Socialising at IBC 2012

IBC 2012 marks a year since the launch of our unique multiscreen TV app, ANT Galio Move. Over the last 12 months the app has continued to evolve as connected devices have presented a massive opportunity for the TV industry. With the foundations of the connected home in place, it’s clear that consumers want to be able to interact across multiple devices. Now with the ANT Galio Move app, viewers can access Facebook and Twitter on the same screen as their favourite TV shows.

ANT Galio Move was developed to meet the growing demand for the multiscreen viewing experience. It enables viewers to watch both live and recorded TV on tablets and smartphones anywhere in the home. People can watch either the same or different TV shows without interrupting the main TV screen. The app ‘talks’ to the TV or STB over a Wi-Fi connection, any tablet or smartphone device can also act as a remote control. So viewers are also able to manage recordings and access programme information.

Now viewers can update Facebook or Twitter whilst they watch TV content on the same screen. Not only this, but because the app analyses programme metadata it can also provide links to additional associated online content. ANT Galio Move can provide links to Wikipedia for additional programme and actor information, movie trailers on YouTube, or a soundtrack on iTunes. It can even suggest the right hashtags for the viewer to follow on Twitter.


We’ll be at IBC until the end of the show so pop our stand 4.C98 in Hall number 4 to see ANT Galio Move in action. Or you can view a video demonstration of the new features below.

Streamed mobile TV users set to soar

This week, Juniper Research released a survey highlighting the increasing popularity of streaming TV services directly to smartphone devices. Juniper predicts that the number of users will rise to 240m by 2014. The report found that this dramatic growth would arise from a combination of both increased smartphone penetration and, critically, an increase in the usage of live and on-demand Internet TV and IPTV services.

Of course, TV content is no longer confined to a TV screen in the home, and mobile TV adds another exciting dimension to consumers’ viewing experience. Mobile TV allows viewers to access real-time content whenever and wherever they want, meaning consumers can watch events, such as sports or breaking news stories, as they happen, and interact with that content as they watch. As the likes of Sky invest more in mobile access, the TV industry will be encouraged to see the rising mobile TV usage figures. 

Content providers would however, be wise to ensure that in offering consumers a multiscreen experience, each of the devices used are able to interact with each other. At present, devices are all too often treated independently, with mobile devices receiving cut-down services via the cloud. Content providers and device manufacturers need to work together to enable companion devices to ‘connect’ to TVs and STB’s to achieve a fully converged user experience.

Getting connected

Connected TVs are being woefully underused at the moment. This week YouGov released a survey showing only one third of connected TV buyers are doing so to connect to the internet. Most are currently being bought by early adopters looking to have the most up to date gadget. Picture, sound quality and screen size are cited as the most important factors, rather than the interactive web content.

YouGov suggested the results are more to do with future proofing the TV, likening it to when HD ready TVs were sold before HD channels were available. But that argument doesn’t really stack up as connected TV content is already available. It has been somewhat limited as content providers wait for consumers to show more interaction before making the leap themselves. But we are gradually seeing content owners and broadcasters become more media savvy. Content is now being distributed across a variety of IP-connected devices such as games consoles, smartphones, tablets and laptops. There’s a huge opportunity here to transform the TV experience from just simply viewing to interacting.

Streaming kills the video star

It looks as though the tide is turning for connected TV services. This month for the first time ever, LOVEFiLM announced its members streamed more films and TV series over the internet than it rented DVDs. The number of films and TV episodes streamed online increased by 20 per cent over the previous month and increased by 400 per cent compared with the same month last year.

These services are currently offered over internet-connected devices such as games console, laptops and connected TVs. But we should start to see connected TVs and STB’s take the lion’s share as consumers become more aware of the benefits of plugging an Ethernet cable into the back of their TV’s and set-top boxes.

Amazon’s LOVEFiLM was the pioneer in online film delivery services in the UK and with over two million members it’s still the largest in Europe. But the marketplace is hotting up with competing offerings from the likes of Netflix, Dixon’s KnowHow service and Sky’s NowTV to be launched in the summer.

We hope to see these companies take movie streaming services to the next level, by not only offering great content but interactive features as well. Service providers need to consider what value added content they can deliver on top of programmes, such as social media interaction and recommendations.

Starting the standard-definition switch-off?

A recent report from Digital TV Research suggests that the penetration of HD-ready televisions is high enough that operators may be able consider switching off some standard-definition channels in the near future in some countries.

There are several possible reasons why this may not be a good idea, though. While the report considers some of these, there are others that may be less obvious:

• HD-ready doesn’t mean people are watching HD channels. My own TV is HD-ready, but I don’t have an HD set-top box from my pay TV provider. There’s nothing technical stopping me from getting one, but for me the benefits are outweighed by the costs (which don’t have to be financial)

• A number of households may watch HD programmes, but only record SD programmes. There are a lot of standard-definition PVR set-top boxes already deployed, which people may not want to replace. Cost is part of that, but so is the loss of any recordings they want to keep: this is primarily what’s stopping me from upgrading

• A household having one HD-ready TV doesn’t mean that they don’t have other TVs or set-top boxes that are only SD-capable

• 80% penetration of HD-ready TVs by 2016, and less than 40% of people actively watching

HD by the same date, still leaves a lot of people who don’t watch HD. These are only predicted averages, and some pay TV providers may have substantially higher penetration rates, but switching off SD channels may still disappoint many viewers.

We’ve seen how long the conversion from analogue to digital has taken in a number of countries. While the move from SD to HD is not quite so radical, there will still be a great deal of public education needed and a great deal of equipment to replace. Following so rapidly on the heels of the move to digital, how many people will want to replace their equipment again?

SD switch-off for digital TVs may seem like a good idea, but it’s still a long way from being a reality.

Connected TV goes global with new industry body

This week saw the launch of the Connected TV Marketing Association (CTVMA), a new marketing body for the worldwide connected TV industry. The CTVMA is an international body, which will bring together the equipment manufacturers, operators, advertisers and broadcasters working to develop connected TV content and services.

It’s a welcome move in the promotion of internet ready TV sets and STBs, and hopefully a significant step towards helping the connected TV market reach its full potential.

With a fifth of TV sets to be connected in five years and the digital switchover upon us, as an industry we need to embark on a programme of significant consumer education in order to boost market performance. Consumers need to have the most up to date technology and be made aware of the innovative services that are actually available to them.

We’ve already seen that marketers are missing a trick by leaving IPTV devices out of their marketing campaigns. It’s a catch 22. As marketers wait for consumers to demonstrate interaction with brands on TV sets, without providing the content, consumers have nothing to interact with. As the CTVMA gets to work, we look forward to seeing the next generation of broadcast content and marketing campaigns across all devices in the connected home.

Increase in demand for personalised TV services

A recent report, has found that over 70 per cent of UK consumers want to be able to watch what they want, when they want. 39 per cent wish catch-up content was available for longer and 45 per cent would like to be able to watch all the episodes of their favourite shows back to back.

It seems that on demand is in demand, as 74 per cent of viewers claim that they can’t find anything to watch on live TV. Many are feeling overwhelmed by content. The fusion of broadcast and broadband has provided a wealth of new TV services but the result is a content maze that viewers are finding increasingly difficult to navigate.

The survey goes on to say that 39 per cent of those surveyed felt that there were technology and film brands that could do a better job than the existing TV channels. This means that the pressure is on for broadcasters in the coming months, as companies such as Netflix launch in the UK.

As increased connectivity transforms the way we consume and interact with TV, operators and broadcasters need to deliver more choice and a variety of services that enable the viewers to shape how they consume content.

Viewers are ready for the next generation of TV. As we move into 2012 there is a real opportunity here for operators and broadcasters to look ahead and develop personalised services for their viewers so they can get the most out of their TV viewing experience.

YouTube delivers online movies on demand

YouTube has now launched its online movie rental service in the UK. It’s a welcome addition to YouTube’s online video services, bringing premium media content to consumers in just a few simple clicks.

The launch follows in the footsteps of Amazon and Apple, and could be a serious contender to LoveFilm and the iTunes store as it’s proved itself to be an online community, rather than just a portal for video streaming.

YouTube is bringing the service to the UK after launching in the US and Canada. This is only the third market that YouTube has launched the service in, highlighting the increasing demand for digital content in the UK. By hosting this content online these services not only deliver access to a huge archive of media content, but also give viewers the freedom to watch what they want, when they want.

These services have also embraced the ‘app’ providing the ideal format for multiscreen viewing. By downloading these apps to the TV, tablet or smartphone viewers can watch movies, TV shows and music videos on the go. And, with technology like our own ANT Galio Move application, viewers can stream live and recorded programmes from their TV device direct to their tablet or smartphone anywhere in the home.

Half-time for digital switch over

The UK is more than half way to digital switch over. Consumers that receive their TV signal via an aerial rather than cable or satellite will be able to access more than 15 channels and as many as 40 depending on their proximity to a transmitter.

The switch to stronger digital signals means extra channels, including high-definition Freeview services, and much improved reception.

In the last two weeks transmitters in the Midlands, Oxfordshire, Stoke and Newcastle-under-Lyme and Yorkshire have been switched over. By the end of 2011 include 11 out of the 15 TV regions, 80 per cent of transmitter sites and 65 per cent of the population.

But despite the investment in regional awareness building campaigns research conducted by ANT shows that consumers face confusion when looking to buy a new TV.

For example Freeview HD has been promoted ahead of digital switch-over but when asked whether an HD television with built-in Freeview would deliver Freeview HD, not one member of staff identified that in order to take advantage of this the viewer must live in a HD-enabled area.

Many retailers stopped the sale of analogue TV sets in 2010 with the launch of the digital switchover but it’s essential that retailers take responsibility for the education process as well, helping consumers understand how these new devices work, to ensure they are getting the most out of new digital TV technologies. We need to get the building blocks in place to so we can look to develop more personalised TV services to the consumer.

Hunt urges telecom firms to put aside rivalries in bid to roll out superfast broadband

The RTS (Royal Television Society) Cambridge Convention took place here in Cambridge, UK, last week. The event at Kings College called TV Everywhere: Paths to Growth brought together executives from across the broadcast industry.

Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt addressed the conference and issued a call to action to telecoms firms to put aside rivalries to roll out superfast broadband.

The Government’s ambition is that the UK should have the best broadband network in Europe by 2015, with 90% of homes and businesses having access to up to 40MBps superfast broadband.

Superfast broadband will be critical to the mainstream adoption of internet services that require high bandwidth such as connected TVs.

Hunt warned that disputes between BT and rival telecom operators over the price of renting BT ducts were delaying the roll out of fibre. Watchdog Ofcom has promised to intervene but it’s unlikely that the issue will be settled until 2012.

Hunt also called for a cross-media approach to fighting anti-piracy. He said that advertisers, credit card companies, and ISPs should cut ties with web sites that serve illegal content.

A full copy of Jeremy Hunt’s speech is available on The Guardian web site.

European standardises on connected TVs

Internet-connected televisions are set to become a standard feature of European living rooms according to German trade association BITKOM.

More than 10 million television sets with integrated internet connection will be sold in the European Union in 2011, rising to 13 million sets in 2012.

Sales in France, Germany and the UK are roughly doubling year-on-year according to a report in Telecom Paper.

You don’t need to look very hard to see where the growth is coming from; each week brings a fresh announcement from a regional teleco operator signing up new customers or building out in its network to support IPTV services.

Dutch telco KPN announced this week that it signed up 56,000 connected TV subscribers in the last three months to reach a total of 416,000 subscribers.

In Ireland Eircom has announced that it will spend €100m on the first phase of a roll-out of fibre technology to 100,000 homes and businesses before rolling out IPTV by mid-2012.

IPTV – ready for take-off?

As a company with its roots in IPTV, we’ve seen a lot of predictions in the past about how IPTV will grow rapidly in the future – and it’s often been “in the next couple of years”. However, Digital TV Research’s recent prediction that homes paying for IPTV will more than quadruple to 155 million by the end of 2016 is rather more likely to come true due to to changes in the market and in the growth of IP connectivity.

As expected, it’s the Asia-Pacific region, home of ubiquitous high-bandwidth Internet, that’s likely to drive this growth. But Asia-Pacific is no longer alone in deploying this kind of bandwidth; more and more operators are deploying gigabit networks to the home, with a large amount of this reserved for media services. This trend plays a large part in the growth of pay services, as the viewing experience improves to the point where more people will pay for it.

While we here in Europe are seeing over-the-top content as the most popular driver for connected TVs, in the USA pay-TV services dominate. A recent report by Sandvine indicated that, at its peak, Netflix accounted for almost 30% of internet traffic in the USA, with real-time entertainment as a whole making up almost 50% of the Internet traffic. Not all of this is paid for, of course, but as more and more companies offer their content online there will be more attempts to monetize this. We’re already seeing Apple offering streaming TV shows to Apple TV devices, and Google offering movie rental services to Android devices.

This isn’t “traditional” IPTV, but that’s not a bad thing. The growth in Connected TVs, broadcast digital TV services, and independent media services such as Netflix has meant a move away from the subscription-based IPTV service offered by telcos. IPTV is now less of a substitute for broadcast TV and more of an additional service alongside traditional TV services, pay-TV or otherwise. A recent DisplaySearch forecast indicated that half a billion connected TV sets would be shipped by 2015, indicating that this trend will only continue. People are having ever more choice in the content they consume, and where they get it from. We may finally have found a business model that enables IPTV to reach its true potential.

Connected TV sales show strong trend worldwide

Sales of connected TVs are set to boom. That’s not just our view but it’s an opinion shared by analysts at DisplaySearch in a new report published this week.

According to the DisplaySearch Quarterly TV Design and Features Report a quarter of all flat panel TVs shipped this year are expected to be internet ready. That number is set to grow to 138 million units by 2015. DisplaySearch predicts that within four years connected TVs will account for almost half of all flat panel TVs shipped.

It’s a trend that is common to both developed markets as consumers upgrade their televisions, and emerging markets, which typically have good broadband services. The common motivation for consumers is a drive to access the best content and services.



Source: DisplaySearch Quarterly TV Design and Features Report

Cloud and the Connected Home World Summit 2011

At the Connected Home World Summit last week there were some interesting discussions on what comes under the heading ‘connected home’. We tend to think of digital media sharing. But there are more features out there that can be added to the chains of connectivity in the home, such as: automated lighting and power control, security and heating control and even some aspects of health care such as panic alarms and other monitoring.

The issue of wireless around the house was discussed in depth, during one of the early morning briefing sessions. An example of where the construction industry needs to meet the connected home industry, as homes are still being built with aluminium backed plaster board, meaning WiFi doesn't stand a chance between one room and another. A prime example of inertia and how many things simply do not move in "Internet time".

Cloud computing was one of the hot topics at the summit this year, especially as Apple has now announced iCloud. There were many discussions around how the cloud relates to the connected home. Is data stored in the cloud, the home network, or both? Should each device try and stream from the cloud or some form of p2p network around the house, as one audience member provocatively suggested? I can see tremendous amounts of data from the home moving to cloud storage and cloud processing in the long term (10 years – maybe 5 years at best), but I just don't see this as realistic over the next few years. Why?

• Users are being asked to place absolute faith in the reliability, security and privacy of cloud storage – but not even Apple is making remotely strong enoughttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifh statements to convince me that this area is adequately addressed to be considered appropriate for 95% of Internet users. Could I have absolute confidence telling my parents' that it is sensible, safe and fast enough to have the only of all their photos in the cloud today? Simply put - no

• Upload bandwidths are still not comparable to download bandwidths. Even though it may only be comparatively short term pain, I don't think the vast majority of users are at the point where uploading 100 GB (say their music and photo collection) is going to be viewed as trivial. On top of this there would be a distinct absence of "instant gratification" that the Internet services are generally promoted as. If home video is included, 100 GB can easily become 1 TB or more

So what are the implications? Data originating in the house will tend to stay in the house – at least as far as the master copy is concerned. Data (video) that originates outside the house (broadcast and other content owners) can move to the cloud much easier. Music collections, a la iCloud, are probably the hybrid for the next few years.

By David Fell, CTO, ANT

4G mobile services could disrupt digital TV

The launch of 4G next year will bring some great opportunities to the mobile and tablet industries. However, it seems as though what is good news for mobiles, could well be bad news for digital TV. 4G will provide faster browsing and download speeds but it seems as though these new high speed signals could interfere with digital TV reception in the UK.

Ofcom, the government-approved regulatory authority for the telecommunication industries in the UK has produced a briefing document on the ‘Coexistence of new services in the 800 MHz band with digital terrestrial television’, which outlines how signals from base stations handling 4G might interfere with local STBs. The problem has arisen as 4G sits next to terrestrial TV signals in the spectrum. It is thought at the moment that around 3 per cent of UK viewers could be affected. And although filters should solve the problem for some, others may need to use different ways to get TV signal. Ofcom has started a research programme to investigate the problem and to find out to what extent viewers will be affected.

Although it’s still unclear as to where the responsibility lies for minimising the impact on TV viewers, this is something that could have a potentially large impact on digital TV services in the UK.

Changing times for TV – Europe leads the way

New research has found that broadcasters are increasingly taking the reins when it comes to developing over-the-top (OTT) video services in Europe. The study by SNL Kagen shows that the popularity of catch up services, like BBC iPlayer, is at the heart of how content is being distributed and viewed online.

It’s further evidence that the way we absorb TV content has made a fundamental shift. The ability to tune in anytime to our favourite programmes shapes our TV behaviour today. Open standards, like HbbTV, are creating a competitive landscape for broadcasters – and by default, an increasingly rich content library for TV viewers, as technology opens the doors to brand new features and personalised functions.

Broadcasters in the UK, France and Germany have established standards that open new doors for consumers. Spain is also beginning to address this demand with Mediaset España and Telefonica recently announcing a strategic agreement to launch a pilot for HbbTV services in Spain.

So, it seems that open standards are proving their metal in Europe. And, ‘TV Everywhere’ is becoming the name of the game. But as this adoption grows, the content bank for consumers gets richer, and instant access to content becomes the status quo, the pressing question now is how users will access all of this content? A multiscreen TV experience, it seems, is just around the corner.

Video streaming drives data growth – but who pays for it?

Once again, we’re hearing reports that multimedia traffic and video in particular, will drive a massive growth in Internet traffic. ABI Research has calculated that Video and TV streaming could surpass web and internet traffic by 2015, driven by the increasing use of laptops, tablets and other connected devices.

While this isn’t anything new, the increase in the amount of services delivering over-the-top media (and more importantly, the upsurge in the number of devices that give consumers access to those services) indicates that this growth can’t be ignored.

Rising internet traffic will require increased investment from both data carriers and service providers. While the net neutrality debate isn’t yet over, it’s clear that consumers will end up paying for this investment in one way or another. However, who they pay will be an important factor and if service providers can’t monetise their content they will face an uphill struggle in the face of increasing costs for content delivery. We’re already seeing YouTube moving to provide pay content, and other service providers are likely to soon follow, but it’s unclear what will distinguish their services from the likes of Netflix and LoveFilm.

Services operated by broadcasters, such as Sky Player, often have an edge in the quality of content they can offer - not to mention revenue from broadcast programming that can help offset the cost of an online service. For this reason, pure online services will have to do more than simply provide video in order to convince end users to pay. Without offering something unique, these services will face stiff competition from traditional broadcasters and TV service providers offering online content.

IP&TV World Forum 2011

IP&TV World Forum has been and gone again. As usual I spent some time at the show catching up on what’s new. It seems to be a year of consolidation for the industry: most of what I saw was more polished versions of products or demos that I had already seen. This isn’t a bad thing, in fact, it signals a positive shift in the industry.

In my experience, this kind of consolidation tends to indicate a move from “technology push” to “product pull” – shifting from a set of technologies looking for a problem to solve to an industry that has become more consumer-focused, concentrating on delivering products that customers really want. This is a sign of growing maturity in the market, and given the growth in connected TV services and over-the-top services marks an important step towards the mainstream for both.

HbbTV and iPlayer were well-represented at this year’s show, and these really demonstrate the two trends that we’re seeing here at ANT. The uptake of HbbTV as a standard solution for web-based TV services, and the spread of iPlayer as a service that is hugely popular with consumers, could indicate a turning point for the IPTV industry.

The BBC, YouView and Connected TV StandardsThe BBC, YouView and Connected TV Standards

Roly Keating, director of archive content at the BBC, spoke recently at the UK Digital TV Group (DTG) summit about how the company is approaching the delivery of content to multiple devices. While some reports have picked up on his comments that YouView is only one part of the BBC's strategy, I’m not sure how surprising this is. With iPlayer being rolled out on more and more devices, and with a huge library of Web-based content, the BBC can’t afford to put all their eggs in the YouView basket – either politically or in terms of their public service remit.

Like many organisations, the BBC is wrestling with the problem of delivering content to multiple devices. The approach to connected TV being taken by the DTG and other industry bodies can offer significant advantages here, by bringing together standards from the web and TV in a pragmatic way: one that that brings the two worlds closer together while recognising the differences between them in business models and product lifecycles. Similarly, the BBC is in an excellent place to help shape that, work by providing concrete examples of where the gaps are today.

The BBC has a long history of involvement in standardisation, and this is another example of where they can take a leading role in standardising an approach to multi-screen delivery of connected TV services based on today’s connected TV standards.

Going digital in Paris

Now that Paris has switched off its analogue TV transmitters, many Parisians may be wondering what exactly that should expect, from going wholly digital. In the short term, the answer is probably not much: figures indicate that only a small proportion of homes were relying on analogue transmissions before switch-off, so for many households it will be business as usual. Just like in the UK, viewers may need to re-tune their set-top boxes or TVs, but that’s probably all for now.

Looking forward, though, the analogue switch-off has the potential to drive some real change. Radio spectrum is so valuable that some of it will undoubtedly be sold off for purposes other than television. But more high-definition and interactive services are probably on the cards, as new digital services are able to re-use some of the spectrum currently used for analogue services. Given that French operators have demonstrated HbbTV-based services, there is already some movement in this direction. As France and the UK both move towards support for HTML-based interactive services in their terrestrial TV networks, it’s likely that we will see a range of new content appearing on TVs in the near future.

Based on experiences in Germany and the UK, catch-up TV services will probably be the first to appear. While not necessarily innovative, we have to remember that most people don’t regard interactive services as the “killer app” for their TV – the experience of actually watching TV is still far more important. Services that make it easier for people to do that are likely to be the winners in the short term. The combination of a standard platform and more broadcast bandwidth will help broadcasters deploy a wide range of new services, but service providers will still need to rely on “customer pull” rather than “technology push” to make those services a success.