business today iptv
In what must be something of a
great relief to all of the industry, the
TV market does seem to be doing its
upmost in resisting the recession.
Joe O’Halloran reports.
IPTV: local gets personal
F
igures released by Gartner and sales of BBC/ITV freesat HD been to spread their footprint and
towards the end of 2008 receivers reached 172,000 by the end effectively provide a ‘me too’ solution
suggested that worldwide of 2008 according to the Ofcom to cable and satellite. In the future,
subscriptions to Internet figures. especially in the developed markets,
Protocol Television (IPTV) All, then, would seem to be well we will see an emphasis on
services reached around 20
Finland’s
with IPTV and the broadcast TV market innovation and differentiated pay-TV
million subscribers in 2008, Xtract aims as a whole. However, operators would services.”
representing a 64.1% increase from
to refine
be wise not to rest on their laurels. The need for innovative and
the 12 million subscribers reported in
social
Even though people have always differentiated applies equally to
2007. This growth was calculated to
interaction,
traditionally watched more TV in satellite based services, yet in
have yielded $4.5 billion in revenues, times of recession, these days wallets attempting to find some pointers as
nearly double the 2007 total of $2.3
personal
have never been so strained and to what operators should do in order
billion. behaviour customer choice has never been so to remain profitable, its worth looking
Furthermore, according to new
and
varied or so cheap. That is to say even at the complex IPTV arena.
research from Ofcom, almost half of
demographic
the most bargain bucket entry level TV The IPTV market includes a whole
television households in the UK are
data to
packages offer at least 30 or 40 TV variety of players from portal players
now choosing to pay for access to channels and the chance to upgrade such as YouTube and Joost; MySpace
additional television channels, with
create for
as and when finances offer. and Facebook; device manufacturers’
satellite and cable services driving
operators
TV operators would be wise not to services such as NeuLion and
growth of digital TV. The survey what it take their customers for granted and AppleTV; broadcasters’ direct to
revealed that by the end of the fourth
believes are
spend a lot of time looking hard at consumer services including the BBC’s
quarter of 2008, 49.5% of households
accurate 3D
what types of products and services iPlayer, and NBC and Fox’s Hulu.com;
had a pay satellite or cable service on
user
individual customers actually would plus over-the-top video providers,
their main television set, up from like to experience in order to stay such as Amazon’s Video on Demand,
48.6% on the previous quarter.
profiles.
happy and spending customers. And it and VuDu. Video rental services, such
Additionally, 39.3% of households These is in this regard that IPTV operators in as Netflix and Blockbuster, are
had free television services through
profiles are
particular could have a big advantage. developing or have developed a
digital satellite or digital terrestrial
claimed to
At the end of 2008 and looking combined set-top box and video
television (DTT). In total, an
allow
ahead to what would be happening download service too.
impressive 88.8% of households in to IPTV in 2009, Gartner research Despite, or maybe because of, the
the UK had a digital TV service
operators to
director Elroy Jopling predicted that by variation in services, there are
connected to their main set at the
utilise data
2012 2.8% of households would have pronounced regional variations.
end of 2008, up by 2.4% since the as a dynamic an IPTV installation and that this Gartner says that even though the
end of 2007.
tool in the
would realise revenues in the region fundamental reasons why telecom
Ofcom also calculated that BSkyB's
day to day
of $19 billion. “The biggest change carriers are launching IPTV are
HD service saw the highest ever
business of
since 2007 is the rapid advent of new basically the same, it believes that
number of new homes added during entrants making inroads in consumer the adoption profile, the go-to-market
the quarter bringing the total to
marketing
video consumption and placing strategies that providers embrace
almost 780,000 subscribers, up greater demands on IPTV operators to and, in the longer term, the success
188,000. A further 521,000 cable innovate,” explained Jopling. “The of IPTV, are governed by local factors.
customers are subscribing to Virgin video consumption field will become Local can go right down to individual
Media's V+ service which also allows increasingly crowded. Before 2008, and personal tastes.
viewers to watch programmes in HD, the IPTV operators' emphasis had Personalisation will inevitably be a
6 l ibe l may/june 2009 l www.ibeweb.com
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