Pittsburgh-based Penthera Partners says it has now licensed its multiscreen video download software to Charter Communications (NASDAQ: CHTR) and Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC), while renewing its existing deal with Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA).
The tech company, headed by would-be GreatLand Connections chief Michael Willner, also says it has inked deals with one major content supplier in the U.S., as well as an international content supplier.
The company, which has taken in $11.5 million in funding through seven rounds, has created a software development kit that allows operators to integrate downloadable features into their TV Everywhere products.
Comcast, for example, which has licensed Penthera's product--which it calls "Cache and Carry"--for several years for its Xfinity to Go app, calls the feature spawned from the licensed software solution "Download to Go."
Despite significant investments by MSOs in public Wi-Fi and general broadband connectivity, Penthera sees its solution as the missing link in TV Everywhere, allowing subscribers to reliably view their pay-TV content on mobile devices in out-of-home places.
"It's going to be many years before you can go anywhere you want anytime you want and have unlimited connectivity," Willner told FierceCable.
Penthera is currently developing its second-generation product, which has advanced advertising features that let operators refresh ads that might have gone stale before the subscriber has a change to see their downloaded video.
Wilner, who is a ground-floor investor in Penthera, believes companies like Comcast will begin more aggressive promotion of the technology once the software company licenses more content that can be used with it.
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