Inuk Networks announced the launch of Freewire TV – a new service that uses multicast to deliver broadcast quality television over closed IP networks. Aiming to provide all consumers in the UK with added choice in who supplies them with multichannel television, this new service will deliver a solution for the "digitally disenfranchised" – the 6 million+ households unable to receive high quality digital television by other means.

Freewire TV currently offers a range of UK and international free-to-air digital television channels. The service is available initially to the 500,000 students in university halls of residence who are able to access the Freewire TV service via the existing high speed JANET network, which connects all higher and further education establishments in the UK.

Inuk also announced today the first two customers for its Freewire TV service. The company has signed contracts with The University of Leeds and The University of Liverpool, to supply their students living in halls of residence with broadcast quality digital television delivered over Inuk's Freewire platform.

Freewire TV gives universities the facility to offer their resident students access to multiple channels of television by implementing the Freewire TV service with very little effort or cost and without having to install any additional capital equipment.

"True IPTV services such as Freewire TV replicate exactly the same broadcast quality experience that customers are used to receiving on TV" said Marcus Liassides, CEO of Inuk Networks. "Our ability to guarantee this aspect of the service is something that is clearly important to both broadcasters and viewers."

"Inuk is currently working with local loop unbundlers and service providers to ensure that the Freewire TV service has the widest reach possible. Providing ISPs and telcos with a digital TV solution that can be packaged up with services including voice and broadband access is proving very compelling to the industry," continued Liassides.

The new service can be delivered over any multicast enabled IP network. Using highly bandwidth efficient, multicast technology, which allows a large number of channels to be carried without significant network loading, programming content is fed into the network only once. To minimise bandwidth consumption while maximising picture quality the content is encoded into MPEG 4 H.264 for secure delivery over closed-loop IP (Internet Protocol) networks.

"By delivering the service over closed-loop IP networks we can offer the guarantee that at no point will content touch the public Internet, so delivering peace of mind to media owners and assuring them that their content is delivered in true broadcast resolution," continued Liassides.

Inuk Network's Freewire delivery platform, over which the Freewire TV service runs, is capable of managing not only the delivery of hundreds of channels of video content but also a carrier class VoIP solution and broadband Internet access. Inuk is looking to add premium channels and content as well as a residential offering in early 2007. Inuk Networks began technical trials in early 2006 with UKERNA – the organisation that manages the operation and development of the JANET network – and this collaboration enables any UK university to offer their students a full broadcast television service over their local area network.