Three Accenture consultants offer their perspective on what the Telcos must do, in order to succeed with IPTV, as they enter the video entertainment arena.
According to the authors, the expectations for IPTV business rose substantially last year, mainly because of the gradual falling of technical barriers. Today, IPTV is considered a business opportunity by telco operators-not only for the service itself, but also for the prospects it can open up in terms of integration with other services.
On one hand, if in the upcoming years IPTV will succeed in imposing itself as a leading technology in the TV market, or at least gain a significant share of the TV business, telco operators could expand their roles into a new business area while supporting penetration and average revenue per unit (ARPU) increases of broadband connections.
On the other hand, IPTV carries many big challenges for telcos; in fact, in order to successfully enter this market, they have to do the following:
- Acquire new expertise in areas not usually related to their core business (e.g., program schedules).
- Elaborate a winning business model and commercial offer in order to meet the customers' expectations and overcome rival technologies already consolidated on the market, such as satellite, cable, etc.
- Develop good business relationships with content providers and establish fair agreements for revenue sharing.
- Exploit the interactive aspects of the service, leveraging the competitive advance of the return channel.
- Implement effective and scalable service architecture in a market where all the technologies are still pioneering and there is no de facto standard available.
You can read their detailed commentary here, at the IEC website.
According to the authors, the expectations for IPTV business rose substantially last year, mainly because of the gradual falling of technical barriers. Today, IPTV is considered a business opportunity by telco operators-not only for the service itself, but also for the prospects it can open up in terms of integration with other services.
On one hand, if in the upcoming years IPTV will succeed in imposing itself as a leading technology in the TV market, or at least gain a significant share of the TV business, telco operators could expand their roles into a new business area while supporting penetration and average revenue per unit (ARPU) increases of broadband connections.
On the other hand, IPTV carries many big challenges for telcos; in fact, in order to successfully enter this market, they have to do the following:
- Acquire new expertise in areas not usually related to their core business (e.g., program schedules).
- Elaborate a winning business model and commercial offer in order to meet the customers' expectations and overcome rival technologies already consolidated on the market, such as satellite, cable, etc.
- Develop good business relationships with content providers and establish fair agreements for revenue sharing.
- Exploit the interactive aspects of the service, leveraging the competitive advance of the return channel.
- Implement effective and scalable service architecture in a market where all the technologies are still pioneering and there is no de facto standard available.
You can read their detailed commentary here, at the IEC website.