VRSN: Open Media Network Selects VeriSign to Bring Full Screen, DVD-Quality Television Programs from the Internet -- Right to TV Screens

VeriSign, Inc., (NASDAQ: VRSN), the leading provider of intelligent infrastructure for the networked world, today announced that Open Media Network (OMN) has selected its VeriSign Intelligent Content Delivery Network™ (CDN) to enable consumers to watch shows downloaded from omn.org directly on their television set. Programming is delivered in DVD or HDTV quality.

Using VeriSign’s advanced technology, viewers of OMN’s library of popular public broadcasting content are among the first consumers who can download quality programming from the Internet and watch it on intelligent TVs via set top boxes, including Hewlett-Packard’s entire family of MediaSmart® TVs and Tivo® DVRs. The service supports playback on virtually any Windows Media Connect®-compliant digital media receiver (DMR) and also allows for synchronization with iPods® and Windows Mobile®-based portable media players.

Founded by Internet industry pioneer Mike Homer, Open Media Network (www.omn.org) brings leading non-commercial films, shows and video blogs to the online public. OMN boasts a library of educational and documentary programming—free and fee-based—including download-to-own content from producers such as the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), National Geographic, thought-provoking podcasts from leading National Public Radio (NPR) affiliates, and leading independent producers.

“Watching downloaded video content right on a living room or classroom television set is no longer an industry vision, it’s a reality,” said Mike Homer, founder and CEO of OMN. “Using VeriSign’s Intelligent CDN, OMN offers public broadcasters and independent producers the best way to bring their work into the living rooms of people around the world, while consumers can enjoy quality programming on the device they choose. VeriSign and OMN are at the forefront of this emerging trend which we believe will, over time, fundamentally change the way we consume media.”

“OMN is a great example of how the power of the Internet is dramatically changing the landscape of possibilities when it comes to how, when, and on what devices viewers consume the content that matters to them,” said Todd Johnson, senior vice president of global marketing, VeriSign. “The fact that non-profit public broadcasters like BBC and OMN are aggressively pursuing new media platforms to distribute their content is a huge signal as to where the industry is now. The technological and financial barriers to delivering high quality, long form video over the Internet are significantly reduced.”

The VeriSign Intelligent CDN is one of the first content delivery networks to combine the attributes of a traditional CDN with the efficiencies of peer-to-peer technology, as an end- to-end managed service. The scale of VeriSign’s global intelligent infrastructure combined with the patented Kontiki® peer-to-peer technology enables media and entertainment companies to offer a high quality download experience for end users.


About OMN
OMN is a public service dedicated to bringing "media that matters" to the public via the Internet. It gives viewers easy TV Guide® -like access to previously hard-to-find content created by public broadcasters, educational institutions, non-profits and community-based organizations. Based on VeriSign's advanced media delivery technology, OMN provides free and paid audio and video downloads in HD- or DVD-quality. It lets viewers watch their programs on their computers or take their personal OMN libraries mobile. More information can be found at www.omn.org