I just answerd this question on linkedin, linkedin not being the perfect place to have a discussion over the issue I decided to post it here as well.
Is IPTV going to take off in way as todays cable TV or Sat TV? what will be the most common way of TV reception in household, five year down the line from now?
I believe it will (biased opinion I’m sure, as I work in the area).
But I think it’s important to take into account that there are new business models that are in dire need to be created for IPTV to reach it’s technological potential and serious profitability.
Acknowledging that the transport medium is important (FTTH as mentioned by Mike Coop earlier will very likely solve the problems associated with the instability of copper links and provide a stable platform for full HD delivery), it’s important to realize that IPTV is in strategic advantage when it comes to real time audience ratings and subsequent profits from selling much better targeted advertising and intelligence that can be delivered to TV producers. Seeing the ISP not only as transport for content but as a possible content creator or proxy for small / indie broadcasting company’s. Differentiating advertisement by identifying the customer and delivering different ads to different segments of your client base. Right now the IPTV service is almost in quarantine as a service, I believe meshing the TV with web services holds a huge potential.
I believe that services like Apple TV have the potential to open up to other content providers (why only buy from apple? why can’t Warner have it’s own service? or blockbuster, all compatible with the STB the client has at home, with marginal profit for the telco?)
These are just ideas, little concepts that need serious brainstorming and correct delivery. I believe telcos are selling PVR like it’s the holy grail when they should be spending less on that platform and profiting more with value added services.
so, in a nutshell: will it take off? yes, it’s impending. will it be the most common way of TV reception? from my point of view: yes, BUT it needs to be sold properly to the customer. (and I’m not throwing on the table any time constrains…since from my point of view IPTV’s success of failure depends not on the medium, but on the content with added for the customer and partners).
Later edit:
The conversation seems to have have spawned into Alcide’s wiki as well…check it out.
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So, do you have any ideas on how to enhance the actual IPTV user experience? How to implement a “much better targeted advertising” and a system that produces “intelligence that can be delivered to TV producers”? How to “mesh the TV with web services” is a useful way?
I agree with your post, but I would really like to see less generic thoughts on how to enhance IPTV sollutions. “Engage with your users”, “turn it more profitable” and stuff like that is good, but appliable to almost anything and giving (almost) no sollutions.
I have many ideas, I’ve mentioned a few of them to the teams that actually work with us, some are being taken into consideration, others not so much.
and like I said on the post these ideas need serious brainstorming. especially with people in the know regarding broadcasting rights and laws, billing, etc etc… I have the ideas but I’m not pretending to have a “key in hand†solution to anything.
I would like to see a lot of it become reality, many of them will never leave the drawing board. technical limitations of the current platform, money involved in development, so on and so forth. same old, same old. that however hasn’t stopped me yet from pitching in my vision of the service.
as to your last paragraph, anyone not delivering solutions, in my book, isn’t trying hard enough. there are always solutions, it’s IT…they can be expensive, time consuming, down right crazy…but they always exist.
Allright, fair enough :-) In my experience, there are lots of crazy ideas that can be used in such a service, and while all of them are technichaly feasable (it’s IT, as you said), the most exciting ones aren’t profitable, at least for now…
I read a study about that Future yes but will the Internet Conncetion will serve this traffik.