Skip to main content

The Best Business Model for IPTV is 'Open'

Content may be king, but can phone companies become king of content? That's the big question everybody has about telcos and IPTV, according to Light Reading.

They will have to strike the right content deals and partnerships and open up their networks if they want to profit from new technology such as IPTV, according to a group of executives attending the 13th annual Symposium, "Next Generation Media Networks."

It won't be easy. Already, the entertainment industry is entwined in a web of complicated and often exclusive licensing deals, and getting the right content will be a challenge for the telcos. However, an open mind can be a big asset. "Service providers have a very substantial opportunity to play a big role, especially if they take on a role such as DoCoMo in being the gatekeeper," said Rob Glaser, chairman and CEO of RealNetworks.

He said Japan's NTT DoCoMo has developed the best model for marketing entertainment content through new telecom networks by taking a cut of revenue in exchange for helping new content providers market their services over their network.

Proponents of more open, Internet-based models said that plenty of new content and business models will crop up if telcos employ an open, IP-based video platform. Jeremy Allaire, the founder and president of Brightcove, an IPTV content startup, says the emergence of open IP networks will create a new generation of content providers.

"An open platform gives content providers control over the brand and customer relationship," says Allaire. This, he feels, will create an explosion of niche content that folks can access directly over open, IP-based systems. "Nearly every small niche can be economically supportable."

Popular posts from this blog

How Cloud Fuels Digital Business Transformation

Across the globe, many CEOs invested in initiatives to expand their digital offerings. User experience enhancements that are enabled by business technology were a priority in many industries. Worldwide end-user spending on public cloud services is forecast to grow 21.7 percent to a total of $597.3 billion in 2023 -- that's up from $491 billion in 2022, according to the latest market study by Gartner. Cloud computing is driving the next phase of digital transformation, as organizations pursue disruption through technologies like generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), Web3, and enterprise Metaverse. Public Cloud Computing Market Development "Hyperscale cloud providers are driving the cloud agenda," said Sid Nag, vice president at Gartner . Organizations view cloud computing as a highly strategic platform for digital transformation initiatives, which requires providers to offer new capabilities as the competition for digital business escalates. "For example, generativ

Mobile Device Market Still Awaiting Recovery

The mobile devices market has experienced three years of unpredictable demand. The global pandemic, geopolitical pressures, supply chain issues, and macroeconomic headwinds have hindered the sector's consistent growth potential. This extremely challenging environment has dramatically affected both demand and supply chains. It has led to subsequent inflationary pressures, leading to a worsening global cost of living crisis suppressing growth and confidence in the sector. In tandem, mobile device industry stakeholders have become more cautious triggering market uncertainties. Mobile Device Market Development Operating under such a backdrop, the development of mobile device ecosystems and vendor landscapes have been impacted severely. Many of these market pressures persisted throughout 2022 and now into 2023, borne chiefly by the smartphone market. According to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research, worldwide smartphone shipments in 2022 declined 9.6 percent Year-over-Year

Digital Talent Demand Exceeds Supply in Asia-Pac

Even the savviest CEO's desire for a digital transformation advantage has to face the global market reality -- there simply isn't enough skilled and experienced talent available to meet demand. According to the latest market study by IDC, around 60-80 percent of Asia-Pacific (AP) organizations find it "difficult" or "extremely difficult" to fill many IT roles -- including cybersecurity, software development, and data insight professionals. Major consequences of the skills shortage are increased workload on remaining digital business and IT employees, increased security risks, and loss of "hard-to-replace" critical transformation knowledge. Digital Business Talent Market Development Although big tech companies' layoffs are making headlines, they are not representative of the overall global marketplace. Ongoing difficulty to fill key practitioner vacancies is still among the top issues faced by leaders across industries. "Skills are difficul