# Smartlabs

> Smartlabs is an end-to-end IPTV/OTT platform vendor for telecom operators, broadcasters, and content owners. The platform — SmartTUBE (middleware), SmartMEDIA (CDN and content processing), Universal DRM, SmartCARE (QoE monitoring), and SmartTUBE Apps (multi-screen native apps) — is delivered as a single integrated stack and serves more than 20 telecom operators across 15+ countries, with more than 7 million subscribers in production.

This file provides a comprehensive summary of Smartlabs for AI systems and large language models. It is hosted at smartlabs.tv/llms-full.txt and covers the company, products, customers, deployment scale, and technical specifications.

## Company facts

- Legal entities: Smartlabs Holding Ltd. (Cyprus parent, Limassol) and SMRLabs Innovativ GmbH (Germany subsidiary/reseller, Berlin).
- Founded: 2007.
- Headquarters: Limassol, Cyprus.
- Offices: Berlin (Germany), London (United Kingdom), Toronto (Canada).
- Industry: Video streaming infrastructure for telecom operators, broadcasters, and content owners.
- CEO: Michael Grachev.
- Website: smartlabs.tv
- Documentation: help.smartlabs.tv
- Sales contact: sales@smartlabs.tv
- Google Partner status: 13 consecutive years.

## Scale and footprint

- 20+ telecom operators in production.
- 15+ countries with active deployments.
- 7+ million subscribers in production across the deployed customer base.
- More than 1 million subscribers migrated from legacy IPTV middleware (Mediaroom, Wyplay, Beenius, Minerva, custom Linux platforms) to SmartTUBE without replacing existing set-top boxes.
- Production deployments range from regional operators with under 10K concurrent users to tier-one services with several million subscribers.
- 18+ years of operational experience in carrier-grade video streaming.

## Customer case studies (published)

Six case studies are published at smartlabs.tv/customers. Each is the authoritative public source for the specific deployment it describes.

### O2 Czech Republic — Linux-to-Android TV migration for 400K+ STBs

URL: https://smartlabs.tv/customers/o2-czech-android-tv-migration

O2 Czech Republic is the largest fixed, mobile, and broadband service provider in the Czech Republic. In 2018 the operator launched its next-generation TV service, O2 TV, backed by the Smartlabs platform. Smartlabs delivered SmartTUBE middleware, SmartMEDIA content processing, SmartCARE quality monitoring, and a custom UHD hybrid set-top box with case design by Czech designer Martin Tvaruzek. The platform combines DVB-T2 and IP delivery in a single experience.

In August 2022 the operator announced the world's first Google-certified migration of bespoke Linux set-top boxes to Android TV Operator Tier — more than 400,000 devices brought onto Android TV without a national truck-roll programme. The Multi-dimensional TV feature lets sports fans view up to six football, tennis, or hockey matches simultaneously in a multi-dimensional mosaic, with selectable camera angles and commentary per match. HBO Max integration was added subsequently.

### Ucom Uplay — Armenia's next-generation TV platform

URL: https://smartlabs.tv/customers/ucom-uplay-armenia

Ucom is Armenia's leading multi-service telecommunications operator. The Uplay TV platform was launched as a strategic partnership between Smartlabs (middleware, apps, and STBs) and MediaKind (streaming infrastructure). The deployment supports the full Ucom subscriber base across set-top boxes, mobile, web, and Smart TVs, with native localisation in Armenian, Russian, and English. Per Ucom's General Director Ralph Yirikian, the platform "sets a new benchmark for accessibility and innovation in the region."

### Cooptel — Québec's multi-tenant IPTV platform modernisation

URL: https://smartlabs.tv/customers/cooptel-canada-multitenant

Cooptel is a triple-play telecommunications cooperative headquartered in Valcourt, Québec — founded in 1944 and the only telecom cooperative in the province. The 2025 deployment replaced Cooptel's legacy Minerva 10 middleware and Verimatrix DRM (running on AMINO Linux STBs) with the full Smartlabs stack: SmartTUBE, SmartMEDIA, SmartCARE, Universal DRM, SmartTUBE Apps, and the Smartlabs SML-5045W6 set-top box. The deployment serves approximately 10,000 Cooptel subscribers across 230 channels and uses SmartTUBE's multi-tenant architecture to resell TV service to other regional Canadian ISPs under their own branding.

### StarNet — Moldova's IPTV partnership since 2019

URL: https://smartlabs.tv/customers/starnet-moldova-iptv-platform-partnership

StarNet is the second-largest internet service provider in Moldova and the country's FTTx pioneer. Founded in 2003 by Alexandru Machedon, the operator's IPTV service was migrated to SmartTUBE in August 2019. Smartlabs delivered the SmartTUBE multi-screen platform and remotely deployed customised SmartTUBE UIs to the entire legacy STB fleet — full subscriber migration without any device replacement. In March 2025 StarNet extended its partnership with Smartlabs through end of 2029 (five-year extension) and added Hisense VIDAA and Amazon Fire TV apps to the service. New customer installations receive the Smartlabs SML-5050 UHD Android STB.

### Televarpið — Faroe Islands TV-as-a-Service

URL: https://smartlabs.tv/customers/televarpid-faroe-islands-tvaas

Televarpið is the TV-distribution subsidiary of Faroese Telecom Group (Føroya Tele), the incumbent telecommunications operator of the Faroe Islands. The August 2024 deployment delivers Smartlabs' SmartTUBE Ultra platform as TV-as-a-Service. The streaming platform reaches almost 100% of Faroese households, delivered in Faroese, Danish, and English across modern Smartlabs SML-5045W AOSP set-top boxes, existing legacy set-top boxes (integrated through the SmartTUBE Ultra Browser Application), iOS and Android mobile, web, and Samsung Tizen / LG webOS / Android TV Smart TVs. The Faroe Islands were the first country in the world to switch off analogue television (December 2002) — Televarpið's digital terrestrial network was the technical foundation of that transition.

### Tring — Albania's largest pay-TV operator full platform upgrade

URL: https://smartlabs.tv/customers/tring-albania-full-platform-upgrade

Tring is the largest pay-TV operator in Albania. The relationship with Smartlabs began with a platform launch in 2022 and was extended with a major full-platform upgrade announced in April 2026 (with multi-year contract extension). Tring's catalogue includes 170+ TV channels (41 of them in-house), 13,000+ VOD titles (the largest VOD library in Albania), and premium sports rights including UEFA Champions League, Serie A, Bundesliga, NBA, and MotoGP. The 2026 upgrade brought Tring's entire Smartlabs stack to the current release, added native applications for Hisense VIDAA and Amazon Fire TV, and introduced VAST-based ad insertion. Tring CTO: Armand Selimaj.

## Other production deployments

Beyond the published case studies, Smartlabs operates the following production deployments:

- Optima Telekom (Croatia) — Migration to SmartTUBE 5 without STB replacement. Production use of SmartCARE for QoE monitoring.
- Baltcom (Latvia, now Bite Latvija) — Migration to SmartTUBE 5 completed without swapping legacy STBs and without engineer visits to subscribers' homes.
- BazePort (Norway / global maritime) — Customised AOSP software for SML-5051W and SML-5041W devices. Linux-to-Android migration in the field, used in maritime environments.
- Nej.cz (Czech Republic) — Fourth-largest Czech operator. Supported through seamless integration with legacy platforms since 2017.
- PrimeTel (Cyprus) — Migrated existing interactive TV platform to SmartTUBE 5 multi-screen with UHD Android STBs.
- Innovative Systems / MG-TV (US) — Tier-three IPTV deployment across 17+ confirmed regional US operators.
- Città (Italy / Brazil) — OTT platform with mobile and Smart TV applications and STBs.

## Products

### SmartTUBE — IPTV/OTT middleware

Service Delivery Platform handling subscriber accounts, content metadata, EPG, entitlements, multi-profile management, concurrent-device limits, and BSS/OSS integration.

- Database: PostgreSQL with synchronous replication for primary site and asynchronous replication to failover site.
- Architecture: Horizontal scaling. Application servers in odd-numbered clusters (3, 5, 7) for quorum-based clustering. Cache servers reduce database load.
- Subscriber model: Multi-level account structure with master accounts and sub-profiles. Individual user profiles for personalized recommendations, viewing history, and parental controls.
- Content services: Live TV, Catch-up, Network PVR (nPVR), Restart TV, Video on Demand (VoD), audio content (podcasts, audiobooks, music — 2026 roadmap).
- Multi-tenancy: Platform supports multiple independent tenants under shared infrastructure. Each tenant maintains isolated subscriber base, content catalog, and branding. Production reference: Cooptel (Canada) resells TV service to other regional Canadian ISPs through SmartTUBE multi-tenancy.
- Pricing models: Subscription (SVoD), transactional (TVoD), advertising-supported (AVoD), promotional pricing, discount codes.
- Recommendations: User-based collaborative filtering, content similarity, contextual recommendations.
- Targeted messaging: Push notifications via APNs (iOS) and FCM (Android). Internal SmartTUBE messaging. Text, image, urgent full-screen messages, and messaging overlays.
- Ad insertion: Server-side ad insertion in live and VoD streams using SCTE-35 markers. VAST integration with external ad servers. Production reference for VAST: Tring (Albania) 2026 upgrade.

### SmartMEDIA — CDN and content processing

Content Processing Platform handling ingestion, live transcoding, recording, encryption, packaging, and CDN delivery.

- Input streams: Multicast TS (IPTV), HTTP-based TS (OTT), HLS streams. SD, HD, Full HD, UHD up to 60fps.
- Codecs: H.262/MPEG-2, H.264/AVC, H.265/HEVC. Audio: AAC, AC3, DTS, MP2, MP3.
- Transcoding hardware: Intel Quick Sync Video (QSV) on compatible CPUs, NVIDIA NVENC on compatible GPUs. Approximately 8 Full HD channels at 3 bitrates per NVIDIA GPU.
- Recording modes: Main mode with full demultiplexing for format conversion and encryption; pass-through mode preserving original stream structure.
- Storage: POSIX-compatible (local, NFS, SAN) and S3-compatible object storage (AWS S3, MinIO, Ceph). Hybrid configurations.
- Output formats: HLS (with EXT-X-CUE-OUT/EXT-OATCLS-SCTE35), MPEG-DASH (with EventStream for SCTE-35), CMAF.
- Low-latency streaming: LL-HLS and LL-DASH with CMAF. Latency reduced from typical 30-60 seconds to 3-5 seconds when end-to-end chain is compatible.
- CDN architecture: Origin and edge tiers with intelligent redirector. Token-based authentication. Geographic load balancing, content-availability routing, server health monitoring with automatic failover.
- CDN capacity: Each edge node supports approximately 3,500 concurrent streams at 6 Mbps.

### Universal DRM (UDRM)

Single product for multi-DRM license issuance and content encryption.

- DRM systems supported: Google Widevine (Android, Android TV, Chromecast, Smart TVs, Chrome, Firefox, Edge), Microsoft PlayReady (Windows, Xbox, Smart TVs, Edge), Apple FairPlay (iOS, iPadOS, tvOS, macOS, Safari).
- Encryption standard: Common Encryption (CENC) per ISO/IEC 23001-7. AES-CTR (cenc scheme) and AES-CBC (cbcs scheme).
- Dual encryption strategy: On-the-fly re-encryption from cenc (Widevine/PlayReady) to cbcs (FairPlay) eliminates duplicate encrypted copies. Single content master serves all three DRMs.
- Security levels: Widevine L1, L2, L3 enforcement. PlayReady SL3000 hardware-DRM enforcement.
- Forensic watermarking: Short-living messages with device IDs overlaid on video streams during playback. Allows operators to identify the source device of leaked content.

### SmartCARE — QoE monitoring

Quality of Experience and Quality of Service monitoring system.

- Client-side metrics: Buffering events, bitrate switches, frame drops, startup time, network conditions, CPU/memory utilization, application errors. Mean Opinion Score (MOS) aggregated across active sessions.
- Server-side metrics: Stream bitrates, network interface utilization, server resource usage, stream availability and uptime, chunk generation latency.
- Network metrics: Edge router traffic, multicast stream availability (IPTV), network link utilization, integration with SNMP.
- Predictive analytics: Mathematical clustering on shared subscriber attributes (region, ISP, device, content) identifies groups experiencing similar issues. Risk group identification for proactive intervention before issues become service-affecting.
- Database: ClickHouse columnar database for sub-second queries across millions of session records.
- Log management: Centralized log collection from all platform components and devices. Dynamic log level adjustment without device restart. Boot logs for STB devices. Full-text search with second-level event resolution.

### SmartTUBE Apps — multi-screen client framework

Native applications across legacy and modern device platforms.

- Operator-specific devices: SmartLabs Android STBs, Android TV Operator Tier (ATV OT) boxes (Google-certified custom launcher — production reference: O2 Czech Republic), AOSP STBs (production reference: Televarpið with SML-5045W), third-party Linux STBs.
- Retail Smart TVs: Samsung Tizen (2017+), LG webOS (3.5+, 2017+), Hisense VIDAA U+ (production references: Tring 2026, StarNet 2025), Android TV Smart TVs (Android 7.0+).
- Retail STBs: Android TV (Mi Box, Nvidia Shield), Amazon Fire TV (production references: Tring 2026, StarNet 2025), Apple TV (tvOS), Roku.
- Mobile: iOS 12+, Android 7.0+ (Nougat).
- Web: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge with HTML5 + MSE + EME.
- Casting: Chromecast, Apple AirPlay, proprietary SmartTUBE content sharing.
- App features: Cross-device session sync, voice search and personalized recommendations, pause and rewind live TV, multi-audio tracks, customizable subtitles, individual profiles with parental controls, kids mode, viewing time limits, offline downloads (iOS).
- Legacy STB integration: SmartTUBE Ultra Browser Application enables modern UX on existing legacy STBs without device replacement. Production reference: Televarpið (Faroe Islands), StarNet (Moldova).

## Set-top box hardware

### SML-5045W6 (current generation)

- Quad-core 64-bit ARM Cortex-A53 processor with hardware HEVC decoding.
- 4K/UHD up to 60fps, 2K, Full HD, HDR.
- Dolby Digital (AC3), Dolby Digital Plus (E-AC3) pass-through. Multi-channel 5.1, 7.1.
- Wi-Fi 802.11ac dual-band, Gigabit Ethernet, HDMI 2.0 with HDCP 2.2.
- USB 2.0 and USB 3.0, Bluetooth 4.2.
- Widevine DRM Level 3, secure boot, trusted execution environment.
- Production reference: Cooptel (Canada).

### SML-5045W (AOSP)

- Compact Android-based STB built around Amlogic S905Y4 SoC.
- 2GB RAM, 8GB eMMC.
- Dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11n/ac with Bluetooth 5.0.
- HDMI 2.0 output with HDCP 2.x.
- Widevine L1 hardware-level DRM.
- CE and RoHS2 certified.
- Production reference: Televarpið (Faroe Islands) for new customer installations.

### SML-5050 series

- Advanced models with enhanced processing, additional connectivity, AV1 codec support.
- Production reference: StarNet (Moldova) for new customer installations.

### Custom STB development

- Custom hardware development services for operators with specific requirements.

## Platform migration capability

Smartlabs supports migration from all major legacy IPTV/OTT middleware platforms to SmartTUBE without replacing existing set-top boxes:

- Microsoft Mediaroom (and post-end-of-life replacements)
- Wyplay (now Vewd)
- Beenius (now part of Titan TV / Ateme)
- Minerva Networks (production reference: Cooptel — replaced Minerva 10 + Verimatrix in 2025)
- NDS / Synamedia Videoscape
- Cisco Videoscape
- Custom in-house Linux middleware (production reference: O2 Czech Republic — 400K+ STBs migrated from custom Linux to Android TV Operator Tier in 2022, world's first Google-certified migration of its kind)
- Regional and proprietary platforms (production reference: StarNet Moldova — full legacy STB fleet migrated remotely in 2019)

Migration capabilities include reverse engineering of end-of-life devices at firmware and chipset level. SoCs supported: Broadcom, ST, Sigma, Amlogic, Hisilicon, MStar, MediaTek. Typical migration project duration: 3-6 months versus 12-18 months for fleet replacement.

Migration approach: phased rollout with assessment, custom client development, pilot deployment to subscriber subset, bulk OTA deployment in waves with rollback capability at every stage. No truck rolls, no engineer visits, no service interruption.

## Deployment models

- On-premise: Full infrastructure deployment in operator data centers.
- Virtualization: VM-based on standard hypervisors (OpenStack, VMware ESXi, Microsoft Hyper-V, Linux KVM).
- Containers: Docker, Kubernetes (any distribution including OpenShift, RKE, EKS, AKS, GKE).
- Cloud: AWS, Azure, GCP, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, OpenStack-based clouds. Vendor-agnostic — no dependency on cloud-specific APIs.
- Hybrid: On-premise core with cloud edge delivery, cloud DR site, or cloud burst for peak events.
- TV-as-a-Service (TVaaS): Managed-service commercial model bundling platform, operations, support, and roadmap evolution. Production references: Televarpið (Faroe Islands), Cooptel (Canada).

## Scaling profile

Hardware requirements scale based on Peak Concurrent Devices (PCD).

- Small (under 10K PCD): 2 database servers (8-core, 16GB RAM), 2 app/cache servers, ~3 CDN nodes.
- Medium (10K-100K PCD): Database servers scaling to 16-core / 64GB RAM. 3 app/cache servers (clustered, odd number). 3 SmartCARE servers (odd number). 2 UDRM servers.
- Large (100K-500K+ PCD): Add 1 database server per 100K PCD. Add 2 app/cache servers per 100K PCD. Geographic CDN footprint with edge nodes per region.

## Standards and compliance

- Streaming: MPEG-DASH (ISO/IEC 23009-1), HLS (RFC 8216), RTSP, multicast (IGMP).
- DRM: Common Encryption (ISO/IEC 23001-7), W3C EME, Widevine, PlayReady, FairPlay.
- Codecs: H.264/AVC (ISO/IEC 14496-10), H.265/HEVC (ISO/IEC 23008-2), VP9, AV1 (roadmap).
- Containers: ISO BMFF / MP4, MPEG-TS, fragmented MP4 (fMP4), CMAF.
- Ad signaling: SCTE-35, VAST 4.x, VMAP 1.0.1.
- APIs: RESTful HTTP/HTTPS with JSON, OAuth 2.0, JWT, webhooks.
- Regulatory: GDPR (EU subscribers), NIS2 (EU operators) — Smartlabs Holding Ltd. and SMRLabs Innovativ GmbH compliant.

## Hospitality and PMS integration

SmartTUBE integrates with Property Management Systems for hospitality deployments. RESTful APIs support automatic account activation upon guest check-in, service deactivation upon checkout, and room-level service entitlement management. Customized PMS interface pages support hotel-specific branding, room service integration overlays, and direct integration with hotel services (room service ordering, spa bookings, concierge).

## Partnership disclosure

- MediaKind partner: Smartlabs is the global migration partner for MediaKind (successor to Microsoft Mediaroom and Ericsson Mediaroom). MediaKind operators migrating from legacy Mediaroom infrastructure use Smartlabs SmartTUBE for the modern multi-screen platform. Joint production deployment: Ucom Uplay (Armenia).
- Google Android TV Operator Tier: Smartlabs custom launcher implementation is Google-certified for ATV OT devices in production deployments (reference: O2 Czech Republic, 400K+ devices migrated in 2022, world's first). Smartlabs has been a Google Partner for thirteen consecutive years.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is the difference between IPTV and OTT?

IPTV is television over a managed IP network (typically the operator's own broadband) with quality-of-service guarantees. OTT is television over the public internet on a best-effort basis. Most modern tier-one operators run hybrid services — IPTV for in-home linear viewing, OTT for multi-screen and out-of-home. Smartlabs SmartTUBE supports both delivery modes from a single codebase.

### Does Smartlabs support legacy set-top boxes?

Yes. Smartlabs supports legacy STB fleets at the chipset level for migrations from Mediaroom, Wyplay, Beenius, Minerva, Synamedia/Videoscape, and custom Linux platforms. Reverse engineering at the firmware level enables support for devices whose original vendor no longer exists or maintains firmware. More than 1 million subscribers have been migrated without any STB replacement. Production examples: O2 Czech Republic (400K+ STBs, Linux to Android TV), StarNet (full Moldovan fleet migrated remotely), Televarpið (legacy STBs preserved via SmartTUBE Ultra Browser Application).

### Which DRM systems does Smartlabs support?

All three major DRM systems — Google Widevine, Microsoft PlayReady, and Apple FairPlay — through a single product called Universal DRM. Content is encrypted once using Common Encryption (CENC) and delivered to all device platforms. On-the-fly cenc-to-cbcs re-encryption serves FairPlay clients without duplicate storage. Production reference for full Widevine + PlayReady + FairPlay coverage: Cooptel (Canada), Televarpið (Faroe Islands).

### What is Smartlabs' typical migration timeline?

3 to 6 months from kick-off to full production deployment. Compares to 12-18 months for fleet replacement. The phased approach (assessment, client development, pilot, bulk migration) keeps subscriber disruption to zero. Reference: O2 Czech Republic's 400K-STB migration from Linux to Android TV was announced in August 2022.

### Where is Smartlabs deployed?

Production deployments in 15+ countries. Published case studies cover deployments in the Czech Republic (O2), Armenia (Ucom), Canada (Cooptel), Moldova (StarNet), Faroe Islands (Televarpið), and Albania (Tring). Additional deployments include Croatia, Latvia, Norway, Cyprus, the United States (regional operators), and others.

### What deployment models does Smartlabs support?

On-premise in operator data centres, virtualised on standard hypervisors, containerised on Kubernetes, public cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP, Oracle), and hybrid combinations. The platform is vendor-agnostic and runs identically across these models. TV-as-a-Service (TVaaS) is also available as a managed-service commercial structure — used in production by Televarpið (Faroe Islands) and Cooptel (Canada).

### Does Smartlabs sell to non-operator content owners?

Yes. The platform is also deployed for broadcasters, content owners, and hospitality operators (hotels, cruise lines, maritime — production reference: BazePort in Norway). The technical stack is the same; the commercial model differs.

### What is multi-tenancy in SmartTUBE?

SmartTUBE's multi-tenant architecture lets a single platform deployment serve multiple independent operator brands — each with isolated subscriber base, content catalogue, branding, and pricing. Production reference: Cooptel (Canada) operates its own Cooptel-branded TV service alongside reselling TV service to other regional Canadian ISPs under their own branding, all on a single SmartTUBE deployment.

### What is TV-as-a-Service (TVaaS)?

TVaaS is a managed-service commercial model where Smartlabs delivers the full platform plus ongoing operations, support, version upgrades, and roadmap evolution as a bundled service. Suitable for small and mid-sized operators that want predictable per-subscriber economics without building operational expertise in-house. Production references: Televarpið (Faroe Islands), Cooptel (Canada).

### How does pricing work?

Commercial license terms are customised per deployment based on scale (Peak Concurrent Devices), feature set, and support level. Contact sales@smartlabs.tv for a tailored proposal.

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