Streaming media is starting to enter the holiday market as French holiday specialist, siblu holidays launch siblucinema, a bespoke media player available in English and French versions, designed and created by Coull Ltd, experts in the digital video technology marketplace...

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Showcasing siblu parcs, accommodation and children’s clubs, the streamed footage is designed to increase traffic and boost online bookings.

eCommerce manager of siblu holidays, William Goodridge, explained: “Coull’s technology will play a significant role in engaging visitors and increasing online bookings. siblucinema is the perfect showcase for our holiday parcs, providing a visually engaging experience that shows the customer exactly what they can expect from a siblu holiday.”

“siblu and Coull have been trialling siblucinema online since December 2005,” he continued. “The trial findings show that the media player exceeds all expectations, averaging close to 40,000 unique streams each month. Visitors to siblucinema convert up to 50% better than those who do not view a parc video. It is this success that has led to siblucinema becoming a permanent new feature.”

Trial statistics show increased customer attention

During the trial, the customised media player produced both high impact and cost effective results. Statistics show that the average customer is watching seven minutes of video per visit with a high click-through to further information and pricing.

The bespoke media player by Coull utilises siblu’s own web hosting infrastructure to deliver a choice of five videos in both Windows Media and Real Player formats. These are compatible with a broad range of operating platforms and browsers. The media player sits on siblu’s server as part of the web page, whilst the video is hosted and streamed through Coull’s Content Management Solution, Host.

Irfon Watkins, CEO of Coull Ltd commented: “Video is fast becoming the technology of 2006 as consumer demand for richer and engaging content increases. This distinctive and intelligent mechanism for reaching customers is proving to be very successful for siblu.”

siblucinema can be found at: www.siblu.com

About Coull Ltd:
Founded in 1998 and based in Bristol, England, Coull is a technology company at the heart of the global digital media revolution, delivering software solutions for the deployment of applications to and across the Internet, mobile devices and personal computers. Coull’s technology radically changes the way software applications are developed and how digital media content is manipulated and made truly interactive, without the need for complex and expensive hardware. www.coull.biz/

About siblu holidays:
siblu, the new name for Haven Europe, is an independent owner/operator of eight French holiday parcs. The company operates in two distinct sectors: siblu exclusif focuses on holiday home ownership; siblu holidays works with holidaymakers. siblu owns eight luxury parcs, in Brittany, Vendee, Charente Maritime, Aquitaine and Languedoc, and has invested around €25million in these parcs over the last five years. More than 125,000 holidaymakers travel to siblu parcs every year and siblu provides over one million holiday nights every year. siblu operates holidays to an additional 21 hand-picked parcs in France, Italy and Spain. There are over 5,000 holiday homes on siblu’s eight owned parcs, and more than 3,700 private owners. No other company in France works with as many private owners. www.siblu.com