Western European Telcos Embrace IPTV, But Content Acquisition Poses Challenges, Says IDC 

October 30, 2006 - According to IDC, IPTV mania is sweeping Western Europe, which is now home to more than 30 IPTV providers and by the end of 2006 IPTV will be available in nearly every country in the region. 

IDC estimates that the IPTV market in Western Europe is currently worth around $500 million, and will grow at a CAGR of 71% to reach $4.3 billion by 2010. In the next five years, household penetration of IPTV services will increase from 1% in 2006 to 11% by 2010. The countries that will make up a large portion of this growth are France, Italy, and Spain, where the pay-TV markets are less developed than elsewhere in Western Europe, where the first large IPTV services were launched, and where some of the more innovative providers are based. 

However, IDC points out that while IPTV offers a major new revenue source for service providers, it also requires massive network investment and the ability to navigate the complex world of content. This means that in addition to their existing 

IDC also believes that IPTV infrastructure gives service providers an additional platform to the world of user-generated content and online communities. The popularity of companies such as YouTube and Myspace.com has shown how consumers have embraced video as a means of communication as well as entertainment. Adding TV to the range of end terminals will foster growth in more of these types of services. 

ISMA Addresses Fast RTP Channel Change for IPTV 

October 30, 2006 - Responding to the industry's need for fast IPTV channel changes, ISMA has begun work on a new specification addressing instantaneous and reliable channel 

Companies that are not currently members of ISMA are invited to participate in the development of the new channel change specification as one-time auditors at the ISMA 23rd Member Forum, to be held Dec. 6 and 7 in Cupertino, Calif., at Apple Computer. Internet Streaming Media Alliance members at the participant level can contribute to the ongoing work prior to the forum through the Alliance's technical committee. The working draft, "Fast Channel Changing in RTP," is now available for free download at the Alliance's Web site, www.ISMA.tv. 

"There is a general myth in the industry that RTP channel change is slow and erratic in principle," said Nikolaus Farber of Fraunhofer IIS and the ISMA technical chair. "But with the correct deployment, RTP is one of the most stable and effective technologies for IPTV, including fast and accurate channel tune-in," he said.
The new work grew out of two public meetings ISMA organized -- a June North American IPTV Summit in Chicago and a European IPTV Summit in Amsterdam this September -- where non-member companies were invited to discuss the state of open standards for IPTV system development. The Summits were attended by 40 companies including equipment manufacturers, software vendors, system integrators, system operators and content providers, and were organized as a call to drive the much-needed integration of open standards through the Alliance. 

The specification looks at the coding, transport and network layers, and proposes solutions based on correct RTP usage, RTP extension headers, and distributed edge 

servers to support fast tune-in. The results of this specification work will be aligned with other organizations, in particular DVB-IPI Phase 2. ISMA developed the draft at its September member forum in Paris following the European Summit. 

PCCW Selects ICTV ActiveVideo Distribution Network For "now TV" Interactive Services 

October 26, 2006 - ICTV and PCCW Limited, communications provider in Hong Kong, have announced that the ICTV ActiveVideo Distribution Network (AVDN™) has been selected to enable interactive channels via television to subscribers of PCCW's now TV service.

now TV IPTV claims to enable subscribers to choose their preferred programs from more than 110 channels. The ActiveVideo channel offered by now TV is the interactive "Movie Trailer Channel" that PCCW has launched in partnership with United Artists, one of the leading cinema groups in Hong Kong. The Movie Trailer Channel allows subscribers to preview movies, choose cinema locations, check program times, request seat locations, and buy tickets using just their standard remote controls. The channel is the first in a series of ActiveVideo channels and applications that will deliver more interactive services to now TV's 654,000 subscribers.

"Over the past two years, PCCW has established now TV as a world leader in the deployment of IPTV," said Jeff Miller, President and CEO of ICTV. "We believe that the ability of ActiveVideo to bring standards-based, Web-driven programming and Internet-style advertising to the television will be a significant factor in helping operators like PCCW to dynamically expand the scope of their offerings and capture new subscriber and advertising revenue." 

v.1 Labs Announces IPTV Set Top Box Support Module 

October 25, 2006 - v.1 Labs today announced a new support module designed to help reduce the customer care burden related to IPTV service offerings. The new tool will help IPTV operators reduce the number of 

The IPTV support module leverages the field proven Front Line platform to provide one interface for operators to support IPTV, high speed internet, VoIP, and device diagnostics. Keeping the CSR desktop clean has proven to be critical in efficient call resolution. v.1 Labs Patent pending platform also provides the end consumer with corrective instructions on the TV screen for issues that simply can not be resolved by software, again further reducing the likelihood that a subscriber will pick up the phone. 

"Our new IPTV module has been designed from the ground up to ensure that operators have visibility into the subscriber home. Being able to gather information from the set top box on a regular basis will allow operators the ability to proactively manage the services they offer. Exception based reporting keeps network management traffic to a minimum and provides targeted data back to the operator only when required.

Having the set top self heal many common problems is key to ensuring high levels of subscriber satisfaction and reducing churn," said Mike Earle, President and CEO of v.1 Labs. 

Global IPTV startup TV Anywhere has already agreed to deploy the solution and is actively working with v.1 Labs to refine the process in a collaborative approach designed to ensure the module meets all deployment needs of any IPTV provider. 

SES AMERICOM Adds Harmonic's Scrambling Technology to IP-PRIME IPTV Distribution Platform 

October 24, 2006 - SES AMERICOM, an SES GLOBAL company (Euronext Paris and Luxembourg stock exchanges: SESG), and Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced the integration of Harmonic's latest video encryption technology with SES AMERICOM's IP-PRIME™ IPTV distribution service. The new Harmonic ProStream™ 1000 with ProCipher™ AES scrambling and bulk descrambling technology is a key component of IP-PRIME, which enables large and small telephone company operators and broadband service providers across the U.S. to securely, easily and cost-effectively deliver a full lineup of top quality programming to consumers. 

For IPTV operators seeking to accelerate their time-to-market and reduce risk, IP-PRIME offers a fully-managed solution, which includes the origination of more than 200 channels and reliable Harmonic ProCipher encryption, delivered from the SES AMERICOM IPTV Broadcast Center in Vernon Valley, New Jersey and then seamlessly transported to the headend at the telco's central office and ultimately to consumer homes. The IP-PRIME drop-off solution enables telcos to take over the programming signal once it arrives at the operator's video headend. 

"Secure transmission of video content over the IPTV network is a critical requirement 

"SES AMERICOM's IP-PRIME service with the ProStream encryption is the world's first implementation of this unique encryption technology within a single 1-RU system," said Nimrod Ben-Natan, Vice President of Solutions and Strategy for Harmonic Inc. "SES AMERICOM has played an important role in helping Harmonic to define the requirements for the AES bulk decryption technology implemented in this project. At Harmonic, we are committed to working closely with our customers to develop and deploy creative and technically advanced solutions that meet their business and technology needs. In this case, the unique ProStream solution with ProCipher AES encryption not only reduces cost and complexity in the IP-PRIME network, it also streamlines the encryption and delivery of aggregated video services." 

The IP-based ProCipher technology provides a unique, scalable and high performance AES encryption solution, with the capability to support bulk descrambling of up to 128 services in one rack unit. Harmonic's ProStream 1000 is the industry's first solution that can be easily scaled and configured to provide a wide range of digital video stream processing functions-including multiplexing, scrambling, bulk descrambling, re-encoding and SFN over IP-within an integrated system. In addition to simplifying operations, its compact design saves considerable capital expenditure and facilities space required for traditional receiver/decoder solutions.

Amino Selected by On Command for In-Room IPTV 

October 20, 2006 - Amino, leading IPTV platform supplier, today announced that On Command Video Corporation has commercially deployed the AmiNET series to provide the latest in-room interactive entertainment and guest service systems to hospitality customers around the world. The AmiNET range of set-top boxes ensures pre-tested interoperability with major system components, facilitating rapid deployment essential for the hospitality industry. In these deployments On Command has used Amino products to create a customised, cost effective solution that enables them to optimise their existing deployments whilst still utilising the hotels' coaxial cabling. 

On Command provides in-room entertainment and guest information services to more than 800 thousand hotel rooms worldwide. The deployment through On Command allows guests to order pay-per-view movies as well as enjoying broadcast channels, on-demand games, and information services through the television set enhancing the guests viewing experience while providing a potential increase in revenue for hotel partners. 

"Amino is an established leader in the IPTV set-top box market and they have delivered reliable, high-performance set-top boxes to On Command," said Christopher Altomari, vice president of manufacturing for On Command.

"The potential for IPTV in the hospitality sector is only starting to be truly appreciated," commented Roy Kirsopp, Vice President & General Manager, Amino. "Using IP networks or basement centred distribution, hotels can provide interactive information services, premium gaming or video content on-demand with billing and access to content easily controlled from a central point. In order to tap the potential additional revenues offered by premium services, hotels must ensure that their offering is attractive to end users and easy to use. Amino has worked hard to ensure that its products are easily integrated into any system, are powerful enough to handle all applications and offer a simple interface to the customer to ensure maximum value to all parties."

Archer Entertainment Media Opens Beijing Office to Launch Two IPTV Channels for People of Chinese Origin (PCO) Following Successful Start of India TV Live 

October 16, 2006 - Archer Entertainment Media Communications Incorporated (OTC: ACRM), announced today the opening of its Beijing, China offices amid preparations to begin broadcasting of China's first television-over-the-Internet (IPTV) channels exclusively for the Chinese people both within China, and Chinese Living Abroad (CLA) of over 30 million Chinese living around the world. Jun Chen, Archer Vice President of Business 

China Broadcast Live (CBL) and the PCO TV (People of Chinese Origin) Channel targets a potential audience of a billion consumers and follows the successful inauguration of Archer Media and IndiaTVLive's PIO TV (People of Indian Origin) via IPTV protocol, in New Delhi, on August 17, 2006. India TV Live and PIO TV are the first Internet television channels exclusively for the Indian diaspora community. Archer's IPTV ventures in Asia heralds many more entertainment products to come from Archer Media.

"Archer's pioneering success in Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) places Archer Media in the forefront of the burgeoning global revolution in content delivery via the Internet," said Michael Selsman, Archer CEO. Archer Media will partner with Bangkok-based Buzz Technologies Inc (OTC: BZTG) to provide a state of the art experience for IPTV viewers. Buzz Technologies has recently formed an alliance with Nero and a number of China based Manufacturers of Mobile Handsets and Computer Hardware, details of the agreements are expected to be made public in the coming week. Buzz will deliver IPTV over a range of devices including Smart Phones and PDAs.

Mr. Chen is an accomplished entrepreneur in China, focused on entertainment and commercial real estate finance, management and development. He was formerly an executive at the Beijing City Development Company, China Real Estate Department Post and China Media Data Encryption Company. Mr. Chen has extensive knowledge and hands on experience in China's media entertainment and land development projects. 

Next-Generation Set-Top Platforms Supporting Microsoft TV IPTV Edition Enable Advanced New Functionalities 

October 10, 2006 - Microsoft Corp. and leading set-top box manufacturers Cisco Systems Inc., Motorola Inc., Philips and Tatung Co. today announced at Broadband World Forum Europe that advanced system-on-a-chip (SoC) set-tops, which will greatly enhance the Internet Protocol television (IPTV) user experience, are now available to support Microsoft® IPTV Edition software platform deployments with leading telecommunications carriers worldwide. An integral part of the IPTV ecosystem, SoC set-tops will enable service providers to begin delivering high-definition TV (HDTV), digital video recording (DVR) and picture-in-picture functionalities as well as other advanced features in the future, enhancing consumers' television-viewing experience. 

This new generation of SoC-based, HD-capable, IPTV-ready receivers makes it easier for service providers to deploy IPTV Edition more broadly, quickly and cost-efficiently while supporting exciting new TV services. The availability of these devices illustrates the continued innovation of Microsoft and its IPTV Edition ecosystem partners in the telecommunications and digital television industries.

Cisco's proven history of IP innovation gives the company unmatched IP expertise and successful IPTV deployments, which it is able to share with its service provider partners. Cisco IP set-top models, which will be deployed by customers including AT&T, support experience-enhancing features such as high-definition TV, DVR, integrated home networking over coax and user-friendly displays. Models are available with appropriate

Motorola's heritage of invention for the connected home has resulted in over 48 million video entertainment devices being shipped to service providers worldwide. The company's VIP series of SoC-based set-tops are engineered to meet the needs of service providers deploying the Microsoft IPTV Edition system. These solutions seamlessly bring the advanced IP services into any room in the house, including on-demand services, DVR and support for HDTV codecs, as well as forthcoming IPTV Edition features such as multiroom streaming and home media networking. Motorola VIP series set-tops are currently shipping in volume to leading providers worldwide, and the company has announced that AT&T will be the first service provider to commercially deploy these products.