By Adedapo Adesanya
The international media group, Trace TV, has contracted the service of Molotov Solutions to develop and operate the new version of its over-the-top (OTT) platform, TracePlay.
An OTT service is a streaming media service offered directly to viewers via the Internet and using the Molotov platform, TracePlay will offer more than 25 live TV channels, 100 radio channels and some 1,000 hours of on-demand content.
The platform will be distributed in 180 countries, notably in Africa, Europe, Caribbean and North and South America.
The service is expected to launch in the second quarter of 2021 and it will be available in French, English and Portuguese.
TracePlay will benefit from Molotov Solution’s full application suite which has about 12 million users in France. the company’s technology will allow TracePlay to empower its audiences to connect with Afro-urban culture seamlessly using a video platform in the cloud with Live, Replay and On Demand.
It will also have a complete back-office suite with interface control, content editorialization, users and offers management and data analysis alongside a flexible and robust application programming interface (API) that seamlessly interconnects with third-party applications (CRM, analytics, payments) and telecom operators to promote Trace’s content offerings to users.
It will come via mobile and tablet applications (iOS and Android), responsive browser-based web application and on large screens with Chromecast, Android TV and Apple TV.
It will also have a proprietary video player compatible with ABR (adaptive bitrate streaming), multilingual and integrating features such as pause/resume, Start Over (return to the beginning of the current live program in 1 click), fast forward and rewind, and channel hopping.
In addition, it will have features such as multi-language, delinearization of streaming programmes, radio and podcasts, personality tracking, “Watch List”, In-App-Purchase, parental control, and many more.
Speaking on this, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Trace, Mr Olivier Laouchez said, “The digital and non-linear consumption of TV and radio channels and content continues to grow, especially among young and urban audiences who particularly enjoy Trace.
“We chose Molotov Solutions for the quality of its technical platform and the expertise of its team. Together, we will build the most beautiful audiovisual experience of afro-urban entertainment.”
On the part of Molotov Solutions, its Chief Operating Officer, Mr François Le Pichon noted, “We are very pleased to support Trace in the strategic acceleration of its OTT services. This is a very comprehensive and global project, which demonstrates the scope of Molotov Solutions’ services and the capabilities of its team in France and internationally.”