Advised by Steve Chen, co-founder of YouTube, Theta’s decentralized video delivery network reached over 530,000 users on Theta testnet, partners with leading Korean media platforms
Cupertino, Calif., September 18, 2018 – Theta, the leading video delivery network on blockchain advised by the co-founder of YouTube, announces that MBN and CJ Hello has joined its Media Advisory Council as strategic partners. MBN is a division of Maekyung Media Group, a highly-diversified media company that owns some of the biggest names in communications and broadcasting in South Korea, and CJ Hello, a subsidiary of the $25B Korean conglomerate CJ Group is one of the country’s largest cable TV operators and mobile providers, will each partner with Theta to deepen media engagement and power revenue growth. The Theta token was recently listed on Bithumb exchange at the end of August.
Theta’s initial results from its June testnet launch revealed strong user engagement on the SLIVER.tv esports platform which rewards users with Theta tokens for re-streaming content to others in the network. After deploying Theta’s video delivery network powered by blockchain, SLIVER.tv saw a 70 percent increase in total monthly visits, reaching nearly seven million. The average viewer spent 31 minutes on the testnet channel, compared to 11 minutes across other channels and 6 minutes on Twitch during the same time frame. Since the launch, more than 530,000 users across 150 countries have shared bandwidth on the Theta network.
“Theta’s impressive early results from June convinced us to take a closer look at Theta as a media blockchain partner to build a decentralized video delivery network,” said Mr. RYU Ho-Gil, CEO of MBN. “We’re excited to collaborate with Theta to achieve three key business goals, deepen user engagement and session times across our platform, reduce content delivery costs and drive increased market share. Together, we hope to explore a range of exciting opportunities to deliver content in new ways.”
“Speaking from my media experience working at YouTube Korea and Naver, the battle for consumer attention is fiercer than ever with a sea of content on every device from set-top boxes to mobile and web desktop,” said Yooshim (Karen) Huh, Senior Vice President of CJ Hello. “Theta’s new blockchain model provides a valuable tool to stand out and encourage users to spend more time with content we’re already delivering, from hit TV shows to K-pop. With a focus on powering mobile and OTT solutions, Theta promises to be a core part of our long-term growth strategy.”
“South Korea has always been at the forefront of technology development and innovation. We’re delighted to partner with two of the largest Korea media platform to bring blockchain technology to the mainstream and invent the future of media,” said Mitch Liu, co-founder and CEO of Theta Labs. “MBN and CJ Hello are deploying real-world media and entertainment solutions powered by Theta blockchain that are still just theories for most companies. As video streaming continues to grow exponentially, these Korean media leaders are staying ahead with breakthrough innovation that’s proven to connect viewers with content at massive scale.”
About Theta Labs, Inc.
Theta is a video delivery network powered by blockchain that incentivizes anyone to restream video and enables next-gen video apps that drive more revenue, deepen viewer engagement and reduce costs. Theta’s protocol enables users to earn tokens by restreaming video via excess bandwidth on any device. Restreamers improve quality by serving video locally and can use tokens to purchase premium experiences, content and products. By deploying Theta, platforms can create new business models, generate more touchpoints with viewers, deepen engagement and seed superfans. Learn more at thetatoken.org.
Media Contact:
Roger Johnson
roger@methodcommunications.com
