LONDON, UK – October 7, 2009 - NDS, the leading provider of technology solutions for digital pay-TV, today announced that the Association for Development of Enhanced TV Services and Interactivity AFDESI has awarded NDS Snowflake™ the “Best TV Guide and Portal” at the International ITV awards in Cannes. This is the second award for Snowflake in less than a month, after winning the CSI award for “Best Interactive TV Application or Technology” at IBC 09.

NDS Snowflake was also highly commended in the "Design and Visual Identity for TV" category from French magazine, Strategies, at its 2009 creative awards. This acknowledgement of Snowflake alongside the creative industries signifies a crossover for the UI from a TV technology to a truly creative product.

Snowflake is a high-end user interface (UI) based on a minimalist 3D grid overlaid on live TV. The versatility and ingenuity of Snowflake’s design ensures the same look and feel on any device, including on a 3DTV.

The viewer uses a remote control with a minimal set of six keys. Snowflake provides the same intuitive navigation on all devices including the PC, iPhone or personal media player, etc. The latest version of Snowflake allows pay-TV operators to add widgets, integrate social networking features and incorporate branded space.

“Snowflake has evolved from an elegant design to a fully-featured interface that now incorporates the latest features such as widgets yet still remains true to its original vision of ease of use,” said Caroline Le Bigot, SVP & General Manager EMEA and LATAM, NDS. “These endorsements from AFDESI and Strategies recognise the importance of excellent design in the TV experience. “

To see images of Snowflake, please visit XX

About NDS
NDS Group Ltd. creates the technologies and applications that enable pay-TV operators to securely deliver digital content to TV STBs (set-top boxes), DVRs (digital video recorders), PCs, mobiles and other multimedia devices. Over 70 of the world’s leading pay-TV platforms rely on NDS solutions to protect and enhance their businesses. VideoGuard is the world’s market-leading conditional access (CA) and digital rights management (DRM) technology, currently deployed on 107 million active devices, and safeguarding pay-TV service revenues exceeding $40 billion. NDS middleware, including MediaHighway which enables a host of advanced services for subscribers, has been deployed on 123 million devices. NDS DVR technology, centred around XTV, leads the global industry with 21 million units deployed. (Deployment figures as of 30th June 2009).

Headquartered in the UK, NDS remains committed to investing in R&D with over 75% of its employees dedicated to pioneering work at development centres in China, Denmark, France, India, Israel, Korea, UK and US. NDS has also implemented a host of initiatives aimed at reducing its carbon footprint and helping digital TV subscribers reduce energy consumption.
NDS Group Ltd. is a private company owned by the Permira Funds and News Corporation. See www.nds.com for more information.
Read about the latest developments at NDS and in the pay-TV industry in World Vision.

Click here for the NDS RSS feed.