ACMA report on IPTV and internet video services in Australia

Wednesday, May 7th, 2008
ACMA logo

The Australian market for internet protocol television (IPTV) and internet video is less developed than many other international markets, with fewer than five IPTV providers and fifteen internet video providers offering full-length professional content directly to consumers, according to a report by the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

IPTV and Internet video services, released today, is the first of a series of reports examining the delivery of content over IP.

Industry participants interviewed for the study believed that IPTV and internet video will become more common in Australia in the future but there was disagreement over the actual timeframe, with estimates ranging from 18 months to three years.

At a basic level, IPTV is the delivery of multimedia services over a managed IP network. In the communications industry, IPTV is often seen as ‘Telco TV’, a subscription television service offered by DSL-based telecommunication carriers.

There are several supply-side factors acting as barriers for IPTV and internet video deployment. Internet video providers believed that capped plans for broadband access and the cost of downloads were important barriers to take-up and deployment. Capital expenditure requirements were cited as a major barrier for potential IPTV deployments, although this may become less important with a national fibre to the node (FTTN) network rollout.

New delivery methods, new types of content and engaged consumers are driving significant change in the media and communications industries. Examples include the appearance of social networking websites, the rise of user-generated content and new online avenues for obtaining entertainment, including music, TV and film content and interactive games.

The development of IPTV and internet video is one small part of these overall changes. This report is intended to provide an introductory overview of the IPTV and internet video market in Australia. Future ACMA research will examine areas such as online content provision and emerging content business models.

More: The Report