Both legacy TV and PC are losing ground to smartphones and tablets and will continue to do so over the next decade, with mobile video accounting for over 20% of total viewing by then. This is among insights from The Diffusion Group’s (TDG) latest report, TV Gets Personal — Trends in Mobile Video Viewing, 2015-2025, which suggests the trend is being driven by cultural factors associated with the increasing capability of mobile devices and networks.
In 1956, Zenith released the first television remote to gain widespread popularity. It worked on ultrasound waves and was the size of a small Bible. Functionality was pretty basic: it could turn the TV on and off, scroll through all 13 channels and mute the volume. In the nearly 60 years since its debut remotes have steadily evolved, morphed and grown to all sizes and shapes, even integrated into our cell phones and tablets to become part of our everyday connected lives. Although this physical interaction with the TV is evolving, the on-screen interactive experience is not keeping up with the needs of TV viewers.
Having been once the new kid on the block IPTV is now part of the pay TV mainstream facing the rising challenge of OTT, but it still has momentum even in the leading developed markets. IPTV single handedly dragged the US pay TV market back to growth in the last quarter of 2014 after two quarters of decline, while the same happened in several European countries including the Netherlands.
Optical and imaging tech vendor ImmerVision has debuted a 360°panomorph front-facing camera for smartphones and tablets. The software package facilitates the capture of videos and pictures in 360° and the navigation of the images or video in 360°, live or in playback mode.
The UK’s DPP may have set the bar high in terms of standard file-delivery and compliance but other territories are working toward their own version which means vendors need to rework their tools to fit.
John Watkinson* looks at the importance of virus protection and some methods to help prevent cyber-attacks. Some steps may include proper staff training to adopting unique hardware and software designs.
Controlling content quality for delivery in an increasingly diverse array of formats to multiple platforms is time-consuming and costly, particularly in the rush to prepare and exchange file-based media between post production, distribution and broadcast facilities. There are now ways to automate that time-consuming process, but the question broadcasters and facilities houses should ask themselves when they are considering an investment in auto-QC technology is, “Does this auto-QC software just tell me where the problems, are or will it tell me where they are and fix them for me”?
Operators are increasingly challenged by the multiple DRM systems required to serve the wide variety of devices popular with consumers, including proprietary devices like Microsoft’s Xbox that only support one DRM type. This leads to integrating, maintaining and operating several DRM systems. Cloud DRM allows an operator to outsource the operational complexity of dealing with such on-site DRM systems. Another cloud DRM operator benefit is the addition of elasticity that a cloud solution can offer when there is a peak in consumer demand.
