Is OTT TV ‘open’?
Recent months have seen several announcements on the availability of ‘Internet ready’ TVs. The offer, on the surface, is quite tempting; no set top box, no hooking up the laptop to the TV - just easy access to over the top TV services. We have all grown accustomed to the hardwired link between the consumer (subscriber) and the Operator. The net effect is that the consumer only gets to see what the Operator makes available. A sceptical view is that the relationship is about locking in the consumer and locking out all other options.
Over the top TV promises so much for the consumer as it has the potential not only to supply so much more content on demand but to break the dependency on a single source of content - the traditional Operator. What we have seen from the early offerings from the CE vendors with an Internet ready TV is another locked down system. Clearly some controls will need to be in place but it seems that these new offers are based on the old model of lock in / lock out. CE vendors have adopted an Operator model. When you buy a PC it doesn’t limit what applications you can install or websites you visit?
Canvas, and perhaps HBBTV, holds the potential to bring forth solutions that are open (but with controls) where content sources and applications can be added relatively simply through an app store, like iTunes. The Canvas partners have the opportunity to raise the bar and bring a truly open and compelling offer to consumers and not a closed/vertical model being offered at this time.
BCi is a Consultancy and Systems Integrator with considerable experience in the deployment of VoD and IPTV platforms. Our extensive lab facilities allows us to provide a staging environment for proof of concepts and/or off site integration for Over the Top TV solutions.
Over the Top Television
Over the Top Television services (also known as Internet TV or TV over Broadband) are soon to become common place in the home. Over the Top TV is the next natural evolution of the personalisation of how we consume audio visual content in the home.
Whilst traditional linear TV will still continue to provide the backbone of home viewing for some time, it is likely to be increasingly demoted in the home in favour of Over the Top TV services as the primary means to watch your favourite content. Over the Top Television represents a fundamental shift in TV consumption and whilst it brings many opportunities it will also carry many challenges.
So what is Over the Top Television ?
Over the top Television allows you to view content that is available over the internet. It is delivered via your broadband connection and so bypasses the traditional providers of TV services - hence the term over the top television.
Examples of current over the top TV services include video hosting services like YouTube, blockbuster films direct from the studios or even niche content from micro-operators. Viewing this content will be achieved either via a PC (which is what you can do now) or through a more integrated approach via an Over the Top TV enabled Set Top Box or Television.
Who are the Over the Top Television Stakeholders?
The main Over the Top TV stakeholders are likely to be:
- Network Operators without their own content
- Network Operators with their own content
- CE (Consumer Electronics) vendors with their own content (E.G. – Sony)
- CE (Consumer Electronics) vendors without their own content (E.G. – Samsung)
- Super Aggregators – eBay, Google, Amazon, etc
- Microsites and/or strategic partners (there will be huge potential for these Stakeholders)
What is BCi doing in Over the Top TV ?
BCi provides System Integration and Consultancy services for all aspects of IPTV and VoD technology including Over the Top TV. BCi have been responsible for many on demand platform deployments for Tier 1 providers across Europe and we remain a leader in the on demand TV field.
BCi have co-authored a white paper which explores Over the Top TV in detail and provides our view of the potential opportunities and likely issues associated with this medium. You can download the BCi OTT TV white paper, free of charge simply by clicking on the PDF icon below:
If you want to find out more about how BCi can help you take advantage of Over the Top TV then contact Mark Hooper at mark.hooper@bci.eu.com
BCi’s IPTV Consulting business grows despite recession
Mark Hooper BCi’s Director of Operations said today that BCi had seen continued growth in their IPTV Consulting business despite the pressures of the downturn.
Mark Hooper commented:
“The timing of the downturn co-incided with the emergence of IPTV technologies in the living room and on our computers and mobile devices.
Back in 2001 when the so called ‘dot com crash’ hit - it had the effect of halting all new developments. A lot of bad ideas and poorly performing businesses went under but so did some good ideas and innovations.
This time Operators are reacting differently - although we are seeing them cut back on spend - they seem to be continuing with IPTV product developments but spending their money more carefully - they are looking for smarter and more cost effective ways of delivering IPTV.
BCi’s IPTV Consultancy business has benefited directly from this trend . Being purely focused on VoD and IPTV systems integration we are able to offer Operators the in depth IPTV expertise they need to ensure a successful deployment - but at a fraction of the cost of the big consultancies and system integrators.”
About BCi’s IPTV Consulting Business
BCi’s IPTV Consulting business helps Operators and Vendors throughout Europe safely enter the new and complex area of IPTV. BCi’s consulting team provide the expertise to allow operators to deploy IPTV products and services quickly and effectively without the cost overruns and technical complexities normally associated with the early implementations of new technologies like IPTV .
BCi’s IPTV consulting team help clients by offering the following IPTV Consultancy services:
- Developing an IPTV market entry criteria
- IPTV system Requirements capture
- Identifying best of breed IPTV technology options
- IPTV Architecture Design
- Vendor selection
- IPTV System Integration
- IPTV Testing - Test strategy, planning, execution and reporting
- IPTV Vendor management
- IPTV Platform documentation
- IPTV Project & Programme Management
BCi adds EPG & Logo overlay functionality
Our engineers have recently completed the commissioning of a Thales ‘Jade’ unit and a Thales ‘Crystal’ unit. The Jade server can generate an EPG for any kind of architecture, including small or large head ends. It can provide national or regional program guides using advanced DVB-SI capabilities such as triggering, automatic bandwidth management, multi-route capabilities, and more.
The Crystal DTV logo inserter performs advanced video processing directly in the MPEG2 compressed domain completely avoiding the costly decoding/recoding process, thus preserving both video quality and customer investment.
The addition of these elements provides a suite of test options for complete ecosystems down to individual components.
BCi provides a range of IPTV test, architecture and integration solutions to Operators and Vendors. For more information please contact Mark Hooper on +447968 582391.
BCi continues to invest in its Southampton Lab by adding 4 x 1 GigE network cards to one of the Sun servers. The Lab provides a representative broadcast eco-system to support development and testing of IPTV and VoD components and systems. The addition of these cards allows us to present in excess of 3000 concurrent video streams. This is particularly important to create appropriate test conditions for Edge QAMs, Conditional Access kit, rate shapers or SRM’s (Session Resource Managers). It perfectly compliments our RTSP test client as they will form a very effective pair for cost effective capacity testing.
This upgrade forms part of a larger investment BCi are making in the Lab. These changes will further our growth into the IPTV/VoD Consultancy and System Integration support services. In particular it will broaden our Test services and allow clients to ’stress test’ components and systems prior to launch.
