Canadian IPTV Services Market

Frost & Sullivan, April 2007, Pages: 62

The Frost & Sullivan research service titled IPTV-Personalizing Television: Canadian IPTV Services Market provides insights into the market for IPTV services and set-top boxes as part of the residential broadband and CPE markets. In this research, Frost & Sullivan's expert analysts thoroughly examine the following markets: broadband, consumer services, IPTV, and residential CPE.

- IPTV Services Market
-- Summary of Major Findings
--- Introduction
--- Executive Summary
--- Market Engineering Measurements
--- Industry Challenges
--- Total Market Forecast
-- Market and Technology Trends
--- The iPod Generation Wants its Content
--- The User Experience is Key
--- When Microsoft Sneezes - Others Catch Cold
--- Middleware Manages IPTV
--- HDTV and DVRs to Spur IPTV Subscriptions
--- The Connected Home Will Include IPTV
--- Application Trends
--- Content is King
--- Marrying the PC to the TV
--- Fiber versus DSL versus Cable as Medium of Choice
--- Set-top Box Trends - MPEG-4 is on the Way
-- Market Drivers and Restraints
--- Market Drivers
--- Market Restraints

- Market Forecast and Competitive Analysis
-- Market Demand and Forecast
--- The Demand for IPTV Services
--- Demand Factors
-- Competitive Analysis
--- Market Landscape
-- Service Provider Profiles and Strategies
--- Major Canadian Telcos
-- Set-top Boxes
--- Trends
--- Forecast
-- Set-top Box Profiles and Participant Strategies
--- Major Set-top Box Vendors
-- Recommendations
--- IPTV Deployment is not Easy

Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) Helping Telcos Supplement Revenues

With customers rapidly migrating to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) - based telephony and wireless, incumbent telecom providers are fast losing access lines, customers, and their associated revenues to VoIP-based telephony and wireless. In this scenario, IPTV is enabling telcos to leverage their digital subscriber line (DSL) access networks and customer base with additional video services to supplement voice and data offerings in order to stem losses and retain customers. While initially offering a service similar to that of cable and satellite, the real value is in the enhanced services such as caller ID to the TV and chat, available with an IP network offering.

A number of drivers are contributing to growing enthusiasm for IPTV in Canada. Similar to residential VoIP, broadband adoption and increases in available bandwidth are the first steps toward IPTV. There are over 3.8 million DSL customers in Canada, who can be targeted for IPTV, and the average weekly television viewing hours per capita is 25.1 hours. These foundational elements, combined with advanced set-top boxes, back-office readiness, content protection, and home networking, propel IPTV on its way to mass adoption over the next several years. "Consumers are adopting high-definition television (HDTV), PVR/DVRs, and on-demand programming, and as the "iPod generation" expands, people are becoming accustomed to greater choice and the ability to search the Internet for content for viewing on the TV, personal computer (PC), or other devices," notes the analyst of this research service. "This desire for customization, along with value pricing and competition among providers, is expected to spur the market for IPTV-based services."

"Television" may be the Killer Application

Although in the age of personalization, it is difficult to declare a "killer application;" the killer application for IPTV may be "television." While enhanced services such as gaming or ethnic programming build loyalty without a strong foundation of a better viewing experience, they may not gain wide-scale market acceptance. Hence, there is a strong need for sufficiently improving TV offerings. This apart, the two key components of a positive IPTV encounter are quality of service and quality of experience (QoE). Quality of service is related to service-level agreements concerning packet loss, jitter, and quality of the technical connection and delivery. QoE, on the other hand, refers to what the subscribers see on their screens and how they interact with the features and electronic program guide (EPG). QoE also includes channel-change interval, scrolling speed, and search time, and the number of clicks involved to arrive at the needed information is also an important quality metric.

Despite all this, one must remember that operating an IPTV system is not a small undertaking. Service providers need sufficient knowledge about content acquisition, digital rights management, subscriber management, service management, and middleware. "In order to offer IPTV-based services, telcos must upgrade their networks, apply for local TV franchise licenses, and then attract customers who already are likely to have cable-TV or DBS services," says the analyst. "Hence, the challenges associated with IPTV deployment can be characterized as technical, marketing, or operational issues."

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