OSP Central - International Update

Market research firm Infonetics Research released excerpts from 2 recent video reports: "Video-on-Demand (VOD) and Encoder Equipment and Video Subscribers", which tracks equipment sold to telco IPTV, cable video, and satellite video providers; and "Set-Top Boxes and Subscribers", which tracks IP, cable, satellite, and hybrid set-top boxes (STBs) and over-the-top (OTT) media servers.

"2012 will be a watershed year for TV Everywhere services, as operators across the globe closely watch Comcast, Cablevision and Time Warner Cable to see if adding these services will have a positive impact on subscriber churn and revenue," expects Jeff Heynen, directing analyst for broadband access and video at Infonetics Research. "TV Everywhere and other multi-screen video initiatives are fundamentally changing the TV business model, with apps streaming live TV to iPads, and telcos and cable companies offering home automation, security, and video conferencing to subscribers in an effort to make the TV the hub of the digital home."

Heynen adds: "Demand for digital, HD, and premium video content and services will continue to drive revenue growth in the VOD and encoder market, but the set-top box market won't fare as well: despite increasing demand, overall STB revenue is expected to decline starting in 2013, due to falling ASPs."

Market highlights include:

….Infonetics forecasts the global video infrastructure market, including IPTV, cable and satellite video infrastructure, to grow 9% in 2012, to over $875 million.

….5 players hold more than 2/3 of the global VOD and streaming content server market: Huawei, Motorola, Cisco, ZTE, and Concurrent.

….Much of the future growth in the video infrastructure market will come from MPEG-4 HD encoders.

….China is on pace to outspend all regions on VOD and streaming content server gear as operators including China Telecom and China Unicom add VOD streams.

….Infonetics expects the number of IPTV subscribers to more than double from 2012 to 2016, when it will hit 168 million worldwide, with the majority in Asia and Europe.