The traditional iView interface will not be available when viewing on a BRAVIA television; instead a cut-down mobile version of the site is served directly to TVs and Blu-ray players.
ABC's iView online video on demand service will be accessible on Sony's Internet-connected BRAVIA televisions and Blu-ray players from mid-May.
The move follows Sony’s announcement of five new channels on its BRAVIA Internet Video service, bringing the total to 20 channels.
iView launched in mid-2008 and has been available on Sony’s PlayStation 3 console since late last year. There are currently more than 175 programs available from ABC1, ABC2 and ABC3 on the service.
“Australians enjoy using iView because it gives them convenience and choice,” said ABC Director of Television, Kim Dalton. “Now, those benefits can be accessed directly on a television screen, as well as on a computer or via the Sony PlayStation 3.”
“The addition of a service as successful as ABC’s iVew to our BRAVIA Internet Video line-up will really assist in driving IPTV awareness and take-up,” said Paul Colley, Sony Australia’s Technology Communications Manager.
Some of ABC’s news content will not be available on BRAVIA TV sets at launch day because of a change in content formatting. The PC and PS3 iView interfaces use Adobe Flash, which is not supported by Sony's televisions. As a consequence, the ABC has to transcode all of its television content.
While iView on PC offers unmetered access with some ISPs, iView on BRAVIA TVs will be metered, so all downloaded content will go towards users’ data quotas.
The ABC today launched a iView widget for PCs that allows direct access to iView.
