This Week in “What I’m Reading”

July 23rd, 2010 No Comments

This week I enjoyed these articles:

  • Microsoft apparently killed a project that would let console and PC gamers play each other. Why? Because PC gamers would always beat console gamers. The advantage is the controller. A mouse and keyboard is much more accurate than a console controller. Anyway, I found this interesting since I’ve been playing around with Portal on Steam for Mac.

    “[B]oth programmers and consumers view online video as a complement to, rather than as a substitute for, traditional linear MVPD [multichannel video programming distributor] service,” it wrote in the filing.

    But furthermore, Comcast said it doesn’t see online video emerging as a competitive threat any time soon. There are “several impediments — technological, pricing-related, and rights-related — [that] make it highly unlikely that online video will become a substitute for MVPD service in the foreseeable future,” the cable company writes.”

    That is all!

    New IPTV Global Forecast Released – 2010 to 2014

    July 20th, 2010 1 Comment

    I’m happy to announce that my latest report, the 2010 IPTV Global Forecast – 2010 to 2014, was released last week by MRG.  The report covers a forecast of global IPTV subscribers, as well as spending for six IPTV product categories in addition to total IPTV service revenue, and system revenue from 2010 to 2014.

    MRG is forecasting that the  number of global IPTV subscribers will grow from 41.2 million at the end of 2010 to 101.7 million in 2014, a compound annual growth rate of 25.3%.

    This is the Spring/Summer edition and we will publish an update six months from now for the Fall/Winter 2010 with an updated forecast.  We strive to cover the IPTV market very closely because of all the activity going on, so we have been publishing twice a year for many years.

    IPTV Subscriber Forecast - 2010 to 2014

    In addition to subscriber forecasts, the report also has 5-year forecasts for the entire IPTV ecosystem, broken down by regions around the world.

    This report reveals which region will have the most subscriber revenues by 2014, which specific service providers will lead the way, and also look at some recommendations and conclusions.

    I’ll follow up in future posts and discuss some of these topics in more detail. If you have any questions, just comment on this post or send me an email.

    New Technologies for Set Top Boxes

    July 19th, 2010 1 Comment
    a 2.5 inch Solid state disk, E-disk from Bitmicro
    Image via Wikipedia

    As part of my role as an IPTV Analyst, I keep track of over 100 vendors that are part of the entire IPTV ecosystem. That includes lots of software and hardware equipment, like VOD servers, video head-ends, and middleware. One of the largest fields is set-top boxes.

    Currently at MRG, we track over 25 worldwide suppliers of IPTV set-top boxes. There are many big name companies, but also smaller ones from countries like China, Turkey, France and the U.K.

    Unlike U.S cable companies where Cisco and Motorola have a huge advantage, IPTV is still relatively open and does not have worldwide standards.  As a result, any company can release a STB with or without a hard drive.

    Recently, I read the Pirelli Broadband was looking to sell its set-top box business. That’s not a surprise since STBs are now becoming a commodity. Pirelli is perhaps best known for its tires (and perhaps its calendars) but its broadband division supplies set-tops to a number of Service Providers, especially in Italy.

    Here in the U.S., set-top boxes are subsidized by the cable, satellite and IPTV firms. But there’s still a retail market for products like Tivo, Roku, and soon, Google TV. In the U.K. and Italy, set-top boxes are sold at retail outlets, so consumers have a lot more choice when it comes to getting a new box.

    In the last year or so, there have been lots of new technologies coming to IPTV set-tops. Here are some of the top new trends I’ve seen:

    • Solid State Hard Drives. The newest models are now coming with solid-state hard drives, rather than the traditional drives with moving parts. Moving to flash-based solid state drives means faster speeds, since hard drives are usually the slowest part of any computer. Using solid state storage increaseses the cost (at least initially), but the box can be smaller, and quieter. Traditional hard drives also have a high failure rate compared to flash memory.  Solid State Drives (SSDs) are still very new, so very few STB manufacturers are using them yet.
    • Hybrid Connections. Most IPTV boxes today come with more than 1 TV input. There’s an Ethernet port (naturally), but also coax for over-the-air signals or even for satellite.  These STBs are called hybrids because they can connect to a variety of different inputs, so that Service Providers can deliver over-the-air signals, satellite, and Internet video from one box.  Cable boxes, by contrast, usually just have 1 coax connection, and don’t have Ethernet connectivity.
    • Home Networking Connections. The landscape for home networking is still evolving. Sure, Wi-Fi is popular but new standards are still emerging for wired connections (including power lines, phone lines and coaxial cables). Today, the IEEE and ITU have passed similar but competing wireline home networking specifications. The IEEE has passed P1901 (based on the HomePlug AV specification), while the ITU passed its G.hn spec recently. STB vendors have held off carrying either of these technologies inside their boxes, because the two specs are not interoperable. And offering both would be cost prohibitive. So for now, it seems like Wi-Fi is the next logical step.
    • Built-in WiFi. Surprisingly, most IPTV set-tops don’t come with wireless connectivity. Manufacturers want to keep the price of boxes low, so they leave out components that most consumers find indispensable. That means that consumers have had to buy dongles for their boxes, to connect Wi-Fi adapters. It’s not a great solution, but it works. It also passes along the cost to the consumer. Newer set-tops are coming with built-in Wi-Fi. Airties, is one company that I can recall that comes with Wi-Fi.
    • Intel Processors. Set top box company Amino Communications showed off the first Intel-based box earlier this year. Why is that a big deal? It essentially means the box is like a netbook–it comes with more storage, more RAM and is faster than ordinary set-tops. The Intel chip (while more expensive than regular STB chips) allows processor intensive applications, like Adobe Flash. That means consumers will be able to watch Hulu on their TV sets. Clearly, Intel is looking to stay relevant with consumer electronics devices, like set-top boxes, and even mobile devices.

    Bonus: This quick piece about how Solid-State Drives are much faster when it comes to boot-up and start times, but almost no PC manufacturers are using them yet.

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    What I’m Reading This Week

    July 17th, 2010 No Comments
    Image representing hulu as depicted in CrunchBase
    Image via CrunchBase

    What am I reading this week?

    I was interested in Mashable’s poll where they asked readers to choose between YouTube and Hulu. The winner, by a wide margin, is YouTube. Sure, it’s just a reader poll, and nothing very scientific, but it was a good look at what readers think.

    At Videonet, I read a post that talked about cloud-based pay TV services like TV Everywhere. Sure, the post is really just promoting a webcast from research firm Parks Associates, but I think it’s true that the geographic boundaries are really closing down. No longer does AT&T, for example, have to limit themselves to just their own regional footprint in the U.S. With its IPTV service, AT&T can deliver U-verse to anyone in the world, no matter where they live. This is already occurring with game consoles like the Xbox 360 supporting VOD and even live sporting events through ESPN.

    This story, about Hulu, describes how the company is repackaging TV.  It describes the finances behind Hulu and how it may even make a profit in 2010.  I also read a story about how Hulu will go international, even though it failed to begin a UK version recently. Oh and one more Hulu story: this one From MediaPost describes how Hulu is getting twice as many ads as YouTube.

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    My Stories at Streaming Media

    July 14th, 2010 No Comments

    I worked at Streaming Media for several years, starting their weekly newsletter as a freelancer, then joining the company as Senior Editor.

    It was a great time because the Internet was just heating up in 1999, but broadband was holding back a lot of the growth of video. Nevertheless, the company was successful because of the conferences they put on every year, and, naturally, the editorial. The web site covered the art, business and technical aspects of Internet audio and video. I even did a live weekly talk show, back before the word podcasts were coined.

    While I was Googling myself this week, I found a link to all my stories on Streaming Media. It’s a lot! I used to write about 5 news stories a day, plus a few feature stories per month for the web site. Then, for the print magazine, I’d have to write even more content. Things really started to heat up as I began covering companies that began shutting down.  Suddenly, the dot coms went bust.

    Anyway, it’s kind of fun to look through some of the articles I wrote. I covered the beginning of the Internet video industry, way back before YouTube ever existed. Way back before Mark Zuckerberg was ever in college and thinking about Facebook.

    Tivo Is Looking for Bluetooth Developers

    July 13th, 2010 No Comments

    I’ve been a user of Tivo for a long time. Actually, I was initially a ReplayTV user, which came out around the same time as Tivo.

    Bluetooth Engineer Job at Tivo

    But I’m a big fan of Tivo, and I think they’ve done some really great things. I follow Tivo on Twitter and Facebook. Plus, I also like to track job openings at Tivo.

    Yesterday I received a notification that there were 9 job openings at the company.

    One of the openings, was for a Bluetooth developer. Currently, Tivo’s don’t support Bluetooth, so I was a little surprised about this. I guess that future versions of Tivo boxes will have Bluetooth capability. But for what?

    A Bluetooth keyboard and remote is the most likely possibility. I saw this article on Engadget about a future Bluetooth keyboard for Tivo. But perhaps they are looking at other connectivity options like a camera or connection to smartphones or networked PCs.

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    Have You Seen This Man at the Oakland Riots?

    July 9th, 2010 No Comments

    I was watching live coverage of the riots in Oakland last night, after the Mehserle verdict came in.

    One scene showed a bunch of people tearing down the Foot Locker gates in downtown Oakland.

    But amidst this scene, I spied a fascinating man standing and just looking around.

    He was wearing glasses, a hat, and what looks like a fake mustache.

    Basically, he looks right out of the 70s.

    Is he a time traveling undercover 70s  cop? Does he time travel to riots all over the world, and at any time to get some booty? Does he just watch and see all?

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    Would You Buy an Apple HDTV?

    July 8th, 2010 1 Comment

    In yesterday’s post, I spoke about how Apple should work on its TV strategy.

    One of the ideas that have been floating around is that Apple will unveil an HDTV set with iTunes and a TV App Store.

    After all, Google already announced Google TV that includes a set-top box and connected TV sets with Google software built-in. So can Apple’s TV product be far behind?

    Today’s poll question is:


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    Own The Screen

    July 7th, 2010 1 Comment
    Image representing iPad as depicted in CrunchBase
    Image via CrunchBase

    Recently, I was thinking that the concept of “owning the screen” is a smart strategy to go after.

    For example, let’s look at Apple. They are redefining smartphones, and now  introduced the 4th screen, the iPad. So it’s just a matter of time before Apple goes after the other two screens: PCs and TVs

    Apple does well selling computers, but I think it should go after the TV screen next. It has a much brighter future than PCs. Now that Google showed its hand with Google TV, I expect Apple to make a move to TV in the near future. It’s not inside knowledge from Apple, just a hunch. Plus a few articles appearing on the blogosphere that say this may be forthcoming (check the links down below).

    Now that Apple is dominating the mobile and tablet “screens”, it can go after the hardest screen of all: TVs.

    TV’s aren’t just for watching TV. Television sets are just the biggest screen in the home now. Although many people say consumers don’t want the Internet on their TV, I think they’re not looking at the future.

    How will Apple do it? Will it be a version of its Mac Mini? Or Apple TV? Or some new product? Some people are even saying Apple will release its own line of Internet-connected HDTVs. I’m not sure, but I think going with retail, like a set-top box is a difficult market in the U.S. Getting Apple products and services embedded into connected TV sets seems like a better way to go, with less risk. Google will test the market with Google TV this Fall, so perhaps Apple can afford to sit a wait for a bit.

    But it’s clear that Apple’s TV strategy should be far more serious and less hobbyist. Apple investors don’t want the company to sell products that are for hobbyists. They want mass consumer adoption and blockbuster sales. Can Steve Jobs deliver? Can Google? Or will another company emerge?

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    Why I Switched to a MacBook Pro

    July 1st, 2010 No Comments

    I’ve been using computers since the early 80s when my parents bought me and my brothers an Atari 400.

    It was cheap looking, and had a flat plastic keyboard, but it was the cheaper version of the Atari 800, which had a real keyboard. The Atari 400 has a famously flat keyboard that was tough to type on.

    But I learned a lot from using the Atari. I remember buying a book on BASIC before we bought a computer and I would study the book to get ready. I began learning about BASIC programming from a book, but then I got bored and realized I just liked playing all the cool Atari video games. Although I never owned an Atari 2600 or 7800 game systems, I did have the computer which was a lot more functional.

    The Atari 400.

    After the Atari 400 years, I switched to other computers (like the Atari 5200!), then bought an IBM PC.

    It was my first real computer, and I bought it in a local electronics store in Brooklyn. I remember having to take a taxi home because the box was really big due to the huge CRT screens at the time. After that, I owned a few Dells. I upgraded every few years, and the only operating system I’ve used is Windows.

    I remember Windows 95, although I did not wait in line for the official release. (I’m nerdy, but not that nerdy.) I kept using windows, all the way up to Windows XP. But I never quite made it to Vista. And I never will.

    In November 2009, I needed a new laptop and decided to get a MacBook Pro. It wasn’t a tough decision. I started using an iPod, then an iPhone for a few years. I guess the iPhone is like a gateway drug, right?

    Anyway, I’m happy with my MacBook Pro. Sure it was expensive, but it’s reliable, sturdy and doesn’t require any tinkering. I’m done with tinkering with Windows settings and errors. (OK, I still have my desktop computer running Windows XP, but I don’t use it very often.)

    I’m happy with my MacBook Pro. I probably won’t be going back to Windows. Sorry Bill.

    Flickr photo courtesy of mwichary

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