Satellite and streaming television broadcaster DirecTV won two Technical & Engineering Emmy Awards this week for the company’s advancements concerning video and advertising deliveries.
On Wednesday, the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) bestowed a Tech Emmy on DirecTV in two categories: Targeted Ad Messages Delivered Across Paused Media and Development of Stream Switching Technology between Satellite Broadcast and Internet to Improve Signal Reliability. In both categories, DirecTV was the sole honoree.
The advertising award was given for DirecTV’s Pause Ad feature, the company’s first omni-platform advanced ad format. The feature inserts advertising whenever a user pauses a live or recorded video, and works across DirecTV’s satellite and streaming platforms.
Pause Ads are available across all DirecTV products and technology stacks, including DirecTV via Satellite, DirecTV via Internet and DirecTV Stream.
The video signal reliability award is connected to DirecTV’s SignalSaver feature, which allows a DirecTV customer with an Internet-connected set-top box to switch between satellite and IPTV versions of a channel seamlessly. The feature is intended to boost the reliability of DirecTV’s service by enabling the set-top box to automatically switch to an Internet-delivered channel with adaptive bitrate technology whenever DirecTV’s signal is low or unavailable due to any number of factors, including earth and solar weather.
SignalSaver now covers more than 1,200 channels on DirecTV, including hundreds of broadcast stations and national cable networks. The feature is available on Internet-connected Genie receivers, according to a DirecTV support page.
“As was true when we launched the pay TV revolution 30 years ago, innovation is in our DNA at DirecTV,” spokesperson Jon Greer said in an email to The Desk this week. “Both Emmy wins highlight our continued commitment to unlock industry-first entertainment experiences for DirecTV customers.”
“The Technology & Engineering Emmy Award was the first Emmy Award issued in 1949, and it laid the groundwork for all the other Emmys to come,” Adam Sharp, the President and CEO of NATAS, said in a statement.
The recipients of the Technology & Emmy Awards will be honored during a ceremony at the 2024 NAB Show in New York City in October.
