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Lukup Player – Device supporting multi-device streaming, On-Demand TV & other features wants users to go social with TV

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Has the “Youtube Offline” advertisement caught your attention? But with the improving internet speed & increasing broadband penetration, “Buffering” would sooner/later be history 🙂 With Telecom companies entering into tug-of-war over “Pricing” in order to woo customers, it is definitely happy time for us !!!

This would also mean that in future, customers can view their favorite videos without/with least amount of buffering [contrast to this advertisement :)]. This would definitely give a huge boost to companies or start-ups that provide On-Demand TV.

Few weeks back, we had a meetup with start-up named Lukup that wants to create a dent in the “On Demand TV” market that is still at a very nascent stage in India but the points discussed above could definitely turn out to be a winner for Lukup. It is a video streaming service offering licensed Indian & international content

Today, we do a walk-through of Lukup’s product called Lukup Player which we personally experienced during the “Blogger’s brain-storming” session.

Click on Image to enlarge

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Lukup Player

Lukup Player is a connected device from Bengaluru based start-up Lukup Media that aims to provide India’s first On-Demand TV service. Using the Lukup Player, consumers will also be able to stream content on more than one screen or devices like TV, tablets, phones etc. The best part is that the “Synchronization” is maintained between the connected devices to ensure better viewing experience.

Setting up the Lukup Player was a very easy task. The player supports multiple options for connectivity i.e. Ethernet, WiFi, Bluetooth that ensures that consumers can view high-quality videos using HDMI input & at the same time, broadcast content using WiFi/Bluetooth.

Features of the Lukup Player

  1. The Lukup Player is easy to set up. Works with your home broadband or WiFi connection.
  2. Personalize your TV experience by creating your profile. You have the option of linking your social network to your profile.
  3. Swipe on the Lukup Player’s touch screen to navigate content on the TV.
  4. Use applications on the Lukup Player to search for content, browse the TV guide and much more.
  5. With the TV guide, choose from a list of on-demand video, audio and broadcast TV channels.

  6. From the context menu for any content title, you can select a screen or device to stream to.
  7. Content is available as pay per view titles or as monthly subscription channels. Subscribe from the context menu.
  8. Stream content to TVs using WiFi and to music systems and headsets using Bluetooth, all at the same time.
  9. Record live TV channels on your unlimited cloud storage drive which starts with 500 GB free storage.
  10. Use the media Storage application to browse and view recorded content anywhere, on any device.

  11. Use the Planning application to view reminders, recording schedules and receive notifications.
  12. Social Integration & Screen synchronization.
  13. Use the Lukup Player as a WiFi hotspot that you can connect your mobile phones, tablets and PC to access the internet.
  14. Play Interactive Games.

Pricing, Variants & Availability

The Lukup player is available in two variants – Lukup player S [without WiFi & multi-screen connectivity] and Lukup Player X [with WiFi & multi-screen]. Lukup Player runs on a 1.7 GHz processor & is loaded with 1 GB of RAM. It has a micro USB port for charging. Lukup Player is exclusively available on Amazon where Lukup Player X is available for Rs. 12,660. As stated in Lukup Player Requirements page:

The Lukup Player requires a single connection to bring TV, interactive content and internet access to homes. A minimum of 2 Mbps for a single screen home and a minimum of 4 Mbps for multi-screen home is recommended.

Instead of using a broadband modem, wireless router and set top box separately, you can just use the Lukup Player that combines all the functions.

Some of the content is package-based, so users can subscribe for fixed amounts each month. There is also a pay-per-view model. We tried playing a couple of movies during the meet-up where Lukup Player X was up for display & we were able to watch HD movies [with some hitches due to WiFi issue at the venue]. Lukup Player X is definitely suited when viewers want to view HD content.

Road Ahead

Piracy is one of the major challenges that is creating a huge challenge for digital media companies. How can we forget that we get the pirated CD/DVD’s being sold openly on roadside(s) the very next day after a movie is released !!! However, Lukup’s Pay Per View [PPV] can provide an answer to curb piracy if it is able to provide digital content at reasonable price !!! As per recent report, Lukup Media is looking to expand its Over-The-Top [OTT] services by acquiring Multi-System Operator [MSO] & Internet Service Provider [ISP] licenses.

Lukup Media has also signed a deal with Widevine for integrating DRM solution. Widevine’s DRM solution provides the capability to license, distribute and protect playback of content on any consumer device. Now Lukup can provide access of protected content to its customers. The content including movies, music and television shows can be accessed to any device even in congested networks [Source – CableQuest]

Lukup Media also encourages developers to use their platform to develop apps for Lukup Player & if you are an Android developer, you should not miss this video.

Closing Thoughts

There has been news that many on-demand media streaming companies have announced to enter India which is the fastest growing market [due to increasing broadband & internet penetration].

Lukup Media has a first-mover advantage & given the interesting features in Lukup Player, it would click with cost-sensitive Indian consumers!!!

[Image Source – Lukup]

[Thanks to Neeva Tiwari from Lukup for the Blogger Invite :)]

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