PSound
05-08-09, 12:24 AM
The announcement that IPTV hardware manufacturer Entone is partnering with VUDU suggests that the competition between pay TV services and over-the-top video providers might soon turn into cooperation.
With more and more discussion about consumers "cutting the cord" from their television service in favor of over-the-top online video, it's long been a foregone conclusion that cable, satellite, and telco operators are in competition with online content aggregators like Hulu and YouTube, as well as with content delivered via set-top boxes such as Roku, VUDU, and the recently announce ZillionTV. But an announcement today from IPTV set-top box manufacturer Entone and VUDU is perhaps a harbinger of an era marked by partnerships rather than competition between operators and over-the-top (OTT)video services.
Entone, which has agreements with 50 telco operators in the U.S. (including Consolidated Communications and FairPoint Communications) and is second only to Motorola in penetration of IPTV set-top boxes, will begin delivering content from VUDU's library of more than 14,000 movies and TV shows, 1,500 of them in HD. The goal, according to an Entone executive, is to improve Entone's value proposition by bringing together the best of what operators and OTT services have to offer—the multichannel browsing, DVR, and electronic program guide features of the former and the on-demand selection of the latter. "Operators and the OTT providers can't create more value without each other," says CEO Steve McKay. "Most consumers say they aren't willing to give up all the convenience and features of their television service, but they're also accessing more and more OTT content every day."
McKay also cited a Frank N. Magid Associates study from late 2008 that found that the number of first-time HDTV buyers who don't subscribe to an HD service is growing faster than the number of first-time HDTV buyers who do subscribe to an HD service. In addition to access to VUDU's HD library, the Hydra box also allows users to easily view their photo and video libraries on their HDTV sets, automatically detecting libraries on the home network.
Entone is under no illusion that this announcement is a game-changer in and of itself. "This is really just the beginning of a trend," says McKay. "Entone will certainly make more announcements, and I'm betting VUDU will too. Ultimately, it comes down to who can deliver the most and best content at the best price, and so companies like ours are going to do whatever we can to present the best value proposition to operators."
http://www.streamingmedia.com/article.asp?id=11176
With more and more discussion about consumers "cutting the cord" from their television service in favor of over-the-top online video, it's long been a foregone conclusion that cable, satellite, and telco operators are in competition with online content aggregators like Hulu and YouTube, as well as with content delivered via set-top boxes such as Roku, VUDU, and the recently announce ZillionTV. But an announcement today from IPTV set-top box manufacturer Entone and VUDU is perhaps a harbinger of an era marked by partnerships rather than competition between operators and over-the-top (OTT)video services.
Entone, which has agreements with 50 telco operators in the U.S. (including Consolidated Communications and FairPoint Communications) and is second only to Motorola in penetration of IPTV set-top boxes, will begin delivering content from VUDU's library of more than 14,000 movies and TV shows, 1,500 of them in HD. The goal, according to an Entone executive, is to improve Entone's value proposition by bringing together the best of what operators and OTT services have to offer—the multichannel browsing, DVR, and electronic program guide features of the former and the on-demand selection of the latter. "Operators and the OTT providers can't create more value without each other," says CEO Steve McKay. "Most consumers say they aren't willing to give up all the convenience and features of their television service, but they're also accessing more and more OTT content every day."
McKay also cited a Frank N. Magid Associates study from late 2008 that found that the number of first-time HDTV buyers who don't subscribe to an HD service is growing faster than the number of first-time HDTV buyers who do subscribe to an HD service. In addition to access to VUDU's HD library, the Hydra box also allows users to easily view their photo and video libraries on their HDTV sets, automatically detecting libraries on the home network.
Entone is under no illusion that this announcement is a game-changer in and of itself. "This is really just the beginning of a trend," says McKay. "Entone will certainly make more announcements, and I'm betting VUDU will too. Ultimately, it comes down to who can deliver the most and best content at the best price, and so companies like ours are going to do whatever we can to present the best value proposition to operators."
http://www.streamingmedia.com/article.asp?id=11176