BT Vision to add a Download HD Service

BT Vision has entered an agreement with NBC Universal International Television for feature films that will appear on BT Vision's HD movie download service. Current HD films will be priced at 4.96 pounds each and library titles at 2.95 pounds.

The viewer selects an HD film and it is downloaded to the V-box set-top box that comes with the BT Vision service. The viewer is charged after the film has completely downloaded and viewing has started. The film may be watched repeatedly during a 48 hour rental period.

It is good that BT is supporting HD content; however its approach is technically not much different than over the top Internet downloading. BT's access network does not have the bandwidth to support HD streaming today. BT needs to deploy VDSL or FTTH to support streamed HD. This will put at a competitive disadvantage compared to satellite and cable in the UK.

3D Revolution

Light Reading published a keynote interview at IBC given by Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg discussing the resurgence of 3D. He said that all of the major studios have 3D projects under way. He also said that the quality of the 3D is much higher than in the past. Digital 3D is expected to be widely rolled out in 2009, when an estimated 2,500 theatre screens will be equipped with the technology.

I saw a compelling 3D HDTV demonstration by NHK at NAB. They told me that this is already available in Japan over satellite. I am going to have to figure out how much bandwidth will be required for 3D HDTV. I am sure that it will put additional strains on the access networks.

Swisscom Has 70K IPTV Subscsribers

By the end of 2007, 70 thousand households had signed up for Swisscom's Bluewin TV IPTV service. This is an increase of 10 thousand in 4Q07 compared to 20 thousand in 3Q07.

The company stated that Bluewin TV had high costs associated with it, but that its TV quality has "markedly improved". It plans to start offering HD content in 2008.

Swisscom appears to be struggling with its Bluewin TV service. At this stage of its development, I would expect to see the number of new subscriber to increase on a quarter by quarter basis, or remain constant, at least.

Free offers Unlimitid Video On Demand in Francw

Free is expanding its Video-on-Demand subscription service available on TV by launching Free Home Video Premium to all Free subscribers eligible for the broadband TV service, for €9.99/month.

This new service gives unlimited access to all of Free's thematic collections, including Cinema, Series, Music, and Children’s Entertainment. It will soon include access to a Manga theme.

Free Home Video Premium also offers a choice of HD content, including films, series and concerts. This HD content includes Pirates of the Caribbean, Die Hard: with a Vengeance, Con Air and others.

With Free Home Video Premium, Free users can also access a music video jukebox available on TV, which allows them to create personalised playlists.

Free is continuing to innovate with its IPTV service. This new subscription video on demand service with its emphasis on HD content raises the bar in France. I expect that Free's competitors will have to respond with similar offerings.

Verizon adding 120 HD Channels

Verizon plans to increase from 30 HD channels today to 150 HD channels by the end of 2008 on its FiOS TV IPTV service. By the spring of 2008, the company expects to have 60 HD channels. Its Home Media DVR will be able to record HD programming and then play them on any TV in the home connected to the FiOS TV service.

Verizon FiOS TV currently offers the following HD national channels: TNT HD, ESPN HD, ESPN2 HD, NFL Network HD, HD Net, HD Net Movies, Universal HD, Discovery HD Theater, Wealth TV HD, National Geographic Channel HD, MHD, Food Network HD, HGTV HD, Lifetime Movie Network HD and A&E HD. It also offers local broadcast channels in high definition and HD premium channels, including HBO HD, Cinemax HD, Showtime HD, TMC HD and Starz HD.

This shows that HD will become the standard method for watching TV in the U.S. over the next couple of years. The general availability of inexpensive HD sets will cause the rest of the world to follow before much longer.

PCCW Adding HD Channels in Hong Kong

PCCW in Hong Kong will broadcast more than 90 Barclay's Premier League football matches in HD starting in August 2007. PCCW will also broadcast other sporting events in HD, including 38 Italian Series A matches, 31 UEFA EURO 2008 matches and the Stanley Cup Playoffs, All Star and Regular Season Games and the Stanley Cup from the U.S. National Hockey League's 2007/08 season.

In addition, PCCW will provide value-added services to tie in with the launch of the 2007/08 season of the Barclays Premier League. For example, viewers will be able to view four live matches simultaneously via a split-screen function, as well as other interactive features that allow viewers to retrieve information on any Premiere League team or player by using the TV remote control.

To view HD programs, subscribers need to replace the standard set-top box with an HD version at the promotional rate of US$5/month (regular price US$10/month) for the set-top box rental. Customers subscribing to the US$62.50 Super Value Pack will receive the HD set-top box at no additional cost. The HD Sports package will be available to now TV Mega Sports Pack subscribers at at promotional rate of US$8.75/month (regular price US$11.25/month). There is a one-off charge for HD service installation and activation.

Also in August, PCCW will offer a dedicated HD channel, VOOM HD, which offers a collection of HD programming, including adventure travel, fashion, luxury lifestyles, art, live concerts, action sports and video games. Additional HD programming will be offered later.

This is the first HD IPTV offering in Asia. It shows that HD is becoming a global phenomenon. The low cost of HD sets will push all IPTV service providers into HD over the next couple of years.

BBC to Launch HD

The BBC in the UK plans to launch HD on as many platforms as possible in 2008. It is currently offering HD over satellite and is getting a strong positive reception. It believes that 80 percent of the homes in the UK will have HD sets by the end of the decade.

This move to HD will put significant pressure on the new BT Vision service. BT's broadband network does not provide enough speed to support HD today. The availability of HD on satellite and cable is likely to increase the acceptance of these services.

HD's Strong Appeal in Europe

The BBC has published an interesting study of user reactions to HD in the UK. As you can imagine, they loved it. You can find the study at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/info/policies/pdf/dtt_hdtrial.pdf

Both BT and FastWeb have told me that they did not think that HD would be as strong in Europe as it is in North America. They both said that the improvement from HD is not as great in Europe because their SD sets have higher resolution.

I did not buy their argument. I think this study confirms that HD will be quite strong in Europe. Service providers in Europe need to upgrade their networks to support it or it will pass them by.