24.06.09



Deutsche Telekom is preparing to start receiving entries for its second annual competition inviting developers to showcase their ideas for interactive TV applications.

The Deutsche Telekom Interactive TV Award 2009, which offers cash prizes of a combined EUR 110,000, as well as the chance to work with Deutsche Telekom and Microsoft to bring their idea to life on the telco's IPTV service 'T-Home Entertain', based on the Microsoft Mediaroom middleware platform.

The contest now offers three awards - the Mediaroom Presentation Framework Award for the most imaginative developer, with the five finalists each receiving a EUR 10,000 cash prize, and the winner receiving an extra EUR 30,000. All application concepts submitted for this award will undergo a practical test in Microsoft's Mediaroom Presentation Framework, designed to enable developers to quickly and cost-effectively build and deploy media-rich IPTV services and applications that receive content already available on the Web.

The Freestyle Award for creative minds is intended for interactive TV concepts that are less immediately practical than those submitted for the first award. Each of this award's three finalists will receive a EUR 5,000 cash prize, with the winner receiving an additional EUR 15,000.

The Audience Award is intended to give amateur interactive TV enthusiasts a chance to "paint your picture for the future of TV." All submissions will be voted on by the public, and entrants will also be entered into a prize draw, with the winners receiving such prizes as Xbox 360 games consoles and Microsoft software packages.

Last year's winners were named as the developers Trenfield/Regner for their concept 'PIN- an Instant Information System', which enables viewers to immediately and directly access information about 'things to have, ' people to know' or 'places to be', without interrupting the programming being viewed.

The Deutsche Telekom Interactive TV 2009 awards will be presented at the CeBIT tradeshow next March, following a series of competition stages and events, including a meeting for participating developers at the IFA tradeshow in October.