Claro Puerto Rico rolls out IPTV in 37 towns
Claro President Enrique Ortiz de Montellano talks about the company’s new IPTV service.
Five years after announcing its intention to launch Internet Protocol-based, paid-television services, Claro de Puerto Rico officially announced Wednesday the availability of its IPTV offer in 37 towns.
“After years of limited options and geographic monopolies, consumers in Puerto Rico have access to cutting edge technology and a new experience in TV service subscription,” said Claro President Enrique Ortiz de Montellano. “Today is a special day because it marks the date when we break the geographic monopoly that cable companies have had and allows consumers to choose their pay TV service provider.”
Claro’s IP-based service runs on its private fiber-optic network, which gives customers access to functions and applications that “turn the home into a true entertainment center.”
“TV service through Internet Protocol is one of many that Claro can offer as a result of last year’s deployment of its modern and powerful next-generation private fiber optic network, which is still expanding islandwide,” Ortiz de Montellano said, adding the company expects to deliver IPTV service to the rest of the island within the next three years.
“This super highway will connect Puerto Rico homes to all-new advanced services that require high bandwidth and stability. It’s the platform through which new technologies like entertainment services management through smartphones and tablets will run,” he said.
Claro will offer its IPTV service with or without a contract, bundled with telephone and Internet, or individually. Channel packages run the gamut from $19.99 to $74.99, with additional options such as an all-Spanish or premium packages. The company is also offering triple-play bundles starting at $59.99.
Claro’s IPTV service — which runs on Microsoft’s Media Room platform — features a number of interactive functions, including:
- Full Home DVR – This feature gives the user the option to record their favorite programs on one DVR from and watch them on any other TV, as DVR functions extend to the rest of the decoders in the home. In addition, the user can pause, rewind and forward all live programming and restart it in any room.
- Last Channel – This function allows the user to have a preview of the last five channels viewed without leaving the image of the channel they are watching at the time.
- Picture in Picture – The user does not have to change the channel to see what’s showing on others as they can browse the program guide and see a small version of what is running on other channels.
- Advanced Search – This function allows the user to search for content based on a variety of criteria (director, actor, title, channel, etc..)
- Mosaic – IPTV allows the user to see up to six channels simultaneously on the same screen. The mosaics are grouped by topic for easy selection — Culture/Education, Lifestyle, News, Movies, Kids, Variety and Sports.
- Channel Guide – With this feature, the user can select the appearance of the guide, adapting it to their liking.
- Instant Channel Change – Through IPTV changing channels is instant.
At present, Claro IPTV offers 50 high-definition channels, with 32 more to be added in coming months.
To find out if your town or area is included in Claro’s IPTV footprint, click here.
