The deal will enable the website to identify the geographic source location of online users, meaning the company can ensure that access is enabled only for the territories defined by the content distributors.
Much of the content on iLoaded is under specific territorial copyright, meaning that only users from specified geographical locations can access it. The territories are group into the UK, US, Europe and the rest of the World.
ILoaded needs to be able to prove that users from certain locations are only downloading content they are allowed to, otherwise iLoaded would be liable to the content producers. This could lead to legal repercussions as well as impact on advertising revenues.
Gary Morris, CEO, iLoaded, said: “When considering a geolocation data provider we were looking for flexible integration that would meet the requirements of various media sources. Quova’s data has been integrated into a system developed by iLoaded that allows the setting of different levels of territorial restriction based on licensing restrictions. This provides the reassurance that will keep both the broadcaster and the distributor happy.”
Morris indicated that Quova’s track record with other content providers was one of the key issues behind iLoaded’s decision to use the company. “Quova’s experience with the BBC in the UK, RTÉ in Ireland and RaiNet in Italy, was the deciding factor in its selection as the missing piece to our puzzle.”
Using the new service, iLoaded can determine a user’s location down to the city level, as well as their specific internet service provider and connection type.
A report released by Verdict indicated that the UK digital download market was worth £163m in 2007, up 45% on 2006. Digital spending in the UK is expected to hit £600m by 2012, according to the report.
“The digital media download space has really taken off over the past year and we are very happy to be part of iLoaded’s territorial restriction programme. With content providers setting strict guidelines on broadcasting rights, the potential loss of revenue and damage to the reputation are real threats to the download sites. This is where geolocation data is really proving its worth,” said Steve Sawyer, vice president of business development EMEA, Quova.
