So far, Hybrid Broadcast Internet applications have only linked Internet and broadcast content by offering over-the-top On-Demand content in addition to the current broadcast programme (“catch-up TV”) and a beautified version of the former Teletext. However, many more services are on the horizon, and the market of hybrid and connected TV attracts attention from all stakeholders in the media value chain. The challenge is to take hybrid service development to a new level. HBB-NEXT will lay the foundations for advanced hybrid multi-user services via a standardised approach.

The project seeks to facilitate the marriage of the broadcast and Internet world by researching user-centred technologies for enriching the TV-viewing experience through social networking, multiple device access, group-tailored content recommendations, and the seamless mixing of broadcast content, complementary Internet content and user-generated content. The project will deliver a web-based framework for device-independent applications that can syndicate content from multiple sources, for real-time content composition, and for the content distribution across users in geographically distinct areas and on heterogeneous devices. Sophisticated technology will be developed for the easy use of content, e.g. advanced synchronisation methods for media items delivered across the Internet and the broadcast network. Data security and the protection of user privacy will be woven into the framework – but in a way that is transparent to the end-user.

In liaison with the HbbTV Consortium, HBB-NEXT will enable future services that define secure multi-user & multi-devices TV-viewing experiences for millions of European users, fostering the materialisation of new service concepts and business models. Collectively, the project partners encompass all knowledge and skills necessary to achieve this objective.