Skip to main content

Over-the-Top IP Video will Experience Boom

The Internet Protocol (IP) video revolution is stalled by poor user interfaces, uncertainty on pricing models and tight digital rights management restrictions on Hollywood films, according to Kagan Research.

But expect this "over-the-top" video to take a big leap forward at year's end. That's when equipment � retail priced at $60-$160 � is scheduled to arrive that ports signals to living-room TV sets and liberates broadband TV from the confines of personal computers, which is another stumbling block.

"I do believe over the course of the next 12-24 months, we will experience a 'hockey stick' growth curve," Curt Marvis, CEO of movie downloader CinemaNow, said. "Over the top" refers to video delivered by broadband data transmission devices such as cable modems (ie, therefore by-passing MSO or Telco set-top boxes).

Marvis said Hollywood's major studios today are reluctant to allow users to burn downloads on DVDs or transfer movie downloads to other devices. But he expects them to bend as consumers insist on portability as part of the bigger trend toward TV personalization. When download-to-own prices go under the price of a packaged DVD, Marvis expects a boom.

Popular posts from this blog

How Online Video Exceeded Pay-TV Revenue

The global streaming industry has spent the better part of a decade chasing subscriber counts as the primary metric of success. That era is now formally over. New market data from Omdia confirms that the industry has crossed a decisive threshold; one that shifts the competitive playing field from growth-at-all-costs to monetization discipline. For senior executives navigating media, advertising, and technology strategy, the implications extend well beyond entertainment. A Historic Revenue Crossover Online video revenue increased 13.5 percent to $176 billion in 2025, while pay-TV revenue declined 4 percent to $170 billion; marking the first time in the industry's history that streaming has surpassed legacy pay-TV in revenue terms. This is not a rounding error or a statistical artifact; it represents the culmination of more than a decade of structural disruption to the traditional broadcast and cable TV model. Global subscriptions to online video services reached 2.24 billion by the ...