DAILY NEWS May 16, 2007 7:02 AM - 0 comments

Telcos Leverage IPTV Offerings

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2007-05-16
There are nearly four million DSL customers in Canada, and they are ripe for targeting by IPTV providers, says the latest industry research, as the average TV viewing per capita is 25.1 hours per week.

The Frost & Sullivan research service titled IPTV-Personalizing Television: Canadian IPTV Services Market provides insights into the market for IPTV services and set-top boxes as part of the residential broadband and CPE markets.

Research and Markets announced the addition of Frost & Sullivan’s new report, Canadian IPTV Services Market, to their offerings. Key topics include the IPTV Services Market, and competitive analysis on Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) Helping Telcos Supplement Revenues.

In the report, Frost & Sullivan's expert analysts examine the broadband, consumer services, IPTV, and residential CPE markets.

With customers rapidly migrating to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)- based telephony and wireless, incumbent telecom providers are fast losing access lines, customers, and their associated revenues to VoIP-based telephony and wireless. In this scenario, IPTV is enabling telcos to leverage their digital subscriber line (DSL) access networks and customer base with additional video services to supplement voice and data offerings in order to stem losses and retain customers. While initially offering a service similar to that of cable and satellite, the real value is in the enhanced services such as caller ID to the TV and chat, available with an IP network offering.

A number of drivers are contributing to growing enthusiasm for IPTV in Canada. Similar to residential VoIP, broadband adoption and increases in available bandwidth are the first steps toward IPTV. There are over 3.8 million DSL customers in Canada, who can be targeted for IPTV, and the average weekly television viewing hours per capita is 25.1 hours. These foundational elements, combined with advanced set-top boxes, back-office readiness, content protection, and home networking, propel IPTV on its way to mass adoption over the next several years.

"Consumers are adopting high-definition television (HDTV), PVR/DVRs, and on-demand programming, and as the "iPod generation" expands, people are becoming accustomed to greater choice and the ability to search the Internet for content for viewing on the TV, personal computer (PC), or other devices," notes the analyst of this research service. "This desire for customization, along with value pricing and competition among providers, is expected to spur the market for IPTV-based services."

"Television" may be the Killer Application
Although in the age of personalization, it is difficult to declare a "killer application;" the killer application for IPTV may be "television."

While enhanced services such as gaming or ethnic programming build loyalty without a strong foundation of a better viewing experience, they may not gain wide-scale market acceptance. Hence, there is a strong need for sufficiently improving TV offerings.

This apart, the two key components of a positive IPTV encounter are quality of service and quality of experience (QoE). Quality of service is related to service-level agreements concerning packet loss, jitter, and quality of the technical connection and delivery. QoE, on the other hand, refers to what the subscribers see on their screens and how they interact with the features and electronic program guide (EPG). QoE also includes channel-change interval, scrolling speed, and search time, and the number of clicks involved to arrive at the needed information is also an important quality metric.

Despite all this, one must remember that operating an IPTV system is not a small undertaking. Service providers need sufficient knowledge about content acquisition, digital rights management, subscriber management, service management, and middleware.

"In order to offer IPTV-based services, telcos must upgrade their networks, apply for local TV franchise licenses, and then attract customers who already are likely to have cable-TV or DBS services," said the analyst. "Hence, the challenges associated with IPTV deployment can be characterized as technical, marketing, or operational issues."

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c56761
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