Migrating to Mobile & Multiscreen Video Services for Small & Independent Pay-TV Operators

The age of Multiscreen Video — that is, the ability to watch video where one wants and on a screen of one’s choosing — is here. The results of MRG’s 2011 survey of Tier-3 and -4 Operators indicates that these industry leaders view Multiscreen Video services as a feature that will soon become a “must-have.” Accordingly, these Operators are planning for the day, in the not too distant future, when they can free their customers from the constraints of location when viewing the programming they provide. Highlights of the survey results: Multiscreen Video will become a “must-have” within three years. Lack of wireless spectrum topped the concerns about possible impediments tooffering Multiscreen Video services. At the same time, respondents indicate that wireless carriers may be thebiggest competitors in this space. Satellite, with its national footprint, is not tobe overlooked. Understanding how to bundle Multiscreen Video services was anotherconcern among survey respondents. Most believe Multiscreen services will not be a large stand-alone revenuesubscription source, although there are hopes for other models, such asadvertising to develop. Based on the responses, it seems like the opportunity is wide open for theVendor community.

Additional Information


Press Release

San Jose, Calif., August 31, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- A new report from MRG, Inc. finds that small and independent Pay-TV Operators will introduce Multiscreen Video (MSV) and Mobile TV services by 2014, after introducing infrastructure upgrades and whole-home DVR, based on a survey sent to over 600 Operators and Vendors.

“All of the elements, from adaptive bit streaming to the widespread adoption of the tablet and smartphones to licensing rights, are in place for multiscreen to be a standard part of many Operators’ offerings within the next 3 years,” states Ken Pyle, Analyst for MRG, Inc. “Because multiscreen uses OTT (Over-the-Top), where video content can be watched on many smart devices both inside and outside of the home, you can understand why and how multiscreen service will start, and how quickly TV Everywhere will develop,” says Pyle.

Because of the fast acceptance of iPads and iPhones, due greatly to their common UI and OS, Apple has now set the stage for its competition (mostly with Google) who wants to establish a quicker pace of hardware upgrades than was common in mobile just a few years ago. By profiling over 60 Vendors in the 3 important infrastructure areas of transcoding, security/authentication and on-demand servers, the report also provides a technical foundation to small Operators needing help getting started with TV Everywhere, second-screen or multiscreen services based on OTT services.

Lack of wireless spectrum was the biggest concern among surveyed Operators. “In our initial look, it appears as if the race to help independent Telcos with their multiscreen offerings is wide-open for the Vendor community,” said Pyle. “I suspect the root of this concern is that the larger carriers could be potential competitors with their 4G networks and could throttle the bandwidths of customers who didn’t take their video service.”

Of over 60 MSV Vendors profiled, included are Harmonic, ARRIS, Motorola Mobility, NDS, RGB, Nagravision, Verimatrix, Microsoft and many others.

Index of Companies Referenced

Adara Technologies LG
Adobe Logitech
ADWEEK MetroPCS
Alcatel-Lucent Microsoft
(XBOX 360)
Amazon
(Amazon On Demand)
Minerva Network
American Cable Association Minnesota Telecom Alliance
Apple
(iPad, iPhone) MobiTV
ARRIS Motorola Mobility
(SecureMedia)
AT&T Nagravision
Avail-TVN National Information Solutions Cooperative (NISC)
(Quintrex Data Systems)
BigBand Networks NCTC (National Cable Television Cooperative)
Blockbuster NDS
Brightcove Netflix
CableLabs NeuLion
Cablevision Neustar
CBS Nielsen
Cisco Nokia Siemens Networks
Clearleap Ooyala
Click! Network OpenTV
CNN Orbitel Communications
Comcast
(XFINITY) Parks Associates
Concurrent RGB Networks
Cox Roku
Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (DECE) Rovi
(CinemaNow, DivX, Roxio)
DIRECTV Samsung
DISH Network SeaChange International
Disney
(ABC, ABC.com, ABC-Family, Disney/ESPN) SkitterTV
EchoStar Sony
Edgeware Sprint
Elemental Technologies Suddenlink
Envivio Synacor
Ericsson Technicolor
Espial (Kasenna) The Morning BRIDGE
ETI Software thePlatform
Facebook Time Warner
FCC TiVo
Fox TradeHarbor
Google
(Android, Droid, Google TV, Google TV/Widevine, Widevine) Transparent Video Systems
Great Lakes Data Systems Turner
Haivision Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.
Harmonic Turner Networks
HBO
(HBO GO) Verimatrix
Hulu Verizon
Imagine Communications Viacom
Innovative Systems VIZIO
IntoNow VUDU
Iowa Network Services Wall Street Journal
Irdeto Walmart
Juniper Networks
(Ankeena Networks) Yahoo!
(Yahoo! Connected TV, Yahoo! TV)
Kudelski Group YouTube
Kulabyte