Fusing Internet, TV! Time to say hello to IPTV
G JOSLIN VETHAKUMAR
May 15, 2006
Even before subscribers could grasp what triple-play convergence was all about, it morphed into quad-play but, spare me a byte, isn't it multi-play now? Nowhere is technological transformation as rapid as it is in telecommunications, with service providers facing the challenge of embracing the change to enhance revenues and engineer growth.
Triple-play services fundamentally spin around voice, data and video offerings in convergent packages that include high-speed Internet, telephone and TV, with quad-play getting that extra punch through mobile telephony.
IPTV (Internet Protocol Television), though still in its infancy, is at the heart of this evolution, leveraging broadband connections to deliver a range of video services such as high-definition TV (HDTV) and video-on-demand (VoD).
In a nutshell, with IPTV, broadband subscribers will be able to receive high-quality content on their television sets using a set-top box with the Internet Protocol (IP) serving as the transmission mechanism.
Clearly, consumer entertainment is a strategic component of this multi-play bundle. Video over broadband is the engine that is set to power growth for telephone service providers, applying pressure on cable and satellite TV operators to revisit their strategies and get inventive.
But it is not all about movies as IPTV possibilities are endless and can involve a slew of high-quality digital content -- video conferencing/streaming, live/interactive TV, digital video recording, HDTV, gaming, video-based distance learning, video-blogging, instant messaging from the TV and what not!
Given that IPTV involves a fusion of the Internet and television, companies with proven experience in IP networking can be counted upon to reduce the complexity involved in the delivery of video in both fixed and mobile environments.
While talk of IPTV and interactive TV has been in the air for the last few years, it is only now that telcos are beginning to place their bets on it.
But why will they want to invest on IPTV that currently has less than 10 million subscribers worldwide? This is simply because the potential for growth is huge as IPTV services are typically delivered on TV sets, which are the primary source of entertainment and information for most subscribers.
While the current subscriber base is small, more than 240 carriers are offering IPTV services. Also, research firm Infonetics anticipates the number of users to skyrocket to 53.7 million subscribers, yielding $44 billion in service revenue by 2009. ABI Research is even more upbeat, estimating that there will be around 120 million subscribers by 2010.
Importantly, video is a critical field that can help them offset the erosion in their revenues caused by intense competition for core residential voice services and keep churn at bay.
So, with cable operators already offering voice services, IPTV will signal pay-back time for telcos by stepping onto the turf of the former.
While telcos can largely utilize their existing infrastructure for delivery of IPTV services, one question uppermost will be their capacity to cope with bandwidth requirements. But some of latest compression technologies in the marketplace are helping them deliver high-quality MPEG-4 (Moving Picture Experts Group, a digital video compression/encoding standard) transmission and measure up to this challenge.
With a digital culture that is evolving rapidly, IPTV can offer viewers a unique multi-faceted experience, spanning diverse areas of entertainment and information, delivered on what not too long ago was described as the idiot box. This can be at the connected home, at work, on the move or even in the sky as Singapore Airlines chose to demonstrate when it launched its IPTV services on select flights last year.
Some telcos in Europe, the US and even in Asia are leading the charge in IPTV and while the response so far may not have been overwhelming, they have no doubt that the future vests with it amid an environment of slumping ARPU (average revenue per user).
Among the many who have plumped for IPTV are Hong Kong Broadband, PCCW (Hong Kong), Chunghwa Telecom (Taiwan), Softbank/Yahoo BB in Japan, FastWeb (Italy), China Netcom, Shanghai Media Group/China Telecom, Telefonica (Spain), SBC/AT&T (US), SureWest, Comcast, British Telecom, France Telecom, Verizon, Telecom Italia and Time Warner Cable. Many of them are already delivering IPTV.
As you can see, many Asian service providers are already tapping into the potential offered by the emerging IPTV phenomenon. While the Asia-Pacific region (excluding Japan) may currently have only around one million IPTV subscribers, research house IDC estimates it to swell to more than 20 million by 2009.
Source: http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=127114
Hansenet introduces IPTV service for EUR 9.90 per month
15 May 2006
Telecom Italia subsidiary and German network operator Hansenet has introduced its IPTV over DSL service Alice homeTV. Alice homeTV offers up to 100 TV channels and more than 600 movies on demand for EUR 9.90 per month plus set-top box with a one-time transport fee of EUR 9.90 and EUR 49.90 activation costs. The basic package includes German and international channels, VoX, ProSieben, CNN and terranova. Hansenet is still in talks with the German public broadcasters ARD and ZDF and expects to present those channels within a few days. Customers can also choose additional pay-TV packages like Big Entertainment for EUR 14.90 per month, Türk Premium for EUR 22.90 per month and MTV's additional channels in Tune-Inn for EUR 2.90 per month. Alice homeTV will be available in combination with an Alice DSL connection on the whole Alice DSL network in Germany, but is currently only available in the Hamburg region including Luebeck. Customers who sign up before 30 June do not have to pay the activation costs and the first three months of the Big Entertainment pay TV package.
Source: http://www.telecom.paper.nl/news/article.aspx?id=127589&nr=
DT Rival Launches IPTV
MAY 12, 2006
German competitive operator HanseNet Telekommunikation GmbH launched its IPTV service yesterday, a month before the start of the soccer World Cup, which Germany is hosting, and ahead of incumbent rival Deutsche Telekom AG (NYSE: DT - message board).
DT has been rushing to build out its new high-speed broadband network and deploy IPTV hardware and software in the hope it could launch its service in time for the World Cup's opening game in Munich on June 9. While that deadline now looks unattainable, the giant carrier is confident it can launch a service by mid-June. (See Microsoft Wins IPTV Deal at DT.)
But HanseNet, a subsidiary of Telecom Italia SpA (NYSE: TI - message board), has stolen the incumbent's thunder with Germany's first IPTV service, called Alice homeTV.
Yesterday's launch, though, is initially just in Hamburg, HanseNet's traditional stronghold, before being launched into the carrier's other 14 municipal markets.
The carrier currently has about 660,000 broadband customers, with an unknown number connected to its own DSLAMs. Deutsche Telekom currently has 6.4 million broadband customers in Germany. (See Italians Invade Germany.)
HanseNet's base service costs €9.90 ($12.70) per month in addition to price of the broadband connection (up to 25 Mbit/s using ADSL2+). The entry-level IPTV service includes 100 TV channels, while the company has lined up 600 movies for its video-on-demand service. Customers can also buy additional specialist pay-TV channels.
HanseNet has been announcing various IPTV infrastructure and support partners during the past few months, including Harmonic Inc. (Nasdaq: HLIT - message board) for head-end encoding, Nagravision SA for content protection and security, Advanced Digital Broadcast (ADB) for set-top boxes. (See HanseNet Picks Nagravision, and HanseNet Uses Harmonic.)
Then yesterday the carrier named Alcatel (NYSE: ALA - message board; Paris: CGEP:PA) as its chief network infrastructure supplier. The French vendor will provide access and optical equipment, integration services, and its Open Media Platform (OMP) IPTV middleware. (See HanseNet Picks Alcatel.)
Alcatel says the deal to provide its own IPTV middleware, rather than that of partner Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT - message board), is a legacy of a deal it has with Telecom Italia. The Italian incumbent is currently using the French vendor's video delivery and management system for its domestic IPTV service while it knocks Microsoft's technology into shape. (See TI Adds to IPTV Content, Alcatel, Microsoft Confirm IPTV Deal and Microsoft IPTV: Now That's Italian!.)
It's likely that both Telecom Italia and HanseNet will migrate to the Microsoft platform at some point, but no timetable has been set for that transition. (See TI Develops IPTV With Microsoft.)
Source: http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=94671
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