Deutsche Telekom, IBM team on video delivery system

German incumbent telephone company Deutsche Telekom has teamed with IBM to implement what they say is one of the world's largest digital media content hosting and delivery systems.

The Media Distribution Caching Service (MDCS), launched in Germany on Monday, will allow customers to use DT's IP network to store and deliver large video and audio files faster, more easily and on an on-demand basis, the German operator and the U.S. vendor said in separate statements.

"This is the first deployment of our media distribution system, and we believe it's the largest to be introduced by anyone in the industry so far," IBM spokesman Wolfgang Moehl said.

The system includes an array of IBM technology, including servers, database software and a delivery platform designed especially for carriers, according to Moehl. Also included are storage and delivery products from storage system vendor Network Appliance, in Sunnyvale, Calif.

Whether it's training videos, feature films or live events, the MDCS platform allows content providers to deliver multimedia content to their customers in near real-time or on demand, according to DT. The system supports speeds up to 500K bit/sec while allowing 30,000 terminals to access DT's network simultaneously, and can be further expanded according to demand, the operator said.

DT has Europe's largest base of DSL customers, with over 3.4 million users.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.