A Look at IPTV

Q-Tip writes "Ars Technica has posted an introduction to IPTV, which is the TV programming technology AT&T (and formerly BellSouth) will be using to provide TV service over its next-gen optical network. The article covers how IPTV works and how AT&T and other providers will be able to provide more interactive services once their networks are up and running."

Comments

Interactive services?

[91degrees]

I don't want an interactive service. I want to passively sit on my butt and watch TV!

Re:Interactive services?

[LordSnooty]

Mod him up. Interactive services are the great white (red?) elephants of modern TV. Content providers only push them as a revenue stream. They rarely offer anything insightful - in the UK, I can only think of the BBC's sport coverage, offering eg actions from many courts at Wimbledon. In the commercial sector, just ask Andy Duncan of Channel 4 whether interactive services are worthwhile. In the US, do we see much interactive penetration? Has Fox convinced idiots to part with money to vote via the TV on American Idol? For this is surely the only useful application, in their eyes.

Re:Interactive services?

[hhawk]

The reality is that interactive TV is here today.

Video on Demand is really the crown jewel of that. The parts that haven't yet made it including being able to
vote on American Idol WITHOUT getting off your ass.

The rest, as we always say waits for a "killer app." Who know what that will be, a few suggestions:

1) being able to turn OFF the text Scroll at the bottom of
news stations like CNN or control what does scroll.

2) On a sports broadcast controlling what stats are displayed, picking camera angles, etc.

3) Besides voting, all manner of interaction for reality TV shows.

Hmm HDTV Still Cripled...

[Xserv]

This doesn't seem like a good idea. The bandwidth is STILL an issue and it's crippling HDTV signals still. Isn't this kind of a waste of time? Xserv

Re:Hmm HDTV Still Cripled...

[Goth Biker Babe]

The thing about IPTV is that, unlike cable/satellite where you have to broadcast all of the channels all of the time, you only need broadcast those channels that are needed. This means that at worst each home only needs enough bandwidth for four channels (assuming PVRs and multiple STBs). With an appropriately designed network you can get away with far less bandwidth. Yes HD is not possible with current ADSL speeds (although SD IPTV is more than possible) but they are talking about 20Mb for next gen. ADSL which is plenty.

More competition is good, lag is bad

[digitaldc]

When the local office receives this request, it checks to make sure that the user is authorized to view the new channel, then directs the routers in the local office to add that particular user to the channel's distribution list. In this way, only signals that are currently being watched are actually being sent from the local office to the DSLAM and on to the user.

Sounds like if you change the 'channel' you will have to wait for it to load a few packets to get it started first, I don't see how it could be instantaneous or even quicker than a few seconds. But if most things were 'on-demand' it may not matter that much.

More competition will hopefully mean that our cable bills will go down. Wait and see...

WOW, there is nothing but shite on TV isn't there.

[Shivetya]

Hate to break it to ya but this line is nearly as old as TV itself.

There is never anything on TV to watch but many will still watch something anyway. Face it, people like to complain but do nothing about it. They will still turn the same old shite on and just be content to bitch about it.

With hundreds of channels there is bound to be something on that is appealing enough to prevent most from turning the set off. With video on demand services and TIVO devices there are even more opportunities for TV to be part of people's lives.

The only way TV is going away is when we manage to convince people to call it something else. It will still have nothing for us to watch or do that we "want" to watch or do but we still will.

go figure

...Said the guy in 1979

[Big_Al_B]

when coax cable got strung to his door.

Great, now they can see what I watch

[Anonymous Coward]

With IPTV, it will be possible for the cable companies to log exactly what channels I watch when. What about privacy?

Re:Coming at ya like a (slow) freight train ...

[Lord_Dweomer]

"One more prediction: Watch for a la carte TV to become a reality in the next 2-3 years. The reason being that as all of this competition heats up, networks (think Turner or Discovery) will start to wake-up to the fact that there is a niche of viewers out there who would like to pay them directly for delivery of a reasonable-quality stream over the broadband connection they already have ... and that they can deliver that product without giving the cable company (or the telco) a sniff of the fee."

Unfortunately, I think this is the one innovation that all providers (including AT&T) will be fighting tooth and nail. The majority of idiots who they hope will migrate to this won't be begging for a la carte tv, so they will have proof that "people want bundles!" which they will continue to ram down our throats because they make more money off of them right now than they supposedly would off of a la carte. Of course, since none of them have ventured to try this nobody can be sure. The only example they have is premium channels like Showtime and HBO who....well....who have done quite well for themselves because of their EXCELLENT content that people willing to pay a premium for.

Re:Wait times

[sootman]

You change channels? Huh. Interesting. The only delay I experience while watching TV is waiting for my TiVo's 'now playing' list to populate.