Brightcove takes app development to the cloud

Online video publisher Brightcove is taking its content expertise to mobile apps with the launch of App Cloud, a platform designed to streamline development of mobile apps for iOS and Android devices.

App Cloud combines an open HTML5-based development model with intelligent cloud services for cross-platform compilation, app distribution, analytics, advertising and connectors for content management systems and other cloud services, the company said. Part of the aim is to provide one platform for creating apps for mobile, TV and tablet devices.

To build App Cloud experiences, developers use HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, and the App Cloud SDK to create templates. The App Cloud SDK includes JavaScript component libraries for accessing native device capabilities, retrieving and submitting content, and composing user experiences.

The rollout is apparently part of a larger cloud content strategy: Brightcove also has renamed its video publishing service Video Cloud. The company expects to make App Cloud commercially available in the second half of 2011—it’s in private beta now.

Given Brightcove’s strong ties to media companies via its video expertise, this move into app development should prove a strong extension of the company’s core content creation and publishing business. So count Brightcove among the many entrants vying for a piece of the app creation business.