IPTV, what is it and what does it mean I hear you cry, well IPTV is the ability to transmit television to viewers using IP, Internet Protocol, via a delivery method called Streaming. Streaming is where a file is simultaneously delivered and viewed so that the content does not have to be fully downloaded first and consequently does not store the media on the local hard drive which is beneficial for content owners. Streaming allows viewers to view content almost immediately without having to wait for lengthy downloads.
IPTV, is an “Everyone sees the same content at the same time” technology but can also be supported using “on demand services” which allows users to view a particular content at their leisure using seek commands much the same as using a DVD player, but on demand services must not be confused with IPTV as much of the technology providers are doing. You would not state that a DVD is a TV system, it is a video archive so we do not understand why certain IPTV providers with downloadable content are stating they have IP Television, IP Television is “everyone sees the same picture at the same time”.
With the end of 2006 seeing a massive growth in businesses, ISPs and consumers investing and using Streaming Media as a method of communicating moving picture content, 2007 will see an eye opening increase in technology platforms to service these requirements. Remember anything that goes out on IP, the internet protocol, means that people who are connected to this network, “The Internet” can view this signal, so you can broadcast to the entire planet if required.
So will IPTV replace Digital, Cable and Satellite Television, well all of these services “Stream” a digital signal to a box under your TV which is decoded back to a video signal, much the same as IPTV, but it is the connection between the box under your TV and the service provider that is the major difference in the technology. IPTV will use Internet Connectivity via fast internet connections rather than expensive Radio Waves, dedicated cable networks or Satellite Transmissions, so Streaming TV is not really a new technology, the major development is the increased internet connectivity speed available to homes and businesses.
IPTV, must be expensive I hear you cry? Well IPTV has its market in lower audience, niche market television and network video picture distribution. IPTV is priced on a cost per viewer scenario where Sky and Satellite is based on a high “unlimited”
View TV, a UK based Internet Television portal broadcasting from www.viewtv.co.uk allows users to broadcast IPTV in a number of qualities up to near DVD quality to computers screens in homes and businesses across the UK and now with the addition of IP Set top boxes which plug in to your broadband connection and a spare scart port on the back of your television, provides you with up to 900 new niche channels.
Most companies currently considering IPTV are seeing it as a reallocation of a marketing budget, spending money on producing video content to promote their products and broadcasting to the interested parties. Specialised versions of QVC and BID UP TV channels for product ranges can be broadcasted as an interactive e-commerce solution a fraction of the cost of digital broadcasts and a lot more successful than a bland ecommerce website with static pictures.
So why use View TV rather than going out there and setting up your own website TV channel on your own website? Well it is possible to set up your own online streaming channel but it is around £20,000 setup, £2,000 per month in streaming costs as View TV pass the bandwidth savings and knowledge to the channel owners with extensive costs for online and traditional marketing reduced by more than 60%. Why market a single channel when View TV already has visitors to the site which all want to view online television.
So how do you produce the content, well View TV has thought of it all, you can rebroadcast your current Digital or Satellite Signal on to View TV via a fully managed and monitored solution through its data centre, you can have a single video file on loop, or scale all the way up to a fully scheduled TV channel with programmes being displayed at certain times much the same as ITV 1 and Channel 4 with the added bonus of being able to securely schedule your system and upload content from anywhere in the world via an internet connection. View TV also now has introduced a fully managed channel where you will be assigned a dedicated channel technician to control and schedule your system inside View TV by receiving DVD’s Tapes or Digital File uploads.
View TV, www.viewtv.co.uk
