We’re all
familiar with TBN’s Praise-a-Thons to raise money for new satellites—and many
have watched TBN streaming live on its website. Now, the world’s largest
religious broadcaster is getting ready to take global to the next level through
Internet Protocol Television, or IPTV.
TBN
has inked a deal with an Internet-based IPTV broadcaster called World
Inspirational Network (WIN).
When WIN launches in early 2011, hundreds of millions of people around the
world will have instant access to live Christian television, church services,
ministry programs, and faith-and-family programming.
The on-demand
model means viewers can watch what they want when they want from any place with
an Internet connection 24 hours a day. Besides TBN, WIN will also offer
programming from GOD TV, Daystar, Inspiration and the Parable movie network,
among many others.
While quality
faith-and-family television has exploded in popularity over the last few years,
Paul Crouch Jr., TBN’s chief of staff, notes that many
cable and satellite providers have limited the number of inspirational channels
they offer subscribers to a small handful. That’s where WIN comes into play.
“Through WIN,
viewers will have convenient access at home or on the road to a virtual
treasure trove of the best Christian networks in the world, including our TBN
flagship network, as well as the Church Channel, JCTV youth network, TBN Enlace USA
Spanish language network, and our Smile of a Child children’s network,”
Crouch says.
How does it
work? WIN co-founder and chairman Michael Jay Solomon,
a media veteran who headed both Lorimar Telepictures and
Warner Bros. International Television, says IPTV technology allows his
company to take a vast body of inspirational programming and make it available
to viewers right over their television sets.
“With the use of
a wireless HD set-top box attached to their TVs, viewers will be able to tune
in to WIN and have 24-hour access to the best in live inspirational programming
from networks like TBN and its five faith-and-family channels, along with
archived church services and ministry programs, their favorite Christian movies
and music, concerts, youth conferences, and more,” Solomon says. “And when
they’re out in a coffee shop or traveling, they’ll still be able to get all the
same programming by logging on to WIN through their laptops, smart phones, or
other mobile devices.”
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Cheri Fuller and Cindy Lamb Curry 
Marilyn Hickey