IPTV Rollouts in Asia/Pacific are not for Faint of Heart but Needed to Gain Market Share, says Pyramid

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts -

Despite the massive investments necessary in Asia/Pacific’s IPTV market, both in technology and content procurement, telecom operators must invest to gain subscriber market share according to a new report from Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com), the telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network (www.lightreading.com).

IPTV in Asia/Pacific: Profit Picture Fuzzy, but Momentum Building analyzes the challenges facing IPTV providers and looks at the key drivers behind service rollouts in Asia/Pacific. The 13-page report includes two case studies focusing on Hong Kong and South Korea, providing insights into the different strategies used by operators in each market to gain a foothold in the highly competitive broadcasting space. Download an excerpt of this report here: www.pyramidresearch.com/downloads.htm?id=5&sc=PR063009_INAP1.3. Media Forecasts are also available for 14 markets in Asia/Pacific and provide competitive intelligence on the pay-TV and mobile TV dynamics, market share information at both the technology and operator levels, and five-year adoption and revenue projections. Learn more here: www.pyr.com/mediafcst.htm.

Although Asia/Pacific has the distinction of having the most successful IPTV operators globally, and rollouts continue throughout the region, operators continue to face challenges in three key areas: regulatory constraints, content, and technology costs, notes Charles Moon, analysts at Pyramid Research and author of the report. “Typically, regulatory issues come first, then the mammoth challenge of valuing and procuring content along with technology issues - both of which can affect subscriber take-up and bottom lines,” says Moon.

“One of the most glaring problems surrounding IPTV has been the lack of any framework around the service, putting it in a gray area, with neither the telecom nor broadcasting regulators having clear oversight of the sector,” says Moon. Also, the initial investments required in order to acquire content can be prohibitive for smaller players. “To make matters worse, the entrenched position of cable companies in markets like Japan and South Korea make it even more difficult for new IPTV players to negotiate for content rights,” he explains. “In addition to the lack of adequate infrastructure and the high cost of STBs hindering adoption, the fight to defend market share is intensifying.”

Asia/Pacific provides good lessons for operators faced with developing a business case for IPTV services and determining an appropriate strategy for long-term success. “We believe the long-term opportunities that IPTV brings outweigh the short-term risks,” Moons says. “The promise of media, and the escape it provides from dumb-pipe business models, is encouraging carriers to take risks and make grabs for market share,” he adds. “Further, the benefits associated from capturing customers - such as lower churn, new service provisioning, and higher cash flows - provide a case for short-term sacrifices.”

IPTV in Asia/Pacific: Profit Picture Fuzzy, but Momentum Building is part of Pyramid Research’s Asia/Pacific Telecom Insider report series. Telecom Insiders are packed with trend analysis, industry best practices, market sizing and forecasting, competitor analysis, and case studies, providing you information you can leverage to make better business decisions.

Download an excerpt of this report here: www.pyramidresearch.com/downloads.htm?id=5&sc=PR063009_INAP1.3. This report is priced at US$595 and can be purchased online here: www.pyramidresearch.com/store/ins_ap_090615.htm?sc=PR063009_INAP1.3 or by contacting Jeff Claudino via email at claudino@pyr.com or telephone at +1-619-229-9940.

About Pyramid Research

Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com) offers practical solutions to the complex demands our clients face in the telecommunications, media and technology industries. Our analysis is uniquely positioned at the intersection of emerging markets, emerging technologies and emerging business models, powered by the bottom-up methodology of our market forecasts for over 100 countries-a distinction that has remained unmatched for more than 25 years. As the telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network, Pyramid Research works with Heavy Reading, providing the communications industry’s most comprehensive market data, trusted research and insightful technology analysis.

About Light Reading

Founded in 2000, Light Reading (www.lightreading.com) is the leading online media, research, and focused event company serving the US$3 trillion worldwide communications market. Lightreading.com is the ultimate source for technology and financial analysis of the communications industry, leading the media sector in terms of traffic, content, and reputation. Light Reading’s research arms, Heavy Reading and Pyramid Research, provide the most comprehensive communications research, market data, and technology analysis in close to 100 markets around the world. Light Reading produces nearly 20 targeted communications events including TelcoTV, Ethernet Expo New York and Ethernet Expo London, The Tower Summit @ CTIA, and Optical Expo, as well as focused one-day events tailored for cable, mobile, and wireline executives. Light Reading was acquired by United Business Media in August 2005 and operates as a unit of TechWeb.

About TechWeb

TechWeb (techweb.com/aboutus), the global leader in business technology media, is an innovative business focused on serving the needs of technology decision-makers and marketers worldwide. TechWeb produces the most respected and consumed media brands in the business technology market. Today, more than 13.3 million* business technology professionals actively engage in our communities created around our global face-to-face events, Interop, Web 2.0, Black Hat, and VoiceCon; online resources such as the TechWeb Network, Light Reading, Intelligent Enterprise, InformationWeek.com, bMighty.com, and The Financial Technology Network; and the market leading, award-winning InformationWeek, TechNet Magazine, MSDN Magazine, and Wall Street & Technology magazines. TechWeb also provides end-to-end services including next-generation performance marketing, integrated media, research, and analyst services. TechWeb is a division of United Business Media, a global provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a market capitalization of more than US$2.5 billion.

*13.3 million business decision-makers: based on number of monthly connections

About United Business Media Limited

UBM (UBM.L) focuses on two principal activities: worldwide information distribution, targeting and monitoring; and, the development and monetization of B2B communities and markets. UBM’s businesses inform markets and serve professional commercial communities - from doctors to game developers, from journalists to jewelry traders, from farmers to pharmacists - with integrated events, online, print and business information products. Our 6,500 staff in more than 30 countries are organized into specialist teams that serve these communities, bringing buyers and sellers together, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently. For more information, go to www.unitedbusinessmedia.com.

Press contact: Jennifer Baker +1-617-871-1910 jbaker@pyr.com

Source: Pyramid Research

Jennifer Baker of Pyramid Research, +1-617-871-1910, jbaker at pyr.com