Vision - September/October 2007 - (Page 17) I want my Industry heavyweights are counting on a new Internet technology to deliver a variety of services, but can it deliver subscribers? Cable and satellite TV operators now are in roughly 85 percent of U.S. homes, providing TV, Internet and phone services. With such a staggering penetration rate, one would think that the existing TV providers would have little to fear as far as new competition is concerned. But telcos AT&T and Verizon have boldly entered the space in the past two years, offering the same “Triple Play” of services—TV, Net and Phone. And while the telcos are still struggling to carve out a niche, they are confident of ultimately being successful because of four little letters: IPTV. Internet Protocol Television, or IPTV, promises to allow a communications company to offer more products than anyone has ever dreamed of and in ways that will challenge the creativity of the consumer as well as the provider. IPTV offers the potential of a technological breakthrough, tapping into the on-demand geist that permeates our culture by supplying the means to seemingly satisfy every need at every time. But like many new technologies, there are strong doubts about its reliability and even its usefulness as far as meeting real consumer demand. Some say that IPTV is more hype than “pipe,” meaning it will never be able to compete with the methods of distribution now used by the cable and satellite operators. By PhilliP Swann www.ce.org n illuStration By Derek lea September/October 2007 17 http://www.ce.org
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