IPTV and the Future - The Winners and Losers
(Page 4 of 4 )
With so much to gain for companies such as Microsoft, who is going to lose? Satellite television companies are in for it. They can’t offer Internet connections near the speeds that cable and DSL companies can. If they lose the TV connections to IPTV, kiss them good-bye. They pose no benefit anymore. Cable companies will hurt too, but the fastest connections to the Internet are through your cable right now. As many people as they lose to IPTV, they will gain in Internet connections.
The real potential winner here is phone/DSL companies. Once again we run into speed issues with connections. DSL isn’t the fastest connection, but many companies are laying down fiber optic connections now. In a few years we could see speeds pass cable. With no current customers for video, they can only gain.
AT&T has to be a winner so far, as they are currently the only telephone company to offer IPTV services. The basic package will run you $75, but with Internet it will run you at least $94. To overcome the bandwidth constraints, AT&T is using fiber optic cables to your house, or close to your house, and making copper do the rest. The service can currently support three standard definition streams and 1 HD stream at a time. It is only available in select cities due to the fiber optic requirements.
Conclusion
IPTV is a new and advancing technology. We are seeing it effectively implemented on the Internet with great success. The Internet is where everything seems to be turning, so it’s only a matter of time before the TV and the rest of home entertainment moves to the home network. This is just one more step closer to having one central entertainment hub. Some companies are ready for this movement and some are hoping it doesn’t ever get started. Only time will tell if this is the next big revolution.
| DISCLAIMER: The content provided in this article is not warranted or guaranteed by Developer Shed, Inc. The content provided is intended for entertainment and/or educational purposes in order to introduce to the reader key ideas, concepts, and/or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon the reader to employ real-world tactics for security and implementation of best practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from implementing any information covered in our articles or tutorials. If this is a hardware review, it is not recommended to open and/or modify your hardware. |
