TDS picks Arris Android TV box for upcoming streaming TV service

TDS has found an Arris Android TV set-top box that will fit the bill for its upcoming cloud-based video service product, TDS TV+.

TDS TV+, which will launch first in TDS’s Oregon markets later this year, features more than 260 linear channels (more than 100 in HD), on-demand content, pay-per-view programming and access to TDS TV Everywhere apps. The service will use the Arris VIP6102W UHD IP set-top box which includes a TiVo user interface, integrated third-party video apps like Netflix and a voice-enabled remote control.

The device also supports 4K resolution viewing, Wi-Fi 5 and configurations using RDK 3.0 and Arris KreaTV software.

“We turned to Arris because we needed a more efficient platform for IP video delivery that combined both managed and un-managed video delivery options. The new platform enables TDS to customize the user experience for different customer segments,” said Ken Paker, senior vice president and chief technology officer at TDS, in a statement.

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Commscope, which owns Arris, said that this will be Arris’s first Android TV set-top deployed in North America.

TDS is also signing on to use Arris Professional Services for help developing a customized user experience, integration into the TDS system and a remote-control firmware upgrade application. Arris’s cloud-based ECO Service Management will help TDS manage the device and provide customer service.

Vicki Villacrez, chief financial officer at TDS Telecom, said during the company’s fiscal first-quarter earnings call that TDS TV+ is designed to help promote the bundling of video services with other TDS products. She said after the TDS TV+ launch in Oregon, the service will get a phased launch throughout the rest of TDS’s wireline and cable footprint.