Archive for the ‘IPTV and VOD’ Category

How clean is your house?

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

202_113_KNAThis month we have encoded over 100 episodes of hit series ‘How clean is your house?’ for international distribution.    How clean is your house features Kim and Aggie, Britain’s most famous dust-busting, mildew-murdering divas as they swiffer their way through some of the world’s most repulsive homes.

The series was first broadcast in 2003 and is in it’s eighth season.  It has been successfully aired in 17 countries and is number one in it’s time slot in Denmark, New Zealand, Finland and the Netherlands.   The girls have also crossed the Atlantic and have made two series in the USA.

Once encoded the required to MPEG2  format, the files pass though quality control and are delivered to a secure site. Once there, the files can be accessed globally for future use.

Summerton Mill – now on iTunes

Monday, March 22nd, 2010

202_113_STownThe second series of children’s favourite Summerton Mill will be available on iTunes from 5th April.   The release follows the UK success of the first series on CBeebies and BBC2.  The show is also popular in several European and Middle Eastern Countries.

Summerton Mill stars Dan, his sidekick Fluffa the dog and the Naybur family who live up the Hill.   It is a delightful world inspired by creator Pete Bryden’s own secluded 17th century mill, (Somerton Mill) in rural Oxfordshire.

re:fine created the DVDs of the first series which are available on Amazon, the DVDs were a tremendous success and led  the iTunes release is ideal for babies on the move!

Balls of steel goes to Hulu

Sunday, March 21st, 2010

202_113_ballsThe latest addition to American platform Hulu is British comedy ‘Balls of Steel’

For those not in the loop, Mark Dolan’s Balls of Steel challenges a team of comedians and performers to a range of stupid stunts, undercover set-ups and loads more hilarious things to prove that they have ‘Balls of steel’.

Episodes uploaded to the platform feature the characters ‘Scummy Mummy’,(the worst mother in the world), ‘Mr Inappropriate’ and ‘The Annoying Devil’.

Thinking of putting your content online?

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010

itunesre:fine can help you expand your reach and connect with new audiences.

As a starting point, why not talk to us about making your content available on iTunes.  We offer the complete iTunes package from pitching, negotiation & processing to delivery, revenue collection & royalty payments.  We also have relationships in place with many of the top digital platforms around the globe.

It really works – one of our clients, an independent UK film producer, spent £300 on content processing for a new release onto iTunes, and grossed over £3,000 in the first month.

For our rate card and a get started guide email info @ refine-group.com or call your contact at re:fine.

Eagle lands 100 million views

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

eminiem_largePopular YouTube channel Eagle Rock TV celebrated an incredible 100 million views this month. The channel has over 28,000 subscribers and is home to live music and video from some of the world’s greatest bands.

Featuring a diverse collection of artistic talent, including Alicia Keys, Iron Maiden, The Beatles, Tupac and Andrew Lloyd Webber, it’s no wonder the channel is so popular.

Eagle house their digital library at re:fine.  Each track is edited and transcoded before the Eagle TV idents are applied and the tracks are uploaded for the millions of fans to enjoy.

Search for tracks at   http://www.youtube.com/eaglerocktv

iTunes uploads – big names, big films, big hopes!

Sunday, February 21st, 2010

love_largeJennifer Aniston’s latest comedy Love Happens hits iTunes this month via re:fine. Co-starring The Dark Knight’s Aaron Eckhart, Love Happens is about redemption, truth, loyalty, love and above all things… hope.

And if anyone is experiencing hope this month it’s Carey Mulligan.  British newcomer Mulligan stars in the Oscar-nominated An Education, playing a schoolgirl who has a destructive affair with an older man, practically ruining her chances at a higher education.   Mulligan won this year’s BAFTA for best actress and has been nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars, so a lot of hopes rest on March 7th for the team behind An Education.  See it the day after – it’s released on iTunes on March 8th.

Twilight New Moon – on Playstation Networks

Friday, February 19th, 2010

Twilight: New Moon, the latest instalment of the smash-hit vampire series, is now available on the Playstation Network thanks to re:fine.

twi_largeNew Moon is the second film in the extremely popular series following the lives of ill-fated lovers Edward and Bella, but this time with an added helping of abs-flashing werewolves and the introduction to the red-eyed Volturi.

The Playstation network is becoming an increasingly important platform for viewing and downloading SD and HD content, with recent statistics from the BBC suggesting that PS3 owners account for 8% of iPlayer traffic. As more fantastically popular films such as the Twilight franchise appear, it looks as though the Playstation Network is becoming a force to be reckoned with.

Cutting it – with Steven Carey

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

carey_largeVideo of Steven Carey’s world famous hair designs is now available for viewing on line.

London hair designer Steven Carey is famous for his avante garde styles, and provides hair styling and art direction at The Collections showcases as well as in the pages of such industry-respected magazines as Vogue, Elle and Harpers.

Steve Carey hosts seminars and hair shows as well as running his exclusive Mayfair salon. For the first time his tutorials and inspirational styling can now be viewed on his website.

re:write – the re:fine metadata tool

Wednesday, February 17th, 2010

ollys tool_largeFrom this month clients delivering their titles to multiple platforms can make use of our online metadata interface.

The intuitive new tool was developed by one of our in-house programmers.  Cast, crew, sales and release information can be submitted once for fast and accurate delivery to video on demand platforms such as iTunes and Hulu.

Hollyoaks goes North

Monday, December 7th, 2009

hollyoaks

Thanks to re:fine, the good people of Norway never miss an episode of British teen favourite Hollyoaks.  TV2, Norway’s largest commercial broadcaster, airs the show every week day.  Each week we receive 5 episodes on Digi Beta from production company Lime, which we clone and ship to TV2 in time for localisation and transmission across Norway.  Making a digital master file of all episodes at the time of cloning has proved a fantastic resource, not only for any future deliveries, but to circumnavigate those pesky customs officers.