Monday, October 28, 2002
Chinese broadband uptake to jump 500% this year
China currently has almost three times the number of UK broadband users but Strategy Analytics estimate they will have 37 million by 2008.
Friday, October 18, 2002
Sky and BT strengthen ADSL relationship
Sky and BT have had a strategic relationship for a long time. Initially it was because Sky needed a return path for their STB’s and back then the only realistic provider of this was a BT phone line. Things went a little frosty a while back when there were rumours that BT might use their network to become a broadcaster but it’s now all lovey-dovey again.Back in February this year, BT made a public declaration that it will have one million ADSL subscribers by Summer 2003.
To help them achieve this, they’ve done a deal with Sky to offer of a free ADSL modem to subscribers of Sky World, their premium package.
There are quite a number of benefits for Sky.
BT will get to strengthen their hold on UK broadband subscribers.
- The most important being a faster, always-on return-path that will aid interactivity and give real-time reporting of viewing habits.
- It’s been know for a while that Sky has had a DSL connected STB/DVR, so clearly a wider take-up for broadband could benefit them in delivering content.
- Sky customers who subscribe to cheaper packages but will see an advantage for upgrading to get the deal.
- An unknown is the amount of money that Sky will be paid for each of their subscribers that sign up for the service hasn’t been disclosed.
- I would also assume that BT has had to give legal assurances that it will not use the ADSL lines to provide content that will compete again Sky.
Quite a good deal to Sky then at first glance.
Wednesday, October 16, 2002
Vocera - Wireless-VoIP
While not strictly entertainment, it is broadband and your may well eventually have one at home. This signals the kind of wireless-VoIP product that I imagine has mobile telecom companies shaking in their boots, especially the 3G variety.
Tuesday, October 15, 2002
The Internet Home Alliance
A gathering of companies who are experimenting with their collective technology products projecting how a broadband-connected household could look.
Sunday, October 13, 2002
MPEG-4 Advanced Video Coding
A new video encoding system is getting close to approval. H.264 or MPEG-4 Advanced Video Coding as it’s otherwise known, is thought to be able to reach DVD-quality broadcasts at slightly under 1Mbps. Some are sceptical about it being taken up for STB's, as it will require about three to four times the computing horsepower needed for MPEG-2 - up to now pretty low power chips have been installed in STB's. It is thought that the proposal should be ratified as part of the MPEG-4 (Moving Picture Experts Group) multimedia standard by year's end.The MS comment was that their proprietary CODEC was much more efficient - but in true MS style, the leader of the overseeing committee is an employee of Microsoft.
Tuesday, October 08, 2002
Sanity returns to audio webcasting
Sanity returns as audio webcasters and music rights holders have come to a mutually agreeable pricing structure for Internet-based music usage. Broadly, it's going to be based on the profits they make (as commercial radio currently is in the US) as opposed to the previous ruling based on the number of tracks that are played and the number of people who listen to those tracks.
Monday, October 07, 2002
UK ADSL VOD provider wobbles?
Sad news in the UK as rumours that Video-Networks, the ADSL-delivered VOD provider, is in discussions with its backers about its on-going viability.They’re blaming BT’s high prices for ADSL, but I think they were more damaged by BT’s slower than promised rollout of ADSL when they launched their North-West London service three years ago, which has lead them to only reach 15,000 subscribers.
Nokia Bluetooth-enabled STB
Nokia have announced their DVB-compliant Mediamaster 230 S to be released in Europe at the end of Q4 2002. Its major new feature is its ability to transfer photo's from Bluetooth 1.1 capable cameras to store and view on the TV.Sadly storage is limited to thirty images and apart from the high-end Sony camcorders and some camera-phones such as the Nokia 7650, there isn't currently a huge choice of Bluetooth cameras around.
But generally a good move that will start to strengthen Bluetooth uptake - goodness knows it needs it.
TiVo viewing habits
The release of TiVo’s viewing habits of their subscribers [PDF] is interesting reading. As I’ve found, TiVo owner don’t watch live TV very much when they have a PVR.The point they rightly make is what will happen to the traditional prime time and how PVR ownership will reduce the impact of rival TV stations put competing shows on at prime time, forcing the viewer to make a choice.
Clearly most of what a PVR can do can be done with current VHS technology – the difference if how much more convenient it is with a PVR.
One thing that isn’t clear is what they view as time-shifted viewing. The obvious is a recorded show that is watched after the show has finished, the less obvious is what I would call Time-sliding. Time-sliding is when programme is on a advertising supported TV station, I’ll switch the TiVo to the programmes channel, then delay the start of my watching of the programme by watching previously recorded shows. Watching the show this way enables me to skip through the adverts during the programme. It could also be the pausing of live TV or rewinding and then watching it.
Side issue
I was speaking to one of my fellow RTS organisers recently and he told me that in all of his viewing years, he had NEVER see a commercial on TV. He refuses to waste the 1/3 of every hour watching advert. If something is an advert-supported channel, friends will tape it for him – cutting out the ads. I was filled with admiration at his dedication and discipline.
Thursday, October 03, 2002
3D flat screen
I don't know how many of you have seen 3D moving images; I went many years ago to the 3D showing at the IMAX theatre in New York. When you got into the theatre you donned a large, semi-comfortable headset that had an Infra Red sensor on the top of it. The theatre used this to control the speed on the shutters opening and closing over each eye, to ensure it synced with the film projection. The film didn't feel that 3D until the shark came swimming into the theatre - gasps all round.Following ten years of research in the UK, Sharp Laboratories has created a flat LCD screen that doesn't need goggles. Amazingly they claim products using this will be available early next year.
Clearly I’m looking forward to seeing on but I bet the movie and TV companies of the World must be rubbing their hand – having just got everyone to buy DVD’s of the things they already had on VHS – next, they’ll all have to get the 3D version.
Aggressive wireless rollout in Singapore
SingTel currently have 100 hotspots setup. Access will be charged at 20 cents per-minute with no subscription to pay and GPRS-enabled phones will also be able to use the hotpots as well as WiFi.Singapore is a pretty small place but as it's configured the offering doesn't sound that mainstream, with a maximum of only 3,000 being able to use the service by the end of the year when it will reach 150 hotspots. I assume as demand increases they will increase the number and density of the hotspots.
Tuesday, October 01, 2002
Korea surge for VDSL
Not content with blazing the ADSL trail, Korea has been moving to VDSL (very high bit rate DSL). They've hit a few problems, apparently when VDSL and TDSL (time division duplex DSL) equipment is run closely together, the interference leads to the VDSL speed dropping by half. But even with drawbacks in some exchanges, there close to 1m VDSL users.The excitement with VDSL is the bandwidth that it brings – over short distances it can deliver 52Mbps, so it’s been popular to put into apartment blocks. It makes a multi-screen, family-wide IPTV or VOD service to household realistic, freeing each member of the household to watch different programs.
All is not lost in the UK. BT, via their BTExact research arm, has been running demos of their VOD over VDSL since March 2002.
