IPTV content delivery issues
Nov 1, 2008 12:00 PM, By Patrick Waddell
Delivering Web video isn’t as easy as 1-2-3. Content must be unique and high quality.
There are very few markets in entertainment and media that can boast double-digit growth for 2008, but it looks certain that IPTV will be one of them. According to a report in September by market researcher Gartner, by the end of 2008 there will be 19.6 million global IPTV subscriptions, a 64 percent increase from 2007. This represents about 1.1 percent of households, and by the end of 2012, Gartner forecasts that worldwide household penetration of IPTV will be 2.8 percent, reaping total revenues of €14.7 billion. Further, many large cable system operators are making no secret that they will be transitioning their content delivery to IP over the next few years.
In addition to the growth of DSL-based IPTV, the use of IP technology to deliver video to the PC or other devices is growing rapidly. There are two principal drivers for the growth in Web video.
The first is the explosion in use of video portals such as YouTube and Joost as well as social networks like Facebook and MySpace, which provide access to video/audio content outside of the mainstream channels offered by conventional TV. This is complemented by the huge success of the BBC iPlayer in the UK and globally by services such as Apple TV.
The other key driver is cultural. Consumers now expect to watch whatever they want, on the most convenient device, whenever and wherever they want. This has been nurtured by the availability of free on-demand, accounting for more than 70 percent of VOD content.
Telco or cable-based IPTV services can further enable this basic consumer need, and IP-based content is an excellent fit, as it's naturally good for offerings such as on-demand services that require robust two-way interactivity. Furthermore, IP-based content can be transmitted to, and experienced on, a variety of IP-compatible devices, either on a fixed or mobile basis.
Despite the bullishness of Gartner's figures, key issues must be addressed before such growth is attained. Telco IPTV offerings need to become more innovative so providers can offer differentiation not only against the traditional competition from cable and satellite service providers, but also from other IPTV operators.
Most importantly, the content that new IPTV services provide must be generated and delivered to high-quality standards. If Web video or telco IPTV services cannot guarantee content delivery of the highest visual and aural quality, another IPTV operator, satellite or cable company certainly will. The quality issues are even more critical when moving from small to large screens. What looks OK on the Web may look terrible on a 42in plasma screen.
Quality issues
Figure 1. IP streaming can seem simple and straightforward.
Click to enlarge
The fundamental quality issues span both video and audio. Media compression must be artifact-free, and A/V synchronization has to ensure correct lip sync. The video encoding must be high quality, as does any transcoding, rescaling or reformatting of content for redistribution. Jerkiness is not acceptable, nor are compression artifacts. The IPTV operator must focus on broadcast-quality delivery to that large-screen display (and associated home theater audio system) and not simply streaming to computer screens. (See Figure 1.) In understanding the requirements of IPTV, first it is necessary to comprehend how to size network bandwidth.
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