Cable & Wireless plans global IPTV service

Stuart Corner
Friday, 11 September 2009 02:40

IT Industry - Strategy

Cable & Wireless' international telecoms business, CWI Group, which operates the incumbent telco in 38 smaller nations around the world, has signed a partnership with US-based Move Networks that will enable CWI to roll out IPTV services wherever it operates.

CWI claims it will be the world's widest reaching IPTV partnership, with a potential geographic spread across each of the world's major regions and a potential audience of more than seven million customers.

Move Networks will provide CWI with an end-to-end service that enables the delivery of TV services over fixed-line (ADSL) networks on which CWI's businesses provide broadband. According to CWI, previous IPTV technologies required networks with high and guaranteed levels of bandwidth, which resulted in numerous IPTV 'no-go' zones where existing bandwidth is limited - such as in developing countries or in challenging geographies.

Tony Rice, CEO at CWI said: "Up to now, delivering television over a broadband network has been costly and bandwidth intensive. Our partnership with Move Networks enables us to remove these obstacles and develop IPTV services across our portfolio. It is an excellent addition to the leading mobile, broadband and fixed-lines services we provide to our customers."

Move Networks' claims that its solution "integrates middleware, content management, conditional access and back office systems to provide a multichannel, linear and on-demand television experience, with no buffering or stalling, to any broadband-connected device." "Through its existing partnerships with content providers such as ABC, ESPN, and Fox, Move Networks says it has created a monetisation model for professional broadband video that includes subscriptions, targeted advertising and pay-TV content.

The service has network DVR/personal video recorder (PVR) features, such as pause and rewind of live TV and video-on-demand offerings. "It transforms the offering available to broadband customers, as the PC becomes a digital TV, and is expected to drive broadband penetration and usage," according to CWI.