PRESS RELEASE
Bristol and Reading, UK, June 6, 2012 - In order to combat the emerging threat of malware infections on Smart TVs, Ocean Blue Software has partnered with IT security leader Sophos to develop a cloud-based antivirus solution that can be shipped either as part of the Ocean Blue middleware or as a stand-alone client for solutions with their own middleware.
According to Futuresource Consulting, by 2015 over 80 percent of new televisions and set-top boxes will be Internet-ready. As many of these products will be based on either Linux or Android, they will be capable of downloading and running remote applications. While this connectivity brings many new features, it also exposes these devices to potential viruses and other malware, making antivirus protection essential.
The new Ocean Blue solution was a joint effort based on the combined forces of SophosLabs advanced antivirus expertise and the category-leading Ocean Blue Software Television and Set top Box middleware. The end result protects against the maximum number of threats, with the lowest demand on system resources.
"Almost all new connected TV products are at risk from malware" says Ken Helps, founder and CEO of Ocean Blue Software. "This partnership with Sophos will allow us to provide manufacturers with middleware already prepared to defend their products against attack."
"Most consumers don't realize that Smart TVs are just as vulnerable to threats as other devices," said Michael Rogers, Vice president, global alliances and OEM. "This partnership with Ocean Blue Software provides tremendous opportunity to allow consumers to take advantage of the features Smart TVs offer, while ensuring their home networks remain secure."
About Ocean Blue Software
Ocean Blue Software is a software technology company, based in Bristol, Hong Kong and Japan. Specialising in the development, distribution and support of award-winning world-class software solutions, which are incorporated into Digital TV consumer electronics products, present in the Connected Home.
Ocean Blue's software products stand out in terms of maturity, usability, operability and adherence to international digital broadcast standards, notably DVB, DTG, HbbTV and ETSI. Ocean Blue is active in DTV standard groups, assisting in the development of industry software standards.
Ocean Blue's new software developments include support for High Definition (HD) TV broadcasts, Advanced Text-to-Speech technology, CI Plus and Connected-TV solutions, such as HbbTV.
For further information please visit oceanbluesoftware.com.
About Sophos
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing complete security solutions that are simple to deploy, manage, and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, mobile and network security solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.
