Ericsson wants to be telcos' 'Televisionary'

Stuart Corner
Tuesday, 03 June 2008 09:24

IT Industry - Strategy

According to Kursten Leins, strategic marketing manager - multimedia for Ericsson Australia, the opportunities presented by television will require new business approaches, models and technologies. "Video services, such as IPTV, WebTV and Mobile TV, will account for the vast majority of network traffic in the near future. However, this will pose significant challenges for Australian broadband networks, both fixed and wireless, as the delivery of high-quality video services requires new network capabilities such as broadcast and multicast, as well as guaranteed quality of service."

According to Ericsson, today the delivery of video over telco networks is well established, but the integration between the different technologies and networks is lacking. It says there are around 650 commercial IPTV services in operation, and some 170 mobile TV services, the vast majority over 3G or HSPA networks

IPTV, according to Ericsson, is having a huge impact on operators as they become transformed into media and lifestyle providers. "Leading overseas IPTV operators, such as PCCW in Hong Kong and AT&T and Verizon in the US, have strong content, combined with such features as network PVR and time-shift playback capability."

Mobile TV services, however, have yet to achieve their full potential. "Services have been marked by slow customer take-up and consumer studies point to the need for better pricing, usability, service performance and interesting content," according to Ericsson. "Global TV experiences shows that 60-75 percent of viewers watch the three to five most popular channels."

Ericsson may not be a name that immediately springs to mind in the context of television, but the company contends that a string of recent strategic acquisitions have left it well placed to participate in all facets of the market from content management to the fixed and mobile networks over which this video will be delivered.

These acquisitions include:
- Tandberg Television (snatched from would be acquirer Arris in early 2007 and billed as a world-leader in video head-end, encoding and compression technology critical to maximising picture quality while minimising bandwidth within IPTV applications";
 - Redback Networks a company with "a strong position in multiservice edge routing technology, helps carriers deliver broadband, telephone, TV and mobility services over internet-based infrastructures";
- Entrisphere which "provides fibre access technology, which is essential for high-definition IPTV and other IP-based services that place a high demand on bandwidth and cost-effectiveness."
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