Digital Lifescapes

International Data Corporation Canada ( IDC Canada ) released key highlights from its latest market study of online video entertainment, and provided details from IDC Canada's Online Video Index. At present, the Canadian online video market remains very complex: each service has a different approach and is at a different stage of development. As a result, there are no accepted or proven business models to pave the way. "Innovation will continue to drive this market," said Emily Taylor, Consumer Technology & Services analyst at IDC Canada. "The introduction of new devices and new platforms -- including consumer cloud services -- will strengthen services as well." Competition will only get more intense, given that major brands like Walmart are active in the U.S with online video services -- with its VUDU offering -- and it is only a matter of time before they enter the Canadian market. In the Index, IDC evaluates Canadian online video services across...

As consumers demanded greater flexibility and convenience in acquiring entertainment content, personalization of the user experience wasn't merely a nice-to-have feature -- it became a key requirement. Unfortunately, most traditional pay-TV providers failed the test of providing more consumer-centric offerings. That mistake may prove to be deeply regrettable. On-demand viewing of TV programs and movies in the U.S. will generate $10 billion dollars in online video annual revenue. In contrast, revenue from retail DVD video disc sales and rentals will continue in decline, with no future leveling in sight. Also, traditional pay-per-view service revenues are still flat across the board. According to the latest In-Stat market assessment, there will be three growing on-demand video revenue streams: - Transaction- Video-on-Demand (T-VOD) encompasses online TV rentals, pay-TV VOD rentals and pay-per-view. - Subscription VOD (S-VOD) includes online video subscription services, pre...