Neuf Cegetel Fiber Deployment

Neuf Cegetel has initiated a FTTH deployment. It will use Alcatel-Lucent PON systems and Ericsson Redback access routers to support this network.

Neuf Cegetel is now joining France Telecom and Free in starting FTTH efforts in France. Just another good reason to move to Paris!

Sony PS3 IPTV Set-top Box

It has been reported that Korea Telecom will offer the Sony Playstation 3 game console as a set-top box for its IPTV service.

This is a response to Microsoft using its Xbox game console as a Mediaroom set-top box. It makes a lot of sense for both companies, especially where there are a lot of serious gamers.

Belgacom Retaining Nokia Siemens Middleware

Belgacom has extended its contract with Nokia Siemens for middleware software and integration services for another three years. Nokia Siemens will also provide set-top boxes to Belgacom to support HD services using MPEG-4 compression. Nokia Siemens has been providing these services to Belgacom since 2004. Belgacom had 191 thousand IPTV subscribers at the end of June 2007.

This settles this issue for Nokia Siemens. We had picked up rumors that Belgacom would move to the Alcatel-Lucent MiView middleware software. Clearly, this has not come to pass.

Telefonica Tuning Up Imagenio IPTV

Telefonica of Spain will add 40 more broadcast channels and a new NPVR service starting in November 2007. The 40 new channels will bring its total t0 160 and include summaries of the Spanish Football League, children' channels, culture, entertainment as well as channels for ex pats living in Spain.

The NPVR service will be called "Past TV" and will provide access to broadcasts from the previous week. It will include advertisements; however, viewers will be able to fast forward through them. It will also offer a set-top box with PVR capability that will be able to store up to 100 hours.

The Imagenio IPTV service will be part of a triple play service over a 10 Mbps broadband link at €48.90 per month.

This upgrade of the Imagenio IPTV service should generate a significant acceleration its growth as long as it is supported with a strong marketing program.

180Squared Providng Microsoft Applications

A new company called 180Squared provides applications for Microsoft's Mediaroom that include:

• Device activation
• Billing
• Service assurance
• On screen Caller ID

180Squared was formed by former Microsoft people who were part of the Mediaroom project.

Our recent report Opportunities in IPTV forecasts that Microsoft will become the leading IPTV middleware and video on demand system provider, which will create a large market for 180Squared. The question I wonder about is how many of the large providers that have selected Microsoft are likely to be interested in 180Squared's products. However, this market is still in a very early stage, so that there is a lot of opportunity for a smart startup.

Interview with Oki Electric about Japanese IPTV Market

I recently had an interview with Oki Electric in Japan. Oki has been active in the Japanese IPTV market supporting NTT’s various efforts. Oki explained to me that NTT has set up three separate IPTV services

• 4th MEDIA which offers broadcast and on demand content.
• OCN Theater which had only offered on demand content, but now is including broadcast content to its service.
• On Demand TV which offers broadcast content and on demand content.

Oki said that NTT has a plan to restructure its IPTV for NGN, the next-generation network. These separate services evolved this way due to separate efforts in NTT group companies as well as due to regulatory restrictions that have made it difficult for NTT to enter the IPTV market.

Oki provides video on demand servers to 4th MEDIA. Oki also provides middleware and content security systems to 4th Media.

Oki is also entering the IPTV set-top box market. It will start shipping an IPTV set-top box to trials in China before the end of 2007.

The IPTV market has been quite complex in Japan. NTT has had to take several approaches to overcome regulatory obstacles. It appears that this complexity may reduce over time.

Chunghwa Telecom Interview

I had an interview with Chunghwa Telecom. Chunghwa now has 360 thousand IPTV subscribers for its Multimedia On Demand (MOD) service that it offers in Taipei and the other two largest cities in Taiwan. It expects its IPTV network to receive a government license before the end of 2007. With that license it will be able to deploy IPTV across the entire island of Taiwan. This license will also provide Chunghwa access to additional TV channels and other content that will bring its service up to the same level as the cable companies in Taiwan.

Chunghwa is currently conducting trials of HD content that it expects to introduce in 2008. The cable companies in Taiwan are not able to offer HD content, so this will give Chunghwa a significant competitive advantage. It believes that there will be strong interest in HD in Taiwan.

Chunghwa’s karaoke on demand and game offerings are also popular. Many subscribers use its karaoke on demand service. It offers a finger-guessing game that was developed on Japan using adult contents. The Major League Baseball game is also popular because many people are following Chien-Ming Wang, who plays for the New York Yankees.

Chunghwa’s IPTV service is based on the following systems:

• Alcatel access systems along with its installed base of ECI systems for ADSL-2+.
• It will soon start deploying EPON based on Sumitomo systems
• Video headend from Ericsson’s Tandberg TV
• Video on demand from Alcatel
• Middleware is Alcatel’s OMP system
• Content security from Widevine
• Set-top boxes form Foxconn and Hwacom

Chunghwa’s technology base has been evolving since it introduced its service. It used Orca middleware and Pace set-top boxes for its first 40 thousand subscribers and then switched to Alcatel-Lucent’s OMP and both Foxconn and Hwacom set-top boxes. Moving its subscribers from Orca and Pace to its current systems has been difficult and is just now completing.

Chunghwa expects to continue its evolution and is currently considering converting to the Microsoft Media Room IPTV software. There was an announcement in May of a broad joint relationship between Microsoft and Chunghwa that included moving its MOD service to the Media Room.

Chunghwa is making good progress and it looks like its IPTV service should accelerate next year after it receives its certification. It is following a difficult technical path with all of these changes in technology, but it should continue to do well as long as it keeps its focus on providing the best service to its customers.