Though the Indian market for internet protocol television (IPTV) and mobile TV services has been slow to grow, a beginning has been made, with both the government and the industry recognising the importance of these services, and learning from their successful implementation in other countries. The recent hike in the foreign direct investment (FDI) limit for mobile TV operators is a step in the right direction. Industry experts share their views on the key strategies and drivers for growth in this segment, as well as the international scenario and future of these technologies…

What are key drivers of growth for IPTV and mobile TV services? What are the key trends in these segments?

Zubin Jimmy Dubsh
The key growth drivers for mobile TV services, like most other value-added services (VAS), will involve three aspects ?? handsets, faster networks and content. An analysis of the trends in mobile TV services in the country will reveal that such services were first offered in the country way back in 2003, when TV services were cut into shorter formats and offered over mobiles as downloads or video clips.Later, the services graduated to clips streaming over slightly faster networks such as CDMA, Wi-Max and EDGE (on the GSM side), and today they have progressed to live TV streaming and unicast over mobile and mobile broadband.

S.P . Narayanan
While mobile TV has been gaining popularity in India, there is still immense scope for better user experience, which can be enabled through high-speed mobile broadband. Increased awareness, coupled with network expansion, is expected to increase the uptake of mobile TV services in a big way.

The three major growth drivers for mobile TV services are…

  • Widespread adoption of video-capable mobile handsets: The price of videocapable mobile handsets has been falling steadily, leading to increased adoption of these handsets for mobile TV access.
  • Ability of the mobile network to deliver a good video-viewing experience: At Idea Cellular, we have consistently invested in improving our network capability and offered high-end value-added services such as mobile TV to enhance the consumer experience. The introduction of 3G services will strengthen the delivery capability of such high-end services on the mobile platform.
  • Pricing of the service: With a keen focus on consumer adoption, we offer competitive plans for video streaming services.

Kuldip Singh
The key driver for IPTV’s growth is its interactive service and the fact that it enables communication both ways. Moreover, bandwidth is not a limitation for IPTV. For example, it permits consumers to upload videos or watch seven-day-old programmes according to their convenience. Once fibre is available on the last mile, offering HDTV services will also become a possibility. With regard to mobile TV, the mobility factor has been driving its growth.

What strategies are being adopted by your organisation for the growth of these services? What are your future plans?

Zubin Jimmy Dubsh
We have emerged as one of the leading operators in the mobile TV segment in the past six months by offering the Photon TV application on mobiles, whereby customers can use their internet connections to watch live TV with over 50 channels on their existing dongles. We plan to take this to the next level by offering a number of media-rich services and applications on both the internet and mobile with faster networks and speeds, which will ensure significantly greater uptake of the services offered through these mediums. These applications will allow customers to use the high bandwidth that is being offered both on the internet and on mobile.

S.P . Narayanan
Idea Cellular was the first operator to launch mobile TV services in India. Idea’s network supports live streaming of over 50 television channels, on-demand content; and the coverage of big sporting events.Using a compatible phone, Idea users can download the mobile TV application via our WAP portal ?? wap.ideafresh.com ?? or by SMS.

The services have been adopted by a wide spectrum of subscribers. In fact, the number of subscribers availing of mobile TV services has been on the rise.Entertainment services are highly popular amongst our subscribers, and we see positive prospects for services such as mobile TV.

Kuldip Singh
There are a number of options for providing television services such as DTH and cable. However, there needs to be a differentiating factor for the business to be successful. Interactivity as well as the huge amount of bandwidth available for IPTV are the key factors that we, as an organisation, are trying to exploit. We are also focusing on increasing our business by offering customers a wide range of services over IPTV.

How has the market for these services evolved internationally? What can we expect in India?

Zubin Jimmy Dubsh
 Globally, mobile TV networks have evolved from unicast to multicast interactive TV offerings through various mobile TV networks such as digital video broadcasting-handheld (DVB-H), digital video broadcasting-terrestrial and media flow.In India, if there is a sizeable opportunity, initially it will be led by unicast services on 3G networks, and multicast services will probably come into play in two years’ time. It’s important to bear in mind that content will emerge as the key offering, and will distinguish the services of one operator from the rest. So while quality, which can be determined only post-sale, might be one aspect, it is good content that will actually create a perception and give one an edge over the others.

S.P . Narayanan

3G markets have witnessed tremendous growth worldwide, with internet services such as Youtube and Hulu delivering high quality video services on mobile handsets.We can expect an explosive growth of this market in India as well, with its increased bandwidth capability post 3G.

Kuldip Singh
While IPTV has made significant inroads in the global markets, success on the mobile TV front has so far been limited.This is because wireless services face bandwidth limitations due to the lack of adequate spectrum. The number of people using the service at a particular point in time also impacts the quality of service.Moreover, unavailability of good quality content has also impeded the uptake of mobile TV services in the global market.IPTV, being a wireline service, does not have to face this issue as each individual has the same amount of bandwidth available and there is no limitation on the number of people using this service at a particular time.

What are the major bottlenecks in the uptake of these services?

Zubin Jimmy Dubsh
The growth drivers and bottlenecks would be the same. The inadequacy of high-end handsets, good content and faster networks will end up being the major bottlenecks in the uptake of these services.

On the regulatory front, though there are some existing bottlenecks, things can be worked out. Whether we do it by using the existing networks (the high bandwidth networks that take on data services) or through any other means such as introducing a separate TV licence (as has been proposed by the authorities), the matter is not a prime concern today.

S.P . Narayanan
There are several technologies such as DVB-H and RTSP that support mobile TV services. However, a lot depends on the handset that is being used to access the service. Since the display capabilities of mobile phones are not the same as those of traditional TV screens, the content needs to be formatted before being delivered. So far, the service has been restricted to high-end handsets, which mainly support live video streaming capabilities. Both network as well as handset capabilities are important for a rich consumer experience.

Kuldip Singh

There are plenty of cable faults on account of digging, which lead to outages and affect the quality of the IPTV service. The service needs to be continuous to deliver better services to the customer.A better quality of service will enable a greater uptake.

Lack of adequate bandwidth is another key concern. For instance, in the case of DTH, services such as video-on-demand and HDTV cannot be provided currently due to constraints on this front.

Meanwhile, the hike in the FDI limit will have a positive effect and help to increase the uptake of mobile TV services in the near future. This is because enabling such technologies in India involves a huge amount of capital, and a hike in the FDI limit is likely to bring in more funds. This will also encourage other players from entering the market and offering services.

Which technology developments will expedite the rollout of these services?

Zubin Jimmy Dubsh
Apart from unicast, faster networks and handsets, there is a growing need for solution providers to serve as the middlemen between the operators and the content developers, thereby playing a crucial role in expediting the roll out of these services. At present, the number of such providers is limited in the country.However, a rise in their numbers will lead to the emergence of more such services in the country.

S.P . Narayanan
Handset technologies have been rapidly evolving, and today, even low-end handsets are capable of delivering a video experience. Network-based technologies such as data compression, streaming technologies and bandwidth optimisation technologies will ensure a good consumer experience, and will thereby help in service uptake.

Kuldip Singh
The deployment of optic fibre in the last mile will greatly benefit IPTV services as it will provide large amounts of bandwidth. In the case of mobile TV, it is important to develop mobile-specific content.