IPTV BENEFITS

	How you benefit on IPTV:

Save time following the IPTV industry. Get all you need in one source. Our expert editors sort through hundreds of IPTV news sources so you don't have to--and we brief you on the best articles and most important insights.
Get ahead. Be the first to know about IPTV deployments, industry gossip and trends. Stay ahead of the pack with an insider perspective that gives you a competitive advantage.
Make money. Identify IPTV sales leads, partnership ideas, business contacts, and other business-building opportunities in the industry.

F E A T U R E S

IPTV vs. Internet Television: Key Differences

What is the difference between IPTV, the Internet Protocol-based TV paradigm heralded by major telecom providers and large media groups (Microsoft included) and the Internet Television painted by the Long Tail phenomenon, Ourmedia, the Internet Archive, Brightcove, and the availability of amazing new technology opportunities such as faster and faster net connections, free unlimited storage space, BitTorrent, MPEG4 and powerful low-cost hardware and software production tools?
Are they two opposite and diverging forces or are they the different aspects of the same media phenomenon portrayed in different ways?
If you ask these questions around today, few people will be able to answer in a clear and articulate way. Even those executives working for would-be IPTV ventures would give no credit whatsoever to the idea that an alternative way of leveraging Internet strengths for the commercial delivery of video content exists. Most of the time they see only theirs.
So, what are the key differences between these two radically different approaches to distributing video content via IP and which the related-issues that make them important to me and you?
The choice, for those who can see it, appears to be between a universe of highly diversified and dynamic independent production and one dominated by secure dedicated private delivery networks distributing more traditional types of video-based content largely provided by Hollywood and other established big media conglomerates.
IPTV is represented by a profile of closed, proprietary TV systems such as those present today on cable services but delivered via IP-based secure channels representing a sharp increase in control of content distribution.
Internet Television is instead an open evolving framework in which a very large number of small and medium-sized video producers contribute highly innovative niche content alongside with offerings from more traditional retail and distribution channels.
Nonetheless key differences, being able to appreciate the true nature of these two models remain a challenging task for the uninitiated reader unless she starts to look a little deeper into the differentiating details.

What's In it For Me?

If IPTV was simply a way for telcos to enter the video delivery game, it would be an attractive service just for the increased competition. A recent FCC study showed that cable rates increased at more than 3.5 times the rate of inflation between 1998 and 2003-but in the few places where cable faces competition from another wireline provider, prices are substantially lower than the average. The increased competition provided by the telcos will no doubt drive prices down further, as has already happened in Texas (where several Telco TV projects are undergoing trials). Apart from the effect on the competitive landscape, though, IPTV has the potential to deliver more interactivity than cable. An all-IP solution is switched digital by nature, does not depend on shared bandwidth, and uses well-known Internet technology, which should make for some interesting applications. Expect to see caller ID information displayed on the screen when your phone rings, for instance, or alerts when you receive new e-mail. Because IPTV does not require expensive tuners, multiple picture-in-picture applications will become a reality, and DVRs will be able to record multiple shows at once without upping the cost of the unit (the main constraint will be bandwidth). An interactive program guide, pay-per-view functionality, and video on demand will all be standard features, and channel changes should be much quicker.

Home | About IPTV | Services | Links