“Not even a global financial meltdown can stop IPTV,” claims US research form In-Stat. Wishful thinking or real facts? The company claims that despite the worldwide economic crisis, subscribers to IPTV will grow more than three-fold by the end of 2012. In several key markets, like Brazil, Korea, and India, recent regulatory changes have given telco TV a real boost, the market research firm said.
“A number of new countries, including places as varied as Montenegro, Jordan, and Ghana, saw the launch of their first commercial IPTV offerings in 2008,” said Michelle Abraham, In-Stat analyst, in a statement. “Only a few markets, like Japan and Argentina, remain hamstrung by restrictions that hinder incumbent operators.”
In-Stat said research also showed that the number of telco TV subscribers will grow to 71.6 million worldwide by 2012. In the same period, worldwide subscriber revenues will increase to $26.6 billion.
Quadruple, double and single-play packages are joining triple-play offerings. Convergence applications, such as the ability to control set-top boxes from PCs and mobile phones and multi-platform video distribution, are also beginning to emerge.
