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Viodi View – 11/09/10

It is back to where it all started for the Viodi View at this week’s TelcoTV conference. Innovation was a common theme at the first TelcoTV event eight years ago and, if the press releases that are flying around cyberspace are accurate, then innovation will be a good descriptor for this year’s event.  A couple of articles already posted in the Viodi View about some of the new developments that will be seen this week are below.


 The Voice Controlled TV Remote

With $129 Android tablets on sale at the virtual corner drugstore, the idea of what a remote control is, may soon radically change.  Innovative Systems is living up to their name by showing innovative new features on their IPTV platform at this week's TelcoTV tradeshow, including the use of an Android device as a voice-controlled, television remote control.  Click here to read more. 


Making TV Better for the Middle Class

On one extreme, there are the television cord-cutters;those people who will use broadband and/or a combination of off-air content to eliminate the need for a franchised cable or IPTV service. On the other extreme, are those people who are satisfied with the value they receive from and are willing to pay for the convenience provided by the video packages from their franchised operator. In between these bounds lies, what Entone’s CEO Steve McKay calls, the “middle class”.  Click here to read more.


A Few More Things to See, While at TelcoTV

Here is a sampling of some other announcements associated with the TelcoTV tradeshow that may be of interest:

  • Minvera Networks announced their xTVFusion platform, as well as an agreement with Edgeware to enable OTT with VOD, Network PVR and fast channel change. 
  • ADB promises sub one second channel changes and less than 7 second boot up with their ADB-5721WNX and ADB-3721WN high definition set-tops. 
  • Olson Technology and Transparent Video Systems will be showing a cost-effective, headend-to-home video solution for those operators wanting to upgrade on a sector-by-sector basis to an all-digital, all fiber system.
  • Cloverleaf Digital will introduce a version of an app store for operators. Lawrence Brickman of Cloverleaf Digital provided a sneak peek of this app store concept at the Minnesota Telecom Alliance. 

click here to watch the videoRetransmit This, If You Can

The Fox-Cablevision dispute may signify when things start to change in terms of the retransmission consent/must-carry rules, so said Matt Polka of the American Cable Association at MTA’s Video Peer Group meeting in Nisswa, MN. Retransmission legislation was a catalyst for the birth of the American Cable Association some 18 years ago. He pointed out that this high-profile dispute has wide-ranging consequences and could affect the Comcast-NBC merger as well as be a catalyst that determines whether the broadband content market moves to a wholesale model.  Click here to watch the video interview with Matt Polka.


Highlights of Sprint's Developers Conference by Alan Weissberger

In one of his recent articles, Alan Weissberger correctly pointed out, before the Wall Street Journal recently did, that what wireless operators are claiming to be 4G isn’t. His article covering the Sprint’s Developers Conference is very timely given the growing financial challenges its broadband wireless infrastructure partner, Clearwire, is having. One has to wonder how the Clearwire’s financial problems, will impact its MSO partners. Perhaps this is an opportunity for the MSOs to take control of their wireless destiny. It would certainly seem like a Comcast acquisition of Clearwire would face much less opposition than its purchase of NBC. Click here to read Alan’s article and join in on the many comments it has generated.


Find the TabletClick here to view the video

Jeffrey Powers and Roger Bindl team for this interview with Sprint at 4G World demonstrating the Samsung Galaxy Tab, a 3G, Android 2.2 device that will launch November 14, 2010. In this video, a Sprint Overdrive WiFi hotspot served up wireless Internet via 4G. Although it is a cool device, integration of the 4G capability is something that would really set it apart from the tablet competition.  Click here to watch the video.


Some Tweets and Short Thoughts:

  • 1.0 Is the Loneliest Number, so says WordPress maestro, Matt Mullenweg, "…..if you’re not embarrassed when you ship your first version you waited too long."
  • Kansas State Research, 2nd-4th graders improve reading comprehension by watching themselves read by using webcam – a case to be made for operators to help schools embed video deeper into their programs?
  • NPCA Disqualifies 1st Place Winner due to copyright violation – good reminder of the importance of securing music rights
  • Santa Clara County Files for Investigation by Commerce IG of $50 Mil. BayWEB Broadband Stimulus Grant.  And a follow-up post can be found here.  Thanks @TonyVea 

The Korner – Back to the TelcoTV Future

Whether the 2002 TelcoTV was the first or the second (NTCA had produced the predecessor show in 2001 in Fort Wayne) is a question that could be up for debate. Regardless, the 2002 event definitely provided a spark of light in a telecom market that was in a very dark period. It was inspiring to hear from people with independent telcos who were charting new territory in implementing video over DSL (most, if not all at that point was Next Level Communication’s video over ATM product).

With all of the practical experience from my telco friends, it was an honor to be among them speaking on the topic of video on demand. Video on Demand was still somewhat nascent at that time. It turns out that the VOD discussion was somewhat premature, as things like DVRs, High Def and MPEG-4 compression became higher priorities through the years.

For seven months, we had been discussing launching a newsletter with a focus on the independent telcos and their efforts to supply video to their customers. With its abundance of information and useful gems, TelcoTV provided the nudge we needed to start the Viodi View. I created a file hierarchy scheme and coded some simple HTML and with the transmission of the first email (prior to CAN-SPAM), the first Viodi View was born.

It will seem like old times, as I get the chance to participate on a panel at this year’s TelcoTV on the topic of retaining and gaining video subscribers. I have been canvassing my telco friends for ideas and will be presenting those on Thursday at 3 PM on the panel, Moving Beyond the Low Hanging Fruit. In my quest to get some ideas, I reviewed one of the articles covering that first conference. Click here to look back at the early days of IPTV and get a preview of some bits of wisdom that still make sense eight years later.

Author Ken Pyle, Managing Editor

By Ken Pyle, Managing Editor

Ken Pyle is Marketing Director for the Broadband Forum. The mission of this 25+-year-old non-profit “is to unlock the potential for new markets and profitable revenue growth by leveraging new technologies and standards in the home, intelligent small business, and multi-user infrastructure of the broadband network.”

He is also co-founder of Viodi, LLC and Managing Editor of the Viodi View, a publication focused on the rural broadband ecosystem, autonomous vehicles, and electric aviation. He has edited and produced numerous multimedia projects for NTCA, US Telecom and Viodi. Pyle is the producer of Viodi’s Local Content Workshop, the Video Production Crash Course at NAB, as well as ViodiTV. He has been intimately involved in Viodi’s consulting projects and has created processes for clients to use for their PPV and VOD operations, as well authored reports on the independent telco market.

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2 replies on “Viodi View – 11/09/10”

Ken – just a point of clarification, the NTCA event in 2001 was in Indianapolis and it was called Video over Copper. That event laid the foundation for what would eventually become TelcoTV a year later in New Orleans.

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