gotta love it
Network friction hinders TV Everywhere
By Jamie Beach June 11th, 2013
Despite the first TV Everywhere services launching in the US over four years ago, friction between television networks and TV operators means that rollouts remain slow, with fewer than half of all pay-TV subscribers able to access leading networks on the move, according to The Diffusion Group.
Describing TV Everywhere as “arguably the best response” that pay-TV operators and networks have to the competitive threat posed by online video services, TDG analyst Bill Niemeyer said that rollout has nevertheless been disappointingly slow.
“Ironically, the delay is not due to technology but rather business friction between TV networks and operators – the two parties who stand to benefit the most from a timely TVE rollout,” added Niemeyer.
The analyst does however acknowledge that some networks have seized the TV Everywhere opportunity, pointing out that HBO offers its programming online to authenticated subscribers of all 15 of the country’s top 15 operators.
On the other hand, three of the top ten cable networks have yet to offer any type of TVE access to their subscribers, according to Niemeyer, who warned that the pay-TV industry needs to move immediately to conclude agreements and become fully engaged with online programming services.
http://www.iptv-news.com/2013/06/network-fric...ployments/
Asia now dominates IPTV globally
By Jamie Beach June 11th, 2013
Despite IPTV gaining its first toeholds in Western Europe and North America over a decade ago, Asian telcos now account for around half of the world’s IPTV subscribers, according to SNL Kagan.
After analysing the world’s 20 largest IPTV providers (serving 83% of global IPTV households, or 57mn), the study found that China alone accounts for just over a third of the global total, thanks largely to the efforts of China Telecom and China Unicom.
World's top 5 IPTV operators by market share
China Telecom has nearly 5x the global market share of its peers
As the world’s second-largest market in terms of subscribers after China, France is home to four IPTV operators ranked among the global top 20. Of the fourteen operators not in France or China, five are located in Western Europe and five are in Asia.
Microsof Mediaroom remains the world’s most-deployed IPTV middleware, serving 16% of the world’s IPTV subscribers by the end of last year. Among the world’s top 20 IPTV providers, a total of seven decided to develop their own middleware in-house, according to SNL Kagan.
Local loyalties also appear to run high here: three-quarters of the world’s largest IPTV operators are reported to have partnered with middleware vendors from their home regions.
http://www.iptv-news.com/2013/06/asia-now-dom...-globally/
Shazam’s Daniel Danker aims to simplify TV complexities
By Jamie Beach May 28th, 2013
Daniel Danker, chief product officer at Shazam
Daniel Danker, until recently the BBC’s general manager of on-demand, has revealed that in his new role as chief product officer at media discovery experts Shazam he will be aiming to answer “entirely new questions” around TV.
Danker, who will be making his first US public speaking appearance at the TV:Xperience event taking place in New York City on July 15th-17th, told IP&TV News that the TV industry is currently in the early days of working out how companion experiences can make TV better.
“There’s a lot of experimentation going on in terms of where people watch, what screen they watch on, who delivers their TV service, and so on,” said Danker. “This can be a very confusing time for a TV viewer, though I think in the end the consumer will be the biggest winner.
More choice, more flexibility, better content, more connected with others. What’s not to like?”
In his recent interview, Danker also outlines his belief that adverts could eventually go from being most people’s least-favourite part of TV to potential enhancing the viewer experience – provided they are made more relevant and connect viewers with advertisers in more meaningful ways.
In his previous role at the BBC, Danker played a key role in developing the broadcaster’s massively popular iPlayer service. Speaking at the TV Connect event in London last March in one of his last appearances for the BBC, he warned delegates that connected TV was at serious risk of failing unless the industry starts working together to solve its present shortcomings.
http://www.iptv-news.com/2013/05/shazams-dani...plexities/
