Some of you may have already heard the buzz on IPTV. It’s actually coming to a broadband service near you, very soon. IPTV is the acronym for Internet Protocol Television. There are many possible versions of IPTV. As one who was personally involved in its creation and testing, I can tell you that you should be very excited!

In this first of 2 part update on IPTV, I will do my best to show you what IPTV is capable of delivering. In the follow-up article, I will tell you what you probably will end up with, particularly in the early big Telco (Telecommunications) versions. The stakes in this techno revolution are immense with everyone trying to get their two cents in, so when politics and economics converge, you can bet the public will not come out on top. But enough of this doom an gloom talk. This could be one hell of a ride, so open your mind and get ready for a look into the near future.

IPTV is a service for sending video and data through a very large broadband pipe. It’s similar in the way DSL uses IP addresses for identifying channels and services, instead of RF (Radio Frequency). Over-the-air TV, cable and satellite are some of the most common uses for RF.

IPTV needs a big pipe (throughput); I mean a really big pipe. I’m talking about 30 Megabits and up. Phone companies like AT&T, Verizon, etc. are currently working on DSL (or equivalents) that will probably debut with the service in the 25 Mb range. There are a myriad different ways to deliver the bandwidth to the home:

1. FTTH (Fiber to the home)
2. FTTC (Fiber to the curb) - This is a fiber-copper hybrid
3. Bonding - A hybrid solution using multiple copper pairs
4. Miscellaneous others
   

If you’re wondering why so much bandwidth is necessary, well, let’s do some simple math…or maybe not so simple.

A 1.5-3 Mb range is needed for standard definition when using MPEG-4 (aka h.264), the newest video compression scheme. High Definition is compressing in the 8-10 Mb range. Let’s say the average household has between one and two HDTVs, for a total of three TV’s. So we’ll plan for four, for the sake of argument. Below is the math behind this hypothetical scenario:

High Definition (1080i) streams 2 x 10 Mb = 20
Standard definition streams 2 x 3 Mb = 6
Data requirement (new applications, surfing the internet, email, etc.) = 3-6+ Mb
Voice, overheads, etc. = 1 Mb

As you can see, bandwidth is the major factor in establishing this service. Our above example requires a range of 30+ Mb for our “average” installation.
Here is the good news; experimental pipes are in labs that could theoretically reach up to 100 Mb! In addition, the engineers concerned with the MPEG-4 standard are constantly tweaking it. They do that to increase resolution and reduce the compression size. In the foreseeable future, this will likely be a work in progress. Some of the other basic benefits to this type of service include:

• Unlimited channels, requiring only additional server space and an IP address per channel. This could include the entire network catalog and cable type channels you currently get plus any other channel available on the internet or wherever!
• Ability to change channels instantly, unlike cable or satellite digital services that seems to take forever to change a channel.
• Tiling – Let’s say you’re watching a football game. You know how sometimes they show you the insides of the production van with every single camera hardwired to a TV monitor? Well, for IPTV, the source engineers would digitize the signal and assign and IP address. Then they would send the digitized stream to the IPTV provider. At the viewers end, placement of each camera shot can appear in a matrix on one screen. Every shot is live. To select your camera view, just click on the specific view with your remote. It’s that simple. Your imagination can run wild, be it NASCAR, baseball, golf or any live or taped event.
• Picture in Picture (PIP) previewing of channels – Say goodbye to that wimpy text menu stuff. You could have all of your “Favorites” arrayed in a tiled fashion. You could have live streams or simply toggle your remote through multiple PIP’s. You can do all of this while watching live content. Yea baby!
• DVR (Digital Video Recorder) Record multiple channels at one time due to the massive bandwidth and storage. Then watch them from any TV in the house.
• On Demand TV, music and Movies – A much more robust version than what the cable companies currently offer.
  

Now for some cool possibilities. Think applications!
Heavy duty links to the internet is one important aspect of this service. This means that there are many possibilities for taking advantage of this relationship. Remember, this service is IP based. Here are some more possibilities:

• Imagine wanting to televise your church service, little league football game, residential complex tennis championships and so on. Here is the process. You simply plug a camera into a device that has an IP address (i.e., a laptop, wireless access point, hardwired device, etc.). You will call your Telco or IPTV provider, give them the IP address, they give you a channel number and a PIN code, you pay them a nominal amount and they make the connection while you are placing your order. You then hang up the phone, turn on your IPTV service, go to the channel, input the PIN and your live event instantly appears.
• Let’s say you want to keep an eye on your child. You’ll follow the same basic methodology as above. Take the stream and put it into a PIP. You can watch your movie and your child at the same time. You could even link to your security or camera arrangement in your home or business. This could easily be accomplished from anywhere in the world at any time.
  
• This could possibly change the whole advertising paradigm, as we know it. The technical ability exists for advertisers to customize their advertising based on what and when you watch TV. For example, Genos Neighborhood Pizza doesn’t want to have to spend a lot of money in a coupon or TV campaign that will net less than 5% on their investment. So, they call their IPTV provider and say they want their ad’s to be shown to people who live in specific zip codes during specific shows and with any other demographic information legally obtained. This is huge for business personnel with a need for this type of access. As a consumer, you won’t suffer through stuff that holds absolutely no interest for you.
  
• Other possibilities include customized weather, yellow pages type of information (including video the advertiser wishes you to see) and internet radio (Tivo has a version of this out now). Schools or businesses could create virtual classrooms or meeting rooms…anytime!
  
• Games! With Microsoft in the game and the Xbox 360 only a stones throw away from being IPTV capable, some amazing gaming possibilities exist.
  
• The creation of a hypertext-like environment is one possibility. You would watch a movie, a TV show or a sporting event. You’d then click on a person or thing. Subsequently, a series of menus would drop down that offer additional information about that person, thing or event. Opportunities to purchase any kind of media (ie DVDs, books, CDs, etc.) would only be a click away.
• Why buy TVs for the kids rooms, let them use their wireless laptops. This is probably good and bad news for parents.
• Communicate with your IPTV network at your home with your cell phone…send photos, videos, text, etc. •

*In Part 2: I will talk about security and the stranglehold content providers have on this type of service and about how you can realistically expect this very cool product to evolve.

This is the tip of the iceberg kids. You should be breaking down the doors of your local Telco. Demand your IPTV. I have been blessed and cursed with the knowledge of IPTV’s potential. Cable and satellite pales in comparison. I wince every time I turn on my cable. It’s downright awful. I’m tortured by knowing how close we are to the revolution. I admit and apologize that words cannot fully capture how different and robust this new service can be. I can say this, in some parts of the country this service is presently working under different trial versions.

I suggest you take this information and open your mind to the endless possibilities. I do mean endless. It is our future. Call your broadband carrier and tell them, “I want my IPTV…now!

Questions about IPTV?
Email me: Steve Brown