London – TVT, the managed media services provider, has announced a major expansion that includes the launch of a full Access Services business unit, along with a plan to open a new Los Angeles office during 2017. The moves come as TVT is enjoying strong financial growth, with revenues for the quarter ending March 31 double those for the same period in 2016.

The new TVT Access Services business launch will be bolstered by the appointment of a leading global expert in the area, David Padmore, as International Advisor. He previously held senior management positions at Ericsson, RedBee Media and the BBC, overseeing delivery of Access Services, which include subtitling for deaf and hard-of-hearing people and audio description for those with sight impairments.

“We are definitely in growth mode at the moment,” says Ian Brotherston, TVT’s Chief Executive. “This expansion fits perfectly with the growing demand for international services we are seeing around the world. Broadcasters and content owners are looking to new markets and require a whole range of services to address cultural sensibilities and comply with regulations – including access.”

While the plan to open a Los Angeles office is still in the early stages, it will enable TVT to work more easily with its US clients, which include A+E Networks, Discovery and Hulu – as well as offer a local point of contact for new business opportunities with other key players based in the American market. TVT enables broadcasters and content owners to overcome the complexities of creative content versioning and compliance for programmes being viewed in international markets.

The announcements cap a strong period overall for TVT: Full-year results for the financial year ending on March 31saw revenue growth of 50% over 2015/2016, while revenues for January to March alone were double the same quarter the previous year. This strong performance has been fed largely by business growth in Southeast Asia and Japan, Brotherston notes.

In launching Access Services, TVT is building on the access and localisation services it already provides to the BBC, Netflix and others.

“We are now formalising Access Services as a core business by adding additional features to ContentSelect, our workflow and media management platform, to make the process easier to manage and more cost-effective,” notes Brotherston. “And David Padmore adds a whole new level of expertise and experience in this area that will be of huge benefit to our clients.”

Padmore adds: “There is a growing requirement for content access in different markets – driven by consumer demand, regulatory pressures and increased awareness of corporate responsibility. As more content moves onto over-the-top and on-demand platforms around the globe, managing this process in an effective fashion and ensuring that accessibility is maintained across platforms will become crucial for international operators. The fact that TVT is already a global player is a huge advantage. ”

Padmore explains the initial focus for TVT Access Services will be on the UK, but he expects the company to swiftly build the business from its other major locations in Singapore, Australia and Japan. He expects integration with the ContentSelect platform to help in quickly building out TVT’s offering.

“Building accessibility directly into the content processing workflow is still a rarity in the industry and the TVT approach allows operators to add subtitles and audio description in line with the wider compliance and metadata-gathering processes without incurring huge additional cost or delay,” says Padmore. “There is some real innovation here for broadcasters in terms of efficiency and the value for money they derive from their access services spend.”