Even as Pay-TV cord-cutting keeps climbing, video programming remains a key component for cable operators and other providers aiming to support their broadband, mobile and other services. As proven once again by the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers hunger for video content to meet their entertainment, education, information, communication and other needs.
Unfortunately, rising content costs and mounting consumer expectations are making it tougher for operators to invest the sums needed to deliver a compelling viewing experience profitably. This is especially true for small and midsized providers, who lack both the capital and the bargaining clout with large content providers.
But that doesn’t mean exceptional TV service is beyond the reach of even the smallest operators. Fortunately, there are key steps that even small operators can take to deliver superior service by switching to a pioneering IP video delivery system.
In a new white paper, Enghouse Networks spells out the five simple, practical steps that operators can take to make IPTV easy. The paper runs through the latest TV viewing trends, the explosion of new video content, formats and platforms, the challenges they raise, and the advanced services that Enghouse’s new IP video solution enables.
What’s critical to remember here is that TV has entered a new golden age. Thanks to a virtuous cycle of new content, new formats, new delivery platforms and new competitors, especially the rise of streaming video, TV is truly better than ever. In fact, the nine leading U.S. streaming players collectively spent more than $45 billion on content in 2020, led by Netflix with a whopping $18.5 billion.
But, at the same time, TV viewing is also much more complicated and confusing than ever, making it increasingly hard for viewers to navigate. With more content providers delivering more programing in more formats over more distribution platforms, the viewing environment is a far cry from the three or four network options of yesteryear. Plus, other new content sources have erupted over the past few years, including video gaming and e-sports.
As a result, consumers now rely on more sources than ever before for their precious TV content. In fact, the number of sources per user has shot up more than 50% since 2018.
Given these factors, there is clearly a strong market need for a more advanced video platform that fuses traditional TV services with content from streaming video, gaming, e-sports and other new sources. Accordingly, Enghouse Networks and Access Communications Co-operative have teamed up to develop just such a platform, which they are now offering to other Canadian service providers like Access.
Known as EspialTV, this new hosted platform leverages a cloud-based headend to deliver more than 200 live TV channels, a network DVR, and catch-up service and restart functions. The platform also supports streaming and on-demand content.
As a hosted service, EspialTV takes much of the uncertainty out of creating and delivering a next-generation video offering. Also, the wholesale TV service can expand to cover emerging video-related applications.
Can you make customer service more immediate? How can you use analytics to anticipate and correct problems before they arrive? By centering your customer view around lifetime value using data to offer a continually more responsive service your company can quickly develop an edge.
