How Consumer Psychology is Reshaping IPTV in the UK and USA
How Consumer Psychology is Reshaping IPTV in the UK and USA
Blog Article
1.Overview of IPTV
IPTV, or Internet Protocol Television, is becoming progressively more influential within the media industry. Unlike traditional TV broadcasting methods that use pricey and primarily proprietary broadcasting technologies, IPTV is delivered over broadband networks by using the same Internet Protocol (IP) that serves millions of PCs on the current internet infrastructure. The concept that the same shift towards on-demand services lies ahead for the multiscreen world of TV viewing has already captured the interest of numerous stakeholders in the technology convergence and growth prospects.
Consumers have now started to watch TV programs and other media content in a variety of locations and on a variety of devices such as cell or mobile telephones, computers, laptops, PDAs, and additional tools, in addition to traditional TV sets. IPTV is still in its early stages as a service. It is expanding rapidly, and different commercial approaches are taking shape that could foster its expansion.
Some assert that economical content creation will likely be the first content production category to dominate compact displays and explore long-tail strategies. Operating on the business side of the TV broadcasting pipeline, the current state of IPTV hosting and services, on the other hand, has several distinct benefits over its traditional counterparts. They include HDTV, streaming content, DVR functionality, communication features, web content, and responsive customer care via supplementary connection methods such as cell phones, PDAs, satellite phones, etc.
For IPTV hosting to operate effectively, however, the internet gateway, the primary networking hub, and the IPTV server consisting of media encoders and blade server setups have to collaborate seamlessly. Numerous regional and national hosting facilities must be entirely fail-safe or else the broadcast-quality signals fail, shows could disappear and are not saved, chats stop, the screen goes blank, the sound becomes interrupted, and the shows and services will malfunction.
This text will address the competitive environment for IPTV services in the United Kingdom and the U.S.. Through such a detailed comparison, a number of important policy insights across multiple focus areas can be explored.
2.Regulatory Framework in the UK and the US
According to legal principles and the related academic discourse, the choice of the regulation strategy and the nuances of the framework depend on perspectives on the marketplace. The regulation of media involves rules on market competition, media ownership and control, consumer protection, and the defense of sensitive demographics.
Therefore, if we want to regulate the markets, we must comprehend what media markets look like. Whether it is about ownership restrictions, competition analysis, consumer rights, or children’s related media, the policy maker has to have a view on these markets; which media sectors are expanding rapidly, where we have market rivalry, vertically integrated activities, and cross-sector proprietorship, and which industries are slow to compete and ready for innovative approaches of market players.
To summarize, the media market dynamics has always changed from the static to the dynamic, and only if we reflect on the policymakers can we predict future developments.
The expansion of Internet Protocol Television on a global scale makes its spread more common. By combining traditional television offerings with novel additions such as technology-driven interactive options, IPTV has the potential to be a key part of increasing the local attractiveness of remote areas. If so, will this be sufficient for the regulator to adapt its strategy?
We have no data that IPTV has extra attractiveness to the people who do not subscribe to cable or DTH. However, some recent developments have slowed down IPTV's growth – and it is these developments that have led to tempering predictions on IPTV growth.
Meanwhile, the UK embraced a flexible policy framework and a proactive consultation with industry stakeholders.
3.Key Players and Market Share
In the British market, BT is the dominant provider in the UK IPTV market with a 1.18% market share, and YouView has a 2.8% share, which is the scenario of single and dual-play offerings. BT is usually the leader in the UK as per reports, although it experiences minor shifts over time across the 7 to 9 percent bracket.
In the United Kingdom, Virgin Media was the first to start IPTV using hybrid fiber-coaxial technology, with BT entering later. Netflix and Amazon Prime are the dominant streaming providers in the UK IPTV market. Amazon has its own streaming device service called Amazon Fire TV, similar to Roku, and has just launched in the UK. However, Netflix and Amazon are absent from telecom providers' offerings.
In the American market, AT&T is the top provider with a 17.31% stake, exceeding Verizon’s FiOS at 16.88 percent. However, considering only DSL-based IPTV services, the leader is CenturyLink, trailing AT&T and Frontier, and Lumen.
Cable TV has the overwhelming share of the American market, with AT&T successfully attracting 16.5 million IPTV customers, primarily through its U-verse service and DirecTV service, which also operates in South America. The US market is, therefore, divided between the main traditional telephone companies offering IPTV services and emerging internet-based firms.
In these regions, major market players use a converged service offering or a loyal customer strategy for the majority of their marketing, including multi-play options. In the United States, AT&T, Verizon, and Lumen primarily rely on self-owned networks or legacy telecom systems to provide IPTV options, albeit on a smaller scale.
4.Content Offerings and Subscription Models
There are variations in the content offerings in the IPTV sectors of the UK and US. The range of available programming includes real-time national or local shows, streaming content and episodes, recorded programming, and original shows like TV shows or movies only available through that service that aren’t sold as videos or broadcasted beyond the service.
The UK services feature classic channel lineups akin to the UK cable platforms. They also include medium-tier bundles that include the key pay TV set of channels. Content is grouped not just by preferences, but by distribution method: terrestrial, satellite, Freeview, and BT Vision VOD.
The main differentiators for the IPTV market are the plan types in the form of fixed packages versus the more customizable channel-by-channel option. UK IPTV subscribers can select add-on subscription packages as their preferences evolve, while these channels will be pre-selected in the US, in line with a user’s initial long-term plan.
Content collaborations reflect the distinct policy environments for media markets in the US and UK. The age of shrinking windows and the shifts in the sector has notable effects, the most direct being the business standing of the UK’s primary IPTV operator.
Although a late entrant to the saturated and challenging UK TV sector, Setanta is positioned to gain significant traction through its innovative image and holding premier global broadcasting rights. The power of branding is a significant advantage, alongside a product that has a cost-effective pricing and caters to passionate UK soccer enthusiasts with an enticing extra service.
5.Future of IPTV and Tech Evolution
5G networks, combined with millions of IoT devices, have transformed IPTV evolution with the introduction of AI and machine learning. Cloud computing is strongly supporting AI systems to implement new capabilities. Proprietary AI recommendation systems are gaining traction by streaming services to engage viewers with their own unique benefits. The video industry has been transformed with a fresh wave of innovation.
A enhanced bitrate, by increasing resolution and frame rate, has been a primary focus in enhancing viewer engagement and gaining new users. The technological leap in recent years stemmed from new standards developed by industry stakeholders.
Several proprietary software stacks with a compact size are nearing release. Rather than focusing on feature additions, such software stacks would allow media providers to prioritize system efficiency to further improve customer satisfaction. This paradigm, similar to earlier approaches, depended on consumer attitudes and their need for cost-effectiveness.
In the near future, as technological enthusiasm creates a uniform market landscape in user experience and industry growth levels out, we predict a service-lean technology market scenario to keep elderly income groups interested.
We emphasize a couple of critical aspects below for both IPTV markets.
1. All the major stakeholders may contribute to the next phase in content consumption by transforming traditional programming into interactive experiences.
2. We see VR and AR as the key drivers behind the rising trends for these domains.
The shifting viewer behaviors puts analytics at the forefront for every stakeholder. Legal boundaries would limit straightforward access to consumers' personal data; hence, user data safeguards would likely resist new technologies that may risk consumer security. However, the existing VOD ecosystem makes one think otherwise.
The digital security benchmark is currently extremely low. Technological leaps and bounds have made security intrusions more virtual than a job done hand-to-hand, thereby advantaging white-collar hackers at a larger scale than traditional thieves.
With the advent of headend services, demand for IPTV has been on the rise. Depending on user demands, these developments in technology are poised to redefine IPTV.
References:Bae, H. W. and Kim, D. H. "A Study of Factors affecting subscription to IPTV Service." JBE (2023). kibme.org
Baea, H. W. and Kima, D. H. "A Study about Moderating Effect of Age on The IPTV Service Subscription Intention." JBE (2024). kibme.org
Cho, T., Cho, T., and Zhang, H. "The Relationship between the Service Quality of IPTV Home Training and Consumers' Exercise Satisfaction and Continuous Use during the COVID-19 Pandemic." Advanced IPTV Technology Businesses (2023). mdpi.com
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