Picture quality (including size) was and remains the #1 selling feature for TV. Second and third were always design and sound quality.
This article claims people like navigation options and controllablity; but in the USA settop box world that seems awkward. Maybe people do like more choice than there single STB and TVs can play a prime role in making it accessible.
A small news item with a significant potential impact. The geographical fencing in the EU for content distribution is gradually broken down. The EU will enforce non-exclusivity on content distribution by country/territory in contracts as well as effectively outlaw cross border distribution limits set in contracts between content owners and distributors.
The European Commission has made concessions in Paramount’s film contracts with Sky UK binding under European law.
Zattoo, a German OTT channel streaming service has commissioned market research from TNS Infratest regarding appreciation of the German public about the ability to view TV over the internet. Roughly 50% thinks this is possible, which is a large increase (60%) from the year before.
Trends are strong. 30% already streams to the main screen, VOD mostly but also linear TV like Zattoo is delivering. Online viewing is an important part of TV viewing: 60% is using online viewing, 25% of which is using it almost exclusively.
Here is a nice infographic (translation by UC-Connect):
The latest development in the Dutch media landscape is that the Dutch broadcasters are aggregating their OTT and offering live streaming in one online platform. Dutch internet penetration is high. Access speeds are high based on pervasive, cable and decent A/VDSL and also gradually increasingly FTH infrastructure. Netflix took the Netherlands in no time. As part of their TV everywhere offer Ziggo (cable) and KPN (fiber, telecom) already offered streaming content in homes and also outside homes (including over 3&4G networks, as regular data – i.e. not for mainstream watching). KPN also intends to make a network indepedent OTT offer KPN Play.
Not to be outdone and gradually become insignificant the Dutch broadcasters are moving to stream their content online from one aggregated platform called NLZiet indepedent of the network operator. For €8,- a month you can catchup 4000 episodes and without adds and (in the near future) watch live TV from all main and thematic channels. An app is available for iOS and it works with Chromecast and AppleTV. The Android app is in test phase. PC may follow.
With this much emphasis on online distribution and such high high-speed internet penetration one may wonder what the lifetime of DTT in the Netherlands still can be. KPN still operates the PayTV service Digitenne which has been jacked up in price all the time from €7 a month when it started to €14 a month now: this for essentially the basic broadcast channels and no catchup content. It seems that KPN is trying their utmost to move their Digitenne customers onto IPTV or KPN Play and stop DTT. The license is up for renewal in 2017. KPN seems not very eager to invest in DVB-T2 and HD. Dutch public broadcasters are considering to move in; if this would be permitted. There is also a plan to extend the Digitenne license for 3 years (which sounds like an end-of-life construct). KPN is also rumoured to test 4G broadcasting.
Source a.o. BroadbandTVNews: Dutch broadcasters test live OTT streaming
Cloud PVR has many advantages over box based PVR. The nscreemmedia article below mentions these:
There are a few that may be even more important that seem to have been overlooked:
Source: Four reasons cloud DVR is better than a box – nScreenMedia