Consumers are increasingly turning to the Internet and to mobile devices so that they can view favorite TV shows, movie trailers and user-generated content on their own time schedule.
Consumers are spending 4% more time with television and have increased their time with online content by 9% while overall Internet usage has increased by about 10%. Time shifted television (ie. DVD/TiVO) viewing has increased by almost 60%.
Research further emphasizes that those under 24 use the Internet less than older users but spend a greater percentage of time viewing video and additionally web video is injecting new meaning to the internet for the above age group. Generally, those between 18 – 44 years old prefer video (either through TV , time shifted tv or online/mobile tv) and spend about 115 hours/month watching TV and just over 3 hours/month watching time shifted tv. The same group spent about 3,5 hours/month for online and mobile tv viewing.
Regarding IPTV (Internet Protocol Television)
ITU defines IPTV as :
“Multimedia services such as television/video/audio/text/graphics/
data delivered over IP based networks managed to provide the required level of quality
of service and experience, security, interactivity and reliability.”
From a service provider’s perspective, IPTV encompasses the acquisition, processing, and secure delivery of video content over an IP based networking infrastructure. The type of service providers involved in deploying IPTV services range from cable and satellite TV carriers to the large telephone companies and private network operators in different parts of the world.
IPTV has a number of features:
Support for interactive TV :
The two-way capabilities of IPTV systems allow
service providers to deliver a whole raft of interactive TV applications. The
types of services delivered via an IPTV service can include standard live TV,
high definition TV (HDTV), interactive games, and high speed Internet
browsing.
Time shifted TV :
IPTV in combination with a digital video recorder permits the
time shifting of programming content which includes facilities for recording and
storing IPTV content for later viewing.
Personalization :
An end-to-end IPTV system supports bidirectional communications
and allows end users personalize their TV viewing habits by
allowing them to decide what they want to watch and when they want to
watch it.
Low bandwidth requirements:
Instead of delivering every channel to every
end user, IPTV technologies allows service providers to only stream the
channel that the end user has requested. This attractive feature allows network
operators to conserve bandwidth on their networks.
Accessibility on multiple devices:
Viewing of IPTV content is not limited to televisions. Consumers often use their PCs and mobile devices to access IPTV services.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN IPTV AND WEB TV
IPTV is sometimes confused with the delivery of Internet TV. Although both
rely on the same core technologies, their approaches in
delivering IP based video differ in the following ways:
Different Platforms
As the name suggests Internet TV leverages the public Internet to deliver video
content to end users. IPTV, on the contrary, uses secure dedicated private networks to deliver video content to consumers. These private networks are managed and operated by the provider of the IPTV service.
Geographical Reach
Networks owned and controlled by the telecom operators are not accessible to
Internet users and are located in fixed geographical areas. The Internet, on the other hand, has no geographical limitations where television services can be accessed from any part of the globe.
Ownership of the Networking Infrastructure
When video is sent over the public Internet, some of the Internet Protocol packets used to carry the video may get delayed (latency) or completely lost as they traverse the various networks that make up the public Internet. The service is “best effort”. As a result, the providers of video over the Internet content cannot guarantee a TV viewing experience that compares with a traditional terrestrial, cable, or satellite TV viewing experience. IPTV is delivered over a networking infrastructure, which is typically owned by the service provider. Owning the networking infrastructure allows telecom operators to engineer their systems to support the end-to-end delivery of high quality video (and thus one of the issues with net neutrality).
Access Mechanism
A digital set-top box is generally used to access and decode the video content
delivered via an IPTV system whereas a PC is nearly always used to access Internet TV services. The type of software used on the PC will depend on the type of Internet TV content. For instance, downloading to own content from an Internet TV portal site sometimes requires the installation of a dedicated media player to view the material. A robust digital rights management (DRM) system is also required to support this access mechanism.
Costs
A significant percentage of video content delivered over the public Internet is
available to consumers free of charge. This is however changing as an increasing number of media companies are starting to introduce fee based Internet TV services (the strategic use of torrent based technology will be discussed in a future post). The costing structure applied to IPTV services is similar to the monthly subscription model adopted by traditional pay TV providers. Over time, many analysts expect/hope Internet TV and IPTV to converge into a central entertainment service that will ultimately become a mainstream application.
Content Generation Methodologies
A sizeable portion of video content generated by Internet TV providers is user generated and niche channels, whereas IPTV providers generally stick with distributing traditional television shows and movies, which are typically provided by the large and established media companies.
OVERVIEW OF AN IPTV NETWORKING INFRASTRUCTURE
IPTV Data Center
Also known as the “headend,” the IPTV data center receives content from a variety of sources including local video, content aggregators, content producers, cable, terrestrial, and satellite channels. Once received, a number of different hardware components ranging from encoders and video servers to IP routers and dedicated security hardware are used to prepare the video content for delivery over an IP based network. Additionally, a subscriber management system is required to manage IPTV subscriber profiles and payments. Note that the physical location of the IPTV data center will be dictated by the networking infrastructure used by the service provider.
Broadband Delivery Network
The delivery of IPTV services requires a one-to-one connection. In the case of a
large IPTV deployment, the number of one-to-one connections increases signi-
ficantly and the demands in terms of bandwidth requirements on the networking
infrastructure can be quite large. Advancements in network technologies over the
past couple of years now allow telecom providers to meet this demand for large
amounts of bandwidth networks. Hybrid fiber and coaxial based cable TV infrastructures and fiber based telecommunication networks are particularly suited to the delivery of IPTV content.
IPTVCDs (STBs)
IPTV consumer devices (IPTVCDs such as Set Top Boxes or STBs) are key components in allowing people to access IPTV services. The IPTVCD connects to the broadband network and is responsible for decoding and processing the incoming IP based video stream. IPTVCDs support advanced technologies that minimize or completely eliminate the effect of network problems when processing IPTV content. As broadband starts to become a mainstream service, the functionality of IPTVCDs continues to change and increase in sophistication.
A Home Network
A home network connects a number of digital devices within a small geographical
area. It improves communication and allows the sharing of expensive digital
resources among members of a family. The purpose of a home network is to provide access to information, such as voice, audio, data, and entertainment, between different digital devices all around the house. With home networking, consumers can save money and time because peripherals such as printers and scanners, as well as broadband Internet connections, can be easily shared.
IMS-based TV
An IMS-based TV solution contains all of the components normally found in an IPTV
solution, such as a head-end system, middleware, media servers, Digital or Conditional Digital Rights Management System, STBs and an infrastructure
with IPTV support. The solution relies on an IMS core
nodes such as CSCF, HSS and SBG (Session Border Gateway) and related IMS enablers.
The IPTV middleware relies on SIP signalling over the IMS Service
Control (ISC) interface. Such support allows the IPTV middleware to interact with
the CSCF node to set up SIP sessions as well as RTSP (Real Time Streaming
Protocol) sessions, which control on-demand media streams from the media servers.
The IPTV middleware acts as an IMS application server on top of the IMS
infrastructure.
In the home network, the STBs need to have an IMS client to communicate with the
middleware via SIP and RTSP. Alternatively, a residential gateway with an IMS
termination function can be introduced. Such a gateway eliminates the need for IMS
support in the STBs. A residential gateway connected to the home network also
allows for IMS-controlled services on devices such as PCs, phones and game
consoles.
Following 3GPP standards, coming generations of mobile terminals will host native
Java-based IMS clients. Integration with IMS-based IPTV, together with IMS supported
mobile terminals, will provide the possibility to transfer ongoing TV
sessions from the TV in the home to a mobile device and vice versa, without any
delay.
The impact of Web 2.0
Because IPTV will collide or converge to some extend with Internet TV, the Web2.0 paradigm will influence how IPTV and NGTV will have to address business models, content, technologies, and demographics. In order to stay competitive and capitalize on content, IPTV service providers will have to provide solutions within the next two years for the main characterizations of Web2.0:
• Participation: social networks, recommendations, blogging, user 
generated content, collaborative filtering, profile correlation, ranking, folksonomies, tag clouds
• Standards: standards for application and service interaction similar to web services, XML, or common AJAX principles
• Decentralization: power and flexibility from distribution, computing, and support of assets and applications over many computers and systems rather than centralized maintenance
• Openness: creating critical mass and shortening innovation cycles through open and transparent access to assets and applications
• Modularity: flexible combination of modules creates value that is greater than the sum of its parts
• Reusability: recycling, deconstruction, and reconstruction of assets and applications for new services, functions, and assets
• User Control: give users control to participate, but also control about their the assets and applications they create, their activities, and their identities
• Identity: allow control and application of different identities for different purposes
The user participation, openness, and decentralization should not be mistaken for loss of control over access or usage of assets and applications. IPTV and NGTV are enablers of digital entertainment. As such, they have to support the control of a strategic business alignment of technologies, markets, and content.
[...] unknown wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptIPTV in combination with a digital video recorder permits the time shifting of programming content which includes facilities for recording and storing IPTV content for later viewing. Personalization :. An end-to-end IPTV system supports … [...]
[...] details: Next Generation Television Services « Considerations [...]
[...] unknown wrote an interesting post today onNext Generation Television Services « ConsiderationsHere’s a quick excerptThese private networks are managed and operated by the provider of the IPTV service. Geographical Reach. Networks owned and controlled by the telecom operators are not accessible to. Internet users and are located in fixed geographical … [...]
Great stuff, doing my own research on different satellite tv and internet packages and what people are saying. I love this post though, breaking down all the options, sending this to my mom