on standard SCTE 130 interfaces, the integrated system offers a more streamlined deployment with other SCTE 130 compliant systems.”

ARRIS VOD systems manage and deliver content on the same servers, which then stream to individual subscribers in a highly targeted manner. The BlackArrow ad-management system offers maximum flexibility and a distributor-friendly environment – adapting to support any platform, syndication strategy, sales model or ad unit. Together, the services enable advertisers to dynamically target audiences by geography, daypart, program metadata and other criteria inherent in dynamic VOD programming.

“Working with ARRIS, we’re able to apply our multiplatform ad-decisioning engine to a dynamic VOD environment, and to offer addressable advertising that delivers on the demands of content providers and advertisers alike. Content providers are embracing the ability to offer additional premium VOD programming and garner associated revenue increases, while advertisers are eager to reach audiences dynamically in parallel,” said BlackArrow CEO Dean Denhart. “This integration reflects our commitment to multiplatform video ad delivery designed specifically to address the needs of content providers and advertisers eager to reach audiences embracing on-demand programming in greater numbers.”

About ARRIS

ARRIS is a global communications technology company specializing in the design, engineering and supply of technology supporting triple- and quad-play broadband services for residential and business customers around the world. The company supplies broadband operators with the tools and platforms they need to deliver, reliable telephony, demand driven video, next-generation advertising and high-speed data services. ARRIS products expand and help grow network capacity with access and outside plant construction equipment, reliably deliver voice, video and data services and assure optimal service delivery for end customers. Headquartered in Suwanee, GA, USA, ARRIS has R&D centers in Atlanta, Chicago, Beaverton, Wallingford, Cork, Ireland and Shenzhen, China, and operates support and sales offices throughout the world. Information about ARRIS products and services can be found at http://www.arrisi.com.

About BlackArrow, Inc.

BlackArrow provides multiplatform ad management for viewer-controlled video. The company’s ad-management platform streamlines the complexities of video-based advertising — helping ad agencies reach target audiences, and maximizing new advertising revenues for content providers and distributors. BlackArrow is led by an experienced team of executives from the advertising, television and digital media industries, and is backed by Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO), Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital (NASDAQ: INTC), Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. The company is privately held, with offices in New York City and San Mateo, Calif. http://www.blackarrow.tv

BlackArrow and the BlackArrow logo are trademarks of BlackArrow, Inc.